Chapter 5 Summarizing

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Chapter 5 Summarizing

• Lectured by Mo Jiarui

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What is a SUMMARY?

• A brief restatement of the essential thought of
  a longer composition.
• The gist??,?? or main theme of a passage.
• It reproduces the theme of the original with as
  few words as possible.
• It is clear, brief complete, including all the
  essential points.

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Usages of Summary-Writing

1. Enables people to get more out of their reading.
2. A good practice in writing a composition. It
   trains students to express their thoughts
   clearly, concisely effectively.
3. Has great practical value, esp. to lawyers,
   scholars, businessmen government officials.

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Procedure I. Reading

1. First read the passage to get the gist of the
   article
2. Give a title to your summary
3. Decide what parts of the passage are essential
   what parts are comparatively unimportant and can
   be omitted
4. Jot down???? in brief notes the main points the
   subject, the title the details.

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Sample 2 ltP119gt

1. Get the gist of the passage
2. Give it a title
3. What is the passage about?

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Writing

1. A summary should usually be about 1/3 or 1/4 as
   long as the original passage
2. Write it all in your own words
3. Follow the logical order of the original passage
4. The summary should be self-contained???, i.e., it
   must convey the message of the original fully
   clearly

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II. Writing

• Summary writing is an exercise in compression??.
  While writing, you may
• Omit the details
• Reduce the examples
• Simplify the descriptions
• Eliminate all repetitions
• Compress?? wordy sentences and change phrases to
  words.

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Examples of Compression

• His courage in battle might without
  exaggeration?? be called lion-like.
• He was very brave in battle.
• The account?? the witness gave of the incident
  made everyone that heard it laugh.
• The witnesss story was absurd/ridiculous.
• They acted in a manner that rendered ??them
  liable?? to prosecution??.
• They acted illegally.

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• John fell into the river and, before help could
  reach him, he sank.
• John was drowned in the river.
• He was hard up?? for money and was being
  pressed?? by his creditor.
• He was in financial difficulties

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A. Phrases do the work of clauses or sentences.

• e.g.
• Beautiful mountains like Mount Tai, Lushan
  Mountain, and Yellow Mountain, were visited by
  only a few people in the past. Today, better
  wages, holidays with pay, new hotels on those
  mountains, and better train and bus services,
  have brought them within reach of many who never
  thought of visiting them ten years ago.

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These two sentences may be abridged?? in this way

• Beautiful mountains like Mount Tai, once visited
  by only a few people, are today accessible to
  many, thanks to better wages, paid holidays, new
  hotels and better communication.

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B. Use general words instead of specific words.

• e.g.
• She brought home several Chinese and English
  novels, a few copies of Times and Newsweek, and
  some textbooks. She intended to read all of them
  during the winter vacation.
• This may be turned into
• She brought home a lot of books and magazines to
  read during the vacation.

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Sample 2 ltP119gt

• Task 5.
• Revise the summary, which has been already
  produced by the book, to less than 80 words.

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Revision

1. Compare with the original to make sure all the
   important points are included
2. Further compress it by omitting unnecessary
   words phrases or by remodeling sentences
3. Correct all mistakes in punctuation, spelling,
   grammar idiom.

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Assignment ltP120gt

• Write a summary of no more than 100 words.

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• Curb ??,??
• Abolition ??
• Misfit ??
• Sole ???
• Glorify ??,??
• Deterrent ??
• Brutal ???
• Imposition ??
• Resist ??
• Temptation ??