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This column is for self-study or classroom use and gives guided help with reading the wide variety of writing styles and topics that appear as feature articles in the Bangkok Post. The lessons include background information, skill-building practice and vocabulary explanations. March 30, 2004 Grabbing the reader! INTRODUCTION

It’s fairly easy to catch the reader’s attention in a news report. Such reports, by their very nature, contain information that is dramatic and immediate. Features are slightly different. They look at the subject in detail, offer opinions and lead the reader into a world that is often unknown to them. Yet the feature writer must still catch the reader’s attention from the outset. If they don’t do that successfully, nobody will bother to read their article. Today we look at the openings of three distinctive features from the Outlook section of the Bangkok Post. The subject of each feature is not immediately attractive. However, each writer has chosen to open their story in an appealing way and it is interesting to look at the devices that writers use to do this. Look for the hook Read each of the three feature openings and think about why you might want to read on. Has the writer managed to grab your interest? If so, how? See if you can identify any similarities in style and content. Although each topic is very different, the writers use similar techniques to attract the reader. Can you describe those techniques? In particular, look for the following: Headline – this is the short, sharp line at the top of an article that somehow captures the essence of the piece in only a few words. The rhythm and flow of the words is important here. Can you spot the use of alliteration (repetition of a sound) anywhere? What effect does this have? Deck – goes underneath the headline and briefly explains the main point of the article. What kind of details we include? Photos – What information are you given in the photos? Do the pictures create an interest in the article by themselves? Opening paragraphs – designed to ‘draw in’ (attract the interest of) the reader. Sometimes the writer uses rhetorical questions – those that don’t need answers but get you thinking. Other times, writers may include fascinating facts or make up a scenario (scene or story) whereby the reader is put into an imaginary situation that helps to illustrate the main point. However, if you just read these paragraphs alone without any of the other features, such as the headline or deck, you may find it difficult to understand the point of the article. This is because most writers prefer to make their readers curious at the beginning so that they will want to read more. Now find examples of other feature articles in newspapers and magazines. Do they use similar techniques to our writer’s today? You’ll probably find that they do. OUR STORIES FROM THE BANGKOK POST

Why fungi are fabulous SOME VOCABULARY HELP vertebrate any animal with a backbone biodiversity the existence of a large number of different kinds of animals and plants which make a balanced environment knock-on causing other events to happen one after another in a series pollination the means by which flowers reproduce ancestral forms original or earliest forms calculable something that can be calculated Money doesn't make the world go round; the lowly fungus does. And there's more to these creatures than tasty mushrooms. NIGEL L. HYWEL-JONES If every vertebrate died out tomorrow, this would be a minor upset for life on our planet. Only a very small percentage of the biodiversity that currently lives on Earth would be lost. Of course, there would be knock-on effects for other types of life. A few flowers that relied on hummingbirds for pollination would probably die off. With no humans left, most of our crops would have to revert to their ancestral forms to survive in the “real world” as opposed to their cosy fields. On the other hand, if we were to lose all of the world's fungi tomorrow, that would be a global disaster. All other life on our planet would have to alter drastically to accommodate such a loss. While the “knock-on” effect of all vertebrates disappearing tomorrow would be calculable, those for all fungi becoming extinct would be incalculable. Way of the SWORD SOME VOCABULARY HELP of yore from long ago incantations special words that are spoken or sung to have a magic effect possessed extremely important antagonists a person who strongly opposes somebody or something non-lethal not life threatening A lot went into the making of the Siamese blade of yore: iron, bronze, potent herbs, spells, incantations, relics of the dead. But can a sword be possessed by the bloodthirsty spirit of a previous owner? One collector seems to think so SUTHON SUKPHISIT All too often these days people seek to resolve conflicts by reaching for a gun and blasting away, as if death held no terror for them. But suppose that someone stepped in at the crucial moment, handed each of the antagonists a sword and told them to go for it. That would certainly give the pair pause for thought and might even persuade them to seek another, non-lethal way of settling their differences. So why is it that a naked blade is a lot more frightening than a revolver? The power of imagination, suggestion, perhaps. For many, that sharp edge has associations with terrible pain, with gruesome, gaping wounds, with spurting blood and an agonising end. Children's books: boom or bust? SOME VOCABULARY HELP sorely seriously, very much appeal (verb) a quality that makes somebody or something attractive or interesting morality principles concerning right and wrong or good and bad behaviour emotional security being comfortable with emotions, feeling safe noted activist a reputable person who works to achieve political or social change instinct natural tendency for people and animals to behave in a particular way using the knowledge and abilities that they were born with rather than thought or training Despite the obvious benefits, literature for kids is sorely lacking SAMILA SUTTISILTUM Ever wonder why kids keep asking you to read the same bedtime stories over and over again? Why do the tales appeal so much even after they've learned the words and plots by heart, correcting you whenever you get it wrong? The reason: Children's books are much more than colourful drawings and morality tales. “Reading books to children gives them emotional security,” explained noted activist Dr Prawase Wasi. “Children can feel the warmth when you read stories to them. They can hear their parents' voices - they know by instinct that there's somebody there who loves them.” Read our other feature focus columns here. Return to our home page. | Comments to Maureen at maureen@bangkokpost.co.th | | © The Post Publishing Public Co., Ltd. All rights reserved 2004 | Last modified: March 29, 2004