Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER II FORMS OF DISCOURSE In the first paragraph of this book, it was made plain that composition in reality means the selection and arrangement of materials to produce a desired result. Musicians, painters, and authors compose when they select and arrange their materials. Yet when English composition is spoken of, it is generally understood that, in addition to selecting and arranging materials, there must be an expression by means of language so complete that the story, the picture, the idea in the mind of the writer may be carried over to the mind of the reader. Whoever completely and effectively conveys his thoughts and feelings from his own mind to the mind of another by either spoken or written words is skillful in the use of language. All composition may be arranged in two great groups. The first group includes composition that deals with real things and incidents; the second group includes composition that deals with thoughts or ideas. The first group tells what things do, and how things look. It includes narration and description. Narration deals with occurrences; description deals with appearances. The second group explains, or proves, or arouses to action. It includes exposition, argumentation, and persuasion. Exposition explains a term or a statement; argumentation proves the truth or the falsity of a statement; persuasion urges to belief or action. Exposition explains; argumentation proves; persuasion arouses. These are the broad distinctions that separate the five forms of discourse. This simple diagram may be a help in remembering their relation: ? f concerning Things j Narration relates. ( Description pictures. Composition ( Exposition explains. I concerning Ideas Argumentation proves. V. ( Persuasion arouses. Narration is that form of dis…
