Chapter 6

CAUSE AND EFFECT ESSAY

You may be asked to write about the causes only, the effects
only, or both causes and effects.

Organization:
There are 2 ways to organize the idea (in the body):
BLOCK & CHAIN

BLOCK

Example 1:
Discuss the causes of full-time students doing part- time jobs
-You (in your draft)
1st cause: They want to make money

2nd cause: They want to get working experience

3rd cause: They want to assert themselves and show tha they
are mature
-You then write 3 paragraphs discussing 3 reasons --> this is
block organization
Example 2:
Discuss the effects of full-time students doing part- time jobs
-You (in your draft)
1st effect: They can use the money from their wages to pay
off tuition and expenditure.
2nd effect: Through their work, students may learn a lot of
skills helpful to their future jobs
3rd effect: They may perform poorly at school
4th effect: They may forget their long-term goal; that is a B.A
degree
-You then write 4 paragraphs discussing 4 effects --> this is
block organization
Example 3:
Discuss the causes and effects of full-time students doing part-
time jobs
-You (in your draft)
CAUSES: 1st cause: They want to make money
2nd cause: They want to get working experience
3rd cause: They want to assert themselves and
show that they are mature
EFFECTS:
1st effect: They can use the money from their wages to pay off
tuition and expenditure.
2nd effect: Through their work, students may learn a lot of
skills helpful to their future jobs
3rd effect: They may perform poorly at school
4th effect: They may forget their long-term goal; that is a B.A
degree

-You then (a) write 1 paragraph discussing 3 reasons

(b) write a transition paragraph
(c) write 1 paragraph discussing 4 effects
--> this is a cause and effect essay in BLOCK ORGANIZATION
Note: No direct cause and effect relationship in block
organization

CHAIN ORGANIZATION
Introductory paragraph
Body:
Par 1: 1st cause
1st effect
Par2. 2nd cause
2nd effect
Par 3. 3rd cause
3rd effect
Conclusion

Topic: In the late twentieth century, the proportion of the

world’s population living in cities has increased substantially.
Discuss its possible reasons and results.
cause 1 : good education
cause 2 : job opportunities
effect 1: (+) remarkable contribution to the cities
effect 2: (-) overpopulation --> problems of housing,
environment, and security
Note: In chain organization the causes and effects are closely
interrelated.

Essay:
Intro:
At any time in any countries, big cities are considered a land of
promise because of their modernity, civilization, and economic
potential. Vietnam is currently facing an increasing wave of
emigrants leaving their hometown to settle in big cities. The
common motivation of immigrants can be traced to the
following causes: a desire of a good education and a need of
employment, which results in both good and bad effects.
Body:
The first cause of emigration is the expectation of advantages
of education in cities among young people in rural areas. As
expected, big cities are always a paradise of education. It is in
these cities that a person can choose to enter any kinds of
schools ranging from vocational schools, colleges, and
universities to short-term or instant training courses, and
various centers. Besides, he has also more chances to study
with experienced teachers, contact with active students, and
access to modern facilities such as laboratories, libraries, and
the like. These benefits, undoubtedly, bring rural students a
good opportunity to achieve their ambitions. After graduation
many of these students tend to become city dwellers since they
find it easy to have good jobs which suit their abilities with a
satisfying salary. In this way, they are increasing the number of
the intellectuals and making their contribution to the
development of the city.

The second cause of rushing to big cities in great numbers is the

scarcity of employment in rural areas. It can be seen in the
mass media nowadays that labor force in the country is
redundant due to a lack of cultivating land and the
Government’s inappropriate investment (e.g. policy of produce
consumption and taxes), and so on. Under the circumstances,
country people are obliged to leave their villages to look for
survival in big cities where odd and unskilled jobs such as
babysitters, domestic servants, and workers are always
available. Clearly, this is a temporarily effective solution for the
unemployed. However, when considering its impact on the
cities, the sudden rising rate of population in a place leads to
shortage of housing and traffic congestion, whereas unskilled
immigrants are a threat to social stability when they have not
been sufficiently educated to respect the city law.

Everything has two sides, both positive and negative. The fact
of people moving from rural to urban areas, therefore, on the
one hand, brings some benefits to the country men themselves
and to the city in a certain field; on the other hand, it causes
some disorders which directly influence the urban life.

In this pattern, causes and effects are linked to each other in a

chain. One event causes a second event, which in turn causes a
third event, which in turn causes a fourth event, and so on.
Example: Causes and effects of poverty
Cause 1: Illiteracy --> uneducated --> high risk of being
unemployed ( hard to seek for job in a competitive
environment)
Effect 1: Social evils:
- lack of education--> no healthy entertainment -->spend time
on alcoholic beverage or gambling
- due to unemployment or unstable / temporary jobs--> little
money --> involve in crimes such as theft, prostitution, even
drug smuggling (to survive)