Unit 03: Reasons and Results – The Cause-and-Effect Essay

“Why did that happen?” “What were the effects?”

These are common questions about many events, actions, conditions in the world. That’s what this unit is all about: reason and result. Or, as writing instructors say, cause and effect. It’s a very useful — and very common — writing strategy both in school and out of school.  In this unit, you will use a new topic from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and examine the issue from a new angle. To do this, you’ll learn more about common cause-and-effect essay structures as well as the grammar and vocabulary to support them.

Key academic vocabulary in this unit

• clause /klɔz/ noun – a group of words with a subject and a verb
• create /kriˈeɪt/  verb –  to make something new
• discrimination /dɪˌskrɪmɪˈneɪʃ(ə)n/ noun – unfair treatment of someone
• format /ˈfɔrˌmæt/ noun – the arrangement, organization, or structure of something
• involve /ɪnˈvɑlv/ verb – to include something or someone as a part of an activity, event, or situation
• isolate /ˈaɪsəˌleɪt/ verb  – to keep someone or something away
• potential /pəˈtenʃ(ə)l/ noun and adjective – possible in the future
• predict /prɪˈdɪkt/ verb – to say what will happen in the future
• significant /sɪɡˈnɪfɪkənt/ adjective – large, noticeable, important, or meaningful
• summary /ˈsʌməri/ noun – a short description that gives only the most important information without all the details