Introduction

Transition words and phrases provide an essential signpost to readers about the text's direction. However, transition words and phrases are so conspicuous that readers consciously pick up on them. A bridge is an advanced method of transitioning from an idea in one paragraph to a different idea in the paragraph that follows it. It's a clever method of transitioning because readers understand that the text is shifting from one topic to another without overtly being told. This makes using a bridge much more elegant than using a transition word.

How to Create a Bridge

A bridge between paragraphs is created when the topics for both paragraphs are mentioned either in the last sentence of the first paragraph or in the first sentence of the second paragraph.

Examples

Placing the bridge in a topic sentence

Analyze the following first three paragraphs excerpted from an essay. The essay’s thesis statement is the last sentence in the introductory paragraph. It states that “Canadian citizens would foster better respect of, and compliance with, the country’s laws if conscription were to be reintroduced today.”

Now, look closely at the topic sentence in the 2nd body paragraph. Do you see how it mentions the idea of the body paragraph that precedes it? In this topic sentence, the author tells readers that we’re leaving the concept of “discipline and order” and moving on to “sensitizing Canadians to points of law.” That’s a bridge.

Conscription Will Promote Desirable Traits in Canadian Citizens

How would you feel if tomorrow you were forcibly called into military service? In Canada, it could happen. It has happened. Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of individuals into military service, and Canadians experienced this during both World Wars (Jones). Conscription is possible during peacetime. Canadian citizens would foster better respect of, and compliance with, the country’s laws if conscription were to be reintroduced today.

General discipline and public order would improve if Canada adopted conscription. First, the military training process instills respect for authority. In fact, one of the Canadian Force’s core tenets is to “uphold Canada’s parliamentary democracy and its institutions by [ ... r]especting the rule of law” (Canada). In other words, the military does not focus on brainwashing people to respect their superiors, but instead strives to encourage its personnel to respect the authority of law. Secondly, people with military training exercise better self-control in problematic situations. A recent poll reports that 65% of soldiers taking military meditation and self-control courses feel “better able to handle stressful situations and [ . . . have ] improved self-control” (Rochman). With this in mind, it makes sense that when people leave military service, they will continue to carry these skills with them and react better in situations where public order might be breached.

In addition to bolstering discipline and order, conscription would sensitize Canadians to points of law. Military members are more knowledgeable of Canadian law than average citizens. To explain, the Canadian Forces specifically trains its personnel through courses, conferences, and seminars relating to law (Canada). This translates to a population that is aware of what is considered to be right from wrong and reduces the chances of people using ignorance as an excuse to break the law. More importantly, the military encourages its members to be ethical. For example, Lieutenant Colonel Walker relates in an audio interview that Canadian Forces members participate in an army ethics program, “a comprehensive program that is designed to empower the Canadian soldier to know what right looks like [ . . . to ] do the right thing, at the right time, for all of the right reasons” (Walker). In other words, people are trained to not just know the law, but also to know what is morally good and bad from an ethical standpoint.

Placing the bridge in the last sentence of a paragraph

Take the same essay. This time, the author placed the bridge at the end of the first body paragraph. Observe that the sentence suggests that the paragraph's topic is not the only idea supporting the thesis statement. In the sentence that follows—the next paragraph's topic sentence—the transition word "also" informs readers that the text is about to convey a new idea.

Conscription Will Promote Desirable Traits in Canadian Citizens

How would you feel if tomorrow you were forcibly called into military service? In Canada, it could happen. It has happened. Conscription is the compulsory enlistment of individuals into military service, and Canadians experienced this during both World Wars (Jones). Conscription is possible during peacetime. Canadian citizens would foster better respect of, and compliance with, the country’s laws if conscription were to be reintroduced today.

General discipline and public order would improve if Canada adopted conscription. First, the military training process instills respect for authority. In fact, one of the Canadian Force’s core tenets is to “uphold Canada’s parliamentary democracy and its institutions by [ ... r]especting the rule of law” (Canada). In other words, the military does not focus on brainwashing people to respect their superiors, but instead strives to encourage its personnel to respect the authority of law. Secondly, people with military training exercise better self-control in problematic situations. A recent poll reports that 65% of soldiers taking military meditation and self-control courses feel “better able to handle stressful situations and [ . . . have ] improved self-control” (Rochman). With this in mind, it makes sense that when people leave military service, they will continue to carry these skills with them and react better in situations where public order might be breached. However, improved discipline and public order are not the only benefits of conscription.

Indeed, conscription would also sensitize Canadians to points of law. Military members are more knowledgeable of Canadian law than average citizens. To explain, the Canadian Forces specifically trains its personnel through courses, conferences, and seminars relating to law (Canada). This translates to a population that is aware of what is considered to be right from wrong and reduces the chances of people using ignorance as an excuse to break the law. More importantly, the military encourages its members to be ethical. For example, Lieutenant Colonel Walker relates in an audio interview that Canadian Forces members participate in an army ethics program, “a comprehensive program that is designed to empower the Canadian soldier to know what right looks like [ . . . to ] do the right thing, at the right time, for all of the right reasons” (Walker). In other words, people are trained to not just know the law, but also to know what is morally good and bad from an ethical standpoint.

Many people may wonder which location of the bridge is more straightforward for readers. Placing the bridge in a topic sentence is more coherent than putting the bridge in the last sentence of a paragraph.