Anecdote Text Definition and Social
Function of Anecdote
Anecdote is a text which retells
funny and unusual incidents in fact or imagination. Its purpose is to
entertain the readers.
Generic
Structure of Anecdote
1. Abstract
2. Orientation
3. Crisis
4. Incident.
Language
Feature of Anecdote
1. Using exclamation words; it’s
awful!, it’s wonderful!, etc
2. Using imperative; listen to this
3. Using rhetoric question; do you
know what?
4. Using action verb; go, write,
etc
5. Using conjunction of time; then, afterward
6. Using simple past tense
Example of Anecdote :
CLARK FAMILY
There
was a black family in Scotland years ago. They were Clark family with ninechildren. They had a dream to go to America. The
family worked and saved. They weremaking plan to travel with their children
to America. It had taken several years but finallythey had saved enough money.
They had gotten passport. They had booked seats for thewhole family member in a
new liner to America.The entire family was
full of anticipation and excitement with their new life inAmerica.
However few days before their departure, the youngest son was bitten by a dog.The doctor sewed up the boy. Because of the
possibility of getting rabies, there were being quarantined for
long days. They were in quarantine when the departure time came.The family dreams were dashed. They could not make
the trip to America as they had planned.The father was full of
disappointed and anger. He stomped the dock to watch theship leaved without him
and his family. He shed tears of disappointment. He cursed bothhis son and God
for the misfortune.Five days latter, the
tragic news spread throughout Scotland. The ship, the mightyTitanic, had shank.
It took hundreds of passenger and crew with it. Titanic which had been
called the unsinkable ship had sunk. It was unbelievable but it was.The Clak family should have been on that ship, but
because of the bitten son by adog,
they were left behind. When the father heard the news, he hugged the son
andthanked him for saving the family. He thanked God for saving their lives. It
was a blessing behind a tragedy. (Adapted from Look Ahead 2)
The Power of Tradition
The young husband clearly loved to cook and the dinners he served his new wife convinced her that she was indeed a lucky woman.
One thing puzzled her, though, and at last she decided to enquire.
“Oh, my dear. Why do you always cut a smal piece off the end of the
roast before you put it into the oven?”
“Well, to tell the truth. I do it because my mother always does it,” he replied.
At the next family gathering, the wife decided to satisfy her
curiosity. She drew her mother in law aside and put the question to her.
The older woman went a bit red, and replied, “Well, to tell the truth, I
do it because my mother always does it.”
Undaunted, the wife waited until they paid a visit to eighty years
old Nan. Knowing she’d enjoy hearing the story, she told her about her
persevering quest to find the answer to the chopped off roast.
“Incredible,” she croacked. “Imagine the two of them doing that!. ”Why, I only cut the piece off because my pan was too small.”
Misunderstanding*
Taking the wrong assumption? This is
very abashed. Actually I was so embarrassed about this incident. I think many
people will laugh when they know it.
One day my brother and I were watching
television at home. suddenly there were many people brought many chairs from my
neighbor's house and I saw it. At that moment I was afraid and I said to my
father about this incident. My father run and said, "Thief...thief...thief....
catch them!" but suddenly he stopped. In fact the people were not thieves
because one of them is my uncle. My father said to me, "Oh ... no Hen, He
is your uncle. it is terrible".
After that my father chatted with my
uncle. I was so embarrassed to them. I was not brave to go out. Then my father
talked to me. I just laughed and was afraid. My mother laughed after listening
this story and she told me, "That is funny, Henny".
When I meet my uncle, I feel shy to
him because I always remember this incident. I hope my uncle forget it and I
will not be shy anymore.
This experience was so funny in my
life. I take the wrong assumption about someone whom I called as a thief. May
be because of night, I could not see clearly. I always remember it and I do not
forget it. I think this experience can be a lesson for me.
----------------
*This example of anecdote text is
written by Heny Kuncah Diana
Snake in the
Bathroom
How would you
like to find a snake in you bath?
We had just moved
into a new house, which had been empty for so long that everything was in a
terrible mess. Anna and I decided that we would clean the bath first, so we set
to, and turned on the tap.
Suddenly to my
horror, a snake's head appeared in the plug hole. Then out slithered the rest
of his long thin body. He twisted and turned on the slippery bottom of the
bath, spitting and hissing at us.
For an instant I
stood there quite paralyzed. Then I yelled for my husband, who luckily came
running and killed the snake with the handle of a broom.
Anna, who was
only three at the time, was quite interested in the whole business. Indeed I
had to pull her out of the way or she'd probably have lean over the bath to get
a better look.
We found out
later that it was a black mamba, a poisonous kind of snake. It had obviously
been fast asleep, curled up at the bottom of the nice warm water-pipe. It must
have had an awful shock when the cold water came trickling down! But nothing to
the shock I got! Ever since then I've always put the plug in firmly before
running the bath water
Note: contoh / example of anecdote text is recomposed
from karupin'blog
Dave Experience
Soon after Dave left college, one of his
uncles, who was rich died and left Dave a lot of money.
So he decided to set up his own real estate
agency.
He had only been there for a few hours when
he heard some onr coming towards the door of hos offoce.
“It’s my first customer!” he thought. He
quickly picked up the telephone and pretended to be very busy answering an
important call from someone in New York who wanted to buy a big and expensive
house in the country.
The man knocked at the door while this was
going on, came in and waited politely for the agent to finish his conversation.
Then he said to me, “I’m from the telephone company, and I was sent here to
connect your telephone.”