Short on time? This page is the recap. For explanations and worked examples, use the full study guide.
Recap
- Unity: every sentence in a paragraph serves one controlling idea.
- Coherence: the idea in one clause, sentence or paragraph logically links to the idea in the next.
- Coherence operates at three levels: within a sentence, within a paragraph and across a text.
- In reading, explain how the organisation creates unity and coherence and reflects a line of reasoning. In writing, use organisation and linking to guide the reader.
Key relationships
| Level | Link between | Typical tools |
|---|---|---|
| Sentence | Clause and clause | Conjunctions, punctuation, parallel structure |
| Paragraph | Sentence and sentence | Known-then-new order, repeated terms, pronouns, transitions |
| Text | Paragraph and paragraph | Order of claims, topic sentences, linking sentences |
| Fault | Repair |
|---|---|
| Off-topic sentence | Cut or move |
| Idea jump | Add the missing step or transition |
| Wrong order | Reorder to follow the logic |
| Shifting key terms | Keep or link terms |
| Vague “this” or “it” | Name the noun |
| Two claims in one paragraph | Split |
Assumptions and conventions
- Read your draft aloud and mark jolts.
- A paragraph’s first sentence should signal its controlling idea.
- A paragraph’s last sentence should lead the reader on.
- Repeat key terms for clarity; vary them only when the variation adds meaning.
Mistakes to avoid
- Confusing unity with coherence.
- Adding transitions to ideas that do not connect.
- Keeping an off-topic sentence because it is interesting.
- Starting each sentence with a new topic, forcing the reader to rebuild context.
- Using “this” without a noun.
- Ordering paragraphs by accident rather than by the logic of the argument.
- Describing coherence in analysis without saying how it reflects the line of reasoning.
Worked mini-example
Draft: “Our canteen should offer vegetarian meals. Lunch starts at noon. Vegetarian meals are cheap to make. The kitchen has new ovens. More students would buy lunch if there were more choice.”
Repair: cut “Lunch starts at noon” and “The kitchen has new ovens” (unity); link what remains: “Our canteen should offer vegetarian meals. They are cheap to make, and because more students would buy lunch if there were more choice, the canteen would probably earn more than it spent.”
On the exam
In reading questions, explain how the organisation creates unity and coherence and reflects a line of reasoning. In writing questions, choose the revision that removes an off-topic sentence or places an idea where it follows logically.
Quick self-check
- Define unity and coherence in one sentence each. (Unity: all sentences serve one idea. Coherence: ideas link logically.)
- A paragraph’s sentences are all about cycling but do not connect. Which quality is present and which absent? (Unity roughly present, coherence absent.)
- Why can “therefore” fail to make a paragraph coherent? (The ideas must actually follow.)
Next: practice questions.