Unit 1
What is arduous?
Something extremely difficult to achieve
What is emulate?
To strive to imitate or approach equality with
What is incumbency?
The state of currently occupying an office
What is unrequited?
Not returned or repaid in kind
What is indemnity?
Protection against loss or damage
Reading Skill – What are hidden meanings?
Textual ambiguities. When readers encounter textual ambiguities, the author usually wants readers to understand that there might be many different interpretations. When readers encounter an ambiguous portion of a text, they should question its purpose and implications based on the presented information.
Reading Skill – Figurative Language and Nuance in Rhetoric
Figurative language and nuance give the author the power to expand meanings and to create vivid and meaningful notions in the minds of readers. When you combine your knowledge of rhetoric with your understanding of figurative language and nuance as you analyze informational texts, you gain a more complete picture of how the author is trying to persuade you.Knowing how figurative language and nuance work within the scope of the rhetoric an author uses helps you dig a little deeper into the text, allowing you to read between the lines more effectively. As a result, you can make informed decisions about whether to accept the author’s perspective.
Reading Skill – Rhetoric and Persuasion (Ethos, Pathos)
Ethos is an appeal to the author’s attempt to persuade the audience by establishing himself or herself as credible, as being an authority on the topic at hand.
Pathos is an appeal to pathos is the author’s attempt to connect with the audience and persuade them through commonly held emotions or beliefs.
Rhetorical texts are designed to persuade the audience to believe the author’s claim. Also, authors hold a certain perspective on each of the topics they write about. It is their angle or specific view on the topic which, in turn, impacts the claim. Appeals to ethos and pathos, then, are used to get the audience to understand and agree with the perspective of the author as reflected in his or her claim.
Reading Skill – Rhetorical Features in U.S documents
Understanding rhetorical features such as allusion, antithesis, diction, irony, parallelism, syntax, and understatement will give you a foundation to begin evaluating how authors or speakers try to persuade you, in addition to conveying the themes and purposes of their arguments.
Reading Skill – Elements of an argument
Argument is a logical approach to persuasion and rhetoric. It uses logos, rather than pathos or ethos. A model of argument called the Toulmin Model of Argument describes a way of structuring logical arguments. Understanding its elements can help you evaluate the arguments of others. There are five primary components of the Toulmin Model of Argument: claim, reasons, evidence, anticipated counterclaim (or rebuttal), and warrant (or backing).
Writing Skill – Style and Implied Meaning
Identifying style, tone, and word choice is an essential skill for uncovering the task, purpose, and audience for a text in which those aspects are not explicitly stated. It is also an essential skill for addressing a particular audience with your own text to convey factual information, whether it is an objective summary, an informational essay, or the basis for an argument.
Writing Skill – Informational Essay: Thesis and Outline
A thesis statement typically comes at the end of the introductory paragraph, so you can refer baAn outline lays out the points of an essay in the order in which they will appear. It helps the writer to think about the ideas and the best way to organize and present them—to plan where each piece of information will go. The thesis statement should forecast those points in the correct order. The outline fills in the rest of the skeleton of the essay, which will be fully fleshed out later as it is written. Outlines for informational essays should include topic sentences for each paragraph, and a clear plan for which information will go where.ck to the thesis statement while writing to ensure that your essay remains focused on the main points. You should also be able to support the ideas in your thesis statement with plenty of evidence.
Writing Skill – Informational Essay: Revising for Content
When you revise the content of your writing, consider how you might be able to refine the essay’s clarity, focus, and flow. The first step in the revision process is to look at the ideas in your paper. Review the entire paper to ensure that the focus remains constant and centers on the thesis statement. Ideas should be clearly presented and arranged in a logical sequence. Think about how your paper is organized, and consider whether the order of ideas still makes sense now that you have completed the entire draft.
Writing Skill – Argument Essay: Understanding Audience
When you are writing an argument essay, you must first analyze your audience—whether you are writing for your instructor and classmates or for a more general audience. But how can you define the audience? Begin with what your task is. Perhaps you have been asked to write a letter to a congressional representative; perhaps you decide to create a document for your boss. The audience is now labeled. Analyzing your audience provides you with insights that help you present your claim and evidence in a way they will understand. However, note that the way you approach your audience does not change your position on the issue.
Writing Skill – Argument Essay: Introduction and Body
The introduction to your essay has these functions: introduces your topic, provides background for the audience if necessary, includes your thesis statement, sets the tone of the argument essay as formal, establishes your writing style as objective, establishes the significance of your claim. Having a significant claim means you need to show your audience that the issue is important to them or will have a meaningful impact on them or their community. The thesis statement is the last sentence of your introduction. It prepares the audience for the body of the essay, which will develop each part of the thesis statement and provide evidence in support of it.
Reading Skill – All about evidence
Informational texts are built upon central ideas that are either explicitly or implicitly expressed in a text. Central ideas cannot stand alone, however. They must be backed by supporting details which serve as evidence. The information that authors provide as support or proof for their opinions, claims, or central ideas is evidence. Evidence gives additional power to the point authors are making or to the claim being argued. If authors do not include evidence, the central idea or point remains abstract or general, and readers cannot act upon or believe this central idea or point.
Reading Skill – Style and Content
The style of an informational text refers to how it is written. An author’s style, the way an author writes, is what makes a writer unique. Authors use various elements to indicate their personality and voice, so their style usually reflects who they are as writers and as people. The author’s style actually influences the reader’s thoughts and feelings about the information the author is conveying. In many cases, the elements of style fall into these distinct categories: syntax, diction, tone, voice
Reading Skill – Understanding Text Structure
The term text structure refers to how information is structured, or organized, overall in a text. Just as a building has a certain structure and layout—walls that support the roof, floors, and more—so does a piece of writing. By committing to a specific purpose and a specific overall text structure, the writer can present the information in a clear, persuasive, and engaging manner.
Reading Skill – Themes and Purposes in US Documents
The theme of a text can be determined from the text’s topic. Readers can first determine which topics are discussed in depth within a text. Those topics can then point readers toward what the themes are. Just as Americans today seek guidance in the themes presented by the founding fathers in US foundational documents, they also consider the purposes of those who wrote the documents. Whether a text is new or old, a person with an agenda wrote it. Critical readers identify the author’s stated and unstated motivations for writing as part of an evaluation of the author’s overall argument.
Reading Skill – Reading Works of Public Advocacy
Critical readers ask questions as they read—specifically who, why, and how the authors create and convey their messages to the audience. In works of public advocacy, authors use elements of argument—specifically, its purposes and premises —to persuade readers and listeners to shape and influence policy. Authors always have a purpose. Sometimes in an explicitly argumentative text their purpose is clear; the facts of an argument are stable—in that the facts are just the facts. But sometimes a text’s purpose is larger and more complex, depending on the sociocultural context that prompts the author to address a perceived problem or need for change. Part of reading critically is identifying that purpose and using it to weigh the accuracy and possible bias of the text’s content.
Writing Skill Types of evidence
As you read through a text to plan the writing of your objective summary, note what kind of evidence is used throughout the work. Remember that evidence includes facts, definitions, quotations, concrete details, and statistics or data. When you note that an author uses one of these evidence types, think again about the author’s purpose and intended audience.
Writing Skill – Informational Essay – Evaluating Evidence
To ensure that a source you find for your informational essay is credible and contains accurate information, look at the author or organization it comes from. Also consider the sources, if any, cited within the material. Government and academic sources are usually considered credible and objective. our sources should be fairly recent—from the last five to seven years—especially when you are writing about a subject that changes rapidly. Data about technology, legal issues, scientific advancements, political developments, and similarly dynamic areas should be as current as possible.
Writing Skill – Informational Essay: Introduction and Body
An introduction for an informational essay should include: a “hook” the reader to spark interest in the topic and to create connections, provide context and background about the topic—the “big picture”, show the importance of the main idea, and narrow the scope of information and lead naturally to the thesis statement. Body paragraphs provide evidence and support for the thesis statement and the main ideas of your essay. The structure and organization of the body paragraphs can vary according to your topic and the evidence you will present. Every paragraph, however, should begin with a topic sentence.
Writing Skill – Argument Essay: Counterclaims
Counterclaims are exactly what the word says: they are claims that run counter—or in the opposite direction—to your stated position on the issue. They are the opposing arguments. In argument, you anticipate your audience’s counterclaims by addressing them in your essay. Some counterclaims appear inside the assumptions that you as the writer make. These are the warrants. Others can come from brainstorming. Addressing counterclaims in your argument actually makes your argument stronger and makes you even more credible in the eyes of your audience. Recognizing the audience’s specific opposition to your argument removes any concern about bias the audience might have regarding your evidence, your credibility, and the perspective you hold.
Writing Skill – Argument Essay: Body and Conclusion
As you work on your essay, confirm that the body has addressed all issues introduced in your thesis statement. Also look at each body paragraph from the perspective of your audience.
The last element of the argument essay is the conclusion. Like the introduction, it is a unique type of paragraph in that it does not contain a topic sentence or supporting sentences. Instead, it is organized like this: restatement of thesis statement, and additional closure elements.