Fluency in Speech and Writing Definition and Examples

In composition, fluency is  a general term for the clear, smooth, and seemingly effortless use of language in writing or speech. Contrast this with dysfluency. Syntactic fluency (also known as syntactic maturity or syntactic complexity) refers to the ability to manipulate a variety of sentence structures effectively. Etymology:  From the Latin fluere, to flow Commentary In Rhetoric and Composition: An Introduction (Cambridge University Press, 2010), Steven Lynn presents some illustrative activities that research or direct experience or compelling anecdotal evidence indicates can help students to improve their stylistic fluency and general writing ability. These activities include the following: - Write often, and write all sorts of different kinds of things for different audiences.- Read, read, read.- Nurture students awareness of the effects of stylistic choices.- Explore various approaches to characterizing style.- Try Sentence Combining and Erasmuss copiousness.- Imitation--its not just for sincere flattery.- Practice revision strategies, creating tighter, brighter, and sharper prose. Types of Fluency Syntactic fluency is  the ease with which speakers construct complex sentences containing linguistically complex structures. Pragmatic fluency refers to both knowing and demonstrating what one wants to say within and in response to a variety  of situational constraints. Phonologic fluency refers to the ease of producing long and complex strings of sounds within  meaningful and complex language units.  (David Allen Shapiro, Stuttering Intervention. Pro-Ed, 1999) Beyond the Basics By providing non-threatening but challenging writing experiences for [students], we are enabling them to develop confidence in the writing abilities they already have as they demonstrate--for self as well as a teacher--the syntactic fluency they have been developing through a lifetime of using and listening to their native tongue. Very few if any of them could explain that they are putting words together in the patterns that create meaning; and as they fill the empty pages, they would be unable to name the kinds of verbal constructs theyre using to express their thoughts. But they are indeed demonstrating that they have already mastered the basic grammatical structures they need for writing. And the writing were asking them to do is enabling them to develop more fluency. (Lou Kelly, One-on-One, Iowa City Style: Fifty Years of Individualized Writing Instruction. Landmark Essays on Writing Centers, ed. by Christina Murphy and Joe Law. Hermagoras Press, 1995) Measuring Syntactic Fluency [W]e might reasonably infer that good writers, expert writers, mature writers have mastered the syntax of their language and have at their disposal a large repertoire of syntactic forms, especially those forms we associate with longer clauses, which we can recognize simply by their length, or denser sentences, which we can measure using the T-unit, an independent clause and all related subordination. However, the question that immediately comes to mind is this: Are longer and denser sentences always better, more mature? Can we necessarily infer that a writer who uses longer or more complex syntax in any given case is a better or more mature writer than one who does not? There is good reason to think that this inference maybe misguided...[A]lthough syntactic fluency may be a necessary part of what we mean by writing ability, it cannot be the only or even the most important part of that ability. Expert writers may have an excellent grasp of the language, but they still need to know wha t they are talking about, and they must still need to know how to apply what they know in any given case. Although expert writers may be syntactically fluent, they must be able to apply that fluency using different genres in different situations: different genres and different situations, even different purposes, call for different kinds of language. The test of writers syntactic fluency can be only whether they adapt their repertoire of structures and techniques to the demands of a particular purpose in a particular context. This means that although syntactic fluency may very well be a general skill that all expert writers share, the only way we can actually know the degree to which a given writer has that ability is to ask that writer to perform in different genres in a variety of circumstances.​  (David W Smit, The End of Composition Studies. Southern Illinois University  Press, 2004)

Finding Morality and Unity with God in Dantes Inferno Essay

Finding Morality and Unity with God in Dantes Inferno Throughout the fast-paced lives of people, we are constantly making choices that shape who we are, as well as the world around us; however, one often debates the manner in which one should come to correct moral decisions, and achieve a virtuous existence. Dante has an uncanny ability to represent with such precision, the trials of the everyman’s soul to achieve morality and find unity with God, while setting forth the beauty, humor, and horror of human life. Dante immediately links his own personal experience to that of all of humanity, as he proclaims, â€Å"Midway along the journey of our life / I woke to find myself in a dark wood, / for I had wandered off from the straight path†Ã¢â‚¬ ¦show more content†¦However, the illusiveness of the idea of Dante feeling pity toward the transgressors is delineated as Dante proceeds into the more brutal levels of hell. Virgil must remind Dante that â€Å"In this place piety lives when pity is dead / for who could be more wic ked than that man / who tries to bend divine will to his own† (XX. 28). As the magnitude of the sins increase, Dante condemns the sinners, and the pity he feels for them lessens. Virgil suggests with no demur, that sin should be despised wholeheartedly, and one should not pity the justice meted out to sinners. To pity their suffering demonstrates a lack of understanding. Dante tries to attain the capacity to transcend his own limitations and reach a new level of self-knowledge, as he has gone astray from the right path to God. This moral journey through foul darkness opens Dante’s eyes to how evil works in our lives and helps him to begin to understand what is truly good. The notions of sin and falsity verses truth and virtue are barefaced and transparent. Naturally, anyone is fully capable of discerning right from wrong and knows what is morally right, but faces his greatest problem in willing to do so. A major struggle in the poem is that of one’s obedience to God’s will. God’s will is universal and supremely powerful. Humankind, by exercising free will, will fashion either a rewarding or punishing justice upon themselves. At the stage in Dante’s earthly

I Love Chicken free essay sample

One of my favorite food is the chicken. Since I was a child my mother gave me chicken. I like the chicken because is one of the healthiest food in the market. I eat chicken in different ways: fried, on the grill or in soup. My mother cooks chicken like three to four times a week but, I don’t get bored of the chicken. In my family there are people who don’t like chicken however; they have to eat it because they don’t have options. When I go to the market I always choose the biggest chicken that I can find. My mother prepares the chicken in mole. Mole is a typical plate from Mexico that is serves with rise and red chilly. Many people prepare the chicken in different ways. I had tried other plates for example the Chinese food. They prepare the chicken very different but, is still delicious for me. We will write a custom essay sample on I Love Chicken or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page When I lived in Mexico my family used to have farms so, we ate the chicken so fresh. The chicken that grows up in farms is healthier than the regular chicken we buy from the market. Most people like to eat chicken because is very popular and easy to cook. I like other kinds of food such as the fish and the beef. I used to eat a lot of fish when I live in Mexico because I live one mille away from the sea. I like beef but, I don’t eat it too frequently because is not too healthy. The red meat is not so good for your heart however I eat red meat like two times a week. I like to try many kinds of food but definitely chicken is my first option. I love to go to the restaurant with my friends to eat chicken. Chicken is so recommendable for people who are in diet. Probably I will eat chicken for the rest of my life.