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2. The Concepts of Descriptive Text

a. The Definition of Descriptive Text

Descriptive text is a kind of text which describes something about

a thing, person, animal, or other. It is a text that students taught in Junior

High School. Hence, the students are expected to be able to understand

and produce a good descriptive text on their own. According to Oshima

and Hogue, descriptive writing appeals to the senses, so it tells how

something looks, feels, smells, tastes, and sounds. 15 It means that

descriptive text is to mention in detail something based on something

looks and observed by people in specific.

Descriptive text is a text which lists the characteristics of

something or someone and description is a mode of expository writing

which is relied upon in other expository modes, we sometimes in

imagining a purely descriptive essay. In a narrative, for example, a

description can make the settings of characters more vivid; in a process

paper, it ensures that the audience understands the finished product.

Regardless of how we use description, it is easy to see that it strengthens

an essay considerably.16

A description is employed to make an event live within

the reader’s mind. in an exceedingly description, a writer must put

attention on the introduction of his/her essay since it determines the

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reader’s first impression. a noteworthy introduction will catch the reader’s

attention and makes him/her read the text until the tip.17 It means that the

specific object to be described must be known in advance by the writer

before describe.

b. The Purpose of Descriptive Text

Every writing form has its purposes. Descriptive has its own

purpose as well. According to Andrew and James the purpose of

descriptive text is to present a measured and verified. Most objective

descriptions in descriptive text are aimed at relatively narrow audiences

and people who will design, produce, or use whatever is being described.18

There are several aims of descriptive text:

1) To see, means to help the reader to see the objects, persons, and

sensations of your present, as you might guess, description is

important for all rhetorical aims, not just for expressiveness.

2) To explain means to explain the reader about a subject. For example: a

science writer will describe the shape of an airplane wing to help

explain to readers how mechanized flight is possible.

3) To persuade, means the writer describes something to make readers

interested. For example : an attorney might describe the damage done

 20

to a bedroom window to help prove forced entry and thereby persuade

the jury that the accused committed burglary.

4) To recreate, means the writer wants to demonstrate something to the

reader. When a writer describes the thawing of Walden Pond after a

long, cold winter is to demonstrate the animated quality of nature and

how its processes are more complex and beautiful than non observers

can realize.19
c. The Criteria for Good Description

In writing descriptive text, there are some keys to write a good

description is to use details that help the readers imagine the person who

are describing. So when the students describe what a person looks like, the

students write about physical characteristics such as height, weight, and

hair color. There are two keys to writing a good description. The first key

is to use space order. In space order, students might describe something

from top to bottom of left to right. For example, when they describe a

person, they could start with the person’s feet. They could describe a room
from left to right or form right to left. Imagine that they are standing at the

doorway and write about each part of the room in order, moving from the

left side of the room around to the right side, and ending at the doorway

again. The second key to write a good description is to use specific details.

When students describe something, they paint a picture with words. The

goal is to make the reader see what they have described. The way to do
 21

this is to use many specific details, specific means exact, precise. The

more specific they can do, make the readers can see what they are

describing.20

From the explanation above, the researcher conclude that to make

a good writing the writers could master in two keys namely space order

wherein describe something you can describe from bottom to left or left to

right and specific detail wherein describe something you can use words to
explain about the picture so the readers will imagine the form of picture

that have described.

d. Language Features of Descriptive Text

In language features, there is a grammatical feature that is used to

support the information including the text. Knapp and Watkins declare

that descriptive text has grammatical feature as follow:

1) The present tense in predominately used when describing things from

a technical or factual point of view. Although present tense may be

used in literary descriptions, it is past tense that tends to dominate, i.e.

had, was, enjoyed, seemed, and sparkled.

2) Relational verb are used when classifying and describing appearance/

qualities and parts/ function of phenomena (is, are, has, have)

3) Action verbs are used when describing behaviors or uses, i.e. the

queen ant lays the eggs. Ants live in colonies.

4) In literary in common sense description, action verbs are used

metaphorically to create effect, i.e. Declan smashed the record.

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5) Mental verbs are used when describing feeling in literary descriptions,

i.e. she felt unhappy.

6) Adjectives are used to add extra information to nouns and may be

technical, everyday or literary, depending on the text, i.e. possums are

nocturnal. Adjectives can be used on their own, as above, or as a part

of a noun group, i.e. turtles are covered with a hard, box-like shell.

7) Adverbs are used to add extra information to verbs to provide more

detailed description, i.e. turtles swim slowly

8) Adverbial phrases are used in descriptions to add more information

about the manner, place or time, i.e. walruses have hair on their lips.

9) Sentences and paragraphs are thematically linked to the topic of

description, i.e. it is grey and brown.

10) Technical descriptions generally deal with classes of things, rather

than individual things, i.e. snails, turtles, volcanoes.21

e. The Generic Structure of Descriptive Text

Speaking about structure of text, Meyer presents four main types
of text structure in an analysis of the rhetorical organization of
expositions: time order, collections of descriptions, comparisons, and
cause and effect.22
In biber’s terms, there are two different perspectives that can be
offered on the structure of these texts : one identifies the text’s generic
structure based on its genre category membership and another one that
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describes its text structure based on its internal patterning of rhetorical

organization. This analysis presents structural components often text
which may easily be disguised if just one of these structural patterning is
presented to students. Equally, the text structure analysis does not account
for conventions such as where the sender’s address should be placed, and
the fact that there should be a formal sign off. This analysis also reveals
that the text structure component ʻevaluationʼ does not necessarily need to
occur in final position, as it does in many other problem solution texts.23
Generic structures and structures of text may be compared and

contrasted in the language learning classroom. 24 When writing descriptive

text, there are some generic structures for our writing to be true. The

arrangement is:

1) Identification

Identification identifies the described phenomenon.25 Consists

of a topic about what is going to be described visually or mentally.

Identification consist of one or more sentences, or one short

paragraph.26 Usually it includes the object’s name, kind of the object

and etc. And the characteristic of identification are:

a) Contain of the topic

b) “who” or “what” question

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2) Description
27
Description describes parts, qualities, and characteristics.

Description contains an explanation, for example: picture of the

mentioned thing. Description may contain one or more short

paragraphs depending on the requirement.28 The characteristic of the

description are:

a) Describe about the topic

b) Describe physics, quality, character or attitude about something.

Example of Descriptive Text

My Lovely Mio Tittle
Identification I have a pet name mio. It is a male Persian Cat.
Mio looks cute and classy. His fur is beautiful. He has thick soft hair.
Every three months, he gets vitamins shots and other precaution
measures.
Description Mio likes eating canned and dried food. When mio does not feel well,
he does not do much meowing and eats less than usual. In this
moment, he needs extra vitamins and milk. Usually, he will be better
within two days.
My Friend Tittle
Identification I have a classmate. Her name is Isma Yunita, and her nickname is
Isma. She comes from Surabaya.
She is a beautiful girl. She is tall and has curly hair. She also has round
Description eyes, and the color is brown. She has fair skin. She is very nice and
has a beautiful smile. She is very lovely, friendly, patient, and she
loves to help people.
Read the text and answer the questions 1-7.
Line
Borobudur is Hindu – Budhist temple. It was build in the nineth century under 1
Sailendra dynasty of ancient Mataram kingdom. Borobudur is located in Magelang, Central
Java, Indonesia.

Borobudur is well-known all over the world. Its construction is influenced by the
Gupta architecture of India. The temple is constructed on a hill 46 m high and consist of eight
5
step like stone terrace. The first-five terrace are square and surrounded by walls adorned with
Budist sculpture in bas-relief. The upper three are circular. Each of them is with a circle of
bell shape-stupa. The entire adifice is crowned by a large stupa at the centre at the centre of
the top circle. The way to the summit extends through some 4.8 km of passage and starways.
The design of borobudur which symbolizes the structure of universe influences temples at
Angkor, Cambodia. 10

Borobudur temple which is rededicated as an Indonesian monument in 1983 is a valuable

treasure for Indonesian people.

http://bos-sulap.blogspot.com/2010/02/contoh-example-descriptive-text-on.html

1. What is the purpose of the text?

a. To describe the Borobudur temple
b. To describe the Gupta architecture
c. To explain how Borobudur temple is
d. To describe Indonesian monument
2. Where is the temple located?
a. In ancient Mataram Kingdom
b. Around Hindu temple
c. In Magelang
d. In Gupta Architecture of India
3. Borobudur is well-known all over the world. (Line 4)
The word “well-known” is closest meaning to ….
a. extinct
b. unfamiliar
c. famous
d. great
4. “Each of them is with a circle of bell shape stupa.” (Line 7)
What does the underlined word refer to?
a. Terraces
b. Borobudur
 c. Buddhist sculpture
d. Relief
5. What is the topic of the second paragraph?
a. The Buddhist temple
b. Indonesian monument
c. The construction of the Buddhist temple
d. The five terraces
6. Which statement is TRUE according to the text?
a. The temple consists of seven steps like stone terrace.
b. The upper steps are square.
c. The structure of universe influences the Hindu temple.
d. All terraces are with a circle of bell shape-stupa.
7. What does the text tell about?
a. The Hindu – Buddhist temple
b. Borobudur temple
c. The scenery of Borobudur temple
d. The famous temple

Read the text and answer the questions 8-14.

Line

On Sunday, my parents, my best friend Novi, and I visited a cave at Maros called 1
Leang-leang . It was my first time to visit the cave, better yet, my best friend came to visit
it with me!
The cave was famous for its primitive cave wall paintings which were some hand
prints and wild boar paintings. The cave and its surroundings was turned into a national 5
park, so it was taken care of. My parents took a rest in a small hut for visitors of the park,
while Novi and I adventured around the cave with a guide. We had to climb some metal
stairs to get to the cave, because the cave was embedded into a small mountain. Next stop
was a place where some seashells littered the ground and some were actually piled into a
big mound! The guide said that these piles of seashells are called kjokkenmoddinger, or
10
kitchen trash. The humans who lived here ate the shells and dumped the left overs in their
'kitchen'. The last place was a small museum where they have skeletons of the humans
who lived in the caves. The skeletons along with some roughly made jewelry and weapons
were placed inside glass cases for display. The walls of the museum were adorned with 15
photographs taken when they did an excavation there.
1 After a quick lunch with Novi and my parents, we decided it was time to go back
home. We really had the time of our lives!

http://bos-sulap.blogspot.com/2010/02/contoh-example-recount-text-on.html
8. What is the topic of the text?
a. My Holiday
b. The adventure to Leang-leang cave
c. Leang-leang cave
d. I and my best friends vacation
9. Why is the cave famous?
a. because of its primitive cave wall paintings.
b. because it is my first time to visit the cave.
c. because it belongs to a national park.
d. because of the small mountain.
10. When did her parents take a rest?
a. while the writer did an excavation.
b. while Novi and the writer went around to the cave with the guide.
c. while they went to a national park.
d. while they visited the mountain.
11. “… it was taken care of….” (Line 6)
What does the underlined word mean?
a. Ignored
b. Clean up
c. Maintained
d. Covered
12. The word „guide‟ in Line 10 is a person …
a. who shows many places.
b. who shows the way to others.
c. who teaches visitors.
d. who comes to a tour.
13. According to the text, where did they go after seeing seashells? (Line 8)
a. a small mountain.
b. skeleton house.
c. a small museum.
d. have for lunch.
14. What are the benefits of skeleton?
a. It can be used to make jewelry and weapons.
b. It can be eaten.
c. The people use it to keep themselves.
d. It is used to decorate the cave.