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As a student, you'll often be assigned to compare and contrast things as a way of making some kind of point: the music of Philip Glass and Steve Reich, the political philosophies of John Locke and Thomas Hobbes, three poems by Adrienne Rich.

There are two methods you can use for making comparisons: the block method, in which you discuss everything you have to say about one item first and then everything you want to say about another item; or the point-by-point method, in which you discuss one point for both items and then do the same for another point. Definition. A definition says what something is-and what it is not. As a writer, you'll often need to provide definitions for words you use that your audience may not understand.

And definitions can play another role as well, especially when you're writing about controversial topics. If you define abortion as killing an unborn child but your readers define it as a right for women to have control over their own bodies, they are unlikely to agree with any arguments you make. Example. Good examples bring a subject to life, making abstract ideas more concrete and easier to understand-and providing specific instances to back up a point.

Here's Jose Antonio Vargas, someone who's won the Pulitzer Prize and lived the American Dream, writing about how he is still undocumented: But I am still an undocumented immigrant. And that means living a different kind of reality. It means going about my day in fear of being found out. It means rarely trusting people, even those closest to me, with who I really am. It means keeping my family photos in a shoebox rather than displaying them on shelves in my home, so friends don't ask about them.

It means reluctantly, even painfully, doing things I know are wrong and unlawful. And it has meant relying on a sort of 21st-century underground railroad of supporters, people who took an interest in my future and took risks for me. -JOSE ANTONIO VARGAS, My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant With one example after another, he helps us understand what it means to live in the United States as an undocumented immigrant. Examples can often be presented visually, and sometimes need to be.

You could, for example, describe Yayoi Kusama's famous infinity rooms with words: that they have mirrors on the walls and ceiling and a floor in a reflecting pool, that they include hundreds of lights that change colors, and so on. But if you want readers to get any sense of what an infinity room is, you would also want to provide a photograph. Gleaming Lights of the Souls (2008), an infinity room by Yayoi Kusama, at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in Humlebaek, Denmark.

With words or images, a good example can help you to explain a general statement or concept-and to support what you say about it. See pp. 108-10 for more on using examples. Classification. When we classify things, we group them into categories. Books, for example, can be classified as fiction, nonfiction, fantasy, poetry, picture books, and so on. As a writer, you might use classification as a way to organize a text or to elaborate on a topic.

If you're writing a presentation ANALYZING films for a course on the history of films, you might organize your text by classifying the films by genre-dramas, thrillers, comedies, musicals, and so on-and then discuss them genre by genre. But you could classify them in many other ways as well. Netflix , for instance, now classifies TV shows into dozens of categories, among them Feel-Good TV shows, Crime TV shows, Family Watch Together TV, and Quirky Sitcoms.

The categories you choose will depend on your AUDIENCE and PURPOSE . Cause and effect. When we analyze causes, we try to understand and explain why something happened. Why have there been so many wildfires in recent years? Why did Tom Brady leave the New England Patriots? And when we think about effects, we speculate about what might happen. How will the COVID-19 pandemic affect the global economy? How will the Patriots do without Brady? As a writer, you'll sometimes need to cite causes or effects.

In a LITERACY NARRATIVE about deciding to major in English, you might focus on the books that caused you to love literature, or on particular effects that will serve you well in the future-the ability to write well, for instance. Arguing about causes or effects can be tricky, because it's rarely possible to link a specific cause to a specific effect.

Consider what we know about what's caused so many people to become ill from vaping, or the long-term effects of climate change: in each case, there are many possible or probable causes and effects. When you write about causes and effects, then, you can often only argue that they are likely, or probable-and one reason that you'll want to QUALIFY what you say by using words like might or could is to limit what you claim.

Consider counterarguments and other perspectives Unless you're the first to write about your topic, many others will have opinions about it as well-and some of them will have ideas that differ from yours. If you've done your homework, you'll be aware of what else has been said and will have thought about it. You need to acknowledge other perspectives, and to do so respectfully and accurately. And you need to respond to any COUNTERARGUMENTS , objections that others may have to your position.

Whether you provide evidence refuting ideas you take issue with, admit that some other position just might be right, or QUALIFY what you yourself say, acknowledging other perspectives demonstrates that you've done your homework and that you've considered opinions other than your own carefully. Force yourself to consider opposing arguments, especially if they challenge your best-loved ideas.

-CHARLIE MUNGER In a newspaper profile of Adam Sandler, Jamie Lauren Keiles acknowledges that not everyone agrees with those of us who love Big Daddy and his many other zany films-and admits that such criticism is sometimes fair: Critics, as a group, hate Sandler comedies, sometimes fairly, but just as often because the movies undermine the project of close reading altogether. If you don't think a Sandler comedy is funny, no amount of thinking on the page is ever going to convince you otherwise.

It either tickles your funny bone or it doesn't. -JAMIE LAUREN KEILES, Adam Sandler's Everlasting Shtick Cole Sprouse and Adam Sandler in Big Daddy. Ways of concluding Your conclusion is where you get to wrap things up and to leave your audience thinking about what you've said. Here are some ways of doing that: By reiterating your main point By issuing a call to action By saying why your point matters By inviting response See Chapter 22 for tips on writing strong closing sentences.

Come up with a title Titles are important. On the one hand, they need to tell readers what your piece is about and give some sense of what you're going to say about it. As an author, however, you'll want to come up with a title that will get your readers' attention and make them want to read on. Whatever your purpose, you should always think about your rhetorical situation when deciding on a title, to be sure it will appeal to your AUDIENCE and reflect your STANCE .

Some titles simply indicate the topic: When Doctors Make Mistakes The Sanctuary of School My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant Stop Coddling the Super-Rich How Junk Food Can End Obesity Other titles are more provocative, saying something surprising or asking a startling question.

Such titles often reflect a strong point of view-and make readers want to read on (or not): Well-Behaved Women Seldom Make History Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation? What My Bike Has Taught Me about White Privilege Is Google Making Us Stupid? Get a Knife, Get a Dog, but Get Rid of Guns Some titles include a subtitle, usually to explain the title or indicate the author's stance: For Better or Worse: Spotify and the Music Industry Minority Student Clubs: Segregation or Integration? Extra Lives: Why Video Games Matter Utopian Dream: A New Farm Bill To Siri with Love: How One Boy with Autism Became BFF with Apple's Siri Get response and revise One good thing about writing, according to author Robert Cormier, is that you don't have to get it right the first time, unlike, say, a brain surgeon.

You can always do it better. That's for sure! And a good first step to doing it better is to get a little help from your friends. Once you have a draft, you'll want to get feedback from some readers. Here's a list of questions for reading a draft with a critical eye and thinking about how it might be revised: How does the OPENING get your AUDIENCE 's attention? Does it make clear why your topic matters? Is your point stated explicitly in a THESIS -and if not, should it be?

Have you provided sufficient REASONS and EVIDENCE to support your thesis? If not, do you need to find more evidence? Or do you need to QUALIFY your thesis to make it one you can support? Have you noted any COUNTERARGUMENTS or views other than your own-and represented them accurately and respectfully? What other positions should you consider? Have you cited any sources? If so, have you clearly distinguished what they say from what you say-and provided DOCUMENTATION ?

Are any QUOTATIONS introduced with a SIGNAL PHRASE ? Is the text organized in a way that's easy to follow? Have you provided TRANSITIONS to help readers follow what you've written? Are there headings to help readers see the main parts-and if not, should you add some? Does the text include any VISUALS ? Is there any data that would be easier to understand if you presented it in a pie chart or bar graph-or illustrated it with a photo? How does the text CONCLUDE ? What does it leave readers thinking?

Have you invited your readers to respond? How else might you conclude? Does your title announce the topic and give some idea of what you have to say about it-and will it get your audience's attention? If not, might it help to add a subtitle? Once you've gotten feedback and read over your draft yourself, put it aside for a day or two if you can.

The above questions will have identified plenty of specific things to consider as you revise, but be sure to keep your RHETORICAL SITUATION firmly in mind as you work, especially your AUDIENCE and PURPOSE . You want to make your text as readable as possible, and to be sure that everything in the draft contributes to your point and purpose. Take seriously any advice you've gotten from other readers, but don't feel that you have to do everything they suggest. You're the author!

I try to leave out the parts that people skip. -ELMORE LEONARD Edit! Cheryl Strayed may be the author of a best-selling book called Wild , but it seems that she's rather cautious when it comes to her writing, saying that she writes to find out what she has to say-and that she edits to figure out how to say it right. Good advice!

So once you've written and revised what you want to say, you need to fine-tune your text to be sure that it says precisely what you want it to say, and that your readers will be able to follow and understand what you say. There's no single recipe for doing that, but here are some tips that can help guide you. Editing paragraphs Check each paragraph to be sure it contributes to your point in some way.

Does each paragraph focus on one point-and include a TOPIC SENTENCE that tells readers what it will focus on? Is each paragraph developed in enough detail? If any paragraphs are especially long, check to see if they might be split into two paragraphs. Pay special attention to your OPENING paragraph (will it grab your audience's attention?) and CONCLUDING paragraph (will it solidify your message?).

Editing sentences Be sure that your sentences are sentences, starting with a capital letter and ending with a period, question mark, or exclamation point; and including a subject and VERB . Check for sentences beginning with it is or there is . These can be good ways of emphasizing or introducing an idea, but often they simply add unnecessary words. Why say It is essential that we speak up rather than We need to speak up? Check to see if you've used any unnecessary words-words like very or really .

Count up the words in each sentence. If too many are pretty much the same length, see if you can combine some sentences, add details, or vary the sentence structure in some other way. Pay attention to the way your sentences open. If sentence after sentence begins with a subject, try varying them by adding PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES or TRANSITIONS . Chapter 23 offers advice for writing good sentences. Editing words Have you used any terms that your readers may not understand?

If so, be sure to include DEFINITIONS . Think about what TONE is most appropriate for your audience and purpose-serious? playful? casual? academic?-and be sure that the words you use reflect that tone. Check to be sure that your language is respectful. Especially when you're writing about a controversial topic or discussing positions you disagree with, use words that demonstrate RESPECT -and not disrespect! Civility matters! Pay attention to your use of gender pronouns.

Use he / him / his to refer to someone who is male and uses those pronouns-and she / her / hers to refer to someone who is female and uses those pronouns. If, however, you're referring to someone who uses they / them / their or some other pronouns ( ze or hir , for example), call them what they want to be called. And if you're writing about someone whose gender is unknown or not pertinent, use SINGULAR THEY (as in Nobody would admit they were wrong.). Words matter, tone matters, civility matters.

-JEN PSAKI Give some thought to design You're almost there: you've written out a draft, gotten response, and edited your text. It says what you want it to say. So now you need to think about what you want it to look like, and whether there are any design elements that will help your readers follow what you say. As usual, you'll need to think hard about what will work best for your AUDIENCE , PURPOSE , and the rest of your RHETORICAL SITUATION .

Choose FONTS that suit your purpose and reflect the TONE you want to convey. And think about whether there are any words you want to emphasize with italics or boldface (or boldface italics ). Think about whether you should add headings to help readers see (or scan) your main points. Is there any text that would be easier to understand if it were set off in a list? If you're presenting numerical data, would it be easier to see in a pie chart or bar graph?

Are you including any VISUALS -and if not, are there any images, charts, or other visuals that would help to illustrate a point? If so, be sure to include CAPTIONS . Be sure as well to refer to any images, charts, or graphs in the text so that readers know how they relate to your point. Don't forget to proofread Read over your text slowly, start to finish. If at all possible, print it out; mistakes can be hard to spot on a computer screen. Then read it aloud bit by bit.

Read each sentence to be sure it begins with a capital letter and ends with a period, question mark, or exclamation point. If you've included headings, be sure they're all in the same font and with the same amount of space above and below. If you've included any VISUALS , be sure they are all referred to in the text.

Check for PARALLELISM to be sure that all headings or all elements in a series or list have the same structure: all NOUNS , all GERUNDS , all PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES , all commands, and so on. Check your spelling. Use a spellchecker, but be aware that it won't catch wrong words that are spelled correctly. For example: if you write principle when it should be principal , a spellchecker would not likely catch the mistake.

If your text is in MLA , APA , or another style, make sure that your title, margins, spacing, page numbers, and documentation follow the requirements of that style. Take time to reflect on your own writing process Once you've finished writing something, it's a good idea to take stock of what you've written-and of your writing process. Here are some questions that can help you get started: What did you do well? If you could do one more draft, what would you change? What did you find challenging? easy?

satisfying? fun? What response did you get from others, and how did it help? Did you do any research for this project? If so, how did it contribute to what you wrote? Did it change your mind in any way about your topic? If you cited other sources, how many different perspectives did you include? Did you incorporate positions that differed from your own, and how fairly did you represent those views? How did your audience affect what you wrote? What is your favorite sentence or passage, and why?

What was your purpose for writing, and how well do you think you achieved that purpose? I think I did pretty well, considering I started out with nothing but a bunch of blank paper. -STEVE MARTIN Finally, think about what you've learned about yourself as a writer. What do you want to work on? REFLECT! Forget a room of one's own-write in the kitchen, lock yourself up in the bathroom.

Write on the bus or the welfare line, on the job or during meals. Cultural critic Gloria Anzalda wrote these words in 1981, long before cell phones allowed us to write pretty much anywhere. Picture her on a bus, pad of paper in one hand and a pen in the other, writing . Where do you do most of your writing-on a bus or train? in an armchair? at breakfast? And how do you do it-on a laptop? a mobile phone? a pad of paper?

Think about your circumstances today: where you write and how that allows you to do your best writing. Glossary CONFIRMATION BIAS, 71-72 The tendency to favor and seek out information that confirms what we already believe and to reject and ignore information that contradicts those beliefs. RHETORICAL SITUATION, 25-28, 81-82 The circumstances that affect writing or other communication, including PURPOSE , AUDIENCE , GENRE , STANCE , CONTEXT , MEDIA , and DESIGN .

PURPOSE, 25 In writing, your goal: to explore a topic, to express an opinion, to entertain, to report information, to persuade, and so on. Purpose is one element of the RHETORICAL SITUATION . AUDIENCE, 25-26 Those to whom a text is directed-the people who read, listen to, or view the text. Audience is a key part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION . STANCE, 17-19, 26-27 A writer's attitude toward the subject-for example, reasonable, neutral, angry, curious. Stance is conveyed through TONE and word choice.

TONE, 27, 96 The way a writer's or speaker's STANCE is reflected in the text. CONTEXT, 17, 27-28, 59 Part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION , conditions affecting the text such as what else has been said about a topic; social, economic, and other factors; and any constants such as due date and length. GENRE, 27, 82, 245 A way of classifying things. The genres this book is concerned with are kinds of writing that writers can use to accomplish a certain goal and to reach a particular AUDIENCE .

As such, they have well-established features that help guide writers, but they are flexible and change over time, and can be adapted by writers to address their own RHETORICAL SITUATIONS . Genres covered in this book include ANALYSES , ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHIES , ARGUMENTS , NARRATIVES , REPORTS , SUMMARY/RESPONSE , and VISUAL ANALYSES . ARGUMENT, 99-131 Any text that makes a CLAIM supported by REASONS and EVIDENCE . A GENRE that uses REASONS and EVIDENCE to support a CLAIM .

Key Features: an explicit POSITION - a response to what others have said - appropriate background information - a clear indication of why the topic matters - good REASONS and EVIDENCE - attention to more than one POINT OF VIEW - an authoritative TONE - an appeal to readers' values REPORT, 157-85 A GENRE of writing that presents information to inform readers on a subject.

Key Features: a topic carefully focused for a specific AUDIENCE - definitions of key terms - trustworthy information - appropriate organization and DESIGN - a confident TONE that informs rather than argues. See also IMRAD ; PROFILE SUMMARIZE To use your own words and sentence structure to condense someone else's text into a version that gives the main ideas of the original. In academic writing, summarizing requires DOCUMENTATION .

See PATCHWRITING MEDIA, 191, 205, 226-29 The means of delivering messages-for example, digital, oral, print, and social. The singular of media is medium. DESIGN, 96-97, 448-58 The way a text is arranged and presented visually. Elements of design include FONTS , colors, illustrations, LAYOUT , and white space. KEYWORD, 83, 253, 258 A term that a researcher inputs when searching for information in databases and elsewhere on the internet.

FIELD RESEARCH, 259-62 The collection of first-hand data through observation, interviews, conversation, and surveys. POSITION, 43-44 A statement that asserts a belief or a CLAIM . In an ARGUMENT , a position needs to be stated in a THESIS or clearly implied and to be supported with REASONS and EVIDENCE . FACTS, 69-70, 266-69 Information that can be backed up and verified by reliable evidence: Ruth Bader Ginsburg died in 2020 . CLAIM, 84-85, 103-5 A statement of a belief or POSITION .

In an ARGUMENT , a claim needs to be stated in a THESIS or clearly implied, and requires support by REASONS and EVIDENCE . QUALIFY, 84, 104-5 To limit a CLAIM -saying, for example, that most people like cake rather than people like cake. Words like frequently, often, generally , or sometimes can help you qualify what you claim-and make it something you'll be able to support. CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, 85, 194 A way of organizing text that proceeds from the beginning of an event to the end.

Reverse chronological order proceeds in the other direction, from the end to the beginning. SPATIAL ORGANIZATION A way of ordering a text that mirrors the physical arrangement of the subject-for instance, from top to bottom, left to right, outside to inside. QUOTE, 285-90 To cite someone else's words exactly as they were said or written. Quotation is most effective when the wording is worth repeating or makes a point so well that no rewording will do it justice or when you want to cite someone's exact words.

Quotations in academic writing need to be acknowledged with DOCUMENTATION . SUMMARIZE To use your own words and sentence structure to condense someone else's text into a version that gives the main ideas of the original. In academic writing, summarizing requires DOCUMENTATION . See PATCHWRITING ANECDOTE, 85, 412 A brief NARRATIVE used to illustrate a point. THESIS, 84-85 A statement that identifies the topic and main point of a piece of writing, giving readers an idea of what the text will cover.

VISUAL ANALYSIS, 63-65, 139 A GENRE of writing that examines an image, video, or some other visual text and how it communicates its message to an AUDIENCE . Key Features: a description of the visual - some contextual information - attention to any words - close ANALYSIS of the message - insight into what the visual says DOMINANT IMPRESSION, 86 The overall effect created by specific details in a DESCRIPTION . REPORT, 157-85 A GENRE of writing that presents information to inform readers on a subject.

Key Features: a topic carefully focused for a specific AUDIENCE - definitions of key terms - trustworthy information - appropriate organization and DESIGN - a confident TONE that informs rather than argues. See also IMRAD ; PROFILE NARRATIVE, 186-202 A GENRE that tells a story for the PURPOSE of making a point. Key Features: a clearly defined event - a clearly described setting - vivid, descriptive details - a consistent POINT OF VIEW - a clear point.

Also a strategy for presenting information as a story, for telling what happened. When used in an essay, narration is used to support a point-not merely to tell an interesting story for its own sake. Narration can serve as the organizing principle for a paragraph or an entire text. See also LITERACY NARRATIVE ARGUMENT, 99-131 Any text that makes a CLAIM supported by REASONS and EVIDENCE . A GENRE that uses REASONS and EVIDENCE to support a CLAIM .

Key Features: an explicit POSITION - a response to what others have said - appropriate background information - a clear indication of why the topic matters - good REASONS and EVIDENCE - attention to more than one POINT OF VIEW - an authoritative TONE - an appeal to readers' values ANECDOTE, 85, 412 A brief NARRATIVE used to illustrate a point. REPORT, 157-85 A GENRE of writing that presents information to inform readers on a subject.

Key Features: a topic carefully focused for a specific AUDIENCE - definitions of key terms - trustworthy information - appropriate organization and DESIGN - a confident TONE that informs rather than argues. See also IMRAD ; PROFILE ANALYSIS, 132-56 A GENRE of writing in which you look at what a text says and how it says it.

Key Features: a SUMMARY of a text or other subject - attention to CONTEXT - a clear INTERPRETATION or judgment - reasonable support for your conclusions AUDIENCE, 25-26 Those to whom a text is directed-the people who read, listen to, or view the text. Audience is a key part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION . PURPOSE, 25 In writing, your goal: to explore a topic, to express an opinion, to entertain, to report information, to persuade, and so on. Purpose is one element of the RHETORICAL SITUATION .

LITERACY NARRATIVE, 188-90 A GENRE of writing that tells about a writer's experience learning to read or write or do something else. Key Features: a well-told story - a first-hand account - an indication of the narrative's significance QUALIFY, 84, 104-5 To limit a CLAIM -saying, for example, that most people like cake rather than people like cake. Words like frequently, often, generally , or sometimes can help you qualify what you claim-and make it something you'll be able to support.

COUNTERARGUMENT, 16, 90-91, 265 In ARGUMENT , an alternative POSITION or objection to the writer's position. The writer of an argument should not only acknowledge counterarguments but also, if at all possible, accept, accommodate, or refute each counterargument. QUALIFY, 84, 104-5 To limit a CLAIM -saying, for example, that most people like cake rather than people like cake.

Words like frequently, often, generally , or sometimes can help you qualify what you claim-and make it something you'll be able to support. AUDIENCE, 25-26 Those to whom a text is directed-the people who read, listen to, or view the text. Audience is a key part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION . STANCE, 17-19, 26-27 A writer's attitude toward the subject-for example, reasonable, neutral, angry, curious. Stance is conveyed through TONE and word choice.

OPENING, 146, 410-12 The way a text begins, which plays an important role in drawing an AUDIENCE in. Some ways of beginning an essay: with a dramatic or deceptively simple statement, with something others have said about your topic, with a provocative question or a startling CLAIM , or with an ANECDOTE . AUDIENCE, 25-26 Those to whom a text is directed-the people who read, listen to, or view the text. Audience is a key part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION .

THESIS, 84-85 A statement that identifies the topic and main point of a piece of writing, giving readers an idea of what the text will cover. REASONS, 105-8 Support for a CLAIM or a POSITION . A reason, in turn, requires its own support. EVIDENCE, 85-90 In ARGUMENT , the data you present to support your REASONS . Such data may include statistics, calculations, examples, ANECDOTES , QUOTATIONS , case studies, or anything else that will convince your readers that your reasons are compelling.

Evidence should be sufficient (enough to show that the reasons have merit) and relevant (appropriate to the argument you're making). QUALIFY, 84, 104-5 To limit a CLAIM -saying, for example, that most people like cake rather than people like cake. Words like frequently, often, generally , or sometimes can help you qualify what you claim-and make it something you'll be able to support. COUNTERARGUMENT, 16, 90-91, 265 In ARGUMENT , an alternative POSITION or objection to the writer's position.

The writer of an argument should not only acknowledge counterarguments but also, if at all possible, accept, accommodate, or refute each counterargument. DOCUMENTATION, 309-44, 360-86 Publication information about the sources cited in a text. IN-TEXT DOCUMENTATION usually appears in parentheses at the point where it's cited or in an endnote or a footnote. Complete documentation usually appears as a list of WORKS CITED or REFERENCES at the end of the text. Documentation styles vary by discipline.

See also APA STYLE ; MLA STYLE QUOTE, 285-90 To cite someone else's words exactly as they were said or written. Quotation is most effective when the wording is worth repeating or makes a point so well that no rewording will do it justice or when you want to cite someone's exact words. Quotations in academic writing need to be acknowledged with DOCUMENTATION . SIGNAL PHRASES, 293-94 Words used to attribute QUOTED , SUMMARIZED , or PARAPHRASED material to a source, as in according to X or Z claims .

Transitions can signal COMPARISONS ( also, similarly, likewise, in the same way ); CONTRASTS ( but, instead, although, however, nonetheless ); examples ( for instance, in fact, such as ); place or position ( above, beyond, near, elsewhere ); sequence ( finally, next, again, also ); SUMMARIES or CONCLUSIONS ( on the whole, as we have seen, in brief ); time ( at first, meanwhile, so far, later ); and more. VISUALS, 455-57, 459-67 Photos, graphs, maps, diagrams, pie charts, tables, videos, and other images.

Visuals can be used to support or illustrate a point and also to present information that is easier to understand in a chart or graph than it would be in a paragraph. VISUALS, 455-57, 459-67 Photos, graphs, maps, diagrams, pie charts, tables, videos, and other images. Visuals can be used to support or illustrate a point and also to present information that is easier to understand in a chart or graph than it would be in a paragraph.

CONCLUSION, 92, 211, 417-18 The way a text ends, a chance to leave an AUDIENCE thinking about what's been said. Some ways of concluding an essay: REITERATING your point, discussing the implications of your ARGUMENT , proposing some kind of action, inviting response. RHETORICAL SITUATION, 25-28, 81-82 The circumstances that affect writing or other communication, including PURPOSE , AUDIENCE , GENRE , STANCE , CONTEXT , MEDIA , and DESIGN .

AUDIENCE, 25-26 Those to whom a text is directed-the people who read, listen to, or view the text. Audience is a key part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION . PURPOSE, 25 In writing, your goal: to explore a topic, to express an opinion, to entertain, to report information, to persuade, and so on. Purpose is one element of the RHETORICAL SITUATION . TOPIC SENTENCE, 95 A sentence, often at the beginning of a paragraph, that states the paragraph's main point.

The details in the rest of the paragraph should support the topic sentence. OPENING, 146, 410-12 The way a text begins, which plays an important role in drawing an AUDIENCE in. Some ways of beginning an essay: with a dramatic or deceptively simple statement, with something others have said about your topic, with a provocative question or a startling CLAIM , or with an ANECDOTE . CONCLUSION, 92, 211, 417-18 The way a text ends, a chance to leave an AUDIENCE thinking about what's been said.

Some ways of concluding an essay: REITERATING your point, discussing the implications of your ARGUMENT , proposing some kind of action, inviting response. VERB A word that expresses an action ( dance, talk ) or a state of being ( be, seem ). A verb is an essential element of a sentence or a CLAUSE . Verbs have four forms: base form ( smile ), past tense ( smiled ), past participle ( smiled ), and present participle ( smiling ).

See also ACTIVE VOICE and PASSIVE VOICE PREPOSITION A word or group of words that tells about the relationship of a NOUN or a PRONOUN to another word in the sentence. Some common prepositions are after, at, before, behind, between, by, for, from, in, of, on, to, under, until, with , and without . TRANSITIONS, 424 Words or phrases that help to connect sentences and paragraphs and to guide readers through a text.

Transitions can signal COMPARISONS ( also, similarly, likewise, in the same way ); CONTRASTS ( but, instead, although, however, nonetheless ); examples ( for instance, in fact, such as ); place or position ( above, beyond, near, elsewhere ); sequence ( finally, next, again, also ); SUMMARIES or CONCLUSIONS ( on the whole, as we have seen, in brief ); time ( at first, meanwhile, so far, later ); and more. DEFINITION, 88 A STRATEGY that says what something is.

Formal definitions identify the category that something belongs to and tell what distinguishes it from other things in that category: A worm is an invertebrate (a category) with a long, rounded body and no appendages (distinguishing features). Extended definitions go into more detail: a paragraph or even an essay explaining why a character in a story is tragic. Stipulative definitions give a writer's own use of a term, one not found in a dictionary.

Definition can serve as the organizing principle for a paragraph or whole text. TONE, 27, 96 The way a writer's or speaker's STANCE is reflected in the text. RESPECT, 29-41 The act of giving someone or something your careful attention, listening with an open mind, being polite and considerate, and according someone else the same right to speak that you wish for yourself. AUDIENCE, 25-26 Those to whom a text is directed-the people who read, listen to, or view the text.

Audience is a key part of any RHETORICAL SITUATION . PURPOSE, 25 In writing, your goal: to explore a topic, to express an opinion, to entertain, to report information, to persuade, and so on. Purpose is one element of the RHETORICAL SITUATION . RHETORICAL SITUATION, 25-28, 81-82 The circumstances that affect writing or other communication, including PURPOSE , AUDIENCE , GENRE , STANCE , CONTEXT , MEDIA , and DESIGN . TONE, 27, 96 The way a writer's or speaker's STANCE is reflected in the text.

CAPTION, 346, 467 A brief explanation accompanying a photograph, diagram, chart, and screen shot, or other visual that appears in a written document. VISUALS, 455-57, 459-67 Photos, graphs, maps, diagrams, pie charts, tables, videos, and other images. Visuals can be used to support or illustrate a point and also to present information that is easier to understand in a chart or graph than it would be in a paragraph. PARALLELISM Writing technique that puts similar items into the same grammatical structure.

For example, every item on a to-do list might begin with a command: clean, wash, iron ; or a discussion of favorite hobbies might name each as a GERUND : running, playing basketball, writing poetry . NOUN A word that refers to a person, place, animal, thing, or idea ( a justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a forest, Mexico, a tree frog, a notebook, democracy ). GERUND A VERB form ending in - ing that functions as a NOUN : Swimming improves muscle tone and circulation .

PREPOSITION A word or group of words that tells about the relationship of a NOUN or a PRONOUN to another word in the sentence. Some common prepositions are after, at, before, behind, between, by, for, from, in, of, on, to, under, until, with , and without . MLA STYLE, 305-56 A system of DOCUMENTATION established by the Modern Language Association and used in the humanities. APA STYLE, 357-403 A system of DOCUMENTATION used in the social sciences. APA stands for the American Psychological Association.

CLAIM, 84-85, 103-5 A statement of a belief or POSITION . In an ARGUMENT , a claim needs to be stated in a THESIS or clearly implied, and requires support by REASONS and EVIDENCE . SINGULAR THEY The use of they, them , and their to refer to a person whose gender is unknown or not relevant to the context. Everyone locks their bikes . It is also used to refer to a person who is nonbinary, trans, or gender-nonconforming: Jess asked for skim milk in their latte .

FONTS, 472 Typefaces, such as Calibri or Times New Roman Endnotes TOPIC Return to text CLAIM Return to text PART 3 WRITING / MAKE YOUR POINT Chapter 8 Arguing FIGHT FOR THE THINGS THAT YOU CARE ABOUT. BUT DO IT IN A WAY THAT WILL LEAD OTHERS TO JOIN YOU. -RUTH BADER GINSBURG COME NOW, LET US REASON TOGETHER. -ISAIAH 1:18 College athletes should be paid. Climate change is a reality, and one cause is the burning of fossil fuels. Corporate tax cuts enable companies to pay their workers more.

These are all arguments, not facts. They make claims that are debatable and with which we may agree or disagree-so anyone making such claims needs to support them with good reasons and evidence. Think for a moment about some of the claims that surround us, coming from social media, podcasts, newspapers, even song lyrics and movies (think We Are the Champions or Parasite ). So we're surrounded by argument-what we read and see, what we hear, what we talk about, and especially what we write.

We need to look and listen with an open mind but a critical eye, to present our own arguments carefully, and to respond to those of others respectfully. This chapter provides a roadmap for reading, writing, and thinking about the arguments you'll encounter in college, at work, and everywhere in between. A GUIDE TO DEVELOPING AN ARGUMENT You'll often be assigned to write an essay that argues a position of some kind-to stake a CLAIM that you then support with REASONS and EVIDENCE .

Here now is some advice that will make you aware of the various choices you'll have and that will help you make good choices. It's designed to be used as you write . Keep it close at hand! Identify a topic that matters If you get to choose your topic, choose one that matters to you and will matter to others. But even if you're assigned to write about a specific topic, try to come up with some aspect that interests you-or that will be of interest to others.

Think about your rhetorical situation Once you have a topic, give some thought to who your audience is, what you hope to accomplish, and the rest of your rhetorical situation. Purpose. What do you hope to accomplish by writing about this issue? What do you hope to learn? What do you want to persuade your audience to think or do? How can you best achieve these purposes? Audience. Whom do you want to reach? What do they know about your topic, and what if any background information will you need to provide?

Are they likely to think your argument matters, or will you have to convince them? How sympathetic are they likely to be to your argument? What kinds of evidence will they find persuasive? What values do they hold, and how are they different from yours? Stance. How do you want to come across as an author-as curious? well-informed? sympathetic?-and how can you establish your credibility to write on this topic? Why do you care about the topic? Do you have any preconceived ideas about it?

Where did these ideas come from? How else might you think about it? Context. What's motivating you to write about this issue? What is being said about it: what are the various perspectives? If you're writing in response to an assignment, what's your time frame and are there any requirements you need to keep in mind? Medium and design. How will your argument be delivered-in print? online? as a speech?

How does the medium affect the way it will be designed and the kinds of evidence you can provide-can you include images? audio? links to other sources? Be sure the topic is arguable-and one you can approach with an open mind Begin by making sure that the topic is arguable-not an easily verified fact or a mere opinion, but a subject about which there are a number of different perspectives.

Think about whether it's worth discussing: Is it a topic that matters, and one that others (including your audience) will care about? Be sure the topic is manageable, given the time and resources you have. Finally, ask yourself whether it's a topic you can investigate with an open mind. If not, find another topic. Let's assume you're intrigued by a topic you've read about in your campus newspaper: whether NCAA athletes should be paid.

A quick search reveals a wide range of viewpoints on this topic, suggesting that it is timely and not a matter of simple facts or mere opinions. So this topic appears to be arguable; so far, so good. The sources you've identified in your quick search suggest that it's also manageable, that you'll be able to find informative arguments on all sides of the issue that will be readily available to you online or through your library.

In an interview about how he came to write his 2016 book Indentured: The Rebellion against the College Sports Cartel , Joe Nocera reflects on how he first became interested in the topic of pay for athletes in 2011, when he wrote an article in the New York Times Magazine arguing that college athletes should be paid: I got interested in this subject around rights, much more than the issue of pay. I did write the first story with an idea of how to pay the players, but it was more of a thought exercise.

And I did it five years ago, when I was just starting to get into this, and before the widespread criticism of the NCAA really gained steam. So, I hadn't really thought much about it. And in the course of doing that story . . . I began to realize how pervasively the life of an athlete is controlled.

-JOE NOCERA, Let's Start Paying College Athletes Note that Nocera started with a question for which he had no answers, and one he hadn't thought much about. So he began with a topic that intrigued him rather than one he had already made up his mind about. And the research he then did led him to understand how many perspectives there are on the topic and how many lives are affected by it.

Like many of the most talented college athletes, Zion Williamson was one and done and left Duke to play for the New Orleans Pelicans. Research your topic with an open mind Start by thinking about what you already know about the topic-and what you don't know. What questions do you have? What do you think about the topic, and why? Finally, think again about whether you can explore this topic with an open mind.

Do some research If you're exploring a current topic, you'll likely find a lot of sources online; but if you're studying a topic from the past, you'll probably find many of the sources you'll need in the library. And for some topics you may need to conduct interviews, observations, or other field research. Whatever research you do, keep in mind that your goal is to learn about the topic, not simply to find evidence to support ideas you already have.

Identify the various positions on the topic You'll want to learn about all the PERSPECTIVES you can find. Especially if you have an idea of your own position on the topic, keep an open mind. What are some of the issues that are being discussed, and what are the various positions on those issues? What are others saying-and why?

Formulate an explicit position, and state it as a working thesis When you feel you understand the topic well and have enough information to work with, you'll need to formulate a position that you'll be able to support. And once you can articulate your position, write it out in an explicit THESIS , one that clearly identifies your topic and makes a claim that will get your audience's attention. For example: Artificial intelligence will be the death of humans as we know them.

Professional athletes today are shuffled around like pawns. COVID-19 will change every aspect of our lives. Be careful, however, not to overstate your thesis: you may need to QUALIFY it using words like sometimes , might , or in some cases , which will limit your position to one that you'll be able to support. For example: Artificial intelligence may well be the death of humans as we know them. Today, professional athletes are too often shuffled around like pawns.

COVID-19 will change many aspects of our lives. Such qualifying words and phrases show that you are arguing seriously and cautiously, rather than making absolute claims that you may not be able to substantiate. So be sure to ask yourself whether your thesis needs to be qualified-and if so, in what ways. And keep in mind that at this point in the process, this is a working thesis; it may change as you continue to work on your draft. See pp. 84-85 for more detail on coming up with a thesis.

Here's how one author team stakes out their position on whether higher education is for everyone: Study after study reminds us that higher education is one of the best investments we can make. We all know that, on average, college graduates make significantly more money over their lifetimes than those with only a high school education. What gets less attention is the fact that not all college degrees are equal.

There is enormous variation in the so-called return to education depending on factors such as institution attended, field of study, whether or not a student graduates, and post-graduation occupation. While the average return to obtaining a college degree is clearly positive . . . it is not universally so. For certain schools, majors, occupations, and individuals, college may not be a smart investment.