III. 拟定提纲； Outline
Creating an outline for your article makes you prepared. You have an idea of what to do first and make a plan for your succeeding steps. Being prepared makes the job easier and faster. Being organized will allow for disorientation to be shunned away.
An outline can act as the design or blueprint for your article. This will guide you in creating the introduction, body and conclusion of your article. Here in this point, you can write down some of the ideas and sentences that you feel will look good in your article. This could be some of the focal point that could help make your article creative, interesting and appealing to a reader.
1. An outline aids in the process of writing
helps you organize your ideas
presents your materials in a logical form
shows the relationships among ideas in your writing
constructs an ordered overview of your writing
defines boundaries and groups
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2. How do I create an outline?
Brainstorm: list all the ideas that you want to include in your paper.
Organize: group related ideas together.
Order: arrange materials in subsections from general to specific or from abstract to concrete.
Label: create main and sub-headings.
3. Four Main Components for Effective Outlines
Ideally, you should follow these 4 suggestions to create an effective outline.
1. Parallelism :
Each heading and subheading should preserve parallel structure. If the first heading is a verb, the second heading should be a verb.
Example: Why I Apply To This University
1. Choose Desired Colleges
2. Find out the advantages and disadvantages
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3. Prepare Application
(\"Choose\" ,“find out”and \"Prepare\" are all verbs.)
2. Coordination （协调）
All the information contained in Heading 1 should have the same significance as the information contained in Heading 2. The same goes for the other subheadings (which should be less significant than the previous headings).
Example:
1. Visit and evaluate college campuses
2. Visit and evaluate college websites
1. Note important statistics
2. Look for interesting classes
(Campus and website visits are equally significant, as are statistics and classes found on college websites.)
3. Subordination
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The information in the headings should be more general, while the information in the subheadings should be more specific.
Example:
Describe influential persons in your life
1.Favorite high school teachers
2.Grandparent
(A favorite teacher and grandparent are specific examples of influential people.)
Division
Each heading should be divided into 2 or more parts.
提纲的种类 ( 1 ) 句子提纲：sentence outline
( 2 ) 主题提纲：topic/point outline
Sample Outline ( sentence outline )
Title :
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Foreign Trade Is Beneficial to and Indispensable for All Nations
I. Introduction : The utilization of different economic resources and the development of different skills form the foundation of foreign trade.
II. Trade in commodities ( visible trade ) is necessary between nations.
A. No nation has all the commodities it needs..
B. A nation may not have enough of certain commodities.
C. A nation may sell certain commodities at a profit.
D.Latest innovations and different styles of commodities may make foreign trade necessary.
E. All nations strive to maintain favorable balance of trade so as to be assured of the means to buy necessary goods.
III. Exchange of services between nations ( invisible trade ) is part of foreign trade
A. Nations vie in providing transportation for foreign trade.
B. Prudent exporters purchase insurance for their cargoes.
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C. Tourism brings a nation huge profits.
D. Technology is also exported and imported.
IV. Conclusion : The purpose of foreign trade is to earn money for necessary imports and it is important to keep the balance of payments.
A topic outline
I. Introduction : The foundation of foreign trade
II. The necessity of foreign trade
A. Lack of certain commodities
B. Insufficiency of particular items.
C. Comparative advantage in certain items
D.Latest innovations and different styles of commodities
E. The importance of a favorable balance of trade
III. The necessity of invisible trade------exchange of services between nations
A. Transportation
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1.
A
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B. Insurance
C. Tourism
D. Technology
IV. Conclusion: The purpose of foreign trade and the importance of the balance of payments
两种格式不能混为一谈。
3．提纲的格式
文章的第一层，即论文的章标题，用大写罗马数字：I,I III,IV；
文章的第二层，即论文的节标题用大写字母A, B, C, D；
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文章的第三层，用阿拉伯数字1, 2, 3, 4，
文章的第四层，用小写字母a, b, c, d.
Thesis
I. Introduction
II. Main idea
A. sub-idea
B. sub-idea
1. supporting detail
2. supporting detail
a. fact 1
b. fact 2
III. Main idea
A. sub-idea
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B. sub-idea
1. supporting detail
2. supporting detail
3. supporting detail
C. sub-idea
IV. Conclusion
Example of an outline:
I. INTRODUCTION -(Brief comment leading into subject matter -Thesis statement on Shakespeare)
II. BODY - Shakespeare's Early Life, Marriage, Works, Later Years
A. Early life in Stratford
1. Shakespeare's family
a. Shakespeare's father
b. Shakespeare's mother
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2. Shakespeare's marriage
a. Life of Anne Hathaway
b. Reference in Shakespeare's Poems
B. Shakespeare's works
1. Plays
a. Tragedies
i. Hamlet
ii. Romeo and Juliet
b. Comedies
i. The Tempest
ii. Much Ado About Nothing（无事生非）
c. Histories
i. King John
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ii. Richard III
iii. Henry VIII
2. Sonnets
3. Other poems
C. Shakespeare's Later Years
1. Last two plays
2. Retired to Stratford
a. Death
b. Burial
i. Epitaph on his tombstone
III. CONCLUSION
A. Analytical summary
1. Shakespeare's early life
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2. Shakespeare's works
3. Shakespeare's later years
B. Thesis reworded
C. Concluding statement
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