The style of a descriptive text can vary.
A descriptive text makes a description of some element. It can focus on a person, an animal, a landscape, an object or a situation, to name a few possibilities.
It should be noted that a text is a written or oral discourse that has internal coherence. Descriptive , on the other hand, is something that describes something (that is, it provides information so that people can represent it in their minds).
Features of descriptive text
The enumeration of characteristics is the main feature of the descriptive text. While a narrative text relates events and an argumentative text provides reasons, a descriptive text focuses on the mention of particularities for the construction of a representation of the element in question.
An example of descriptive text is the following: “The house was spacious and old. An oak table with four chairs dominated the dining room, the walls of which were painted an orange hue. In the master bedroom, there was a double bed with an iron headboard. The smallest bedroom, on the other hand, had three children's beds . As you can see, this text describes some characteristics of a home.
A descriptive text can characterize an environment from a first-person perspective.
Its particularities
In addition to everything we have explained so far, it is important to know a set of characteristics that identify all descriptive text:
- It is very varied, insofar as it can be used to describe physical and non-physical things.
- It is detailed, because it must focus on conveying to the reader what the element on which it revolves is really like.
- You can resort to the use of certain “licenses” or language tools such as hyperbole. metaphors and other figurative language resources.
Descriptive texts can even abound in qualifying adjectives that give it a very subjective tone: “She was a beautiful woman, with gold-colored hair and striking light blue eyes. Her long legs seemed to extend to infinity, as did her thin arms. Her sculptural body full of curves, on the other hand, made men delirious . In this case, adjectives such as “beautiful” , “shocking” and “sculptural” contribute to the description made by the text.
Chronicles are usually descriptive texts.
Description text function
Regarding the functions of descriptive text, it is important to take into account the following:
- It has three fundamental functions: define, explain and incite.
- It always tends towards objectivity. It focuses on aspects such as the parts of the element in question, its mission, how it works, how useful it is, its main specifications...
- A logical ordering of the characteristics listed must prevail in its content.
- As a general rule, it is common for technicalities to be used in relation to the element being discussed.
- It is possible to differentiate the existence of three different groups of descriptive texts: the technical ones, which serve to explain and expose the operation of any object; scientists , who show the procedure that has been followed in an investigation as well as its result; and social , which refer to people's behaviors and attitudes.
- Examples of this type of text are the user manual of an appliance and descriptive advertising that puts a property for sale or rent.
Some examples
To complete the definition of the concept, we will present below other examples of descriptive text in order to facilitate the recognition of its characteristics.
Suppose a food critic publishes a review of a restaurant. When referring to the food served in the establishment, develop a text with a sensory description of the dishes. "The roast beef stands out for its tenderness, with just the right amount of doneness so that the diner can taste its juices" and "The apple pie, with a crispy topping and an interior that shines with its moisture, is truly delicious" are two of the expressions that he captures in his article, where descriptive adjectives abound.
Let's think about a manual with instructions for use of a technological device. It is an instructive text that calls for an objective description of the artifact and may even include a technical sheet. The purpose is for the user to be clear about the characteristics of the object and know how to use it. That's why you can include instructions like "To turn on the device, press the green button for two seconds. Then select the Start» option .
A descriptive text can also focus on a specific detail or establish a comparison: «Ford's new model surprises with its advanced assisted driving system. It is a tool that analyzes in real time up to twice as many variables as other cars .
In a fictional story , a descriptive text can appeal to a visual narrative to build an atmosphere or setting. Thus, the writer details the context from his perspective or from the narrator's vision so that the reader can immerse themselves in it: «When entering the house it didn't take long for him to be moved: the place was gloomy. Dozens of cobwebs hung from the ceiling and an incessant parade of insects of all kinds could be seen on the furniture. The wood of the floor, meanwhile, creaked with every step .