Expository Paragraphs Explained

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Navigating Index

 

• Opening Remarks
• Expository Reading and Paragraphs
• References

 

Opening Remarks

Paragraphs are used to make a reader aware that the author has made a change in the flow of ideas that he or she is trying to express. These changes are listed below.

 

• Shift to a New or Different Idea
• Shift to a Different Part of a Previous idea
• Shift to a New or Different time
• Shift to a New or Different place
• Shift to a New or Different character
• Shift to a New or Different speaker
• Shift to a New or Different action
• Shift to a Different Part of a Previous Action

 

As a reader, you need to be aware that these changes can be anticipated by a reader if you know what kind of material you are reading.

 

In order to know what kind of material you are reading you must be able to identify the nature and purpose of the two most common forms of writing, Narrative and Expository. For a chart that explains the difference between these two modes of communication, click here: Narrative and Expository Chart

 

 

Expository and Informational Reading

Generally, informational or expository reading contains paragraphs that express two things:

 

In the example below, notice how the first paragraph differs from the second paragraph. There is a shift from discussing the effects of sound on animals in their environment to a discussion of how living in the sea effects the evolution of fish. The shift is from the effects of sound on a number of animals to the effects of the ocean on a specific animal, the angler fish.

 

Sound has shaped the bodies of many beasts. Noise tapped away at the bullfrog until his ears became bigger than his eyes. Now he hears so well that at the slightest sound of danger he quickly plops to safety under a sunken leaf. The rabbit has long ears to hear the quiet "whoosh" of the owls' wings, while the grasshopper's ears are on the base of his abdomen, the lowest point of his body, where he can detect the tread of a crow's foot or the stealthy approach of a shrew.

 

The creature with the fishing line on its head was created for the dark canyons of the sea. Here food is so scarce that the deep-sea angler fish, which preys on smaller fish, grew a line, and an appendage on the end that wiggles like a worm. This catches the attention of the occasional passerby. A fish approaches the bait, and the toothy angler swirls up and swallows him.¹

 

Notice the shift here, between the second and third paragraphs (continuing from the previous example). This is a shift from an idea to a part of an idea. The subject is the same, but in paragraph two it talks about how the angler fish gets its food, and in paragraph three it talks about the reproductive habits of the angler fish - a different part of the general idea about angler fish and evolutionary changes.

The creature with the fishing line on its head was created for the dark canyons of the sea. Here food is so scarce that the deep-sea angler fish, which preys on smaller fish, grew a line, and an appendage on the end that wiggles like a worm. This catches the attention of the occasional passerby. A fish approaches the bait, and the toothy angler swirls up and swallows him.

The gigantic ocean bottom creates other problems. A male angler fish could swim for years without meeting a female of his own species. Nature's solution to this problem is for the female to carry a dwarfed husband tightly fused to her body. Marine biologists believe that this nuptial begins when the eggs first hatch and there are many fry of both sexes. A male then grabs hold of a female with his mouth and hangs on until he has literally become a part of her. His mouth becomes fused to her stomach, and for the rest of his life the male remains attached to his mate, marking the most amazing union on earth.²

Generally, but not all the time, you can anticipate that the paragraphs you read in informational or expository reading will contian these kinds of shifts. You should be asking yourself with each paragraph change, "Is this a new idea, and if so, what is it?" or "Is this part of the idea from the previous paragraph, and if so, what new concept is it discussing about that idea?

 

References

¹ Reading and Understanding Nonfiction: Level 1. Jamestown Literature Program: Growth in Comprehension and Appreciation. Providence: Jamestown Publishers, Inc., 1990. 146.

² Reading and Understanding Nonfiction: Level 1. 146.

³ Reading and Understanding Short Stories: Level 1. Jamestown Literature Program: Growth in Comprehension and Appreciation. Providence: Jamestown Publishers, Inc., 1990. 70.

⁴ Harris, Raymond, ed. Best Short Stories: Middle Level. Providence: Jamestown Publishers, Inc., 1983. 407-408.

⁵ Harris, Raymond, ed. Best Short Stories: Middle Level. Providence: Jamestown Publishers, Inc., 1983. 65.

⁶ Harris, Raymond, ed. Best Short Stories: Middle Level. Providence: Jamestown Publishers, Inc., 1983. 118-119.

⁷ Harris, Raymond, ed. Best Short Stories: Middle Level. Providence: Jamestown Publishers, Inc., 1983. 328.