How Structure Affects the Style of a Text

In this lesson, we're going to explore the ways in which a text's structure affects its style. Focusing on nonfiction texts, we'll identify several common styles and see how they fit together with several common structures.

Structure and Style

Another English assignment . . . and this one is harder than ever! Your teacher wants you to write a paragraph about how the structure of a nonfiction text affects its style. You feel like throwing your English book out the window at this point, but instead you sit down at your desk and turn to your computer. First, you need to figure out what the word structure and style actually mean.

Structure is pretty simple really. It's merely the way a text is organized. Authors deliberately choose to arrange their information and ideas in a particular way.

Style is a little trickier. Style refers to the manner in which an author presents information and ideas. A writer's style is created by his or her choices of words, sentence structures, tone, imagery, point of view, figurative language, symbolism, and mood.

A Variety of Styles

'Okay,' you think, 'that makes sense.' As you continue to research, you learn that, while every writer has his or her own style, there are a few common styles that writers adapt to their own purposes.

The first style is expository. With this style, writers choose a fairly formal language to present information about a particular topic. They tend to leave out emotional appeals and their own opinions about a subject, focusing instead on the qualities of the subject itself. A formal analysis of Robert Browning's poetry would probably use an expository style.

The second style is descriptive. While using this style, writers concentrate on sensory detail to paint a word picture of a person, place, thing, or event, and they strive to go beyond mere information and capture the depth and feel of the subject. The author of a travel article about Italy would employ a descriptive style to bring Italy's wonders to life for his readers.

The third style is persuasive. Writers use this style to convince their audience to accept a particular point of view. This is an argumentative style that presents reasons and evidence to support a claim. A newspaper editorial that tries to convince readers that a city needs a new school building would employ a persuasive style as the writer presents his claim, reasons, and evidence and tries to persuade his readers to agree with him.

The last style is narrative. Writers utilize a narrative style to tell a story. History books and biographies often feature the narrative style as they present stories about historical events and people.

Putting Style Together with Structure

Aha! Now you're getting the hang of this! Next, you turn to your notes and review the five major nonfiction structures.

• 1. Chronological, which presents events in the order of time
• 2. Cause and effect, which looks at the causes and effects of an event
• 3. Problem and solution, which examines a problem and offers a solution or solutions to it
• 4. Compare and contrast, which analyzes the similarities and differences between two or more subjects
• 5. Descriptive, which focuses on sensory details or gives directions on how to perform a task

You set your lists of styles and structures next to each other. Click! A light bulb just came on in your head. It's clear that some structures just plain work better with some styles than with others. The chronological structure is a perfect fit with the narrative style. The cause and effect and compare and contrast structures work well with the expository style. The problem and solution structure and the persuasive style are a good match. The descriptive structure, of course, goes nicely with the descriptive style.

Now you see how style and structure fit together and influence one another. Authors adapt their style to their structure and vice versa. You have one more task, though. You know that you'll get a better grade if you think of some specific examples to include in your paragraph. You quickly make one more list:

• The interesting book you just read about the life of President Abraham Lincoln features a chronological structure with a narrative style.
• A fascinating piece you perused about the causes and effects of tornadoes combines a cause and effect structure with an expository style.
• The article you read for school that compares Milton's Paradise Lost to Dante's Divine Comedy employs a compare and contrast structure and an expository style.
• You recently skimmed a newspaper editorial that argued that the school board should add on to your school building to solve the problem of overcrowding. Now you realize that the author used a problem and solution structure with a persuasive style.
• An article about a historic house that you enjoyed is descriptive in both structure and style.

Lesson Summary

After you write your paragraph, you take a few minutes to review what you've learned about structure and style. Structure is the way a text is organized. Style is the manner in which an author presents information and ideas. A few common styles include the expository, which presents information about a particular topic; the descriptive,which concentrates on sensory detail to paint a word picture of a subject; the persuasive, which tries to convince an audience to accept a particular point of view; and the narrative, which tells a story.

These styles fit together with the five major nonfiction structures: the chronological, or time order, structure with the narrative style; the cause and effect and compare and contrast structures with the expository style; the problem and solution structure with the persuasive style; and the descriptive structure with the descriptive style.

You put down your pen with a satisfied smile. You now understand quite a lot about how structure and style work together, and you are positive that you will earn an A for this assignment.