1. ESTUDIO GLOBAL DEL MEDIO TV
1.4. LA TELEVISION Y SU IMPACTO
1.5.9 TELEVISION DE ALTA DEFINICION
Both sentences convey the same information:
Two parties are meeting because they have a disagree-ment of some sort to address. But the differences in the diction of each sentence tell us that these two situations aren’t exactly the same—or at least that the two writ-ers have different perceptions about the situations.
What differences did you notice between these two sentences? List them below (an example has been pro-vided to get you started):
Your Observations:
Example: I noticed that sentence A says the political parties are “meeting,” whereas sentence B says they
“have entered into negotiations.”
Diction: the particular words chosen and used by the author
Denotation: exact or dictionary meaning Connotation: implied or suggested meaning
–D I C T I O N : W H AT ’ S I N A W O R D ?–
Now that you’ve listed your observations, answer this question: In which sentence do you think the sit-uation is more serious, and why do you think so? (The why is especially important.)
The difference in word choice should tell you that sentence B describes the more serious situation. Here are some of the observations you might have made about the writers’ diction that would have told you so:
■ The political parties in sentence B are not just
“meeting,” they’ve “entered into negotiations.”
This phrase is often used to describe disagree-ments between warring parties. And “negotia-tions” are much more formal than “meetings,”
suggesting that there is a serious difference to be resolved in sentence B.
■ Whereas in sentence A they are ironing things out, the parties in sentence B only “attempt to” resolve the problems. This important difference suggests that the problem between the parties in sentence A is not that serious—the problem is likely to be resolved. In sentence B, on the other hand, “in an attempt” suggests that the problem is quite serious and that it will be difficult to resolve; the outlook is doubtful rather than hopeful.
■ In sentence A, the parties are seeking to “clear up their differences,” whereas in sentence B, the par-ties want to “resolve their conflict.” The phrase
“clear up” suggests that there is merely some sort
of confusion between the two. However, “resolve”
suggests that there is a matter that must be solved or settled. And, of course, “conflict” indicates a more serious problem than “differences.”
Reading between the Lines
Looking at diction can be especially helpful when the writer’s main idea isn’t quite clear. For example, in the following paragraph—an excerpt from a letter of rec-ommendation—the author doesn’t provide a topic sentence that expresses the main idea. Instead, you must use your powers of observation to answer the question about how the author feels about the described employee.
Paragraph A
Nicole Bryan usually completes her work on time and checks it carefully. She is a competent lab technician and is familiar with several ways to eval-uate test results. She has some knowledge of the lat-est medical research, which has been helpful.
2. What message does the writer of paragraph A convey about Nicole Bryan?
a. Nicole Bryan is an exceptional employee. Hire her immediately!
b. Nicole Bryan is an average employee. She doesn’t do outstanding work, but she won’t give you any trouble.
c. Nicole Bryan is a lousy worker. Don’t even think about hiring her.
To answer this question, you made an inference.
Now, support your inference with specific observa-tions about the language in this paragraph. Why do you think your answer is correct? (An example has been provided to get you started.)
–D I C T I O N : W H AT ’ S I N A W O R D ?–
9 8
Your Observations and Inferences:
Example: I noticed that the writer says Nicole Bryan
“usually” completes her work on time (observation), which suggests that Nicole Bryan is good but not per-fect; she doesn’t always get her work done on schedule (inference).
The diction of the paragraph best supports answer b: The writer feels that “Nicole Bryan is an average employee. She doesn’t do outstanding work, but she won’t give you any trouble.” You might have supported this inference with observations like these:
■ The writer uses the word usually in the first sen-tence, which means that Nicole Bryan is good, but not great; she doesn’t always meet deadlines.
■ The writer describes Nicole Bryan as a “compe-tent” lab technician. This tells us that Nicole Bryan does her work well enough for the position, but she is not exceptional. She could be better.
■ The writer tells us that Nicole Bryan is “familiar with” several ways to evaluate test results. This means that she can do her work using those evalu-ation techniques, but she is no expert and does not know all there is to know about evaluating test results.
■ The writer tells us that Nicole Bryan has “some knowledge of the latest medical research,” which tells us that Nicole Bryan knows a little, but not a lot; again, she’s better than someone who knows nothing, but she’s no expert.
Now, take a look at a revised letter of recom-mendation. The diction (the word choice) has been changed so that the paragraph sends a different mes-sage. Read the paragraph carefully and determine how the writer feels about Nicole Bryan:
Paragraph B
Nicole Bryan always submits her work promptly and checks it judiciously. She is an excel-lent lab technician and has mastered several ways to evaluate test results. She has an extensive knowl-edge of the latest medical research, which has been invaluable.
3. What message does the writer of paragraph B convey about Nicole Bryan?
a. Nicole Bryan is an exceptional employee. Hire her immediately!
b. Nicole Bryan is an average employee. She doesn’t do outstanding work, but she won’t give you any trouble.
c. Nicole Bryan is a lousy worker. Don’t even think about hiring her.
This time you should have chosen answer a. The change in diction tells you that this writer thinks Nicole Bryan is a fantastic employee. To ensure the difference in word choice is clear, write the words used in para-graph B to replace the words in parapara-graph A. The first replacement has been filled in to get you started.
PARAGRAPH A PARAGRAPH B
–D I C T I O N : W H AT ’ S I N A W O R D ?–
1 0 0
■ Think about how you choose the words you use when you speak to people. Do you use different types of words for different people? Do you think carefully about what you say and which words you will use?
How much are you aware of your own diction?
■ Notice how much the meaning of a sentence can change when a single word is altered. Form a sim-ple sentence, like: “Experts say the economy is unhealthy.” Now, replace “unhealthy” with synonyms that have slightly different connotations, like: sick, feeble, ill, dying, under the weather, feverish, infected.
Each word will express a slightly different attitude about your subject to the reader. Insert each of these words into your sentence and see how much the meaning is altered. (This exercise will work well if you choose words, like rich, tired, happy, or sad, that have many synonyms with a wide range of connotations.)
Skill Building until Next Time
S u m m a r y
Just as Sherlock Holmes learned to notice what he saw when he arrived at the scene of a crime, you can also
learn to notice what you see when you look carefully at a piece of writing. By noticing the specific words a writer has chosen to use, you can help ensure that you fully comprehend the writer’s message.
S
tyle?” you ask. “What does style have to do with reading comprehension?”Actually, style has a good deal to do with reading comprehension. Just as writers use different structures to organize their ideas and information, they also use different styles to express their ideas and information. Thus, the more aware you are of the elements of style, the more successfully you can determine a writer’s purpose and understand his or her ideas.
Style is also important because it is often what attracts us to, or repels us from, certain writers or types of writing. Though an awareness of style might not make us change our taste, it can at least help us appreciate different writers and different styles.
L E S S O N