CHAPTER 4Examples/ Exemplification

1. “An example is a specific instance or An example is a specific instance or fact that is used to support an idea or a fact that is used to support an idea or a general statementgeneral statement.” “Writers frequently use examples to explain or illustrateillustrate a main idea” (73).

2. “Examples in an essay can both illustrateillustrate and supportsupport the thesis” . . . by providing “evidence in the for of actual situations that illustrate the thesis,” thus helping “convince the reader that the thesis is valid” (74).

Sentence StructuresSentence Structures::

1.1. To take an example/instance fromTo take an example/instance from English, the word “inconceivable” is written as one word but consists of three morphemes.

2. Institutions such assuch as schools play a significant role in the establishment of young people’s cultural identity.

3. People with tooth decay should avoid sweet foods, e.g.e.g. (exempli gratiaexempli gratia) cake, chocolate, and ice cream.

4. This theory can be best illustrated by the can be best illustrated by the fact thatfact that proficient learners build up an extensive vocabulary by constant reading.

5. The current event shows shows (exemplifies, exemplifies, illustratesillustrates) this concept.

6.6. The following example will serve to The following example will serve to clarify the negative effectsclarify the negative effects on children watching TV.

7. Senior officers—i. ei. e.,., anyone with the rank of colonel or above—get their own administrative staff. (id est id est = that is to say)

The most common types of supporting the thesis

1.1. Brief ExamplesBrief Examples: relating brief examples drawn from one’s own personal experiences or direct observations.

2.2. Extended Examples: Extended Examples: longer, more detailed narratives of events that have involved you or people you know.

3.3. Statistics: Statistics: If statistics are used fairly and correctly and are drawn from reliable resources, they are the most credible and effective type of support.

4.4. Expert Opinion or Testimony: Expert Opinion or Testimony: information from or statements by authorities on the subject about which you are writing.

(A)(A) People, at least the ones in my town, seem to have become ruder as the population has increased. Yesterday, several drivers came up behind me gestured rudely even though I was driving 10 miles per hour over the speed limit. The other day, as my friend and I were sitting on the seawall, watching the sunset listening to the ocean waves, a rollerblader with a boom box going full blast sat down next to us. When we politely asked him to turn off his radio, he cursed at us and skated off. Every day, I see perfectly healthy people parking in spaces reserved for the handicapped, smokers lighting up in no-smoking areas and refusing to leave when asked, and people shoving their way into lines at movie theaters and grocery stores.

(B)(B) The senseless, brutal violence that we read about in the newspapers every day seems very distant from the average person, but it is really not far away at all. In fact, it can strike any one of us without any warning—just as it struck my uncle Silas last week. After having dinner with his wife and children, Silas had driven to the gas station at the corner of the First St. and Fifth St., where he was working part-time to earn extra money. Some time around 11:00 p.m., two men carrying a rifle and a shotgun approached him and demanded money. Uncle Silas was a good, brave man, but he was a realistic person. He knew when to cooperate, and that’s just what he did. He opened the cash register and the safe, then handed the intruders the keys to his new truck. Suddenly, they shot him in the head and ran away.

(C)(C) Parents must strive to find alternative to the physical punishment of children. Almost every effect of punishment is negative. Dr. Thomas Price, famous psychologist and professor at Stanford University, writes “Punishment is a traumatic experience not only in itself but also because it disappoints the child’s wish to believe in the benevolence of the parent, on which his sense of security rests.”

(D)(D) In fact, according to a study by the American Psychological Association, the average American

child will view 8,000 murders and 100,000 other acts of violence before finishing elementary school. The average 27 hours a week kids spend watching TV—much of it violent—makes them more prone to aggressive and violent behaviors as adolescents and adults. TV executives have known this for a long time. One of the most comprehensive studies of the impact of violent TV was commissioned by CBS back in 1978. it found that teenage boys who have watched more hours of violent TV than average before adolescence were committing such violent crimes as rape and assault as a rate 49 percent higher than boys who watched fewer than average hours of violent TV.

““The Social Meaning of T-Shirts”The Social Meaning of T-Shirts”Diana CraneDiana Crane

1. co-opted1. co-opted ( 第 2 段第 6 行 ): to assimilate, take, or win over into a larger or established group

2. cachetcachet ( 第 2 段第 8 行 ): a sign or expression of approval

3. grass-rootgrass-root ( 第 2 段第 12 行 ): of, pertaining to, or involving the common people, esp. as contrasted with or separable from an elite

4. bootleggedbootlegged ( 第 2 段第 12 行 ): something, made, reproduced, or sold illegally or without authorization

5. dreadlockdreadlock ( 第 2 段第 16 行 ): heavy matted coils of hair

6. affirmationaffirmation (88 頁第 4 行 ): the assertion that something exists or is true

7. batterbatter (88 頁第 6 行 ): to beat persistently or hard; pound repeatedly

8. venuevenue (88 頁第 7 行 ): the scene or locale of any action or event

9. sentimentsentiment (88 頁第 10 行 ): an attitude toward something; regard; opinion

10. denigrationdenigration (88 頁第 10 行 ): to attack the character or reputation of; speak ill of; defame

11. confiscate confiscate (88 頁倒數第 2 行 ): to seize (private property) for the public treasury

Answer to Questions About the ReadingAnswer to Questions About the Reading 1. The use of T-shirts to communicate information

began in the late 1940s (with faces and political slogans) and in the 1960s with commercial logos and other designs) ( 第 1 段 )

2. Plastic inks, plastic transfers, and spray paint increase the use of T-shirts to communicate.

( 第 1 段 ) 3. The use of T-shirts to communicate differs from

the use of the hat (which signaled social class status) by communicating “issues related to ideology, difference, and myth: politics, race, gender, and leisure.” ( 第 2 段第 4 行 )

4. The Bart Simpson T-shirt appeared to affirm African Americans as an ethnic group and to comment on “the narrow range of roles for black characters” on The Simpsons. (88 頁第 4行 )

5. He was “arrested and interrogated, and the T-shirts were confiscated and destroyed” because the T-shirts were considered politically threatening. (88 頁倒數第 2 行 )

Answer to Questions About the Writer’s Strategies

1. The main idea: Implied. T-shirts are a means of “social and political expression.” ( 第 3段第 1 行 )

2. a. The Bart Simpson T-shirts

b. T-shirts that advertise products, support

social and political commitment and

causes, denigrate others, and express

cynicism.

3. Each example is meant to communicate the wide range of issues or causes that T-shirts communicate.

4. a. The 2nd paragraph could be made into more than one paragraph. b. The new paragraph starts from (87 頁倒數 第 6 行 )“Occasionally, the T-shirt . . . for black characters on the show.” and (88 頁 第 4 行 ) “Victims of gender-related . . . Global advertising.”

c. The NEW topic sentence:

2nd: ““Occasionally, the T-shirt becomes a Occasionally, the T-shirt becomes a

medium for grass-root resistance.”medium for grass-root resistance.”

3rd: “Other T-shirts make statements “Other T-shirts make statements

about about gender-related experiences, gender-related experiences,

hostilities, or cultural cynicism.”hostilities, or cultural cynicism.”