Reading & Writing

Telling versus Showing


Telling:

Each morning, I ride the bus to school. I wait along with the other people who ride my bus. Sometimes the bus is late and we get angry. Some guys start fights and stuff just to have something to do. I'm always glad when the bus finally comes.


Showing:

A bus arrived. It discharged its passengers, closed its doors with a hiss and disappeared over the crest of a hill. Not one of the people waiting at the bus stop had attempted to board. One woman wore a sweater that was too small, a long skirt, white sweater, socks and house slippers. One man was in his undershirt. Another man wore shoes with the toes cut out, a soiled blue serge jacket and brown pants. These people made faces. A mouth smiled at nothing and unsmiled, smiled and unsmiled. A head shook in vehement denial. Most of them carried brown paper bags rolled tight against their stomachs.

(From: Caplan, Rebekah. A Training Program to Help Students Be Specific)

Elaboration

A. Building bigger sentences and adding details


I left the party and walked home.

Leaving the noisy, crowded, smoke-filled room where the party was reaching a crescendo of dirty jokes and raucous laughter, I walked home slowly through the humid night, smelling the fragrances of tender, recently born flowers and sensing the inescapable conclusion that something new, exciting and important was about to happen in my life.


Jason was a short, fat man.

Since he stood only slightly over five feet in height, Jason presented an almost comical appearance, with his 230 pounds of flesh collected largely around his waist and pushing forward from his midriff like the ponderous swell of an expectant mother.


A trout took the baited hook immediately.

As soon as the baited hook had struck the water, a large speckled trout hit it with tremendous force, splitting the water with its glistening body and diving, with great power, into the deepest, darkest part of the water.

(Adapted from Koch & Brazil, 1978:68)


It suddenly became silent as he walked in.

I woke up, feeling slightly confused.




B. Perceiving Resemblances


Simile – an expression making a comparison in the imagination between two things using the words “like” (e.g. behaving like a fool) or “as ______ as” (e.g. as white as snow)

Metaphor – a phrase which describes one thing by stating another with which it can be compared, without using the words “like” or “as _______ as”:

For example: The roses in her cheeks


(1) Compare yourself to some person/ thing, using similes or metaphors:

For example:

I am like a bull. Whenever I see him come to the office with that gaudy tie, it makes me see red.

I am a rock; nothing will move me.


(2) Compare yourself to:

(a) a shoe (b) a nail (c) a desert

For example:

I am like a shoe. I get worn out easily.

There is something of a nail in me. I don’t like to be hit on the head.