Cause and Effect Essay WHAT IS A CAUSE

Cause and Effect Essay

WHAT IS A CAUSE? WHAT IS AN EFFECT? n Cause and effect depend on each other. You can’t have one without the other. A plane crashed. That is the effect. What are the possible causes? Was it a mechanical or human error? Was it due to the weather? Obviously there are many possible causes. Cause and Effect analyzes why something happens. Ø Some effects are caused by multiple causes. Ø Some causes, in turn, can result in multiple effects. Ø

Writers use Cause/Effect writing to explain why something happens and/or the results of an event. n Cause and Effect writing typically use the following language: n q "What are the causes of X? " q "What led to X? " q "Why did X occur? " q "Why does X happen? " q "What would be the effects of X? "

Activity 1: Identify the causes or effects in each of the following sentences: 4. A very cold weather will make people stay in-doors. Economic growth creates many jobs which in turn make many families live in better conditions. According to experts, new agricultural methods will help solve many problems. Necessity is the mother of invention. 5. As a result of his injury, he could no longer play tennis. 6. The government spends a lot of money to provide food for the needy. I had a cold, so I did not go to class because I had a cold. 1. 2. 3. 7. 8. 9. 10. Higher prices are often the result of an increase in consumption. Bad roads conditions are caused the car accident.

Steps in Writing a Cause/Effect Paragraph? STEP 1 ü Decide whether you want to examine the cause or effect. STEP 2 ü Examine each cause and effect thoroughly, using sufficient evidence to prove your points. n You should support all causes or effects with: Ø Good examples Ø Definition Ø Description Ø Narration, and/or Ø Comparison

Causal Patterns n Effect Cause n Cause Effect n Chain reasoning (Cause Effect)

Effect Cause n n Car accidents n n Bad road infrastructure Careless driving Lack of law enforcement

Cause n Greenhouse emissions Effect n Climatic changes n Danger to coastal regions n Change in weather patterns.

Chain reasoning n Greenhouse emissions n Global warming n Negative effects on natural resources n Changes to agriculture n Endangerment to species.

Signal Words Cause and Effect Degrees of Certainty Levels of Importance As a result Certainly Above all, Because May Equally important, Consequently Necessarily Most importantly, Due to Perhaps First, If … then Possibly Initially, Leads to Probably Last, Therefore Undoubtedly Primarily, Thus Unquestionably Second, As a consequence Undeniably Finally,

Activity 2: Complete following sent. Make sure you include a transition signal: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. We turned on the heat _____________ when I fell off my bike. Because I helped my mother, ___________it was a very cold day yesterday. Huda spilled some milk on the floor ________. She was very tired last night ___________. Adam forgot to come to class early today ______. Our teacher was surprised ____________, the football team was angry. When the cat is away, ______________.

Multiple causes effect n Thesis Statement: Air pollution is caused by the following factors: exhaust gases from cars, uncontrolled factory releases, and burning of lowquality coal for heating. q I. Exhaust gases from cars A. government does not have enough control B. citizens do not have keen awareness of the problem q II. Uncontrolled factory gases A. no regular checks on gases released B. factories are inside the borders of residential areas q III. Burning of low-quality coal for heating A. no governmental control B. other forms of energy too expensive

Multiple causes effect n Thesis Statement: Watching too much TV has many effects on the physiology and psychology of people. q I. Eating disorders • A. TV meals • B. obesity q II. Communication problems • A. more violence • B. no interpersonal talk

Activity 3: Provide three brief causes/effects for the following statements: 1. Some students fail in their study 2. Effects of being organized in learning a language 3. Children watch too much violence on television

There are several possible reasons why my father is in excellent health, even though he is over seventy years of age. First, he is in excellent condition because he has stopped smoking cigarettes. He quit smoking cigarettes since whenever he climbed stairs, he would quickly stop several times and cough loudly. He also has good health as a result of stopping eating the wrong kinds of foods. For example, whereas before he would eat fatty red meat and deep-fried dishes several times a week. Nowadays he seldom does so. He is also in good physical shape, for he exercises a lot. He swims three times a week at the local gym, and on sunny days he prefers to walk home rather than take the bus. In conclusion, my father is in better shape than some of his children are!

Activity 4: Complete the following paragraph providing reasons and examples: The rise of the internet has had profound effects on our daily lives. First, email is now is very familiar to us. For instance, many of us can communicate with their friends, relatives and colleagues using emails. Moreover, many of us now turn to webpages rather than to newspapers or TV for the latest news, sports scores or stock quotes. In addition, ___________________________________________ _______. In conclusion, it is great to live in the age of the internet because of the great benefits it has had on our daily lives.

The essay organization Cause Effect

Block organization Introduction Conclusion

Smoking In the past smoking was not a big issue or problem. However, nowadays smoking has increased in many different ways. There are several causes and dangerous effects of the increase of smoking. Causes Body Conclusion * A lot of free time * Surrounded by smokers * Big Advertisements Effects * Death (Cancer) * Less time with family * Waste of money In Conclusion, smoking is a very bad habit. Many people have died from smoking. This habit must be contained by government to get rid of it.

The Causes and Effects of Gaza City’s Traffic Problem Gaza is a modern city, but it also has a modern problem. It has a serious traffic congestion problem. Every morning and evening, the streets are crowded with cars, taxis and trucks. Several factors have contributed to Gaza City’s traffic problems that led to some serious effects for the city. One of the main causes of congestion is the high number of cars. Because of the city’s rapid economic growth, most residents can afford private cars. Another contributing factor is the lack of a public transport infrastructure. The absence of buses, trains or an underground forces residents to rely on cars or taxis. The road system is third cause of congestion. The roads are not well-maintained and are often unable to keep up with the rapid expansion of the population. Therefore, traffic jams have many negative consequences for the city. The biggest effect is increased anger and frustration. Commuters and shoppers experience delays, resulting in tension and stress as they sit in traffic. Another adverse effect is on the environment. Air quality declines as vehicle emissions rise. Noise levels also increase. In general, the city becomes a less pleasant place to live or work. A major effect is on productivity and efficiency. Workers and students are late for work or school. Salesmen and travelers waste hours in traffic jams, leading to lost profits. Overall, too many cars for too few roads have led to severe congestion in the city. However, if the municipal authorities encourage residents to use public transport, I am sure Gaza will continue to be a pleasant city to live in in the future.

EFFECTS OF WATCHING TOO MUCH TV Discoveries and invention of devices are always welcome till we, humans, find a way to abuse its benefits and be adversely affected by it. This was the case when Wilhelm Roentgen discovered x-ray and within five years, the British Army was using a mobile x-ray unit to locate bullets and shrapnel in wounded soldiers in the Sudan. TV was also invented with positive thoughts in mind. That is, there would be no national borders, education and communication would be worldwide, etc. However, we are now trying to overcome its physiological and psychological adverse effects on human beings. One of the physiological effects of watching TV in excessive amounts is eye-strain. It is true that there are specifications for watching TV; TV should be 5 m. away from the eye, the room should be adequately lit, TV should be placed at the same height with our eyes, etc. However, these do not prevent our eyes from getting tired if we keep watching TV for a long time. Another effect is obesity, which is widely observed in people who like watching TV and eating snacks everyday (there is even a term “TV snacks” to refer to fast food that is suitable for eating in front of the TV). TV is such a powerful machine that people cannot get away from it – it is addictive. Apart from the physiological effects, TV also causes psychological effects. One is a result of watching too much violence. After seeing so many violent scenes on TV, people start considering violent actions normal and they lose their sensitivity to their environment. Partly connected to this effect, the interpersonal communication among people decreases. Being insensitive to the suffering of other people causes people to become alienated. Also, after coming home from work people seek to relax in front of the TV, and generally people prefer watching TV to talking to each other. This issue is very important since lack of interpersonal relationships mostly end with divorces. To conclude, inventions are meant to be beneficial for human beings, if we know how to benefit from them. TV is one of such inventions that need to be used for the right purpose only – being educated and entertained for a reasonable period of time. We may, then, be safe from or at least reduce the adverse physiological and psychological effects of watching too much TV.

Chain organization Introduction Cause Effect Cause Body Effect Cause Effect Conclusion

Causes of Divorce From the past to present, people all over the world have determined to get married, which means living together. In other words, they depend on each other for love and support. Nevertheless, some couples are unable to maintain their relationship; therefore, they choose divorce, which is one of the solutions to cope with problems between husbands and wives. The divorce rates continually increase nowadays, thus it might be argued that divorces can be taken easier than the past. There are three main causes of divorce: changing woman's roles, stress in modern living and lack of communication. The first significant cause of recent rise in the rates of divorce is that women have completely changed roles. In the past, men earned the money to afford the expense of family, whereas women only worked in the home and took care of the children and the family; hence women had no money which led them to depend on their husband's money. These situations made it too difficult for most women to separate from their husbands. However, the equality between men and women in roles are very clear at the moment, thus women can work outside to earn money, while men share the household tasks such as cooking, cleaning, washing as well as caring for children. It can be clearly seen that women are independent from husbands as they can earn money to support themselves. Accordingly, they now find the power in themselves to stand on their own and the divorce rates rise day by day. Another cause to confirm the recent increase in divorce rates is stress in modern living. Many people have a considerable amount of pressure to earn money. Some families can earn money, but it is not enough for covering their expenses. Therefore, it is easy to think about divorce. Or, some people are laid off from their companies; consequently, the stress occurs in their family, which leads to divorce. Nevertheless, the rates of unemployment continually increase; as a result, the divorce rates can also rise. It is no doubt that the stress in modern living may lead to recently increasing divorce rates. The final cause of recently increasing divorce is lack of communication. Owing to financial status in each family, many people are fairly busy. For this reason, they have inadequate time to discuss the problems with their partners, which produces the likelihood of divorce. Some couples are often quiet when they have problems with each other. As a consequence, little problems can be expanded to probably become huge problems, resulting in divorce. It is quite clear that the more communication that is used, the more divorce rates are reduced. In conclusion, a family is one of the most important parts of society, thus many people had better be aware of the significance of their relationship. At the moment, although people tend to think carefully before they get married, the rates of divorce continuously rise due to the changing of women's roles, stress in modern living and lack of communication.