Lesson 9 Coherence

identify the relations in the texts according to the following definitions

additive, The second sentence gives details about, or specifies, the statement in the first sentence. This movement, from general to specific, is one that readers are 'primed' to recognize.

adversative, the second sentence, in claiming to solve the problem stated in the first, makes a contrast that could have been signaled with however.

causal, the second sentence provides a reason for the situation or request mentioned in the first.

temporal, the chronological order of events {and then...) is implied, rather than explicitly stated. Note that when two past tense sentences are placed together, and in the absence of any other evidence, we assume that the first happened before the second, as in John sang a song. Janet told a joke


THE MICRO- LEVEL and THE MACRO-LEVEL
The issue of coherence is usually approached from two perspectives: the micro- level and the macro-level. At the micro-level, readers have certain expectations of how the proposition (ie the meaning) of a sentence is likely to be developed in the sentence or sentences that follow it. When these expectations are met, the immediate text will seem coherent. At the macro-level, coherence is enhanced if a) the reader can easily discern what the text is about, b) the text is organized in a way that answers the reader's likely questions and c) the text is organized in a way that is familiar to the reader.
The above mentioned example is the micro- level., sentence-by-sentence

Home task: The following text lacks unity because some sentences do not contribute to the main idea or they are not coherent. Cross out any sentences that do not contribute to the unity.
Many parents fear the time when their children reach adolescence. When that time does come, some parents are afraid to give their children freedom to make choice. These same parents do not admit that their children have any ideas or feeling that is valid. Many adults like to look back on their own childhoods. Pets are often remembered fondly. Conflicts between parents and children are bound to develop. Some conflicts of course are a sign of healthy development within the family. Psychologists say that the parents shouldn’t be fearful when teenagers challenge authority. Challenging authority is a normal part of the maturing process. Adults without children have none of these concerns. The need for privacy is also normal during adolescence and should be respected and not feared. On the other hand, when the right moment comes along and a teenager wants to talk, parents should not miss the chance. Sometime teenager and their young brothers and sisters fight continually over the most trivial things. Most important of all is the need for parents to be sensitive to the feeling of their teenagers. Remember adolescence does not last for a lifetime, but a good relationship between parents and child can!