Learn To
ParaphraseExercises
Now, let’s try some exercises to check your understanding of
how to paraphrase.
Exercise I:
At least four separate theories of crime and punishment compete
for preeminence in guiding correctional policies. Justice: First,
there
is the ancient Judeo-Christian idea of holding individuals responsible
for their guilty acts and compelling them to pay a debt to society.
Retribution is an expression of society’s moral outrage,
and it lessens the impulse of victims and their families to seek
revenge.
Deterrence: Another philosophy argues that punishment should be
sure, speedy, commensurate with the crime, and sufficiently conspicuous
to deter others from committing crimes. Incapacitation: Still
another
philosophy in correctional policy is that of protecting the public
from lawbreakers or habitual criminals by segregating them behind
prison walls. Rehabilitation: Finally, there is the theory that
criminals are partly or entirely victims of social circumstances
beyond their
control and that society owes them comprehensive treatment in
the form of rehabilitation. (p. 100-101)
--Dye, T. (1995). Understanding public policy (8th ed.). Englewood
Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall.
First, you’ll want to identify the main points in this passage.
Use some scratch paper to identify the main points:
Now let’s look at a sample paraphrase of the passage. This
sample paraphrase has several key problems. Read the paraphrase and
then write down some of the problems with this paraphrase.
Four separate theories about crime and punishment compete in guiding
correctional policies. The first is an ancient Judeo-Christian idea
of justice. This idea holds individuals responsible for their own
actions and compels them to pay a debt to society. In this case, retribution
is an expression of society’s moral outrage. This lessens the
impulse of victims to seek revenge. A second theory of crime and punishment
is deterrence. This philosophy argues that punishment should e certain,
swift, and commensurate with the crime. If punishment is conspicuous,
this theory holds that it will deter others from committing crime.
A third theory is the theory of incapacitation. This theory is to
protect the public from criminals by placing criminals behind prison
walls. A final theory of crime and punishment is the theory of rehabilitation.
This theory suggests that criminals are victims of social circumstances
beyond their control. In this instance society owes them comprehensive
treatment in the form of rehabilitation (Dye, 1995).
Problems with this Paraphrase: The writer of the paraphrase
did not change the structure of ideas, sentence structure, or wording.
Essentially,
this
writer
is
guilty
of plagiarism.
Now that you’ve identified both the key points and the problems
with the above paraphrase, write your own paraphrase of the passage.
In the next two exercises, you’ll have to identify
the topic sentence and main points. Then, draft a paraphrase based
on
that information.
UHV students can schedule an appointment with an Academic Center tutor
who can discuss paraphrasing with you. Stop by the Center, room 122,
University Center, or call (361) 570-4288 to find out how you can
schedule an appointment. You can also send in your paraphrase to the
online tutors if you include the passage you’re paraphrasing.
Email your paraphrase and the passage as an email attachment to tutor@uhv.edu.
Exercise II:
Sentence rhythm is a feature of all modes of language, not just speech.
The peaks and valleys are there when we read silently, and they are
there when we write, as we think of the words and phrases while moving
our pen or punching the keyboard. Although philosophers may debate
about whether it’s possible to think in the absence of language,
we are certainly conscious of doing our own thinking in words. In
fact, we often “write” mental lists; we hold silent conversations
with ourselves; we scold ourselves; we rehearse what we plan to say
to others and what we wish we had said but didn’t. And that
interior language, the sentences and fragments of our inner voice,
has all the peaks and valleys that our spoken language has. (p. 25)
--Kolin, M. (1999). Rhetorical grammar: Grammatical choices,
rhetorical effects (3rd ed.). Boston: Allyn and Bacon.
Exercise III:
While may people separate ethical and legal issues, the boundary
between these issues is often ambiguous to the business manager who
is not ordinarily trained as a lawyer. The manager is trained to make
functional business decisions and yet has a responsibility for the
management of legal and ethical affairs. When it is suggested that
legal and ethical decisions are independent, there is an assumption
that the good executive “instinctively” recognizes differences
in legal and ethical issues. While there are some legal issues that
are obvious, many borderline ethics decisions result in civil litigation.
In reality, civil complaints and litigation are a formal procedure
resolving ethical disputes between two parties.
--Ferrell, O.C. & Fraedrich, J. (1997). Business ethics.
New York: Houghton Mifflin Company.
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