IN A STATION OF THE METRO 

BY EZRA POUND

The apparition of these faces in the crowd

Petals on a wet, black bough.
TASK:

Define LOVE…
 DEFINITION
Is a mode of paragraph development that
answers the questions:
 What is it?
 What does it mean?
 What are its special features?
The word to be defined may be an object, a
concept, a person, a place, or a phenomenon.
DEFINITION is important,
because it clarifies the
meaning of a word or a
concept and it also limits the
scope of that particular word
or concept.
TECHNIQUES OF DEFINING

1. Formal Definition
2. Extended Definition
A.Analogy A.Functions
B.Comparison B.Etymology
C.Contrast C.Examples
D.Descriptions D.Negation
E.Analysis
BASIC/FORMAL DEFINITION: A STARTING
PLACE
Definiendum /Term= genus + differentia
The definiendum is the term or concept you are defining.

The genus is the category or class which the

definiendum is a part of.

The differentia is the characteristic or group of

characteristics that set the definiendum apart from other
members of the genus.
For example:
A choke cherry (definiendum) is a kind of cherry (genus)
distinguished by its bitter, astringent taste that makes it
inedible until it is cooked (differentia).
EXTENDED
DEFINITION
A. ANALOGY

- An analogy is a comparison in which

an idea or a thing is compared to
another thing that is quite different
from it. It aims at explaining that idea
or thing by comparing it to something
that is familiar. Metaphors and
similes are tools used to draw an
analogy. 
EXAMPLES OF ANALOGY:

Life is like a race. The one who

keeps running wins the race, and
the one who stops to catch a breath
loses.
Just as a sword is the weapon of a
warrior, a pen is the weapon of a
writer.
COMPARISON AND CONTRAST

 A comparison and contrast essay 
compares two similar objects, or contrasts
dissimilar objects, in a way that readers
become informed about the advantages
and disadvantages of both the objects.
 Although a comparison and contrast essay
is set to demonstrate both similarities as
well as differences, sometimes it only
shows similarities, and at other times, only
differences.
B. EXAMPLES OF DEFINITION BY COMPARISON

Computers can be used to

communicate easily, for example via
email. Similarly/Likewise, the
mobile phone is a convenient tool for
communication.
Both computers and mobile phones
can be used to communicate easily
with other people.
C. EXAMPLES OF DEFINITION BY CONTRAST

Computers, although increasingly

small, are not always easy to carry
from one place to another. However,
the mobile phone can be carried with
ease.
Computers are generally not very
portable, whereas the mobile phone
is
D. DESCRIPTION

In composition, description is a 
rhetorical strategy using sensory 
details to portray a person, place,
or thing.
E. ANALYSIS

In composition, analysis is a form of 

expository writing in which the writer
separates a subject into its elements
or parts. 
F. FUNCTIONS

 the kind of action or activity

proper to a person, thing, or
institution; the purpose for which
something is designed or exists;
role.
G. ETYMOLOGY

  Etymology refers to the origin or

derivation of a word 
H. EXAMPLES

-a thing characteristic of its kind

or illustrating a general rule
I. NEGATION

Defining the term by stating

what it is not.
 DEMOCRACY
(1) Democracy is a form of government in which all eligible citizens
participate equally -- either directly or through elected
representatives -- in the proposal, development, and creation of laws.
(2) It encompasses social, economic and cultural conditions that
enable the free and equal practice of political self-determination.
(3) The term originates from the Greek δημοκρατία (dēmokratía)
"rule of the people", which was coined from δῆμος (dêmos)
"people" and κράτος (kratos) "power" or "rule" in the 5th century
BCE to denote the political systems then existing in Greek city-
states, notably Athens.
(4) The term is an antonym to ἀριστοκρατία (aristokratia) "rule of
an elite."
(5) While theoretically these definitions are in opposition, in practice
the distinction has been blurred historically.
(6) The political system of Classical Athens, for example, granted
democratic citizenship to an elite class of free men and excluded
slaves and women from political participation.
 (7) In virtually all democratic governments throughout ancient
and modern history, democratic citizenship consisted of an elite
class until full enfranchisement was won for all adult citizens in
most modern democracies through the suffrage movements of the
19th and 20th centuries.
(8)The English word dates to the 16th century, from the older
Middle French and Middle Latin equivalents.
(9)Democracy contrasts with forms of government where power is
either held by one person, as in a monarchy, or where power is
held by a small number of individuals, as in an oligarchy.
(10)Nevertheless, these oppositions, inherited from Greek
philosophy,  are now ambiguous because contemporary
governments have mixed democratic, oligarchic, and monarchic
elements.
  (11)Karl Popper defined democracy in contrast to dictatorship or
tyranny, thus focusing on opportunities for the people to control
their leaders and to oust them without the need for a revolution. “
(Project Gutenberg Self-Publishing Press)
FORMAL DEFINITION (1)

Term– Democracy
Genus- “form of government”
Differentia- “all eligible citizens
participate equally- either directly
or through elected representatives-
in the proposal, development, and
creation of laws.”
EXTENDED DEFINITION

a.Definition b y Analysis (2)

“Democracy encompasses social,

economic, and cultural conditions that
enable the free and equal practice of
political self-determination.”
b. Definition by Etymology (Origin of a
word (3)

“The term originates from The term

originates from the Greek δημοκρατία
(dēmokratía) "rule of the people",
which was coined from δῆμος (dêmos)
"people" and κράτος (kratos) "power"
or "rule" in the 5th century BCE to
denote the political systems then
existing in Greek city-states, notably
Athens.”
c. Definition by Contrast (4-5)

“The term is an antonym to

ἀριστοκρατία (aristokratia) "rule
of an elite.“
“While theoretically these
definitions are in opposition, in
practice the distinction has been
blurred historically.”
d. Definition by Example (6-7)

“The political system of Classical Athens, for

example, granted democratic citizenship to an
elite class of free men and excluded slaves and
women from political participation.”
“In virtually all democratic governments
throughout ancient and modern history,
democratic citizenship consisted of an elite
class until full enfranchisement was won for
all adult citizens in most modern democracies
through the suffrage movements of the 19th
and 20th centuries.”