DESCRIPTIVE TEXT ; DEFINITION, GENERIC STRUCTURES, PURPOSES, LANGUAGE FEATURES

Hallo everybody

DESCRIPTIVE TEXT, or in terms of writing only known as “description” is one of English lessons that
should be mastered not only by junior high school students but also by senior high school students,
college students and anyone who loves English. Because after all, descriptive material is very necessary
for the increasing of our English proficiency.

Some of the most famous authors, especially fiction writers, have good skill in writing of descriptive text
so that their writing is very readable and easy to understand. Therefore, if we were able to master this
lesson well, we might be able to become a great writer in the future.

Furthermore, explanations and examples of this descriptive text can help a friend who is or still a long
journey to learn English. Do not hesitate to read the descriptive text below, the more often we read we
will be able to understand it more. And it would be nice if we do not only understand mere, but also can
write descriptive text ourself….

Maybe you are “bored” to learn narrative text, because of that, it’s time to discuss descriptive text so
that our head is not merely contains stories and stories

Descriptive Text

Definition of Descriptive Text

Descriptive Text 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.

In a broad sense, description, as explained by Kane (2000: 352), is defined like in the following sentence:

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.
Thus, if we conclude it from Kane’s explanation above, the descriptive text is meaningful text that
describes the experience related to the senses, such as what shape, sound, taste is. Most descriptive text
is about visual experience, but in fact experience other than the sense of sight, we can also use it to
make descriptive text.

But in particular, the descriptive text is, “…… 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.”

So, it can be said that this descriptive text is a text that explains about whether a person or an object is
like, whether its form, its properties, its amount and others. The purpose of the descriptive text is clear,
that is to describe, represent or reveal a person or an object, either abstract or concrete.

Generic Structure of Descriptive Text

When writing descriptive text, there are some generic structures (actually not mandatory) for our writing
to be true. The arrangement is:

# Identification: (contains about the introduction of a person, place, animal or object will be described.)

# Description: contains a description of something such as animal, things, place or person by decribing
its features, forms, colors, or anything related to what the writer describe.

Purpose of Descriptive text

– To describe person, thing or place in specific

– To describe a particular person, thing or place.

Language Feature of Descriptive Text

– Specific participant : has a certain object, is not common and unique (only one). for example:
Bandengan beach, my house, Borobudur temple, uncle Jim

– The use of the adjective (an adjective) to clarify the noun, for example: a beautiful beach, a handsome
man, the famous place in jepara, etc.

– The use of simple present tense: The sentence pattern used is simple present because it tells the fact
of the object described.

– Action verb: verbs that show an activity (for example, run, sleep, walk, cut etc….

Example Descriptive Text – My Favorite Teacher

My favorite teacher is my history teacher, and he is by far the best teacher that I have ever had. He has
the ability to make a subject that many students find incredibly boring come to life through his
enthusiasm and passion for history, and his love of being a teacher. Going to his lessons is something we
look forward to, not dread, like we do with most other lessons.

It’s ever so funny to watch him get excited about something, which happens in every lesson. It’s easy to
know that he’s getting excited because he begins bouncing up and down slightly in a way that no other
sixty-something year old would ever managed without looking completely ridiculous. He has this dark
(with more and more grey streaks these days), springy hair that lines the edge of his growing bald patch,
and the hair bounces up and down with him like thousands of tiny little springs. Then, he takes on his
whole new persona, often going into role and becoming the character or figure he is talking about, doing
the voices, the actions, and parading up and down the room gesticulating wildly, but all the while there’s
a gentle ‘bounce, bounce, bounce’, as though the springs are not just on his head but on the soles of his
shoes too.

A teacher that doesn’t take himself too seriously always will be a big hit with teenagers, although he’s
not afraid to impose his authority if he has to. I’ve only ever heard him properly shout once (although
thankfully it wasn’t it me), but it isn’t an experience that I would like to repeat. When he lost it, the room
suddenly became more silent than I’d ever known it to be before. We all sat slightly paralyzed, not even
anting to breathe too loudly, because hearing such a jovial and jolly little man lose his temper was a huge
shock. It certainly had the right kind of impact though, because he’s never needed to shout since.
It is actually this teacher that I have to thank for my love of history. In his lessons, history does not mean
copying out of textbooks and writing pages and pages of notes. History is alive; history is something
tangible, that you can see, hear and feel, and we can live it through dressing up and acting out scenes or
taking trips to important places of historical interest. And although he’s getting on in years and may not
be teaching for much longer, he will have an important place in history for many of his students, because
there has never been a teacher able to bring a subject to life in quite the same way he does.

***

Sumber :

“Descriptive Essay My Favorite Teacher” Scholaradvisor.com. 27 April 2015.

http://www.scholaradvisor.com/essay-examples/descriptive-essay-my-favorite-teacher

Descriptive Text about Person – My Best Friend, Ernesto

My best friend is Ernesto and he is my classmate. We go to school together.

Ernesto comes from an educated family. His father is a school principal and his mother is also a teacher.

He is punctual, well-educated, and has good manners. He is really hard working. He always does his
homework. He is also well-dressed and well-behaved. All teachers have a high opinion of him.

Ernesto has a well-built body. He is gentle but fearless. He takes part in all sports, scout, trekking and
mountaineering activities. He has a good heart. He is truthful, honest and obedient.

He also plays the guitar, and he makes his parents very proud of him. He secures good marks and is
usually top of his class in examinations. He inspires me to work harder. He keeps me away from bad
company. I am happy to have such a friend.

Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - My Small House

I live in a small house. It has five rooms: there are two bedrooms, a living room, a bathroom, and a
kitchen. Indeed it is a small house; but I like living in here for wasting my spare time.

When the door is open, I can see the living room. It is so small with only three chairs and a table, nothing
else. I prefer reading a novel in this room.

My bedroom is in the left side of the living room. In this room there is a night table next to the bed, a TV,
a radio, and a computer. When being bored of reading, I usually play online games, chat with my friends
via Facebook and so on.

Next to my bedroom is my mother's. I do not know what is inside because I never come in to see it. In
the right side of the living room there is the kitchen. In the kitchen I have everything I need when I get
hungry. It is very pleasure when my mother cooks, the smell fills my whole house.

I know it is a very small house; but it is the best place I have ever seen.

Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - My Family

My family has four members: those are I, my sister, and parents of course.

My mother is 47 years old. Her name's Anisa. She's thin-faced and she's got long, blond hair and
beautiful green eyes. She is still slim because she always tries to stay in shape. She is very good-looking,
always well-dressed and elegant.

My father, Lukman, is 5 years older than my mother. He is 52. In spite of his age he's still black-haired,
with several grey hairs. He has bright blue eyes. He is quite tall, but a bit shorter than me. He's very hard-
working. Besides that he is working in a travel company. He can even make a dinner when my mother is
outside. His cooking and his meals are always very tasty as well as my mothers'.

Finally, my sister Nadina. She is 22. She is also red-haired and green-eyed. She has long wavy hair and
freckles. She is definitely shorter than me. She is rather introverted. But she is very sensible, smart and
co-operative. Right now she is studying English and also knows Arabic and Mandarin. I want to be so
smart as she is.

They all, except me, speak Sundanese very well, because we were living in Bandung for 5 years. My sister
have been going to primary school there. Unfortunately I was only 3 when we were leaving to Jakarta, so
I can't speak Sundanese. Now we are happily living in Jakarta.
Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - My Sphynx Cat

My Sphynx cat is the only pet I have. He has a little hair but is not totally hairless as he has a peach fuzz
over much of his body. His coat is often a warm chamois. My Sphynx has a normal cat proportion.

I like his tail although my mom say that it is like a rats tail. I love his usual color varieties including,
tortoiseshell, chocolate, black, blue, lilac, chocolate etc. He is really an amazing cat. Believe it or not, he
is very intelligent cat. He can respond my voice commands.

He is really funny as well as my friends get a joke. I love him so much as I love my mother.

Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - My Mother

My mother is a beautiful person. She is not tall but not short, and she has curly hair and brown. Her eyes
color are like honey and her color skin color light brown, and she has a beautiful smile. Her weight likes
120 lbs.

She is a very kind person. She is very lovely, friendly, patient, and she loves to help people. I love my
mom, because she is a good example to me. She loves being in the Church, and she loves sing and dance
too.

She is a very good child, wife and mother. She always takes care of her family. She likes her house to be
clean and organized. She a very organized person, and all things in the house are in the right place. She
doesn't like messes.

She always has a smile on her face. She is so sweet and lovely. I like when I am going to sleep or went I
wake up or when I am going to go to some places, she always give me a kiss, and when the family have a
problem she always be with us to helps us and to give us all her love.

Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - My Classmate, Yuta

Yuta is one of the 150 International students at the ELC of Brigham Young University. He is from Japan.
He grew up in Japan, and he is 19 years old. There are six people in his family, a father, a mother, three
sisters and himself. He is the youngest in his family. He is also the only boy in his family, but now he is in
Provo, Utah, studying English. Yuta likes the United States very much and he thinks everything is cheap.
Yuta thinks his English classes are excellent and the teachers are professionals. Yuta thinks someone in
his class is noisy so he doesn't like that. In his free time he spends too much time sleeping, so it seems
that he has a sleeping sickness.

Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - Provo

I have been in Provo for almost eleven months. I have seen winter, spring, summer, and fall. Provo's
winter is so beautiful. The mountains are covered with a lot of snow. They look like many beautiful brides
wearing wedding dresses, and veils. In spring, Provo doesn't have many trees; when the snow melts the
mountains are bald as strong bald men. Summer in Provo is very hot in the daytime. Last summer when I
was walking under the sky, it was like walking in an oven; the sun was like a fire that burned my skin. In
spring and summer the weather was always clear. I never used my umbrella. Provo was like a huge
clothes dryer; it is very dry in spring and summer. In the fall the weather in Provo is very strange. One
late September morning when I woke up, the mountaintops was covered with snow. Provo is a lovely
and strange place. I love it very much.

Contoh Descriptive Text Pendek - My Gitar

written by Jeremy Burden

My most valuable possession is an old, slightly warped blond guitar--the first instrument I taught myself
how to play.

It's nothing fancy, just a Madeira folk guitar, all scuffed and scratched and finger-printed. At the top is a
bramble of copper-wound strings, each one hooked through the eye of a silver tuning key. The strings
are stretched down a long, slim neck, its frets tarnished, the wood worn by years of fingers pressing
chords and picking notes. The body of the Madeira is shaped like an enormous yellow pear, one that was
slightly damaged in shipping. The blond wood has been chipped and gouged to gray, particularly where
the pick guard fell off years ago.

No, it's not a beautiful instrument, but it still lets me make music, and for that I will always treasure it.

Panda

(Identification)

Have you ever watch the cartoon movie “Kung Fu Panda”? The panda in the movie is described as a fat
animal, love-noodle eater, and Kung Fu master. But the Panda that will be described below is not the
Panda who can do Kung Fu like in that movie. Here is the description about Panda.

(Description)

Pandas are bear-like animal which originally live in center and western part of China. Pandas have
distinguish features that make them different other species of bear. Pandas have white thick fur which
covers all of their body with black eyes patches, ears, nose, legs, shoulders, and arms. Those black marks
make Pandas unique and different.

Like other species of bear, pandas have a big head, a short tail, rounded ears, and a long muzzle with a
big nose. However, pandas’ diet is totally different with other species of bear; in which they prefer
bamboos than others. 90% of pandas’ diet consists of bamboos. That is why pandas have adapted their
body to help them in eating bamboos. Pandas have a big jaw with tough muscles and strong molars to
crush bamboos so they can extract the nutrients they need.

Borobudur Temple

(Identification)

Borobudur is a Buddhist temple. It was built in the ninth century under Sailendra dynasty of ancient
Mataram kingdom. Borobudur is located in Magelang, Central Java, Indonesia.

(Description)
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 meter high and consists of eight steps like stone terrace. The
first five terraces are square and surrounded by walls adorned with Buddhist sculpture in bas-relief. The
upper three are circular. Each of them is with a circle of bell shape-stupa. The entire upper structure is
crowned by a large stupa at the center of the top circle. The way to the summit extends through some
4.8 km of passage and stairways.

The design of Borobudur symbolizes the conception of universe in Buddhist cosmology. It is believed that
the universe is divided into three spiritual spheres, kamadhatu, rupadhatu, and arupadhatu. The first
sphere, kamadhatu, represents respectively the sphere of desires where we are bound to our desires;
the second sphere, rupadhatu, represents forms where we abandon our desires but are still bound to
name and form; and the last sphere, arupadhatu, represents formlessness where there is no longer
either name or form. Borobudur temple which is rededicated as an Indonesian monument in 1983 is a
valuable treasure for Indonesian people. With its magnificent size and architecture, no wonder that
Borobudur Temple includes 7 wonders of the world

Wakatobi

(Identification)

Wakatobi is the name of an archipelago and regency in Sulawesi Tenggara, Indonesia. The name of
Wakatobi is derived from the names of the main islands in the archipelago: Wangiwangi, Kaledupa,
Tomea, and Binangko. Do you know what? It is the best diving sites ever.

(Description)

There are many reasons why I call Wakatobi as the best diving sites ever. First, the reefs in Wakatobi
diving are unlike others in the region because of the dry climate and uplifted limestone. This means
Wakatobi is an exceptionally clean environment due to the lack of soil erosion. Second, being a national
park, fishing is strictly limited and the reefs of Wakatobi are protected. These superb reefs are supported
and protected by the local fishing communities who obtain a fair share of the income generated by
Wakatobi dive tourism in exchange for adopting more sustainable practices, such as leaving large
stretches of reef completely untouched. Third, Wakatobi is located at the world’s coral reef triangle
center with its 942 fish species and 750 coral reef species from a total of 850 world’s collection
comparing to the two world’s famous diving center of the Caribbean Sea that owes only 50 species and
other 300 species in the red sea.

Terjemahan:
Wakatobi

Wakatobi adalah nama sebuah kepulauan dan kabupaten di Sulawesi Tenggara, Indonesia. Nama
Wakatobi berasal dari nama-nama pulau utama di kepulauan: Wangiwangi, Kaledupa, Tomea, dan
Binangko. Tahu kah kamu? Ini adalah tempat diving terbaik yang pernah ada.

Ada banyak alasan mengapa saya menyebut Wakatobi adalah tempat diving terbaik. Pertama, terumbu
karang di Wakatobi tidak seperti tempat lain karena iklim kering dan kapur yang terangkat. Ini berarti
Wakatobi adalah tempat paling bersih karena kurangnya erosi tanah. Kedua, menjadi bagian dari taman
nasional, aktivitas penangkapan ikan sangat terbatas dan terumbu karang di Wakatobi dilindungi.
Terumbu karang yang luar biasa tersebut didukung dan dilindungi oleh komunitas nelayan lokal yang
memperoleh pembagian pendapatan yang adil yang dihasilkan dari aktivitas wisata Wakatobi sebagai
balasan karena telah mengadopsi tindakan-tindakan berkelanjutan seperti dilarang menyentuh terumbu
karang. Ketiga, Wakatobi terletak di pusat segitiga terumbu karang dunia dengan 942 spesies ikan dan
750 spesies terumbu karang dari total koleksi 850 dunia dibandingkan dengan dua pusat menyelam
terkenal dunia yaitu Laut Karibia yang hanya memiliki 50 spesies dan 300 spesies lainnya di laut merah.

Contoh Descriptive Text Tentang Tempat Wisata Waterfall

Lembah Pelangi Waterfall

Lembah Pelangi Waterfall sounds unfamiliar for either local or foreign tourists. Lembah Pelangi Waterfall
is located in Sukamaju village, Ulubelu sub district, Tanggamus district, Lampung province, Indonesia.
The access to this place is quite difficult because Ulu Belu sub district is a remote area in Lampung with
its hilly contours which make this tourist spot elusive.

Lembah Pelangi Waterfall has two levels where the waterfall on the second level has two branches. The
height of the first level waterfall is about 100 meters, while the second level waterfall is about dozens of
meters. The best enchantment of this waterfall is the rainbow which appears between the valley and the
waterfall as the name suggests. The soft flowing gurgling waterfall sounds is like a chant of nature which
can remove the tiredness of the long trip to go there. Under the waterfall, there are several spots of
warm water which can be an interesting spot for bathing.
In this place, you will be shown a panorama of natural beauty which is very interesting for every pair of
eyes seeing it. Rocky hills accompanied by leafy trees will actually soothe both your eyes.

Air Terjun Lembah Pelangi

Air Terjun Lembah Pelangi, sedikit terdengar asing di telinga para wisatawan lokal maupun luar daerah.
AIR Terjun Lembah ini terletak Desa Sukamaju, Kecamatan Ulubelu, Kabupaten Tanggamus, Lampung.
Akses jalan menuju tempat ini memang cukup sulit karena kawasan Ulu Belu sendiri adalah satu daerah
terpencil di Lampung dengan kontur berbukit membuat tempat wisata ini sulit diraih.

Air terjun Lembah Pelangi sendiri memiliki dua tingkatan, dengan air terjun pada tingkatan kedua
bercabang dua. Tinggi air terjun pada tingkat pertama sekitar 100 meter, sementara air terjun tingkat ke
duanya sekitar belasan meter. Pesona terbaiknya adalah pelangi yang muncul diantara lembah dan air
terjun seperti namanya. Gemericik suara air terjun bagaikan nyanyian alam yang akan menghapus penat
perjalanan panjang kesana. Di bawah air terjun ini ada beberapa titik sumber air hangat yang dapat
menjadi tempat yang menarik untuk berendam.

Di tempat ini, anda akan disuguhkan panorama keasrian alam yang sangat memukau setiap pasang mata
yang melihatnya. Lingkungan bukit berbatu yang ditemani rimbunnya pepohonan benar-benar akan
menyejukkan kedua bola mata anda.

Contoh Descriptive Text Tentang Tempat Wisata Taman Nasional

Way Kambas National Park

Way Kambas National Park is a national park for elephant sanctuary located in Lampung precisely in the
Labuhan Ratu sub district, East Lampung, Indonesia. Way Kambas National Park, established in 1985, is
the first school for elephant in Indonesia. In the beginning of its establishment, Way Kambas National
Park was named the Elephant Training Center / Pusat Latihan Gajah (PLG), but the last few years this
name was changed into Elephant Conservation Center / Pusat Konservasi Gajah (PKG), which is expected
to become a center for elephant conservation in taming, training, breeding and conserving elephants.
Until now, this PKG has trained for about 300 elephants which have been deployed to all over the
country.
In Way Kambas National Park, there are some endangered animals such as Sumatran Rhinos, Sumatran
elephant, Sumatran tiger, Mentok Rimba, and Buaya sepit. There are also so some plants which are
mostly found there such as Api-api, Pidada, Nipah, and Pandan. On the marshy coasts of Way Kambas
National Park is often found various species of birds, such as, Lesser Adjutant, Pheasant Blue, Kuau Raja,
Pependang Timur, and some other birds.

Taman Nasional Way Kambas

Taman Nasional Way Kambas adalah taman nasional untuk perlindungan gajah yang terletak di daerah
Lampung tepatnya di Kecamatan Labuhan Ratu, Lampung Timur, Indonesia. Taman Nasional Way Kambas
yang berdiri pada tahun 1985 merupakan sekolah gajah pertama di Indonesia. Pada awal berdirinya,
Taman Nasional Way Kambas ini bernama Pusat Latihan Gajah (PLG) namun beberapa tahun terakhir ini
namanya berubah menjadi Pusat Konservasi Gajah (PKG) yang diharapkan mampu menjadi pusat
konservasi gajah dalam penjinakan, pelatihan, perkembangbiakan dan konservasi gajah. Hingga Saat ini
PKG ini telah melatih sekitar 300 ekor gajah yang sudah disebar ke seluruh penjuru Tanah Air.

Di Taman Nasional Way Kambas ini terdapat hewan yang hampir punah di antaranya Badak sumatera,
Gajah Sumatera, Harimau sumatera, Mentok Rimba, dan Buaya sepit. Ada juga beberapa tanaman yang
banyak diketemukan di sana seperti Api-api, Pidada, Nipah, dan Pandan. Di bagian pesisir Taman
Nasional Way Kambas yang berawa juga sering ditemukan berbagai jenis burung antara lain Bangau
Tongtong, Sempidan Biru, Kuau raja, Burung Pependang Timur, dan beberapa burung lainnya.

Tanjung Setia Beach

Lampung is not only famous for its Way Kambas National Park. One of the best tourist attractions of this
province is Tanjung Setia Beach. This beach is located in the village of Tanjung Setia, West Lampung
district, Lampung province. It is about 273 km or about six to seven hour driving from Bandar Lampung,
the capital city of Lampung province.

This beach has not been well known by the citizens of Indonesia yet, but for the world surfers this beach
is a hidden paradise for surfing. This beach is exactly laid on the track of large Indian Ocean currents that
make this beach have waves which are quite perfect for surfing. The perfect wave of this beach usually
lasts from June to August with the height which can reach up to six to seven meters with a 200 meters
length.
In addition to perfect waves for surfing, the beach also has an ambience which is quite natural with
white sand along the beach. Rows of palm tree which grow also adorn this beach. For local people, the
beach area is also an ideal place for fishing. Some fish which are often obtained by the fisherman are
blue marlin which is so big enough that its weight can reach up to 70 kilograms. By local residents this
fish is known by the name of Iwa Tuhuk.

Pantai Tanjung Setia

Lampung tidak hanya terkenal dengan Taman Nasional Way Kambasnya saja. Salah satu obyek wisata
andalan provinsi ini adalah Pantai Tanjung Setia. Pantai ini terletak di Desa Tanjung Setia, Kabupaten
Lampung Barat, Provinsi Lampung. Mempunyai jarak sekitar 273 km atau sekitar enam hingga tujuh jam
perjalanan dari Bandar Lampung, ibukota Provinsi Lampung.

Pantai ini memang belum cukup dikenal oleh warga negara Indonesia sendiri, namun bagi para
peselancar dunia pantai ini merupakan surga tersembunyi untuk berselancar. Pantai ini tepat berada di
jalur arus besar Samudera Hindia sehingga menjadikan pantai ini memiliki ombak yang cukup sempurna
untuk berselancar. Ombak sempurna pantai ini biasanya berlangsung antara bulan Juni hingga bulan
Agustus dengan ketinggian bisa mencapai hingga enam sampai tujuh meter dengan panjang mencapai
200 meter.

Selain ombak yang sempurna untuk berselancar, pantai juga memiliki suasana yang masih cukup alami
dengan hamparan pasir putih di sepanjang pantai. Barisan pohon palem yang tumbuh juga turut
menghiasi pantai ini. Bagi masyarakat setempat, kawasan pantai ini juga merupakan tempat yang cocok
untuk memancing. Beberapa ikan yang sering didapatkan oleh para pemancing adalah ikan blue marlin
yang cukup besar dengan berat bisa mencapai hingga 70 kilogram. Oleh warga setempat ikan ini dikenal
dengan nama Iwa Tuhuk.