Chapter One Mechanics 1
1.1 General Remarks 1
1.2 Margins,Paragraphing,and Handwriting 1
1.2.1 Margins 1
1.2.2 Paragraphing 2
1.2.3 Handwriting 3
1.3 Syllabification/Syllable Structure 3
1.4 Abbreviation and Numerals 4
1.4.1 Abbreviations 4
1.4.2 Numerals 6
1.5 Capitalization 7
Exercises 11
Chapter Two Punctuation Marks 14
2.1 General Remarks 14
2.2 Line-beginning Punctuation Marks 15
2.3 Sentence-ending Punctuation Marks 15
2.3.1 The Period/The Full Stop 16
2.3.2 The Question Mark 17
2.3.3 The Exclamation Point 18
2.4 Internal Punctuation Marks 18
2.4.1 The Comma 19
2.4.2 The Semicolon 23
2.4.3 The Colon 25
2.4.4 Quotation Marks 26
2.4.5 The Dash 27
2.4.6 Parentheses 28
2.4.7 Brackets 29
2.4.8 The Apostrophe 30
2.4.9 The Hyphen 30
2.4.10 The Virgule/Slant 32
2.4.11 Italics/Underlining 32
2.5 Some Points about the Use of Punctuation Marks 33
Exercises 34
Chapter Three Diction 40
3.1 General Remarks 40
3.2 Appropriateness and Sense of Style 41
3.2.1 Sense of Style 41
3.2.2 Degree of Word Formality 42
3.3 Exactness and Use of Synonymous Words and Expressions 45
3.4 Specificity,Concreteness,and Conciseness 49
3.5 Imagery/Figures of Speech 53
3.5.1 Metaphor and Simile 53
3.5.2 Personification 54
3.5.3 Hyperbole 54
3.5.4 Euphemism 55
Exercises 56
Chapter Four Sentence Writing 61
4.1 General Remarks 61
4.1.1 Sentence Sense 61
4.1.2 The Requirements of an Effective Sentence 62
4.1.3 Sentence Elements 66
4.1.4 Sentence Patterns 67
4.2 Parts of Speech and Their Respective Functions and Positions in a Sentence 69
4.2.1 Nouns 70
4.2.2 Pronouns 70
4.2.3 Adjectives 70
4.2.4 Adverbs 72
4.2.5 Prepositions 78
4.2.6 Conjunctions 78
4.3 Phrases,Clauses,and Sentence Fragments 79
4.3.1 Phrases 79
4.3.2 Clauses 81
4.3.3 Recognizing and Avoiding Sentence Fragments 83
4.4 Classification of Sentences 85
4.4.1 Declarative,Interrogative,Imperative,and Exclamatory Sentences 85
4.4.2 Simple,Complex,Compound,and Compound-complex Sentences 85
4.4.3 Loose,Periodic,Mixed,and Balanced Sentences 86
4.4.4 Long and Short Sentences 88
4.4.5 Recognizing and Avoiding Comma splices and Fused Sentences 89
4.5 Ways of Achieving Sentence Variety 91
4.5.1 Achieving Sentence Variety via Combination 92
4.5.2 Achieving Sentence Variety via Coordination 93
4.5.3 Achieving Sentence variety by Using Parallel Structure 95
4.5.4 Achieving Sentence Variety via Subordination 97
4.5.5 Achieving Sentence Variety by Using Modifying Phrases 98
4.5.6 Achieving Sentence Variety by Using Appositives 99
4.5.7 Achieving Sentence Variety by Applying Inversion 100
4.5.8 Achieving Sentence Variety by Employing Emphatic Sentence Structures 100
4.5.9 Achieving Sentence Variety by Using Inanimate Subjects 101
Exercises 101
Chapter Five Paragraph Writing 114
5.1 General Remarks 114
5.2 Types of Paragraphs 115
5.2.1 The Topical Paragraph 115
5.2.2 The Introductory Paragraph 116
5.2.3 The Transitional Paragraph 116
5.2.4 The Conclusion Paragraph 117
5.3 The Basic Structure and Qualities of a Topical Paragraph 118
5.3.1 The Unity of a Topical Paragraph 118
5.3.2 The Topic Sentence(TS)of a Topical Paragraph 120
5.3.3 The Supporting Sentences(SS)in a Topical Paragraph 124
5.3.4 The Concluding Sentence(CS)in a Topical Paragraph 125
5.3.5 The Coherence of a Topical Paragraph 126
5.3.6 The Order of a Topical Paragraph 128
5.3.7 The Continuity of a Topical Paragraph 134
5.3.8 The Completeness of a Topical Paragraph 138
5.4 Steps Usually Taken in Writing a Topical Paragraph 139
5.5 Evaluation of a Topical Paragraph 141
Exercises 142
Chapter Six Essay Writing 157
6.1 General Remarks 157
6.2 The Basic Structure of an Essay 158
6.2.1 The Introduction of an Essay 159
6.2.2 The Body of an Essay 162
6.2.3 The Conclusion of an Essay 162
6.3 Types of Essays 165
6.3.1 Narrative Essays 165
6.3.2 Descriptive Essays 169
6.3.3 Expositive Essays 171
6.3.4 Argumentative Essays 173
6.4 The Process of Writing an Essay and Evaluation of an Essay 175
6.4.1 The Process of Writing an Essay 175
6.4.2 Evaluation of an Essay 176
6.5 Sample Essays and Discussions 178
Exercises 192
Chapter Seven Letter Writing 198
7.1 General Remarks 198
7.2 Addressing an Envelope 199
7.3 The Format/Lay-out of a Letter 201
7.3.1 The Heading 201
7.3.2 The Date 202
7.3.3 The Salutation 203
7.3.4 The Body 203
7.3.5 The Complimentary Close 203
7.3.6 The Signature 204
7.4 Personal Letter Writing 205
7.4.1 Family Letter Writing 205
7.4.2 Friendly Letter Writing 209
7.5 Social Letter Writing 212
Exercises 217
Chapter Eight Note Writing 223
8.1 General Remarks 223
8.2 The Content of a Note 224
8.3 The Language of a Note 225
8.4 The Format of a Note 228
8.5 Guidelines for Writing Effective Notes 229
Exercises 230
Chapter Nine Business Writing 231
9.1 General Remarks 231
9.2 The Format of a Business Letter 233
9.2.1 The Heading and the Date 233
9.2.2 The Inside Address 233
9.2.3 The Salutation 235
9.2.4 The Body 235
9.2.5 The Complimentary Close 236
9.2.6 The Signature 237
9.3 Application Letter and Résur？e Writing 244
9.3.1 A Request Letter for an Application Form 245
9.3.2 A Sample Letter of Application 246
9.3.3 General Remarks about Résu？e Writing 247
9.3.4 Sample Résumé 249
9.4 Sample Business Letters for Various Purposes 251
9.5 Evaluation of a Business Letter 258
Exercises 258
Chapter Ten Miscellaneous Practical Writing 262
10.1 General Remarks about Diagrammatic Information Transferring 262
10.2 The Content and Some Useful Expressions Used in Diagrammatic Description 264
10.3 Steps Usually Taken in Diagrammatic Description and Sample Articles 265
10.3.1 Steps Usually Taken in Diagrammatic Description 265
10.3.2 Sample Articles of Diagrammatic Description 267
10.4 Summary Writing 272
10.4.1 General Remarks about Summary Writing 272
10.4.2 Summary Writing Process 273
10.5 E-mail Writing 276
Exercises 276
Appendix Ⅰ Correction Symbols 279
Appendix Ⅱ The Fifty States of U.S.A.and Their Abbreviations 281
Appendix Ⅲ Writing Terms 282
Appendix Ⅳ Useful Expressions and Idioms and Proverbs 292
Appendix Ⅴ Key to Exercises 304
Bibliography 323