东南大学《英语三级》Paragraph Development -Cause and Effect.docVIP

Paragraph Development: Cause and Effect I. Causal Analysis Causal analysis deals with the cause and effect relationship between two elements. Cause should not be confused with reason; a cause leads to an effect while a reason explains an effect. Two questions should be answered in a causal analysis: What is the cause of something that has happened? (Why?) What effect will follow if something has happened? (What if?) 1. Cause as answer: (effect — cause) There was a considerable drop in the production of crops in this area last year due to an unprecedented severe drought. 2. Effect as answer: (cause — effect) Last year, an unprecedented severe drought hit this area. This led to a considerable drop in the production of crops. 3. Very often what is effect of one thing may at the same time be cause of another, or vice versa. 1) (cause — effect / cause — effect) Last year, an unprecedented severe drought hit this area. This led to a considerable drop in the production of craps. As a result, many of the village people had to leave home to find jobs in neighboring towns and cities. 2) (effect — cause — effect / cause) Last year many of the village people in this area had to leave home to find jobs in neighboring towns and cities after the area was hit by a severe drought which led to a considerable drop in the production of crops. 4. The basic pattern of cause and effect — single cause, single effect — rarely gives the full picture. Most complex social and political problems have multiple causes rather than a single cause and a single effect. 1) Cause 1 Cause 2 — produces — effect Cause 3 It is oversimplifying to assume that high schools were the only cause of the nationwide decline in scores on the Scholastic Aptitude Test between 1964 and 1984. Not only would it be unfair to high schools, it would also be ignoring a variety of other possible important causes, such as television viewing habits, family life, level of textbooks, an