Identifying and crafting creative topic sentences

IDENTIFYINGANDCRAFTINGEFFECTIVETOPICSENTENCES/ARGUMENTS Usually, anessayhas3-4(well developed) bodyparagraphs, excludingtheintroductionandconclusion.Thetopicsentenceisthefirst sentenceintroducingthemainidea, andshouldsumupthegist of eachbodyparagraph. Effectivetopicsentences/argumentsconsist of anassertionwhichengagesdirectlywiththeessayquestion’skeywords, andthereasonfor theassertionbeingmade.ARGUMENT=ASSERTION[WHAT]+REASON[WHY/HOW] QUALIFIEDASSERTION•linkclearlytothequestion•qualifyyour assertionbyindicatingthecontext/conditions/towhomyour argument applies •rephrasethekeywordstodisplayyour understandingof their meaning REASONSubstantiateyour assertionwitharationalethat previewsacharacteristicof thestakeholder(e.g. stakeholder’svaluesor power/capabilities). Notes:•thequestionsraisedinyour questionanalysisshouldhelpyouunearththesecharacteristics. •Whencraftingyour topicsentences, youshouldensurethat eachaddressesanewidea Q: Towhat extent ischaritablegivingdesirable?Examples Cynicswouldclaimthat charitablegivingisconsideredundesirablewhenit createsanunsustainablesolutiontoapre-existingproblem. Thisisseenineffortstoprovideaidtopeople whoarealreadyentrenchedwithinacertain wayof life. It must alsobeacknowledgedthat thereareinstancesof charitablegivingignoringtheneeds of recipientsandinsteadfocusingontheselfish mindset of thedonor, whichislessdesirable. Donorsseecharitydrivesasdumping groundsforunwanteditemsandexpiredfood toget ridof thingstheynolongerwant. QualifiedAssertion(what, instatedcontext)+ Reason(what) QualifiedAssertion(what, towhom) +Reason(what)

'Theartsarenothingmorethanaluxury.'How faristhistrueof yoursociety? “Beautyisintheeyesof thebeholder.” Whileitis truethat peoplefromall backgroundswouldbe abletoappreciatetheartsintheir ownway,admittedly, not everyoneisprivilegedenoughto beabletoappreciateart for itsacademicpurposes. Thus, appreciatingtheartsasanactivityisaluxurytothoselesswell-educated, QualifiedAssertion(what, towhom) +Reason(what) especiallytheoldergenerationswhodonot managetoobtainmuchformaleducation duringSingapore’sfoundingyears. Despiteall thesebarrierstotakingonthearts,Singaporestill recognisestheimportant rolethat theartshasinsocietyasacreativeplatformfor all. Assuch, theSingaporegovernment has takenstepstoensurethattheartsaremore accessibletoeveryone.Tolessenthefinancial burdenthat pursuingtheartsmight bring, the government highlysubsidiseslearningplatforms liketheSingaporeNational YouthOrchestraandSingapore’sChildrenChoir whicharefreeforSingaporeanstojoin. QualifiedAssertion(what, context) +Reason(what) EXERCISE:Samplesof topicsentencesaregivenbelow.i Identifythereasonandassertioninthetopicsentencesbelow.ii Givereasonswhyyouthinkthetopicsentencesareeffectiveor ineffectiveinaddressingthequestion.Considertheviewthat consumersareat themercyof corporations. (DHSY62015EOY) (a) Just 37yearsago, therewere50companiesinchargeof most Americanmedia. Now, 90%of themediaintheUnitedStatesiscontrolledbyjust sixcorporations: AT&T, CBS,Comcast, Disney, NewscorpandViacom. (b) Althoughit seemslikeconsumershaveawidevarietyof brandstochoosefrom, someproductsareactuallymonopolisedbyasinglecompany. Qualityandpricesof productsare actuallycontrolledwithout consumers’ knowledge. E.g. Luxotticamakesover 80%ofall the sunglassesintheworld. (c) Themodernconsumer ismoredemandingthanever, withabundant choicesandtheability

to makeinformedchoiceswithaquickInternet search. Dofilmsofferanythingmorethanentertainment?(DHS2020Y5Promo) 1. Conventional wisdom has it that films are only made to entertain. In the fast-paced, hecticsociety that we live in today, the majority of audiences demand to be entertained throughfilms which are an easy escape fromour stressful lives, andaudienceshardlyruminateoveror care about the issues highlighted in films after watching them. Therefore, filmproducersdriven by profit, would create films with mass appeal to elicit engagement regardless ofwhether thereexistsany substanceintheplot of thefilm. 2. Marvel movies have been lambasted for being too homogenous. Critics have highlightedhow"the 'Marvel movie” has become its own genre, an archetype for polished, epic,action-packed, filmsfilledwithone-liners. 3. More experimental filmproducers interested in the art of filmmaking would argue otherwise:there exist arthouse films that ultilise challenging or unusual storytelling to provoke thoughtand placeanemphasisontheauthorial expressivenessof thedirector. SELF-PRACTICE: IDENTIFYINGANDCRAFTINGTOPICSENTENCES Q: Towhat extent doadvertisementshaveanegativeeffect onsociety?Questionanalysis: Samplesof topicsentencesaregivenbelow. Givereasonswhyyouthinkthetopicsentencesareeffectiveor ineffectiveinaddressingthequestion.(Refer totheASSERTION+REASONstructureif needed.) Effectiveorineffective?Why? a) Advertisementsareprevalent inSingapore. b) Advertisementsexposetheyoungandimpressionabletoundesirablecontent. c) Advertisementshaveapositiveimpact onsocietyastheypromotesocial values. d) Anegativeeffect of advertisementsisthat theydistort societalperceptionsof beauty.

e) There is validity in the claim that advertisements affect people insociety adversely as they fuel consumerism which encouragesunnecessary spending. f) Advertisements do indeed have a largely negative influence onyoungchildren as they expose themto undesirable values and ideals at ayoungage. g) However, the negative impact of advertisements is generally not asbad as it is claimed to be for society in general, particularly whenadvertising allows consumers to compare and contrast goods andservices across companies and drives innovation in firms to createbetter products.