The language of commentaries and essays

This list is to help you avoid weak "multi-purpose" verbs and expressions to describe the effects of a text and an author's intentions. Keep adding to it!

Show
This chapter provides no account of Because of this digression we are made aware of Such an ending betrays The use of euphemisms calls attention to The narrator concentrates on Her character is delineated in great detail All this demonstrates the writer's ability to Such a remark might denote a lack of The author has chosen to depict The second stanza describes The dialogue displays The narrator draws attention to These comments are evidence that His concern with morality is evidenced by The passage evokes These sentences exhibit The novelist explores The narrator focuses on The description gives us a hint of The meter here seems to indicate that The passage offers us The novel portrays / signals / throws light on The poet reflects on The use of language reveals The author argues / asserts / maintains / states that

Centre on
The stanza is based on The story hinges around

Deal with
The poem is a comment upon The narrator focuses his attention on The author tackles 1

Convey / express
The narrator builds up a The poem celebrates This contributes to These words convey The passage distils an impression of The enjambment expresses The poet strikes a note of The novelist voices The text yields

Similarity
The metaphor accords with the image of His language is akin to that of This technique is analogous to

Explain
We can account for This line elucidates The use of this image illuminates The poet makes plain The poet states It is worth noting that

Illustrate
The novel epitomizes / is the epitome of This technique is exemplified by This passage is highly representative of Contains / includes The novel consists of four parts This stanza encapsulates The text is rich in This theory embodies

Suggest
The image bespeaks The word brings to mind The conjures up

Emphasis
His use of irony adds to 2

This effect is compounded by The use of such imagery deepens The emphasis falls upon The emphatic use of rhythm The use of such a metaphor enhances The novel focuses on There is a heightened feeling of This effect highlights / intensifies / emphasizes / reinforces / strengthens / stresses / underlines

Intertextuality and echoes

An allusion is made to The plot is derived from The poem draws on the tradition of The expression carries biblical echoes The inspiration of this poem was

Remind
The line brings to mind / echoes / is an echo of / evokes / recalls / is a reminiscence of / a reminder of

Parallelisms and differences

We can sum up the likeness and differences between the two poems

Causes and consequences

The poem arises out of a dramatic situation This impression is largely due to His attitude fosters The story was generated by Such a poem invites comparisons with There is a congruence between This is consonant with the idea of The use of imagery correlates with There is a correspondence between The word is synonymous with

Parallelism
The novelist draws a parallel between There is a syntactic / lexical parallelism between Opposition Thematically, the two words are antithetical The theme is to be balanced against the theme of The contradiction between 3

In contrast The passage is built on a contrast / provides a contrast His poetry stands in sharp contrast to There is a discrepancy / a disjunction between Such ideas are at odds with / at opposite poles

Difference
It is necessary to differentiate A distinction must be made between The author draws a distinction between There is a shift in tone / feeling Compensate / counter / soften A few words attenuate the feeling Our desire to criticize is checked by The pathos is countered by The mood is lightened by In the end the comedy overrides the sense of tragedy The admiration is now tinged with

Accumulation
The poem abounds in images of nature There is such a display of images The frequency of such words shows The words occur several times

Blending / linking
The poet associates the bird with The two images coexist The sense of rebirth is fused with The two ideas are interfused / interwoven We find an interpenetration of The interrelation of love and death (Eros and Thanatos) The style oscillates between There are grounds for The serious tone is also responsible for His ideas are shaped by his cultural background

Consequences / conclusion
The poet's own experience affects the tone By way of conclusion The use of a deluded narrator contributes to 4

The conclusion we can draw is that Any discussion of the subject entails a study of We may infer from this that

Success of a work
Through the use of such a rhythm, the author achieves / is effective in conveying / manages to / renders / conveys The reader's point of view and response With the advantage of foreknowledge With hindsight The poem appeals to The word arouses the reader's interest The poem awakens us to the significance of Our attention is then called to The author captures our attention by This method compels admiration The scene elicits a strong response from the reader The story engages our interest The reader can be gripped / overwhelmed / baffled The dnouement meets the conventional reader's expectations We are inclined to smile / laugh / reject The reader perceives The author stirs our imagination We suspend our disbelief

Quotes
This can be illustrated by the example of In the narrator's own words As the author puts it