descriptive text

Pengertian Descriptive Text

Dalam artian luas, Description, seperti dijelaskan oleh Kane (2000: 352), diartikan seperti pada kalimat di bawah ini :

Description is about sensory experience—how something looks, sounds, tastes. Mostly it is about visual experience, but description also deals with other kinds of perception.

Jadi, jika disimpulkan dari penjelasan Kane di atas, tulisan deskriptif bermakna teks yang menjelaskan tentang pengalaman yang berhubungan dengan pancaindera, seperti apa bentuknya, suaranya, rasanya. Kebanyakan teks deskriptif memang tentang pengalaman visual, tapi nyatanya pengalaman selain dari indera penglihatanpun bisa digunakan dalam descriptive text.

Namun secara khusus, descriptive text adalah, "...... is a text which says what a person or a thing is like. Its purpose is to describe and reveal a particular person, place, or thing." [teks yang menjelaskan gambaran seseorang atau benda. Tujuannya adalah mengambarkan atau mengungkapkan orang, tempat atau benda tertentu]

Jadi, bisa dikatakan bahwa descriptive text ini adalah teks yang menjelaskan tentang seperti apakah orang atau suatu benda dideskripsikan, baik bentuknya, sifat-sifatnya, jumlahnya dan lain-lain. Tujuan (purpose) dari descriptive text pun jelas, yaitu untuk menjelaskan, MENGGAMBARKAN atau mengungkapkan seseorang atau suatu benda.

Generic Structure Dalam Descriptive Text

Ketika menulis descriptive text, ada beberapa susunan umum / generic structure(sebenarnya tidak wajib) agar tulisan kita dianggap benar. Susunan tersebut adalah :

1. Identification : berisi tentang identifikasi hal / seorang yang akan dideskripsikan.
2. Description : berisi tentang penjelasan / penggambaran tentang hal / seseorang dengan menyebutkan beberapa sifatnya.

Ketika kita menulis descriptive text, hal yang wajib kita ketahui adalah cara kita menyampaikan deskripsi tulisan kita tersebut. Oleh karena itu pemahaman tentangadjective (kata sifat bahasa Inggris) wajib kita kuasai.

Selain adjective, beberapa struktur bahasa Inggris yang berfungsi sebagai adjective pun harus kita pahami agar penulisan descriptive text kita terlihat tidak kaku.

CONTOH KALIMAT DESCRIPTIVE:

Borobudur Temple

Borobudur is Hindu – Budhist temple. It was build in the nineth century under Sailendra dynasty of ancient Mataram kingdom. Borobudur is located in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia.

Borobudur is well-known all over the world. Its construction is influenced by the Gupta architecture of India. The temple is constructed on a hill 46 m high and consist of eight step like stone terrace. The first five terrace are square and surrounded by walls adorned with Budist sculpture in bas-relief. The upper three are circular. 

Each of them is with a circle of bell shape-stupa. The entire adifice is crowned by a large stupa at the centre at the centre of the top circle. The way to the summit extends through some 4.8 km of passage and starways. The design of borobudur which symbolizes the structure of universe influences temples at Angkor, Cambodia.

Borobudur temple which is rededicated as an Indonesian monument in 1983 is a valuable treasure for Indonesian people.

Prambanan

Prambanan is the largest Hindu temple compound in Central Java in Indonesia, located approximately 18 km east of Yogyakarta.

The temple is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and is one of the largest Hindu temples in south-east Asia. It is characterised by its tall and pointed architecture, typical of Hindu temple architecture, and by the 47m high central building inside a large complex of individual temples.

It was built around 850 CE by either Rakai Pikatan, king of the second Mataram dynasty, or Balitung Maha Sambu, during the Sanjaya Dynasty. Not long after its construction, the temple was abandoned and began to deteriorate. Reconstruction of the compound began in 1918. The main building was completed in around 1953. Much of the original stonework has been stolen and reused at remote construction sites. A temple will only be rebuilt if at least 75% of the original stones are available, and therefore only the foundation walls of most of the smaller shrines are now visible and with no plans for their reconstruction.

The temple was damaged during the earthquake in Java in 2006. Early photos suggest that although the complex appears to be structurally intact, damage is significant. Large pieces of debris, including carvings, were scattered over the ground. The temple has been closed to the public until damage can be fully assessed. The head of Yogyakarta Archaeological Conservation Agency stated that: “it will take months to identify the precise damage”. However, some weeks later in 2006 the site re-opened for visitors. The immediate surroundings of the Hindu temples remain off-limits for safety reasons.

Cleopatra

One of the most famous women in world history was Cleopatra VII. She was the brilliant and beautiful last Pharaoh of Egypt. Historically, she became queen of Egypt in 51 B.C. at the age of eighteen. She was a Ptolemy, descended from one of Alexander the Great's generals. When she was twenty-one, Julius Caesar became her lover. Seven years later she met Antony. The romantic tragic relationship continued until they died by suicide in 30 B.C.

Cleopatra was legendary. She was famous not only for her breathtaking beauty but also for her great intellect. She had brown eyes and they were shaped like cat eyes. Her skin was in fact an olive shade, darker than Hollywood actress Liz Taylor who potrayed her in the film 'Cleopatra' in 1963. She had medium dark brown hair, about to the middle of her shoulder blades. She had a reputation as an extraordinarily sensuous woman.

Cleopatra was a woman of remarkable poise and unusual intelligence. She was highly educated. She spoke proficiently in nine languages and also skilled in mathematics. She is often considered to be a stunning seductress though she was studying to be a nun. Cleopatra was a very intelligent queen and a politician with a great charisma.

Taj Mahal 

Taj Mahal is regarded as one of the eight wonders of the world. It was built by a Muslim Emperor Shah Jahan in the memory of his dear wife at Agra.

Taj Mahal is a Mausoleum that houses the grave of queen Mumtaz Mahal. The mausoleum is a part of a vast complex comprising of a main gateway, an elaborate garden, a mosque (to the left), a guest house (to the right), and several other palatial buildings. The Taj is at the farthest end of this complex, with the river Jamuna behind it.

The Taj stands on a raised, square platform (186 x 186 feet) with its four corners truncated, forming an unequal octagon. The architectural design uses the interlocking arabesque concept, in which each element stands on its own and perfectly integrates with the main structure. It uses the principles of self-replicating geometry and a symmetry of architectural elements.

Its central dome is fifty-eight feet in diameter and rises to a height of 213 feet. It is flanked by four subsidiary domed chambers. The four graceful, slender minarets are 162.5 feet each. The central domed chamber and four adjoining chambers include many walls and panels of Islamic decoration.
Taj Mahal is built entirely of white marble. Its stunning architectural beauty is beyond adequate description, particularly at dawn and sunset. The Taj seems to glow in the light of the full moon. On a foggy morning, the visitors experience the Taj as if suspended when viewed from across the Jamuna river.