Having an Introduction
It is often very useful to have an introduction at the start of the text. It can
perform a number of worthwhile functions because you can say anything
which needs to be said or can usefully be said at the start.
(1)
You can outline what follows. So, give an overview. This adapts the
first part of the classic tripartite advice given for public speaking -
start by
telling them where you are going to take them, do it by taking them there, then
finish by telling them where you have taken them.
(2)
Explain or state any qualifications to the treatment.
(3)
Indicate any pervasive themes or problems.
(4)
Make any other appropriate comments on the material that follows.
Doing these things orients the reader. Giving the outline along with the other
information
gives them a map of the text. Before the journey starts they have
some idea of where they are going and how they are going to get there.
Reminders about the Structure
A reminder of the overall plan at appropriate intervals can also help. This may
be just for the heck of it, or where, for example, in difficult material a reminder
will stop the reader from getting lost and so help to get the message across.
Keep in mind that writing is a form of communication. You are trying to tell
someone about something.
Hence use opportunities to reinforce or stress
points, to anticipate them and to illustrate them. One way to keep the stream of
reasoning flowing consists of referring back to your premises and forward to
your conclusion.
Use of Divisions
Most technical writing is divided in various ways. A book is usually divided
into chapters and may be divided at a higher level into parts. Chapters are
typically divided in two ways. They are divided into formal parts and possibly
sub-parts by using headings and various
levels of subheadings. They are
divided into syntactic parts by the use of paragraphs.
In the light of our urging that writing be structured at all levels it is obvious that
these various types of division should be used to portray the structure of the
work. The divisions of the text into chapters, sections, subsections,
paragraphs and so on should be used to create and portray the structure.
There are two key pieces of advice.
First, it is worth emphasising that technical writing such as law will generally
benefit from the use of headings. Headings are discussed earlier.
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Chapter 5 Characteristics of a Text
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