English Second Language (AS)·2 · Writing Skills · NSSCAS 5.2.6
Descriptive & narrative craft: show, don't tell
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Stop naming feelings and start proving them. Miss Veronica works through show-don't-tell, the five senses, precise nouns and strong verbs, fresh figurative language and atmosphere — using an Oshakati market as the scene — so your Paper 2 imaginative writing makes a stranger feel something true.
What you'll learn in this lesson
By the end you should be able to (NSSCAS English Second Language (AS) 5.2.6):
- Learners should be able to explain the difference between telling a reader an emotion and showing the evidence of it.
- Learners should be able to rewrite a 'telling' sentence so that the emotion is shown through action, gesture and detail.
- Learners should be able to build a scene using at least two senses other than sight, and explain why non-visual detail is more powerful.
- Learners should be able to replace vague nouns and adverb-propped weak verbs with precise nouns and strong verbs.
- Learners should be able to judge whether a simile or metaphor is fresh and true, and ration figurative language in a short piece.
- Learners should be able to create atmosphere purely by selecting details, without ever naming the mood.
- Learners should be able to shape a short narrative so that the richest description sits at the key moment.
- Learners should be able to apply form, emotion and connection to a 220–260 word imaginative response in Paper 2.
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