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Parallelism. Brenham Writing Room Created by D. Herring. What is Parallelism?. Parallelism in writing means that similar parts in a sentence (2 or more) must have the same structure. Their parts are comparable and balanced. Allows writing to flow smoothly and helps avoid misunderstandings.
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Parallelism Brenham Writing Room Created by D. Herring
What is Parallelism? • Parallelism in writing means that similar parts in a sentence (2 or more) must have the same structure. • Their parts are comparable and balanced. • Allows writing to flow smoothly and helps avoid misunderstandings. • When similar parts do not follow the same structure, you have created Faulty Parallelism.
Understanding Parallelism • Use similar structures to express similar ideas. • Put nouns with nouns • Faulty (F): I enjoy basketball more than playing video games. • Correct (C): I enjoy basketball more than video games. • Put verbs with verbs (and use same tense) • F: On our anniversary, we ate, danced, and were singing. • C: On our anniversary, we ate, danced, and sang. • Put adjectives with adjectives • F: My history class was both interesting and a challenge. • C: My history class was both interesting and challenging.
Parallelism in Pairs & Lists • When you present two or more items in a series joined by and or or, use similar form for each item. • F: I am doing well in my English class, in my math class, and in history. • F: I am doing well in my English class, in my math class, and my history class. • C: I am doing well in my English class, in my math class, and in my history class.
Parallelism in Comparisons • In comparisons, the items being compared must have parallel structure. • F: Driving to Austin is as fast as to fly. • C: Driving to Austin is as fast as flying. • F: Buying textbooks is almost as expensive as tuition. • C: Buying textbooks is almost as expensive as paying tuition. • C: Textbooks are almost as expensive as tuition.
Parallelism with Paired Words • When a sentence uses correlative conjunctions, the items joined by them must be parallel. • F: My history course is both interesting and a challenge. • C: My history course is both interesting and challenging. • F: You must either make a C in the course or taking it again will be the consequence. • C: You must either make a C in the course or take it again. • F: I would rather work hard and pass than to repeat the course. • C: I would rather work hard and pass than repeat the course.
