Writing A Narrative and A Recount

 1. Writing A Narrative

A Narrative is. . .

• A narrative essay is basically a story written about a personal experience.
• it is usually set in the past or present
• A narrative can be written about the experience of someone else.
• Narrative essays often describe specific experiences that changed how someone is feeling by “showing” through his/her actions, rather than by coming right out and “telling” readers.
• However, the purpose is not to merely tell an interesting story but to show readers the importance and influence the experiences has had on youthe writer.
• Narratives appear in poetry, short stories, novels, personal essays, folk tales, scripts and plays.
• Recounts and enecdotes are a type of narrative – descriptions of these follow.

A good narrative . . .

• Involves readers in the story.
• Relates events in sewuence.
• Includes detailed observations of people, places, and events.
• Present important changes, contrasts, or conflicts and creates tension.
• Is told from a point of view-usually the author’s point of view.
• Focuses on connection between past events, people, or places and the present.
• Makes a point, communicates a main idea or dominant impression
• Provides human interest, sparks our curiosity, and draws us close to the storyteller.
• Has a point to make and makes it well.

Common structure of a narrative. . .

1. Orientation: setting the scene, introduces the participants and gives the necessary background information such as, “who”, “when”, “where”, “what” and “why”
2. Evaluation: stepping back to evaluate the problem/situation.
3. Complication: a crisis arieses
4. Reorientation: an optional personal comment or opinion and a closing statenment

2. Writing a Recount

A recount is . . .

• The purpose of a recount is to allow the writer or speaker to retell events from the past. This could include personal events, factual incidents or imaginary incidents.
• The intention of a recount is to recounstruct and interpret experience and past events to inform and/or entertain the audience or reader.
• Recounts can be personal or factual. Fctual recounts are often included as part of other texts, for example, as background to a report. Personal recounts are used to retell events the speaker or writer was personally involved it.
• Recounts can be spoken, such as telling a personal anecdote, recounting a holiday while showing photos, an invidual recounting an experience as part of a radio or television news report, etc.
• Recounts can be written, such as accounts of projects and field trips, science experiments, diaries, journals, contributions to newsletters, acoounts in newspaper and magazine articles, etc.

A good recount . . .

• Is well-organized and relates events in sequence using appropriate linking and coesive devices.
• Includes detailed observations of people, places, and events.
• Presents important changes, contrasts, or conflicts and creates tension.
• Is told from a point of view – usually the author’s point of view.
• Focuses on the connection between past events, people, or places and the present.
• Is told in a register appropriate for the purpose and audience.

Common structure of a recount . . .

1. Orientation: setting the scene and giving the necessary.
2. The event: retelling the event in chronological order or logical sequence, usually in the pas tense. The focus should be on the important participants in the event. Details and personal responses included to add to the readers’ or listeners’ interest. Personal recounts should be written in the first person (using personal pronouns, I,/we, etc). Factual recounts should be written in the third person (he, she, it, etc)
3. Reorientation: usually includes a personal comment or opinion and a closing statement.

src: KGI

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Metaphor and Simile in Review Text

As in the previous article, we discussed about How to Write a Review Text. Now we will continue about an important thing to know when we want to write a review text. The important things to understand are Metaphor and Simile.
 

Why Metaphor and/or Simile are important in writing a review text?
In writing a review text, we must give some critics or suggestion. Before giving critics, we must be able to analyze the art work we review whether it is bad or good. To give a comment of the art work, it will be catchy if we express our idea by using metaphor or simile.
In another hand, we criticize an art work. It will be ridiculous if we don’t know about art. So, we must counterbalance it by writing an artistic review text too. It means that, metaphor or simile is needed to give a sense of art in our writing.
 

Metaphor And Simile
Terms metaphor and simile are slung around as though they mean exactly the same thing. A simile is a metaphor, but not all metaphors are similes.
A metaphor is a figure of speech that says that one thing is another different thing. This allows us to use fewer words and forces the reader or listener to find the similarities. The word metaphor comes from the Greek word metapherin (meaning "transfer"). The simplest form of metaphor is: "The [first thing] is a [second thing]."
e.g.:
A good book is food for though. (Metaphor)
A good book is like a good meal for thought. (Simile)
Metaphor is the broader term. In a literary sense metaphor is a rhetorical device that transfers the sense or aspects of one word to another. For example:
The moon was a ghostly galleon tossed upon cloudy seas. — “The Highwayman,” Alfred Noyes
Here the moon is being compared to a sailing ship. The clouds are being compared to ocean waves. This is an apt comparison because sometimes banks of clouds shuttling past the moon cause the moon to appear to be moving and roiling clouds resemble churning water.
A simile is a type of metaphor in which the comparison is made with the use of the word like or its equivalent:
My love is like a red, red rose. — Robert Burns

This simile conveys some of the attributes of a rose to a woman: ruddy complexion, velvety skin, and fragrant scent.
She sat like Patience on a Monument, smiling at Grief. — Twelfth Night William Shakespeare
Here a woman is being compared to the allegorical statue on a tomb. The comparison evokes unhappiness, immobility, and gracefulness of posture and dress.
Some metaphors are apt. Some are not. The conscientious writer strives to come up with fresh metaphors.
 

Difference Between Metaphor and Simile

Simile                                         Metaphor
Your eyes are like the sun.    You are my sunshine.
He eats like a pig.
He lives like a pig.                 He is a pig.

A common fault of writing is to mix metaphors.
Before Uncle Jesse (Dukes of Hazzard) did it, some WWII general is reputed to have mixed the metaphor Don’t burn your bridges, meaning “Don’t alienate people who have been useful to you,” with Don’t cross that bridge before you come to it, meaning “Don’t worry about what might happen until it happens” to create the mixed metaphor: Don’t burn your bridges before you come to them.
Many metaphors are used so often that they have become cliché. We use them in speech, but the careful writer avoids them: hungry as a horse, as big as a house, hard as nails, as good as gold.
Some metaphors have been used so frequently as to lose their metaphorical qualities altogether. These are “dead metaphors.”
In a sense, all language is metaphor because words are simply labels for things that exist in the world. We call something “a table” because we have to call it something, but the word is not the thing it names.
A simile is only one of dozens of specific types of metaphor. For a long and entertaining list of them, see the Wikipedia article on “Figure of Speech.”
In conclusion, the basic rule of metaphor and simile is:
If it uses the words “is like” or “is as”, it is usually simile. If it is uses the word “is” without “as” or “like” is usually metaphor.
(Adapted from original source: 1. dailywritingtips.com  2. englishclub.com)

Now let us see some examples of metaphor in a review text and art work.

1. Original Soundtrack of Brownies (An Indonesian Movie)
It’s Always fun to have a piece of Brownies in your mouth. But having it in your stereo set is more entertaining. No movie is perfect without musical score and OST of Brownies has proved it excellent. (C’ns Mag)
2. “The Rose” by Bette Midler
I say love, it is a flower, and you it’s only seed.
3. “I am The Walrus” by The Beatles
See how they run-like a pigs from a gun……
4. “You Are The Sunshine of My Life” by Stevie Wonder
You are the sunshine of my life
That’s why I’ll always be around,
You are the apple of my eye,
Forever you’ll stay in my heart.
……………………………………………….
5. Moral Metaphors Mixed in 'Lonelyhearts'; Nathanael West Novel Is Adapted as Film
Actually, there is no redemption for the sad sacks in "Lonelyhearts" and the basic weakness of this picture is the attempt to pretend that there is.

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How To Write A Review Text

The purpose of review is to inform the reader about something to help them decide if they want to use it or buy it.
Review appear in magazines, newspaper, on the radio, TV and on the internet every day.
The following are most commonly reviewed in the mainstream media:
Books, movies, plays, concerts, music CD’s and singles, computer games, TV programs, exhibition and so on.
Here are the common structure to write a review:


A Book Review
1. First Paragraph-Background

• Tittle of review
• Name of the book
• Name of the author, if necessary mention other books by this writer
• Type of genre of book, for example romance, thriller, science fiction, etc.
• Intended audience, for example children, teenager adults, etc.

2. Second Paragraph-Main Body

• List briefly and describe the main characters
• Give a brief summary of the plot (story), but don’t give the ending away.

3. Third Paragraph-Main Body

• Next include your opinions, praise and criticism.
• Are the characters realistic?
• Are they well written and described?
• Comment on the plot. Is it simplistic/boring/complicated/intelligent...?
• Mention the style of writing/descriptive language used.

4. Final Paragraph-Conclusion and Recommendations

• Give Brief overall opinion positive  and/or negative
• Recommend suitability for target audience or recommend an audience
• Mention released date if it’s a new book, its cost and where it can be bought

Movie Review
1. First Paragraph:

• Tittle of review
• Name of movie
• Who the movie is by director & producer
• Names of actor

2. Second Paragraph

• List briefly and describe the main characters
• Briefly describe the plot
• DON’T give away the ending
• Comment on writing/dialog
• Comment on technical aspects like lighting, sound, music, special effect, etc.

3. Final Paragraph

• Give Brief overall opinion positive  and/or negative
• Recommend suitability for target audience
• Mention where & when it can bee seen

Review on TV Program
1. First Paragraph

• Tittle of review
• Name of program
• Who the program is by for example Sinetron
• Genre of program/movie
• Names of actor

2. Second Paragraph

• List briefly and describe the main characters
• Briefly describe the plot
• DON’T give away the ending
• Comment on writing/dialog
• Comment on technical aspects like lighting, sound, music, special effect, etc.

3. Final Paragraph

• Give Brief overall opinion positive  and/or negative
• Recommend suitability for target audience
• Mention where & when it can be seen

Review on CD Album
1. First Paragraph

• Tittle of review
• Name of artist and album
• Genre of music
• Number of album: debut (first), or second

2. Second Paragraph

• List briefly and describe the main songs 
• Choose one or two songs and describe in more detail, include opinions of music and lyrics
• Comment on the overall theme/style
• Comment on production
• Make comparison with other albums by the artist and in this genre

3. Final Paragraph

• Give Brief overall opinion positive  and/or negative
• Recommend suitability for target audience
• Mention where & when it can be bought and cost

Example of Movie Review.

Kungfu Panda 2 Review
(R.L. Shaffer)

 

Animated sequels can be rough. They're not always bad, but they're most certainly not always good, either. Basically, if you're not Toy Story, don't expect your sequel to turn out all that great. Case in point, Ice Age 2-3, Madagascar 2, the later Shrek sequels, Happy Feet 2, the DTV Disney collection (pretty much all of them) and even do-no-wrong studio Pixar had a misfire in Cars 2.
So naturally some apprehension was expected with Kung Fu Panda 2, a film that seemed, at least on the surface, to be a retread of the first film (it's not). Oddly enough, I saw the film as part of a double-bill with Super 8 at a cozy local drive-in theater. Super 8 was unequivocally my most-anticipated movie of the summer. But, quite shockingly, my favorite of the two films that night ended up being Kung Fu Panda 2. Perhaps it was the lowered expectations, or the tasty pizza I was munching on while watching the film, but I'd chalk it up as good old fashioned storytelling that drove KFP2 to the top. The film is rich with character and emotion, not to mention some fantastic action beats, playing more like a hardened kung fu action drama than a kids-centric animated picture. The usual pop culture junk from other Dreamworks films is stripped away, leaving a movie that focuses entirely on the plot and characters. Now, the film does have its goofy moments, too, with several scenes where Po (voiced by Jack Black) does something dumb just to make the kids laugh. But between those gags and silly set ups, there's a very genuine, sweet film, with an honest, heartfelt message about family, friends, forgiveness and coming to peace with who you are – not to mention summer 2011's single best plot twist tagged on right at the end of the picture (if you saw the film, you know what I'm referring to). I was upset when many box office pundits hailed KFP2 as a financial disappointment, despite earning more than $660 million worldwide. Yes, it underperformed in the U.S., grossing a "mere" $165 million, but the film was hardly a failure, or even a mild disappointment. Usually I don't bring up stats like this in a review, but after the film's awesome finale, I can't help but long for at least one more adventure with Po and the gang (who are sorely underused in this sequel – the film's biggest issue). It promises to be the series' most emotionally complex installment yet. Let's hope we see the sequel soon, and that it delivers something just as special as this chapter. Kung Fu Panda 2 chops, kicks and slides to Blu-ray encoded in 1080p/AVC, mixed in thunderous 7.1 Dolby TrueHD audio. If you've come to KFP2 expecting a demo-worthy presentation, be prepared to smile ear-to-ear. This is one fantastic presentation, packed with dazzling texture, inky, bright visuals and pristine depth and shadows. There's not a speck of compression on the transfer whatsoever, either. Like so many direct-to-digital transfers out there, KFP2 looks remarkable.
And it sounds remarkable, too. The 7.1 lossless mix is staggeringly designed, with aggressive surround cues that deliver a balanced, engaging listening environment. Bass is finely tuned and polished. Dialogue sounds fantastic – no mic distortions, hiss or crackles reported. And surrounds are flush with discrete elements that dance all around the listener. Again, if you want reference – look no further. Kung Fu Panda 2 is a knockout. Extras continue the impressive streak, with a great collection of goodies that not only explore the production, but also complement the extras found on the first film's Blu-ray (from way back in 2008). For starters, there's a picture-in-picture commentary track titled "The Animator's Corner," which explores the production, featuring cast and crew interviews, storyboards, behind-the-scenes footage and so much more. If you listened to the previous "Animator's Corner" track from the first film's Blu-ray, you know what you're in store for. Not into PiP tracks? There's also a clever pop-up trivia track and an audio commentary featuring the crew of KFP2 that's equally as great, though much information is repeated.
Next are two shorts, Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of Masters and Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness (from the TV series). Both run about 23 minutes and are well worth a look, especially for kids and hardcore fans. There's also a few deleted scenes and two featurettes, one hosted by the cast and one that highlights pandas and their struggle to survive. On the interactive front, we've got a great assortment of goodies geared mostly at the kids. There's an interactive map showing the film's inspirations, a tutorial on speaking Mandarin and a few games for the little ones. Rounding out the goodies are a few trailers and a flier that gets you access to the Kung Fu Panda online game. The two-disc set includes a Blu-ray and a Digital Copy/DVD copy of the film. Oddly, Paramount/Dreamworks doesn't deliver any BD-Live features.
If you passed on Kung Fu Panda 2, you missed a great film. But fear not, the Blu-ray is here, and it's a magnificent release, demo-worthy in every way imaginable. I have one simple recommendation: Buy this one. You won't regret it.

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Expalanation Text

One of the genre text which we must understand is Explanation text. It is a text which explains about how something works or why something happens. From the explanation above, we can divide into two types of explanation. They are:

1. How do things work?

This text explains us about how things work.

a. How does rain happen?

b. How does caterpillar become butterfly?

c. How does a pigeon find its way home?

d. How do you create a blog?

e. How does a plane fly?

2. Why do things happen?

This one explains us about why things work.

a. Why do we need water?

b. Why does solar eclipse happen?

c. Why do we pay tax?

d. Why was there an earthquake in Japan?

e. Why are there a day and a night?

3. Some points which we must pay attention when we want to write Explanation Text.

a. Structure which we should prepare in writing this text.

1) Plan

2) Sequence ideas so that they are in the correct order

3) This needs a lot of thought

4) How are you going to introduce your explanation?

5) How are you going to conclude your explanation?

b. In this text, there are some language features we must understand.

1) Sentence structure

2) Connectives

3) Time

4) Cause and effect

5) Passive voice

6) Present tense

7) Sequence explaining clearly about your chosen subject.

Example:

How does the rain happen?

Rain is the source of live. Rain gives a abundant of water which all creatures need it in this earth. Human, plants, animal, and all the living things need it to live.
Actually, the phenomenon of rain is a water circle which is never ending movement. It starts when

the water cycle involves the sun heating the Earth's surface water and causing the surface water to evaporate. The water vapor rises into the Earth's atmosphere. The water in the atmosphere cools and condenses into liquid droplets. The droplets grow until they are heavy and fall to the earth as precipitation which can be in the form of rain or snow. As we know that all rain does not reach the surface. Some evaporates while falling through dry air. This is called virga, a phenomenon which is often seen in hot, dry desert regions.

In conclusion an Explanation text is obviously different with Procedure text. An Explanation text tells us about why or how something happens. In the other hand, Procedure text is a text which gives some steps or instruction to make or operate something. To get more some explanation and also the exercise you can download here in PowerPoint format.

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Explanation Text (PowerPoint)

Explanation text is one of text genres which explains how a thing happens or why the thing is made. Explanation text is almost similar to procedure text, however, explanation text tends to explain. While the procedure text is intended to instruct how to form or make something.
This is an example of explanation text in a PowerPoint format which is ready to teach your students. It contains an example of the explanation text (How does the rain happen?) and some exercises. It is also appropriate for students to learn and deep up explanation text. To get more about this lesson, you can download here.

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