TERMINALE
✓ There are five important stages or phases to stick with.
Introduction, Summary, Commentary (Comment), Evaluation and Branching-out.
1. Introduction
About the introduction, the following items are requisite:
. Title: This text is entitled…. / The text before me is entitled … / The title of the text is …….
. The author’s/ the writer’s/the narrator’s name: This text was written by…. But in case there is no
reference to name, you must get it noticed by saying: The author’s/the writer’s/the narrator’s name is not
indicated/alluded to/ referenced/mentioned/ talked about/ referred to/ pointed out/ exposed to view/
disclosed/ revealed, etc.
. Origin / Source: Here, you can resonate as follows: the text was extracted from a newspaper, a magazine,
a website, the internet, a novel, etc… Example: this text was extracted from ‘The Economist’…
. Date of publication / Publication’s date: Example: This text was issued/published/written in March
1994, on April the 2nd 2024, etc.
. Nature: Texts in English can have different natures:
- An extract from a novel (extrait d’un roman), a play (une pièce de théâtre), a magazine (une revue,
un magazine), a newspaper (un journal), a journal (un journal), etc.
- A love story, a press article (sourced from a magazine, a newspaper, the internet and other ICT
means), online article, poem, letter, song, public speech, dialogue, etc…
. Genre: The genre of a text can be: controversial, explanatory, argumentative, poetic, romantic,
informative, narrative, exploratory, descriptive, polemical etc. Example: In terms of genre, the text is
widely romantic.
. The general idea: Here, we mean a sentence underlining the main theme.
There are lots of fair sentences we can use to disclose the general idea of a text:
- The text deals with/ talks about/ is about/ speaks of/relates to …. Example: This romantic text
deals with the paradox in which African women live, that is, they are gifted with important
potential but their lot is worsening.
. The author’s/the writer’s intention / aim / purpose / perspective / goal: After reading the text, the
writer’s purpose can be:
- To raise awareness over the dropout rate in Libreville;
- To sensitize world leaders/people, about the threat of nuclear weapons proliferation;
- To inform, to decry/to denounce, to describe, to entertain, to praise, to give an account of, to
promote, to persuade people, to show, to report, to draw attention, etc.
Example: In this text, the writer’s intention is probably to report on child abuse in some African
large cities where children under 18 are subject to physically demanding labor.
2. The summary:
Here, we have to structure the text as follows:
A. Text structure:
- This text can be segmented / cut up / divided / split up /portioned / apportioned / shared /
portioned / partitioned / dismembered…. into two/three/four/five parts.
- It is possible to segment /divide /cut up /split up /portion / apportion this text into
two/three/four/five/ part.
- The first part starts/goes from line 1……. Down to line 5………. Its deals with/it is about/ it concerns,
it tackles the problem of voting rights in the USA.
B. Summary proper / Summary itself: Here, chronologically we have to put together the different
ideas found in the text using linking words or connectors.
Example: The text written by …. deals with ….First of all, the text relates to ……Then/Secondly, the
writer describes…. Thirdly, he condemns …. And finally, he suggests solutions…….
3. /Commentary/ Comment :
Here, you have to choose 1 , 2 or 3 aspects of the text structure that you comment on. Explain and
justify by quoting from the text. You may consider (depending on the text) :
The characters: their behavior, their relationships, their development;
The setting: place and time of the action, the action development;
The style: figures of speech (comparison, images, symbols…);
The tone: sad, glad, pathetic, dramatic, ironic, simple, tempered …
4. Evaluation/Assessment/appraisal:
Here, you have to consider two main aspects:
a) To assess the text’s value :
- What is the interest of the text? (Philosophical, political, social, scientific, cultural, etc …)
- Have you learnt something?
- Has it changed your viewpoint?
b) To give your personal opinion or reaction:
- Do you share the writer’s opinion ? Why ?
- Do you agree or disagree with him? Why ?
- In my mind……….
- To me…………
- Personally……….
- In my opinion/views/standpoint………
- For me …………
- As far as I’m concerned ………
5. Branching out:
Here, you are expected to broaden the writer’s standpoint/views/opinion while keeping track with the
theme of the text.
Use the text as a pretext or a trampoline to talk about a topic in line with it. A further clue is to link an
idea from the text to your own environment or experience, that is contextualization.
If for instance the text is dealing with family disagreements, you may talk about disagreements in your
own family.
Example: As this text deals with family disagreements, it reminds me of my own family where even
petty disagreements can take serious proportions.
By Steeve OBAME ABA’A