The example of spoof

A man from the country side went to a city. It was his first time visiting the city, so the city's view with all the flashy technology shocked him very much.

While roaming the city's shopping centre, he found a red building that was soo big! He wanted to go inside the building, so he excitedly walked up to the building and found himself face to face with a shiny metalic door.

On the door was an 'open' sign. He was surprised, this building is an oven? He mistakenly took the sign 'open' as 'oven'. In cue with this mistake, a white man opened the door and entered the building. And then five minutes later, the metalic door opened revealing a black man!

When another white man came to enter the building, the country side man stopped him from entering. He said, "Don't go in there! That building is an oven! "

Example of A Recount Text

On Sunday, my parents, my best friend Novi, and I visited a cavé at Maros called Leang-Leang. It was my first time to visit the cavé, better yet, my best friend came to visit with me!


The cave was famous for its primitive cave wall paintings which were some hand prints an wild boar paintings. The cave and its surroundings was turned into a national 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 where actually piled into a big mound! The guide said that these piles of seashells are called kjokkenmoddinger, or kitchen trash.

The humans who lived here ate the shells and dumped the left over's in their ‘kitchen’. The last place was a small museum where they have skeletons of the humans who lives in the caves. The skeletons along with some roughly made jewerly and weapons were placed inside glass cases for display.

The walls of the museum were adorned with photographs taken when they did an excavation there. 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!

Recount Text

Recount text is the type of text retelling past events or experiences. Its purpose is either to inform or to entertain the audience. There is no complication among the participants, and that makes it different from narrative text.

The generic Structure of a recount text can be summarized as follows: its orientation usually introduces the participants, place and time; the contents are usually of events happening in the past; and the reorientation is usually stating the author’s personal comments towards the event.

The language features of a recount text are usually:

a) It introduces personal participants; such as I, my group, etc.

b) Chronological Connectors dominates the conjunctions.

c) The sentences are mostly in past tense.

Narrative and recount in some ways are similar since both tell about events happening in the past. Accordingly. Narrative and recount texts usually apply the past tenses. Their paragraphs are arranged in chronological order. Commonly, narrative texts can be found in story books, such as myth, fable, folklore, etc; while recount texts are customarily found in experience-sharing articles and biographies.

Narrative and recount texts are different in the structure in which they are constructed. While the former focuses on conflicts among the participants, the latter focuses on events happening to a particular character(s).

Text Genres

I. INTRODUCTION

A.  TERMINOLOGY

According to Concise Oxford Dictionary 11^th edition, the noun ‘text’ was taken into English vocabulary in the Middle English age from the Old Northern French noun ‘texte’, which had also been an adoption of the medieval Latin noun ‘textus’ meaning ‘Gospel’, 'tissue’, and ‘literary style'.

In the present English, the noun ‘text’ refers to:

1) a written or printed work regarded in terms of content rather than form

2) the original words of an author or document

3) in computing, data corresponding to a body of writing

4) the main body of a book or other piece of writing, as distinct from

    appendices, illustrations, etc

5) a written work chosen as a subject of study

6) a passage from the Bible or other religious work, especially as the subject

    of a sermon

7) a text message (SMS text)

And since this paper is intended to accomplish an assignment in Academic Writing class, the paper will exclusively talk about texts which refer specifically to meaning 1 and 4.

B.     CATEGORIES OF TEXT

Written works, regarded in terms of content, are divided into several categories:

1) Recount Text,

2) Anecdotal Text,

3) Procedural Text,

4) Explanatory Text,

5) Descriptive text,

6) Discussion Text,

7) Informational-Report Text,

8) News Item Text,

9) Narrative Text,

10) Expositional Text,

11) Review Text, and

12) Spoof Text.

In order to easily memorize and teach them, it is advisory that the list is shortened into the phrase ‘RAPED DINNERS’.

The following are very brief explanations for each of the other categories mentioned earlier and a comprehensive explanation for procedural text, the type of text on which our group was assigned to compose. And please note that in order to make readers focus more on procedural text, its explanation is put on the last part, not following the listing order in the above paragraph.

1) RECOUNT TEXT

Recount text is the type of text retelling past events or experiences. Its purpose is either to inform or to entertain the audience. There is no complication among the participants, and that makes it different from narrative text.

The generic Structure of a recount text can be summarized as follows: its orientation usually introduces the participants, place and time; the contents are usually of events happening in the past; and the reorientation is usually stating the author’s personal comments towards the event.

The language features of a recount text are usually:

a) It introduces personal participants; such as I, my group, etc.

b) Chronological Connectors dominates the conjunctions.

c) The sentences are mostly in past tense.

Narrative and recount in some ways are similar since both tell about events happening in the past. Accordingly. Narrative and recount texts usually apply the past tenses. Their paragraphs are arranged in chronological order. Commonly, narrative texts can be found in story books, such as myth, fable, folklore, etc; while recount texts are customarily found in experience-sharing articles and biographies.

Narrative and recount texts are different in the structure in which they are constructed. While the former focuses on conflicts among the participants, the latter focuses on events happening to a particular character(s).

2) ANECDOTAL TEXT

Anecdote is the kind of text aiming to share funny and/or unusual incidents happening in either reality or imagination. Its generic structure usually contains:

a) Abstract

b) Orientation

c) Crisis

d) Incident

The most dominant language features are:

a) exclamations, e.g. Wow!

b) imperative sentences, e.g. listen to this

c) rhetorical questions, e.g. “Do you know what?”

d) action verbs, e.g. go, write, etc

e) temporal conjunctions, e.g. then, afterward, etc

f) the simple past tense

3) EXPLANATORY TEXT

Explanatory text is the kind of text explaining the processes involved in the formation or the mechanism of natural or socio-cultural phenomena. Its generic structure usually consists of:

a) general statement

b) explanation

c) closing

The most dominant language features are:

a) the present tenses

b) action verbs

c) passive voice

d) noun phrases

e) adverbial phrases

f) technical terms

g) general and abstract nouns

h) temporal and causative conjunctions.

4) DESCRIPTIVE TEXT.

A descriptive text is the kind of text which aims to describe a particular person, place or thing in detail. Mostly, this kind of text only consists of identifications and descriptions, while the language features most dominantly applied in it are:

a) the present tense

b) action verbs

c) adverbs

d) special technical terms

5) DISCUSSION TEXT

A discussion text is the kind of text aiming to explain either an agreement or a disagreement towards a particular statement such as theory, policy, etc, by providing some argumentative information and evidence. Its generic structure commonly consists of:

a) issue

b) arguments

c) conclusion

The dominant Language features are:

a) Present Tenses

b) relating verbs (copula)

c) thinking verbs

d) general and abstract nouns

 e) conjunction/transition

f) modality

g) adverbs of manner

6) INFORMATIONAL REPORT TEXT

This is the kind of text which aims to presents information about something just the way it is. Its generic structure consists of:

a) General classification and

b) Description

The most dominant language features are:

a) Introducing group or general aspect

b) conditional logical connection

c) the present tense

7) NEWS-ITEM TEXT

The main purpose of writing this kind of text is to inform readers about events of the day which are considered newsworthy or important. The dominant generic structure consists of:

a) newsworthy event(s)

b) Background event(s)

c) Source.

The most dominant language features are:

a) Short, telegraphic headline

b) action verbs

c) adverbs used: time, place and manner

8) NARRATIVE TEXT

Purpose: To amuse/entertain the readers and to tell a story.

The generic structure:

a) Orientation,

b) Complication,

c) Resolution, and

d) Reorientation.

The most dominant language features:

a) Past Tense,

b) Action verbs

c) Chronological arrangement.

9) EXPOSITIONAL TEXT

There are two kinds of expositional text:

a) The Analytical and

b) The Hortatory.

In the following is a very brief explanation of the generic structures and dominant language features contained in both types of text:

a) ANALYTICAL EXPOSITION

Purpose: to reveal for the readers that something is very important. Generic Structure:

1) Thesis,

2) Arguments, and

3) Reiteration/Conclusion.

The dominant language features are:

      1) modals,

     2) action verbs,

     3) thinking verbs,

     4) adverbs,

    5) adjective,

    6) technical terms,

       7) general and abstract nouns

       8) connectives/transitions.

b) HORTATORY EXPOSITION

Purpose: to persuade the readers that something should or should not be the case or be done. The generic structure consists of:

1) Thesis

2) Arguments

3) Recommendations

And the most dominant language features are:

      1) present tense

      2) modals

      3) action verbs,

      4) thinking verbs,

      5) adverbs,

      6) adjective,

      7) technical terms,

         8) general and abstract noun

         9) connectives/transitions

10) REVIEW TEXT

Purpose: to critique or evaluate an art work or event for a public audience. The dominant generic structures are:

 a) Orientation

 b) Evaluation

 c) Interpretative Recount

 d) Evaluation

 e) Evaluative Summation.

The dominant language features are:

a) specific focus

b) adjectives

c) long and complex clauses

d) metaphors

11) SPOOF TEXT

Purpose: to tell an event with a humorous twist and entertain the readers Generic   

Structure:

a) Orientation

b) Event(s)

c) Twist.

The dominant language features:

a) Past Tense

b) action verbs

c) adverbs,

d) Chronological arrangements. 

II.   PROCEDURAL TEXT

Finally, this is the type of text we were assigned to compose. A procedural text can be simply defined as the kind of text which aims to show readers how to make or do something.

Procedure is the set of steps which should be completed in the right sequence to get the goal. In our daily life, we often have to perform some steps to make or get something done. For example, early in the morning, you help your mother prepare cups of tea for all members of your family. In making cups of tea, you have to follow certain procedure in order to get a nice drink. Most of our daily activities are related with procedures. That is why, you should understand what a procedure text is, how to make and use it.

A. GENERIC STRUCTURE OF PROCEDURE

The generic structure of procedure has three principal components namely (1) the goal, (2) materials and (3) steps.

1. Goal : Title of the text (especially for a recipe)
2. Materials : Optional, not for all procedural texts
3. Steps : a series steps oriented to achieving the Goal

B. GENERIC FEATURES

1. The use of Simple Present Tense, often in an imperative form e.g. Add some sugar,

    prepare it,.
2. The use mainly of temporal conjunction (or numbering to indicate sequence especially

    in written text)

    a. As the sentence introducers (sequencers) especially in spoken text:
            First … Firstly …,  Second … Secondly … Then … Thirdly, After that …

            Afterwards …  Finally … Lastly …
            e.g. Firstly, prepare some water!
    b. As time introducers, especially in written text
             … before …, After …, When … ,While ….., … until …, During …
             e.g. While you are boiling the water, grind the chilies, onions and salt

3.  technical terms.

Furthermore, headings, subheadings, numbered steps, diagrams, and photographs are often used to help clarify instructions.

C.     THE EXAMPLE OF PROCEDURAL TEXT
Goal:
                                 HOW TO ACTIVATE A HANDPHONE 

Nowadays, we need a handphone to connect to our colleagues. We can get it easily in the shop. When we buy it we shall get a handphone, a SIM card, a battery and a charger
steps:
This is the way to activate the handphone:
         · First, open the cover of the handphone
         · Second, insert the SIM card after being installed
         · Third, insert the battery inside
         · Fourth, close the battery with a cover of handphone
         · Fifth, connect the lead from the charger to the bottom of the phone.
         · Sixth, connect the charger to an AC wall outlet. Charging the battery supplied with

           the   phone may take four up to six hours.
         . Seventh, when the battery is fully charged, the bar stops scrolling. Disconnect    

           the  charger from the AC outlet and the phone. Then, we are ready to make a

           phone call.