Parallelism
The term parallelism refers to the use of similar structure
within a sentence, paragraph, or paper to keep ideas organized.
Faulty parallelism is the incorrect use of parallelism.
| The following sentence has faulty parallelism:
Trees provide shade, shelter, and they are beautiful. |
To correctly show parallelism, the items listed should be the same
part of speech, the same structure, or the same form.
There is often more than one way to correct the problem of faulty
parallelism, and that is solely the choice of the writer (see fourth box).
No matter what the writer prefers, the following elements need to be
written the same way:
| shade shelter they are beautiful -------> beauty
*The sentence
should have read
By changing the independent phrase they are
beautiful to the noun beauty, |
*When used correctly, parallelism creates a flow and causes main ideas
to stand out. Parallelism can be used by a writer to help guide the
reader through the paper. Parallelism familiarizes the reader with
the theme of the individual sentence, the paragraph, or the paper as a whole.
Parallelism does this by:
| --showing the relationship of listed
items, --relating elements of contrast, --highlighting main points, --and adding a rhythm or flow. |
Parallelism shows these similarities through the use of similar words,
phrases, and punctuation. In order to use parallelism correctly in
your papers, remember the following concepts:
| --Use the same part of speech (nouns with
nouns, adverbs with adverbs, etc.) --Use the same sentence structure (place punctuation similarly, or keep the same grammatical style). --Use the same form (words with words, phrases with phrases, etc.). *Parallelism is required when using compound elements, comparisons, and lists. |
Work through the following exercises to better understand the use of parallelism. If you need further explanation, please consult an English tutor.
The following sentence demonstrates faulty parallelism. Can
you find the problem?
Meredith likes biking, swimming and to read.
One way to correct faulty parallelism is to write out the elements
that need to be expressed similarly. This helps you know what things
need to be changed before you decide how to change them. The items
are: biking, swimming and to read. The following
table shows two different ways in which they can be changed.
| THE ITEMS
biking swimming to read |
OPTION 1
biking swimming reading |
OPTION 2
to bike to swim to read |
The sentence could read as follows:
Meredith likes biking, swimming, and
reading.
Or, the sentence could be written:
Meredith likes to bike, to swim, and to
read.
In the following sentence, the faulty parallelism is underlined.
What sort of changes are needed to make the items parallel?
Going
to class, doing homework, and time management help students
succeed.
| THE ITEMS
going to class doing homework time management |
OPTION 1
going to class doing homework managing time |
OPTION 2
class attendance homework preparation time management |
The sentence could read:
Going to class, doing
homework, and managing time help students succeed.
Or the sentence could read:
Class attendance,
homework preparation, and time management help students succeed.
If you have any further questions about parallelism, feel welcome to email an online tutor at the USI OWL.