Short on time? This page is the recap. For explanations and worked examples, use the full study guide.
Recap
- Writers use evidence strategically and purposefully: to illustrate, clarify, exemplify, associate, amplify or qualify a point.
- Evidence is effective when commentary explains the logical relationship between it and the claim.
- Evidence is sufficient when its quantity and quality provide apt support for the line of reasoning.
- Developing an interpretation is recursive: from evidence to claim, or from claim to evidence.
- Coherence operates at three levels: sentence, paragraph and whole text.
- Tools of coherence: topic sentences, transitions, repetition, synonyms, clear pronoun reference and parallel structure.
Key relationships
| Purpose of evidence | Ask | Typical wording |
|---|---|---|
| Illustrate | Does it show the claim concretely? | “shows”, “pictures” |
| Exemplify | Is it one typical case? | “for example”, “one instance” |
| Clarify | Does it make an idea clear? | “makes clear that” |
| Associate | Does it link the subject to another idea? | “associates… with” |
| Amplify | Does it intensify the point? | “heightens”, “extends” |
| Qualify | Does it limit or complicate? | “qualifies”, “complicates” |
| Level | Check |
|---|---|
| Sentence | Does one clause link logically to the next? |
| Paragraph | Is there a topic sentence, and does each sentence follow from the last? |
| Essay | Does each paragraph link to the thesis and to its neighbours? |
Assumptions
- You choose evidence for a claim and can say what it does.
- Quotations are accurate, as short as possible and built into your sentences.
- Transitions are chosen for the relationship between ideas, not to fill space.
Mistakes to avoid
- Piling up quotations with no commentary.
- Quoting a whole sentence when a phrase would do.
- Pointing at evidence (“there is a simile”) without quoting it.
- Unclear pronouns (“This shows…”) with no referent.
- Paragraphs that list ideas instead of linking them.
Quick self-check
- What question should you ask of every quotation?
- Which purpose of evidence limits or complicates a claim?
- Why is one thin quotation often insufficient?
- Name three tools that make a paragraph coherent.
Answers. (1) What is this evidence doing for my claim? (2) Qualify. (3) Quality and quantity must together provide apt support; one thin quotation may show part of an idea but not the whole line of reasoning. (4) For example: a topic sentence, a transition, repetition of a key term (also synonyms, clear pronoun reference, parallel structure).
Sentence frames to adapt
- “[Short quotation] illustrates [claim] by [what it shows].”
- “The phrase ‘[quotation]’ qualifies [earlier idea], so [what changes].”
- “While the first paragraph shows [idea], this paragraph turns to [idea], because [link].”
- “[Key term from thesis] recurs in [evidence], which links [paragraph] to the thesis.”
Fill the gaps with exact words from the passage. If a gap can only be filled with a general word such as ‘good’, ‘powerful’ or ‘interesting’, the commentary needs more thought.
Ready for more? Try the practice questions and then the checklist.