- Coherence and transition in an essay are closely related: they both mean relating each sentence to our thesis/argument, ensuring sound organization, and avoiding choppy, uneven writing. COHERENCE means keeping points in a logical order and showing your reader that sequence through your word choice. TRANSITION means moving logically from one point, idea, etc. to the next, illustrating relevance, relationship, etc. as you do so. Generally speaking, coherence is a descriptive device, transition is an argument device. The first most frequently comes into play at the sentence level, the second at the paragraph level.
- You may establish coherence in many ways, but doing so without boring your audience to tears is not always easy. Here are some suggestions:
- Use pronoun references if it is clear what the antecedent is
- Repeat a key term to refocus the reader’s attention and to connect one step or point to the previous. This does NOT mean repeating an entire phrase or idea
- Use synonyms or other substitutes for word/ideas to keep the essay moving without excessive repetition
- Structural parallelisms effectively echo previous processes, comparison, etc.
- Transitional phrases and sentences move your reader smoothly from one major area of the essay to the next
- Present your argument as a PROCESS. This ensures your points remain in logical order. If you suddenly find yourself after step 5 with addition information on step 2, you know you’re disorganized.