Lexical cohesion and text connectives

1. Lexical cohesion and text connectives Reference: Humphrey, S., Love, K., & Droga, L. (2011). Working Grammar: An introduction for secondary English teachers. Victoria: Pearson.

2. Lexical cohesion - definitions • Lexical: (adjective) = the words of a language • Cohesion: the act or condition of sticking together • Lexical cohesiontherefore refers to how a text and its ideas are held together through different kinds of word associations between the vocabulary or lexical items in a text. • Lexical cohesion is achieved through arranging words in different kinds of taxonomic (or classifying) relationships according to their meanings. • The most important taxonomic relationships are repetition, synonymy and antonymy. REPETITION – words that are repeated across a text SYNONYMY – words that are similar in meaning e.g. light/pale, huge/enormous etc ANTONYMY – words that have opposite or contrastive meanings e.g. light/dark, huge/tiny etc

3. Exercise (humphrey et al., 2011, p. 135) • Expositions such as political speeches typically include a great deal of lexical cohesion to make their arguments hold together. • Read the following speech extract (on the next slide) and highlight examples of lexical cohesion (repetition, synonymy, antonymy) • Use the table below to record the lexical sets. • Comment on the rhetorical effect of lexical cohesion throughout the extract.

4. Speech extract (humphrey et al., 2011, p. 135) • Extract from Barack Obama’s inaugural address • As for our common defence, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers faced with perils that we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. • And so, to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more. • Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use. Our security emanates from the justness of our cause; the force of our example; the tempering qualities of humility and restraint. • We are the keepers of this legacy, guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort, even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We’ll begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. • With old friends and former foes, we’ll work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat and roll back the spectre of a warming planet.

5. Answers (table on next slide) • Extract from Barack Obama’s inaugural address • As for our common defence, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our founding fathers faced with perils that we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. • And so, to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more. • Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with the sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use. Our security emanates from the justness of our cause; the force of our example; the tempering qualities of humility and restraint. • We are the keepers of this legacy, guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort, even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We’ll begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. • With old friends and former foes, we’ll work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat and roll back the spectre of a warming planet.

6. Answers - table

7. Uses of lexical cohesion • Building word sets to create lexical cohesion increases the rhetorical effects of your texts. • You use a richer vocabulary/learn more words • You can emphasise ideas and concepts more effectively • Your texts become more powerfully persuasive to your readers and thus more effectively achieve their purpose • Your texts are more engaging and interesting to read • Understanding how lexical cohesion works helps you to identify how you are being positioned by the writer to adopt certain attitudes or opinions. • Identifying the repetition, synonymy and antonymy in texts helps you to see which ideas, facts or concepts are being emphasised and what the effect of this is on what the writer is saying. Which values is the writer identifying with? Which values is the writer distancing themselves from, and how? Which ideas or values is the writer trying to get you to adopt and accept, and how?

8. Text connectives (humphrey et al. 2011, p. 136) • Text connectivesare words or word groups that make the development or sequence of ideasexplicit for the reader, by providing signals about the logical relationships that exist between the sentences and paragraphs in a text. For example: In the following extract from an exposition written by an elderly adult to his local council, the writer has linked background events in a contrastive relationship, using the connective ‘however’. Recently I made application to have a tree removed on my property. However, the application was refused for various reasons, which I know are quite valid. Text connectives link parts of a text in many different ways. Derewianka (1998) lists six important functions of text connectives (see table on next slide). Using text connectives in your writing links your ideas together clearly and creates a logical flow in your arguments. Text connectives make it easier for the reader to follow and understand your ideas and lines of argument, thus making your text clearer and more effective in achieving its purpose.

9. Text connectives (derewianka in humphrey et al., 2011, p. 136)

10. Exercise (humphrey et al., 2011, pp. 138-139) • In the text below, circle the text connectives and identify the relationships which are made between the phases of text. (This text has been divided into five phases). • What is the overall effect of the use of text connectives in this text? Extract from a TakingITGlobal blog posting by Lewis In 2005, we’ve all witnessed the rise of the worldwide MakePovertyHistory movement, the global call to action against poverty and the G9 Summit, along with the UN Millennium +5 Summit. Along with all of this, we have seen the rise of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) into the international agenda. But now, after that fateful UN Summit, are the MDGs dead? There is one more meeting this year critical to the MDGs, and that is the WTO Summit in December. At this meeting, leaders have to put in on their agenda to make the rules governing international trade fairer for all. Will this happen? Only time will tell. And the world will continue moving along, the way it does currently, after the clock strikes midnight on 31 December, heralding in a new year. But the international community must ask the question, will the MDGs have a relevant place in society next year?

11. Answers • In 2005, we’ve all witnessed the rise of the worldwide MakePovertyHistory movement, the global call to action against poverty and the G9 Summit, along with the UN Millennium +5 Summit. • Along with all of this, we have seen the rise of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) into the international agenda. • But now, after that fateful UN Summit, are the MDGs dead? There is one more meeting this year critical to the MDGs, and that is the WTO Summit in December. • At this meeting, leaders have to put in on their agenda to make the rules governing international trade fairer for all. Will this happen? Only time will tell. • And the world will continue moving along, the way it does currently, after the clock strikes midnight on 31 December, heralding in a new year. • But the international community must ask the question, will the MDGs have a relevant place in society next year? • Relationships between phases: • ‘Along with all of this’ (adding information) • ‘But’ (condition/concession) • ‘And’ (indicating time; i.e. meanwhile) • ‘But’ (condition/concession) (Humphrey et al., 2011, p. 180) In this text, text connectives clearly mark the different phases of information and argument being presented. They enable the text to remain short, yet clearly understandable. They link together the variety of pieces of information within the text, creating a logical and clear flow of information and argument.

12. Text connectives – a summary of uses • Use text connectives to: • Order your ideas and make the structure of your text clear • Link your ideas • Link sequences of text