Deducing meaning and ideas

Cohesive content organization enables textual segments to be packaged in ways which make them effective, given their purpose in the context. Connection of that kind is based on some semantic or associative relationship: an idea can furthermore support another idea by providing an explanation, evidence or arguments why this consistency should be true. It is supported by a certain organizational pattern, which refers to the way the writer develops his material (details, facts, ideas, examples) in order to convey a message, and is therefore clearly tied to both main idea and purpose. There are three main areas:

- Patterns that List (such as simple listing, order of importance, chronological order, sequence\process, spatial\place order, summary);

- Patterns that Explain (such as example\illustration, clarification, definition, description);

- Patterns that Analyze (such as cause\effect, comparison\contrast, division\classification).

Texts derive their meanings not only from those contained in discourse, but also from the meanings of genre or register, conventionalized social occasions, from which texts arise. Evidently, different types of register condition the meaningful side of text from the perspective of context, and it is the selection of meanings that constitutes the variety to which a text belongs.

Meanings, finding their expression in text, are negotiated about in concrete situations of social exchange. Consequently, texts are regarded to be selected and organized syntactic forms whose content-structure reflects the ideologicalorganization of a particular area of social life. It comes from the assumption that language can never appear by itself – it always appears as the representative of a system of linguistic terms, which themselves realize discursive and ideological systems: ideologies are viewed as interpretation frameworks which organize sets of attitudes about other elements of modern society. In the end, both the gist of the information and its understanding conform to the reader’s identity; goals; social position; values; and resources.

There are many messages communicated through the text and what we see on the surface is really only the tip of the iceberg. Grounded on this, the division of the text presupposes the presence of some textual segments built as combination of a number of semantically connected sentences disclosing one of the sides of the argument, presenting it from a single angle. In other words, the conception which equals the idea is divided into some kernel arguments structurally equal to textual segments. A certain sum of them, around one and the same argument proved from different angles, form their cohesive correlation to serve the purpose of disclosingthe common idea of narration, i.e. the conception which permits one to speak of the solidity of the text. The structural divisibility of the idea is decomposed into its constituents each of which functions as a specific centre drawing up some complete segment of the text. Regarding this, three items must be taken into account: consider what is said, particularly subtleties of the imagery and the ideas expressed; assess how it is said, considering how the word choice, the ordering of ideas, sentence structure contribute to the meaning of the passage; explain what it means, tying your analysis of the passage back to the significance of the text as a whole.

Such orientation appears to be really helpful in showing how the resources of the text are used to create its meaningfulness. The revelation of the ideas embedded in the text is basically dependent on the issues behind them, the perspective of which affects how the world of the narration is seen and how the reader responds to it. Obviously, he is intended to recognize the problems posed (solved or unsolved); from him, certain qualities of response, taste, experience, value are called forth so that to do ‘ problem solving activities’, aimed at adequate understanding of values, world-view, ideological assumptions. Any kind of writing tends to use cultural codes and the structuring devices of narrative with a high degree of intentionality in order to offer a complex understanding of the raised problems. All in all, the acute reader will be aware of the distances and similarities between the world of the fiction and the world he inhabits; and will be aware of the significances of the selections and exclusions of the narrative in representing human experience.

Follow up tasks:

1. How is semantic/associative relationship understood?

2. Give an account of patterns developing the author’s intention and ideas.

3. Does the content structure reflect certain discursive and ideological system? Give your reasons.

4. What does understanding of the gist conform to?

5. How is the message communicated through the text: structurally, semantically?

6. What items must be taken into account so as to understand clearly how meaningfulness of the text is created?

7. How is the reader supposed to perform in order to do problem solving activities?

Reading strategies:

- Skim the text for the general idea of the information starting with the first couple of sentences moving ahead until the last sentence.

- Skim the text to locate pieces of information relevant to the topic and main idea; then read carefully to find supporting details.

- Learn to miss/omit irrelevant information, items that will not have a significant effect on the meaning of the text.

- Search the passage for clues, keywords/phrases, contributing to understanding the gist.

- Look closely around keywords for further matching items to obtain issues around the main idea.

- Connect the introduction, which contains the main idea of the entire passage, directly with the conclusion, which typically summarizes the main points of the passage.

- Work out ideas and raised around problems of each paragraph.

- Look for clues to decide which of the statements most accurately brings out the main idea.

- Summarize seeking the area of the beginning and ending in order to place information within these two locations.

- Summarize the main points of the passage based on the ability to distinguish between main ideas and supporting ideas.

- Understand whether to take some statements literally or when to read in between lines in order to get the real meaning of the text.

- Pay attention to figurative language making implicit ideas most vivid.

Study skills:

- extract main ideas;

- distinguish the main idea from supporting details;

- understand overall gist;

- understand indirectly stated ideas and information through inference;

- identify the content due to relevance of key words;

- infer meanings and read ‘between lines’;

- recognize salient features of the text;

- locate particular information including opinion or attitudes;

- distinguish between viewpoints, outcomes, reasons.

Поиск по сайту: