When it comes to both a well-crafted piece of writing and a well-planned ESL lesson, I was reminded this week of the paramount place of context. And this idea of context is vital on several different levels. Here are a few thoughts that have come to mind as I’ve pondered the topic.
In Writing:
It starts with WORDS. Sometimes the context and meaning are driven along by a whole sentence – or even a whole paragraph – that is made up of a single word. Other times, the choice of a singular word within a given sentence or paragraph makes all the difference in the imagery, tone, or profoundness of that segment.
It moves to COLLOCATIONS. Why do we pay for a car wash and not a car bath? Why do we play basketball and not do basketball? There are standard word combinations most would not dare to defy because readers would be so distracted or even lost; yet, there are other times when flipping words within such a standard combination or throwing in an unexpected synonym gives ones writing a fresh, vibrant feel. Finding the balance in this can be a difficult thing.
It expands to whole SENTENCES and how they fit into PARAGRAPHS. Can my readers follow where I’m going because I give them enough context (without boring them)? Does my revelation of just enough concerning details, setting, relationships, or logical flow of information help readers feel both intelligent and empowered?
It unfurls to cover the scope of a WHOLE WRITTEN PIECE. Does everything in an essay, article, or book address elements of a similar context, or does the writer go off on some tangent…never to return?
It explodes BEYOND THE END of the piece. If and when our readers take away anything wonderful, useful, or thought-provoking from our writing, those ideas influence and interact with the context (circumstances) of each particular reader’s life. And for some readers and some written pieces or volumes, this contextual impact has fueled movements, saved lives, empowered the aimless, and mended hearts.
In Language Teaching:
It starts with WORDS and COLLOCATIONS. In which circumstances do we general use a word or combination of words – and in which situations should we never use them? When I don’t know the meaning of a word or phrase, how do I deal with it in the context of the whole sentence?
It expands to SENTENCES and PARAGRAPHS and WHOLE PASSAGES and WHOLE CONVERSATIONS. But it is more than that. It is ethnic and cultural perspective of the author/speaker. It is socio-linguistic cues that I subconsciously understand – but that are completely lost on my students. It’s the complexity of ideas or relationships or information that is riddled with idioms, double-speak, or culture-steeped symbolism. It is what’s sometimes left unwritten or unsaid that helps me draw the student forward so he/she can think both independently and critically in English.
And the challenge for this writer-educator is to try to find and keep that balance of all perspectives – from micro to omniscient – when writing, revising, and presenting every manuscript and every lesson plan.
In the comments section, feel free to share any questions or ideas connected to how we can simultaneously maintain a more narrow and a broader view of “context” in our writing and/or teaching.
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