How to Write a Cause-Effect Essay Showing Why Something Happens.
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Transcript of How to Write a Cause-Effect Essay Showing Why Something Happens.
How to Write a How to Write a Cause-Effect EssayCause-Effect Essay
How to Write a How to Write a Cause-Effect EssayCause-Effect Essay
Showing Why Something Showing Why Something HappensHappens
Are there kinds of causes?
• There are different types of causes.
• What we first see are often the superficial, contributing reasons.
• Hiding just out of sight us the more basic and fundamental causes.
• We call the single and most important one the primary cause.
Would a dog just rubthe thief’s leg?
What is the first cause?
• To figure out what’s going on in cause and effect relationships, we especially must discover the single primary cause.
• For example, if you are to write on why room mates fight, you have to sort out a lot of minor reasons from the major cause. What are the cell mates
arguing about?
What are contributing causes?
• Off hand, we know that roommates argue over– Sloppiness– Bad music– Staying up all night
• But these are not the basic reason at all!
• They are superficial and symptomatic of a much deeper, more fundamental reason why roommates fight.
What are the house matesarguing about?
What is the real cause?• A basic cause of the
roommates arguing can be their differences:– One’s messy; the
other is neat.– One likes Snoop Dog;
the other, Mozart.– One’s a morning
person; the other is up all night.
• And that might be it—but can there still be something even deeper as to why people fight? Do we already know that
the couple will fight?
What is sufficient cause?
• The differences between roommates are legally called sufficient cause.
• Sufficient cause means it was enough to make something happen.
• Yet it may not be the primary cause.
• Roomies can cooperate even with differences.
• What about toleration?
How old are we whenwe see our differences?
What is the deep reason?
• So maybe two people aren’t getting along just because they don’t want to– Cooperate– Compromise– Adjust
• Example Thesis: Roomies can co-exist if they can adjust to each other’s differences.
What are the house matesarguing about?
Can we write on effects?• Of course, not every
cause-effect essay is about the causes.
• In fact, some may center on the effects of a single cause.
• Example Topic:What are the results of
air pollution?• Example Thesis:
Air pollution negatively effects plants, animals, and humans.
What is the effectof caffeine?
What kind of essay is it?
• In five-paragraph essays, we usually write about either the causes or the effects, not both.
• It’s not so much a cause and effect essay as a cause or effect essay.
• Then state it in the first paragraph if the essay is about causes or effects. Why will the parents
quit drugs?
What should be avoided?
• Don’t lose focus by covering too many parts of an issue.
• You can’t cover all of the effects of air pollution: just pick three important ones to write about.
• For example, use air pollution’s effect on plants, animals, and humans.Is there also
noise pollution?
What is in the introduction?
• The introductory paragraph includes:
1. General background information on the topic.
2. A lead-in to the thesis.
3. The basic cause with contributing causes.
4. Or a series of effects of a cause. Do introductions vary
this much?
The Body• Begins with the first cause and
follows the chain down to the last.• Or lists the effects in their order.
• Uses transition words to analyze the process rather than describe it.
• Remember, we’re telling WHY.
The Conclusion• Rewords the thesis and basis for the
effects• Describes the primary cause or results
• Speculates on the best solution to the problem, as with toleration solving roommate feuds.