{"id":142,"date":"2017-07-20T16:29:53","date_gmt":"2017-07-20T16:29:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-geneseo-styleguide2\/chapter\/introduction-to-sentence-structure\/"},"modified":"2017-07-20T16:29:53","modified_gmt":"2017-07-20T16:29:53","slug":"introduction-to-sentence-structure","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-geneseo-styleguide2\/chapter\/introduction-to-sentence-structure\/","title":{"raw":"Introduction to Sentence Structure","rendered":"Introduction to Sentence Structure"},"content":{"raw":"\"aLanguage\u00a0is made up of words, which work together to form sentences, which work together to form paragraphs. In this section, we'll be focusing on sentences: how they're made and how they behave.\u00a0Sentences help us to organize our ideas\u2014to identify which items belong together and which should be separated.\n\nSo just what is a sentence?\u00a0Sentence are simply collections of words. Each sentence has\u00a0a subject, an action, and punctuation. These basic building blocks work together to create endless amounts and varieties of sentences.\n\nIt's important to have variety in your sentence length and structure. This quote\u00a0from\u00a0Gary Provost illustrates why:\n
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\n\nThis sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It's like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals--sounds that say listen to this, it is important.\n\nSo write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. Create a sound that pleases the reader's ear. Don't just write words. Write music.[footnote]Provost, Gary. 100 Ways to Improve Your Writing<\/i>,\u00a0Signet:1985, pp. 60\u201361.[\/footnote]\n\n<\/div><\/blockquote>\nYou can also listen to the difference in the video below:\n\nhttps:\/\/youtu.be\/k7ccnFw84cQ\n\nIn order to create this variety, you need to know how sentences work and how to create them. In this section\u00a0we will\u00a0identify the parts of sentences and learn how they fit together to create music in writing.","rendered":"

\"aLanguage\u00a0is made up of words, which work together to form sentences, which work together to form paragraphs. In this section, we’ll be focusing on sentences: how they’re made and how they behave.\u00a0Sentences help us to organize our ideas\u2014to identify which items belong together and which should be separated.<\/p>\n

So just what is a sentence?\u00a0Sentence are simply collections of words. Each sentence has\u00a0a subject, an action, and punctuation. These basic building blocks work together to create endless amounts and varieties of sentences.<\/p>\n

It’s important to have variety in your sentence length and structure. This quote\u00a0from\u00a0Gary Provost illustrates why:<\/p>\n

\n
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This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals–sounds that say listen to this, it is important.<\/p>\n

So write with a combination of short, medium, and long sentences. Create a sound that pleases the reader’s ear. Don’t just write words. Write music.[1]<\/sup><\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n

You can also listen to the difference in the video below:<\/p>\n