#COMFTF03

Composition: First Things First

The Definition
By Dr. David F. Maas

Instructional Goal: The student will demonstrate understanding of different methods of

definition.

Performance Objectives:

1. Outside of class, the student will write seven individual paragraphs. Each
paragraph is to contain from 75 to 125 words. In each paragraph the student will set
forth an idea and develop it in terms of seven of the following:

1. A logical or formal definition (mandatory for every essay)

2. A definition by description
3. A definition by example
4. A definition by synonym
5. An analogical or metaphorical definition
6. A definition by contrast or negation
7. A definition by etymology (origin, process, or growth)
8. A definition by authority
9. A definition by exemplification
10. A definition by explication

The student will use the same idea or concept for each type of definition.

2. Given a list of sentences exemplifying different types of definitions, the student

will distinguish one type of definition from another, basing his choice upon the
list enumerated in objective one.

3. Given an essay from a rhetoric reader, the student will identify the different
methods of definitions found within the essay.

4. Given a series of paragraphs, the student will identify the method of paragraph
development used.

Further qualifying criteria for the definition essay:

1. The definition will include explanation of the meaning of a word or phrase in

the context of the discussion in progress.
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2. The paragraph should include all pertinent identifying characteristics of the

object or concept defined such as what it is used for, made of, or what it produces.

3. The word will be defined formally or informally: To define something

informally is to develop the term by means of its distinguishing characteristics
from the writer’s point of view. To define something formally consists of
assigning the term to a general classification with additional statements
describing the term’s distinguishing characteristics. Sometimes called a “logical
definition,” a formal definition seeks to assign something to a genus or class and
then differentiate it from the other members of the class. Sometimes more than
one differentiating characteristic is needed.

4. The student may not:

A. Use a circular definition (e.g. “A washing machine is a machine that

washes.” Or, “A linguist is a person who specializes in linguistics.”

B. Explain a technical or commonly unfamiliar term with equally unfamiliar

terms.

(01) The etymology (origin) of the word Definition comes from the Latin Definere
— to set limits. We can break it down into the root words.

The preposition — de — with relation to

The noun — finis — fine — the end

(02) A definition sets the limits or bounds within which we can use a term or word.
According to Professor Robert Gorrell, the Romans were great extenders of borders or
boundaries. They realized that boundaries have at least two uses:

1. To keep something out

2. To provide an area for development from within

(03) We have adopted the Latin word for setting up limits — Definere — a definition
sets limits to an idea.

The Formal Definition

(04) The traditional formal, logical, or classical definition goes back to Aristotle. The
structure of the formal or classical definition we describe as follows:

(05) A Logical/Formal, or Classical Definition locates its subject in a more general

class and then proceeds to point out the characteristics which make it differ
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from the other members in that class, and therefore, allow us to define it as a
subclass.

(06) We locate the term to be defined as a species in relation to a group (genus) that
includes several different species and then try to say what quality or
qualities (differentia) that distinguish the item to be defined from the other
species.

Definition = The Genus + Differentia

(07) We borrow a metaphor from Zoology

(Genus) Felis-Cat

Felis Domestica (housecat) Felis Tigris (Tiger) Felis Leo (Lion) Felis Concolor (Cougar)

(Class) for study billiards

Table (Species)

meals sewing

(08) Sometimes we distinguish between necessary and supportive characteristics.

For instance, the dictionary definition of hammer reads: “A tool used for
pounding, usually consisting of a metal head and handle.”

(09) We must remember that the lexicographer’s (dictionary maker’s) aim does not
consist of giving a universal definition — but merely to provide a helpful
description of a common type of modern hammer — one that most
people have seen.

Hammer - A tool used for pounding (Necessary Characteristics)

(Species) (Genus) (Differentia)

(10) Some Supportive Characteristics we could include consists of:

Having a claw on one end

Having a metal head
Having a magnetized head to pick up tacks
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(11) Supportive characteristics indicate specific subgroups under the species

extending the classification and broadening the base of information. We must remember
that we don’t need any of these characteristics for the basic quality of hammerness.

(12) If a writer does not know the genus, we must go back up the levels of
abstraction to a more inclusive group, a group including our genus as a subgroup and try
to have a more general common (or abstract) group.

Shelter

Manmade Shelter Natural Shelter

House Teepee Igloo Cave Hollow Log
Bungalow Ranch House

(13) When we use a formal definition, we always run the risk of using the circular
definition or repeating the word itself in the definition:

A machine is a machine that washes.

A statistician is a person who makes a profession out of using statistics.
The causes of war are the several factors that result in armed conflict.
(note that armed conflict and war are synonyms.)

Definition By Description

(14) In description, we extend the formal definition by pointing out a term’s physical
qualities — how they look, where they are, what they are made of, how big they are,
what color they are, etc.

Martin Hall is the large three story red building on the east side of the campus having
the President’s office, the academic office, the registrar, and the auditorium.

A fire truck has ladders and hoses on it and is fairly large and painted red or yellow.

A circle consists of a figure covered by a line fixed at one end and moving in a plane.

Definition By Example

(15) The definition by example consists of identifying species or subspecies of the

genus. Children learn the meanings of words by repeated examples.

Nouns are words like horse, typewriter, disease, or happiness.

Religion is what is involved in Christianity, Islam, Buddhism, and Judaism.

(16) We must remember that the definition by example could have scientific validity
only by listing all the thousands of examples in the class. We can’t do that very often:
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The Great Plains states consist of North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska,
Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas.

Definition By Synonym

(17) Because English has both a Latin and a Germanic Tributary, we can readily find
words of the same approximate meaning:

To kill means to murder or to mortify.

To buy means to purchase or to acquire.
To define means to distinguish.
To kiss means to osculate.
To spit means to expectorate.

(18) To define by synonym has its limitations since no two synonyms ever have the
same meaning. We can do no more than approximate.

Metaphorical Definition

(19) We define a metaphor as a comparison in which the characteristics, properties

and structure of something we can see are projected upon something we can’t see.
Figures of speech such as metaphors, similes, or analogies may help definition, but they
should never be used in place of formal or logical definitions. Though comparisons can
never be exact, they may be revealing.

(20) If we say a girl is “catty” we may suggest that she has some of the
characteristics of a cat (sneakiness, mercurial temperament, etc.) but we do not suggest
she has four legs and whiskers.

(21) Metaphors are used for their picture making qualities, not for their scientific
accuracy.

Slang is language that takes off its coat, spits on its hands, and goes to work.
Poetry is the lava of the imagination.
Some have described marriage as a long, dull meal with the dessert coming first.
God, You are my rock and my shield.
I am the vine, you are the branches.

(22) We have to remember that we use definitions to limit the meaning of language
but we use metaphor to extend language. Use metaphor only for extended definition and
never as a substitute for formal or classical definition.

Definition By Negation Or Contrast

(23) To define a term by contrast or negation consists of telling what a word or term
is not. It can never be exact because it can never be exhaustive. Usually the items that
are negated are those which are misconceptions.
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Love is not making out in the baseball dugout.

Depression is not being abnormal or crazy. It does not consist of having just
any bad or upsetting feeling.
Depression does not consist of just feeling anxious or nervous.

(24) The Definition by Negation cannot stand alone but must become coupled with
an affirmative descriptive statement such as:

Depression refers to a specific set of behaviors which include:

1. An unpleasant feeling or state called dysphoria characterized by feeling sad,
hopeless, or down much of the time.
2. Characterized as sitting around and doing nothing or mostly passive solitary
activities like watching TV or napping.
3. Characterized by loss of energy. Even going to work may seem
overwhelming.

(25) Defining something by telling what it is not can seldom be exact because it
cannot be exhaustive:

Music is neither silence nor is it noise, but a harmonic arrangement of sounds on a

background of silence.

Communism in not a political party, nor a military organization, nor an ideological

crusade, but a gigantic conspiracy to enslave mankind.

Definition By Etymology

(26) Defining by etymology consists of defining something by telling how it came to

be — where it originated from. Consider:

Sincere has an interesting etymology. Over the years I have heard two stories
which illustrate the term. Two Latin terms: sin, meaning “without” and cerus, meaning
“wax” make up the composite term.

(27) One story illustrating the concept involves a pottery vendor who seals up the
cracks with cerus or wax to cover up the flaws. The other story involves marble columns
whose flaws became masked with resin, pitch, or a type of wax. In both examples, the
artisan intended to deceive by concealing the cracks or fissures with cerus, wax, or
paraffin. Sincere, on the other hand, means having nothing to hide — pure from the
inside out. Insincere suggests that someone has attempted to cover up or conceal a flaw,
making something “appear quality” when in truth, has abundant flaws.

Definition By Authority

(28) Definition by authority consists of quoting a noted personality or father of a

brainchild:
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According to Freud, the ego consists of the arbitrator between the demands of the Id
and the restrictions of the Superego.

According to Dewey, education consists of providing people experiences that help

them take charge of themselves and cope with their environment.

Definition By Exemplification

(29) Definition by exemplification consists of taking an individual case to represent

the whole.

When the prisoners of war came home from Vietnam, the news networks could
not possibly report on every single case history, but concentrated on one or two
cases, such as Leo Thorsness or Senator McCane.

When doing a biblical study on patience, the student might want to concentrate
on the example of Job.

Definition By Explication

(30) Definition by explication consists of enlarging upon bare statements and

attempts to clarify a term by explaining it. For example, Barbara Lawrence tried to
explicate what she meant by the sadistic aspects of pornographic words by the following
example:

Not all obscene words, of course, are as implicitly sadistic or denigrating to

women as these, but all that I know seem to serve a similar purpose: to reduce the
human organism (especially the female organism) and human functions (especially
sexual and procreative) to their least organic, most mechanical dimension; to
substitute a trivializing or deforming resemblance for the complex human reality of
what is being described.
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Study Questions for COMFTF-03

The Definition

1. What is the etymology (or origin) of the word definition? 02:01

2. What two things should boundaries, borders, or definitions do? 02:02
3. How does a logical, formal, or classical definition work? 02:05
4. Using the metaphor from zoology, illustrate how a classical definition is formed.
03:07
5. Explain the difference between necessary and supportive characteristics. 03:08
6. What does a writer need to do if he does not know the genus? 04:12
7. What exactly do we mean by circular definition? 04:13
8. Explain and illustrate the definition by description. 04:14
9. Explain and illustrate the definition by example. 04:15
10. Explain how a definition by example can attain scientific validity. 04:16
11. What limitations do definitions by synonyms have? 05:18
12. Define and illustrate the metaphor. 05:19
13. What exactly is the function of a metaphor? 05:21
14. What are the best kinds of terms to use for negations? 06:23
15. Explain and illustrate the definition by etymology. 06:26
16. Explain and illustrate the definition by authority. 07:28
17. Explain and illustrate the definition by exemplification. 07:29
18. Explain and illustrate the definition by explication. 07:30
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The following is a professional definition essay. As you read the paragraphs, identify
each paragraph with the appropriate type of definition (explication, metaphor, negation,
description, etc.).

Four-Letter Words Can Hurt You

by Barbara Lawrence

(01) Why should any words be called obscene? Don’t they all describe natural
human functions? Am I trying to tell them, my students demand, that the “strong, earthy,
gut-honest”—or, if they are fans of Norman Mailer, the “rich, liberating, existential”—
language they use to describe sexual activity isn’t preferable to “phony-sounding, middle-
class words like ‘intercourse’ and ‘copulate?’” “Coup You Late!” they say with fancy
infections and gagging grimaces. “Now, what is that supposed to mean?”
(02) Well, what is it supposed to mean? And why indeed should one group of words
describing human functions and human organs be acceptable in ordinary conversation
and another, describing presumably the same organs and functions, be tabooed — so
much so, in fact, that some of these words still cannot appear in print in many parts of the
English-speaking world?
(03) The argument that these taboos exist only because of “sexual hang-ups”
(middle-class, middle-age, feminist), or even that they are a result of class oppression (the
contempt of the Norman conquerors for the language of their Anglo-Saxon serfs), ignores
a much more likely explanation, it seems to me, and that is the sources and functions of
the words themselves.
(04) The best known of the tabooed sexual verbs, for example, come from the
German ficken, meaning “to strike” combined according to Partridge’s etymological
dictionary Origins, with the Latin sexual verb futuere: associated in turn with the Latin
fustis, “a staff or cudgel”: the Celtic buc, “a point, hence to pierce”; the Irish bot, “the
male member”; the Latin battuere, “to beat”: the Gaelic batair, a “cudgeller”; the Early
Irish bualaim, “I strike”: and so forth. It is one of what etymologists sometimes called
“the sadistic group of words for the man’s part in copulation.”
(05) The brutality of this word, then, and its equivalents (“screw,” “bang,” etc.), is
not an illusion of the middle class or a crotchet of Women’s Liberation. In their origins
and imagery these words carry undeniably painful, if not sadistic, implications, the objet
of which is almost a female. Consider, for example, what a “screw” actually does to the
wood it penetrates; what a painful, even mutilating activity this kind of analogy suggests.
“Screw” is a particularly interesting in this context, since the noun, according to
Partridge, comes from words meaning “groove,” “nut,” “ditch,” “breeding sow,”
“scrofula,” and “swelling,” while the verb beside its explicit imagery, has antecedent
associations to “write on,” “scratch,” “scarify,” and so forth — a revealing fusion of a
mechanical or painful action with an obviously denigrated object.
(06) Not all obscene words, of course, are as implicitly sadistic or denigrating to
women as these, but all that I know seem to serve a similar purpose: to reduce the human
organism (especially the female organism) and human functions (especially sexual and
procreative) toe their least organic, most mechanical dimension; to substitute a
trivializing or deforming resemblance for the complex human reality of what is being
described.
(07) Tabooed male descriptives, when they are not openly denigrating to women,
often serve to divorce a male organ or function from any significant interaction with the
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female. Take the word “testes,” for example, suggesting “witnesses” (from the Latin
testis
to the sexual and procreative strengths of the male organ; and the obscene counterpart of
this word, which suggests little more than a mechanical shape. Or compare almost any of
the “rich,” “liberating” sexual verbs, so fashionable today among male writers, with that
much-derided Latin word “copulate” (“to bind or join together”) or even that Anglo-
Saxon phrase (which seems to have had no trouble surviving the Norman conquest)
“make love.”
(08) How arrogantly self-involved the tabooed words seem in comparison to either of
the other terms, and how contemptuous of the female partner. Understandably so, of
course, if she is only a “skirt,” a “broad,” a “chick,” a pussycat” or a “piece.” If she is, in
other words, no more than her skirt, or what her skirt conceals; nor more than a breeder,
or the broadest part of her; no more than a piece of a human being or a “piece of tail.”
(09) The most severely tabooed of all the female descriptives, incidentally, are those
like a “piece of tail,” which suggests (either explicitly or through antecedents) that there
is no significant difference between the female channel through which we are all
conceived and born and the anal outlet common to both sexes — a distinction that
pornographers have always enjoyed obscuring.
(10) This effort to deny women their biological identify, their individuality, their
humanness, is such an important aspect of obscene language that one can only marvel at
how seldom, in an era preoccupied with definitions of obscenity, this fact is brought to
our attention. One problem, of course, is that many of the people in the best position to
do this (critics, teachers, writers) are so reluctant today to admit that they are angered or
shocked by obscenity. Bored, maybe, unimpressed, aesthetically displeased, but — no
matter how brutal or denigrating the material — never angered, never shocked.
(11) And yet how eloquently angered, how piously shocked many of these same
people become if denigrating language is used about any minority group other than
women; if the obscenities are racial or ethnic, that is, rather than sexual. Words like
“coon,” “kike,” “spic,” “wop,” after all, deform identity, denote individuality and
humanness in almost exactly the same way that sexual vulgarisms and obscenities do.
(12) No one that I know, least of all my students, would fail to question the values of
a society whose literature and entertainment rested heavily on racial or ethnic
perjoratives. Are the values of a society whose literature and entertainment rest as
heavily as ours on sexual pejoratives any less questionable?
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I received the following student essay on “Deep” several years ago. The format the
student and I sued is the one I want you to use in your essay.

Seven Layers of Deep

Example: Deep applies to the description of a downward dimension of space. The

well was so deep that there was a long pause every time a pebble was
dropped into it. From the snow-capped mountain the earth cut deep into the
valley below. The word deep has also been used in an abstract sense to
show a feeling or involvement. The man gambled with his wealth an was
now deep in debt. Deep down she knew what had to be done. People have
defined deep as something physical, concrete, and visual to something
abstract, vague, and emotional.

Negation: Deep is not shallow like a puddle or a person who has little regard for
others. Deep is not superficial like a small cut or the obvious circumstances
in solving a case. Deep is not any of these things. Rather deep has intensity
like the ocean or some literary composition a person has written with much
feeling and emotion. Deep is crucial like a severe wound or the factor that
ties everything together in a criminal case.

Explication: Deep is the relationship between a man and a woman in love. Deep is the
crevasse that the skillful mountain climber climbs over on his journey up
the mountain to its peak. Deep is the rich, ruby, red lipstick that Cleopatra
wore for Marc Antony. Deep is the trouble one little boy is going to be in
when his mother sees that he said, “Yes” when his pals asked if he wanted
to play in the mud after school.

Etymology: The adjective form of deep meant hollow, whence dip and dump. In the
adjective form deep in Middle English was written d-e-p, which is derived
from the Old English version, d-e-o-p. The Old English version is akin to
the German written t-i-e-f, and the Gothic written d-i-u-p-s. The Gothic
version was derived from the Indo-European base (possibly) written d-h-e-
u-b. In the noun form, deep was written the same as the adjective form. In
the adverb form deep in Middle-English was written d-e-p-e, which is
derived from the Old English version d-e-o-p-e.

Synonym: Deep can mean serious; young Tom had a serious infatuation for Doris, o
young Tom had a deep infatuation for Doris. Deep can also mean
profound; the mayor’s speech was very profound, or the mayor’s speech
was very deep. Deep has been used to mean intense; the man sat with a
look of intense concentration on his face, or the man sat with a look of deep
concentration on his face. Deep also means abstruse; everyone who read the
book felt the plot was very abstruse, or everyone who read the book felt the
plot was very deep.

Authority: As someone once said, “Still waters run deep.” What is seen on the surface
might just be an illusion to what in actuality is something far greater.
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Scientifically speaking waters that are still go to extreme depths, because

the current, or rapid movement dissipates through its depths. Somebody
else said, “Beauty is only skin-deep.” Deep in this sense could mean the
surface may be judged as beautiful or ugly, but physically speaking people
are all pretty much the same on the inside. Also the mental and personal
aspect cannot be ignored. The mental aspect pertains to intelligent, or
ignorant, whereas the personal pertains to anything from angry and
emotional to shy and timid.

Explication: The word deep has many different meanings. For example “a deep cut” or
“a deep lake” is referring to extending far downward from the top, or far
from the sides or edge. Another is “the deep past” referring to far off in
time or space. “A deep discussion” refers to intellectually profound. Often
deep refers to carefully guarded as in “a deep secret.” “Deep love” refers to
strongly felt. The meanings of the word deep go to endless depths. The
size of a word has nothing to do with its use in society.

The best kind of definition essay would use an abstract word like optimism, truth,
understanding, attention, treachery, happiness, wisdom, education, laziness, authority,
forgiveness, quality, love, lust, diligence, common sense, honesty, loyalty, courage,
despair, despondency, terror, dejection, etc.