CONCRETE & ABSTRACT

CONCRETE words denote what can be perceived by the five senses.

Examples: tree (sight/visual), thunder (hearing/aural), pizza (taste/gustatory), incense (smell/olfactory), and sandpaper (touch/tactile).

ABSTRACT words point to ideas, to concepts, to states of mind, to the theoretical, to whatever is outside the experience of the five senses.

Examples: love, courage, beauty, honesty, dignity, evil, peace, happiness, integrity, freedom, etc. We cannot literally see, hear, taste, or feel "freedom," for instance. Such words cannot be understood directly through the five senses; instead we must rely on our past personal experiences and social conditioning - on the associations the abstractions carry - to grasp what they mean.

Our thinking naturally swings between the ABSTRACT and CONCRETE. The words ABSTRACT and CONCRETE are generally used to describe a writer's style, particularly diction, or word choice.

Effective writing balances the abstract and concrete, and experienced writers support and develop abstract statements with concrete details to give their writing clarity, impact, and specificity.

In the following paragraph from Of Time and the River, Thomas Wolfe uses both ABSTRACT and CONCRETE diction; he is both GENERAL and SPECIFIC:

There would be a brisk fire crackling in the hearth, the old-smoke gold of morning and the smell of fog, the crisp cheerful voices of the people and their ruddy competent morning look, and the cheerful smell of breakfast, which was always liberal and good, the best meal that they had: kidneys and ham and eggs and sausages and toast and marmalade and tea.

Here is Wolfe's passage cast only in ABSTRACT, GENERAL language:

The room was warm, it was a nice morning, the people were happy, and breakfast was liberal and good.

What has been lost?

An essay begins with an ABSTRACTION - a thesis, an idea, a tentative conclusion or discovery about the subject. What follows is a gradual unfolding of the concrete explanation of that idea by means of specific examples and details, and concrete statements.

ABSTRACTIONS, which are types of GENERAL words, refer to things we cannot perceive through our five senses.

SPECIFIC words are often CONCRETE, naming things we can see, hear, touch, taste, or smell.

 

EXERCISE

YOUR NAME:
YOUR EMAIL:
TODAY'S DATE:

Part I: To gain a stronger sense of the levels of ABSTRACT and CONCRETE words, complete the following series. Each section provides an example.

GENERAL	LESS GENERAL	SPECIFIC	MORE SPECIFIC
book	dictionary	abridged	my 1996 edition of Webster's Collegiate

1. vehicle

2. pet

3. human

4. food

5. sport

ABSTRACT	LESS ABSTRACT	CONCRETE	MORE CONCRETE
art	visual art	painting	Van Gogh's "Sunflowers"

1. hero

2. literature

3. time

4. emotion

5. career

ABSTRACT AND CONCRETE

PART II: Using specific, concrete language, write a companion sentence to illustrate the abstract ideas in the following sentences. Remember to ask yourself, "What makes the abstract statements true?" Those concrete details will make up your sentence.

1. Paul's friends consider him a successful man.

2. Maria is a beautiful person.

3. The dog is very well-trained.

4. Manek urged his friends to leave the violent show.

5. Olivia's strength amazed me.

6. Anna admired Carlos's integrity.

Look at an essay you've written for your 100 class. Are you illustrating your abstract statements with enough concrete, specific details?

Press here to submit your answers to your tutor:

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