Parallel Parking and Parallel Writing

Parallel parking requires you to align your vehicle in a line with other parked cars parallel to the curb.

If you have begun driver’s education, you know that learning to parallel park can be challenging. You have also realized, however, that if you live in a big city (or attend a big high school) where parking is scarce, parallel parking skills are essential.

In addition, the first part of the Texas driving test requires you to parallel park in the Department of Public Safety (DPS) parking area between two poles. If you hit the pole, you fail the driving test automatically. Practice is crucial to help you develop confidence and become an expert at parallel parking.

Parallelism in writing requires aligning words, phrases, clauses, and sentences in similar grammatical structures. Learning to do so can be challenging. However, if you want to improve your writing, parallelism is essential. This lesson will provide you with strategies to help you develop confidence and turn you into an expert at parallelism in writing.

Writing using parallel structure can be fun, and it will certainly impress your reader just as a smooth job of parallel parking will impress the DPS officer who administers your driving test.

Let’s start by looking at some examples of parallel structure featuring Superman.

In this chart, parallel elements appear in red.

Parallel words	Superman is portrayed as a brave, kind, and fair champion of justice.
Parallel phrases	Traditionally, Superman has been described as “faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.”
Parallel clauses	Exposure to Kryptonite cancels out Superman’s powers; prolonged exposure kills him eventually.

Remember to use parallel structure with coordinating conjunctions (for, and, nor, but, or, yet, so) and with lists. See the examples below.

Faulty	Parallel
Superman’s coworkers at the Daily Planet included reporter Lois Lane, photographer Jimmy Olsen, and Perry White was the editor.	Superman’s coworkers at the Daily Planet included reporter Lois Lane, photographer Jimmy Olsen, and editor Perry White.
Superman’s powers allowed him to lift a car over his head, run at amazing speeds, and he could leap one-eighth of a mile.	Superman’s powers allowed him to lift a car over his head, run at amazing speeds, and leap one-eighth of a mile.

Select the word, phrase, or clause that completes the sentence in a parallel manner.

Don’t “park” words, phrases, or clauses in a “No Parking” zone. Keep them parallel.