Cause and Effect

Cause and effect is a method of development in which the writer analyzes the reason(s) for an action, event, or decision; or analyzes resulting consequences to support a point.

Cause and effect essay focus on why things happen (causes) and what happens as a result (effect).

A cause is a reason for something that happens or an explanation to why some effects occur.

An effect is the result of certain events or causes. An effect may be the result of one or more causes.

Writers often combine cause and effect to explain why something happens.

Uses

1. to inform

2. to discover

3. to speculate

4. change behavior

Types

1. Major and Minor

2. Immediate and Remote

Kinds (according to manner of development)

1. single cause – many effects

2. many causes – single effect

3. causal chain

4. single cause – single effect

Order

1. emphatic

2. chronological

3. categorical

4. spatial

Examples

bluer than blue
truncus arteriosus 1
if i look different each day