Chapter 7 Reading Response

This chapter highlighted exemplification-the use of real or hypothetical examples to support your argument or thesis in an essay. The section which I found most useful was "Introducing Examples in a Series" because it clarified how to program an example in a sentence, let alone an essay. I realize now that I have been using my commas, colons, and 'e.g's all wrong. I am grateful to have been shown the correct way and have tagged this page for future reference.

I think that the most critical point in this chapter was avoidance of plagiarism when using examples. I can see how easy it might be to suggest an example without citing it correctly, but had no idea that if you omit a word from a quotation you should provide an ellipse. I doubt that most people intend to plagiarize, just like most people don't intend to get a traffic ticket, but it's useful to know the actual rule or law to prevent yourself from getting into such situation.

Lastly, I especially enjoyed Shona Shequeria's essay "Food for Thought". I felt that her use of description, examples, and personal opinion created a moving piece which left me considering her topic. I think that the length and paragraph structure had excellent flow with supportive ideas to her thesis. The fact that she is not American-born herself brought a raw perspective to her insight and examples, making them seem perhaps more meaningful.

In summary, examples can be important in supporting an idea. For example, as Shona Shequeria states

"...For instance, ask for a Chinese fortune cookie and you will always get the same
bland thing (often containing the same fortune, too). On the other hand, request an

American cookie, and you can be showered with hundreds of delectable options,
including oatmeal raisin, double chocolate chip, macadamia pecan delight, and 

coconut brownie ("Food for Thought." Patterns for a Purpose. 6th edition. 2011. Print).

image original, edited by Amanda Alexander for content relevance.