Definition:
A group of closely related sentences that develop a central idea. Adjective: paragraphic. For examples of paragraphs, see:
- Ian Frazier's List of Reasons in Great Plains
- John Lahr's Profile of David Mamet
- Personification in Jonathan Lethem's "Motherless Brooklyn"
- Subordination in Bernard Malamud's "A New Life"
- Joseph Mitchell's Place Description: McSorley's Saloon
- Willie Morris's Descriptive Narrative
- Absolutes and Participial Phrases in Shaw's "The Eighty-Yard Run"
- Comparison in Sarah Vowell's Place Description
- Eudora Welty's Sketch of Miss Duling
Etymology:
From the Greek, "to write beside"Observations:
- "As an advanced writer, you know that rules are made to be broken. But that is not to say that these rules are useless. Sometimes it is good to avoid a one-sentence paragraph--it can sound too brisk and implies a lack of penetration and analysis. Sometimes, or perhaps most of the time, it is good to have a topic sentence. But the awful fact is that when you look closely at a professional writer's work, you will see that the topic sentence is often missing. In that case, we sometimes say it is implied, and perhaps that is true. But whether we want to call it implied or not, it is obvious that good writers can get along without topic sentences most of the time. Likewise, it is not a bad idea to develop only one idea in a paragraph, but frankly, the chance of developing several ideas often arises and sometimes doing so even characterizes the writing of professionals."
(Lee A. Jacobus, Substance, Style, and Strategy, Oxford University Press, 1998) - "19c writers reduced the lengths of their paragraphs, a process that has continued in the 20c, particularly in journalism, advertisements, and publicity materials."
(Tom McArthur, "Paragraph," in The Oxford Companion to the English Language, 1992)
Pronunciation: PAR-ah-graf
