An Analysis of Cohesion And Coherence in Expository Essays

Abstract

Good writing has to be cohesive and coherent so that it is meaningful. This study aimed to analyze cohesion and coherence in expository essays written by Advanced Writing students of English Language Study Program. The subjects of this study were 62 expository essays written by Advanced Writing students from class A-1 and A-2. This study used mixed-method research to analyze and describe the cohesion and coherence in the essays. The instrument for cohesion analysis was adapted from Halliday and Hasan (1976) in Wachidah (2016). As for coherence, the instrument holistic scoring guide was adapted from Bamberg (1984) in Dueraman (2006). The results indicated that in terms of cohesion, there were 49 (79%) cohesive essays and 13 (21%) not cohesive essays based on criteria of the cohesion analysis. In terms of coherence, there were 4 (6.5%) essays on scale 4 (complete), 36 (58%) essays on scale 3 (extensive), and 22 (35.5%) essays on the scale 2 (moderate). The essays on scale 4 and 3 categorized as coherent essays, while those on scale 2 categorized as incoherent essays based on criteria of the coherence analysis. Furthermore, it is suggested for the students to appropriately enact the cohesion and coherence in their writings.