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CHAPTER 1
Thinking About Purposes,
Audiences, and Technologies
1a How is “writing” defined?
Writing communicates a message for a purpose to readers. The four key
terms in the prior sentence are important. Written communication involves
sending a message to a destination. The message of writing is its content.
The purpose (1b) of each writing task strongly influences decisions writers
make as they put their ideas into words. Readers, usually referred to as the
audience (1c), are the destination that a writer wishes to reach.
1b What are the major purposes for writing?
A writer’s purpose for writing motivates what and how he or she writes.
Some students think their purpose is to fulfill an assignment, but that’s only
the beginning. The concept of purpose relates to the reason that you’re writ-
ing. All writers, whether student or professional, need to get under way by
choosing which of the four major purposes of writing, listed in Box 1-1, they
want to pursue.
In this handbook, we concentrate on the two major purposes you need
for most academic writing, the writing you do for college and other schol-
arly endeavors: to inform a reader and to persuade a reader. We’ve chosen
these two because they’re the most practical and helpful for students. The
two remaining purposes listed in Box 1-1 are important for contributing to
human thought and culture, but they relate less to what most college writing
involves.
B OX 1 - 1 S U M M A RY
Purposes for writing*
■ To express yourself
■ To inform a reader
■ To persuade a reader
■ To create a literary work
*Adapted from James L. Kinneavy, A Theory of Discourse (1971; New York: Norton,
1980).
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1b THINKING ABOUT PURPOSES
1b.1 What is expressive writing?
Expressive writing is writing to express your personal thoughts and feelings.
Much expressive writing is for the writer’s eyes only, such as that in diaries,
personal journals, or exploratory drafts. When expressive writing is for pub-
lic reading, it usually falls into the category of literary writing. The excerpt
here comes from a memoir intended for public reading.
The smells in Brooklyn: coffee, fingernail polish, eucalyptus, the breath
from laundry rooms, pot roast, Tater Tots. A woman I know who grew up
here says she moved away because she could not stand the smell of cook-
ing food in the hallway of her parents’ building. I feel just the opposite.
I used to live in a converted factory above an army-navy store, and I like
being in a place that smells like people live there.
—Ian Frazier, “Taking the F”
1b.2 What is informative writing?
Informative writing seeks to give information to readers and usually to
explain it. Another name for this type of writing is expository writing
because it expounds on—sets forth in detail—observations, ideas, facts, sci-
entific data, and statistics. You can find informative writing in textbooks,
encyclopedias, technical and business reports, nonfiction books, newspapers,
and many magazines.
The essential goal of informative academic writing is to educate your
readers about something. Like all good educators, therefore, you want to
present your information clearly, accurately, completely, and fairly. Box 1-2
gives you a checklist to assess your informative writing.
B OX 1 - 2 CHECKLIST
Informative writing
■ Is its information clear?
■ Does it present facts, ideas, and observations that can be verified?
■ Does its information seem complete and accurate?
■ Is the writer’s tone reasonable and free of distortions? (1c.4)
1b.3 What is persuasive writing?
Persuasive writing, also called argument writing, seeks to convince readers
about a matter of opinion. When you write to persuade, you deal with debat-
able topics, those that people can consider from more than one point of view.
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What does “audience” mean for writing? 1c
Your goal is to change your readers’ minds about the topic—or at least to
bring your readers’ opinions closer to your point of view. To succeed, you
want to evoke a reaction in your audience so that they think beyond their
present position (for example, reasoning why free speech needs to be
preserved) or take action (for example, register to vote). Examples of per-
suasive writing include newspaper editorials, letters to the editor, opinion
essays in newspapers and magazines, reviews, sermons, books that argue a
point of view, and business proposals that advocate certain approaches over
others.
In general terms, persuasive writing means you need to move beyond
merely stating your opinion. You need to give the basis for that opinion. You
support your opinion by using specific, illustrative details to back up your
generalizations, which are usually very broad statements.
Box 1-3 gives you a checklist to assess your persuasive writing.
B OX 1 - 3 CHECKLIST
Persuasive writing
■ Does it present a point of view about which opinions vary?
■ Does it support its point of view with specifics?
■ Does it base its point of view on sound reasoning and logic?
■ Are the parts of its argument clear?
■ Does it intend to evoke a reaction from the reader?
E X E R C I S E 1 - 1 Using each topic listed here, work individually or with your
peer-response group to think through two different essays: one informative,
the second persuasive. Be ready to discuss in detail how the two essays
would differ. For help, consult section 1b.
1. Fast food
2. Tastes in music
3. Required college courses
4. Road rage
5. Storms
1c What does “audience” mean for writing?
Your audience consists of everyone who will read your writing. After college,
your audiences will be readers of your business, professional, and public writ-
ing (Chapter 38). In college, you address a mix of audience types, each of which
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1c THINKING ABOUT PURPOSES
expects to read ACADEMIC WRITING*. Here’s a list of categories of audiences for
academic writing, each of which is detailed in the section listed in parentheses.
■ Your peers (1c.1)
■ A general audience (1c.2)
■ A specialist audience (1c.3)
The more specifics you can assume about your audience for your acade-
mic writing, the better your chances of reaching it successfully. The ques-
tions in Box 1-4 can serve as a guide.
When you know or can reasonably assume who will be in your reading
audience for each assignment, your chances of reaching it improve. For exam-
ple, if you’re writing a sales report for your supervisor, you can use terms such
as product life cycle, break-even quantity, competition, and markup. In con-
trast, if general readers were the audience for the same information, you would
want to avoid specialized, technical vocabulary—or if you had to use some
essential specialized terms, you would define them in a nontechnical way.
B OX 1 - 4 S U M M A RY
Characteristics of reading audiences
What Setting Are They Reading In?
■ Academic setting?
■ Workplace setting?
■ Public setting?
Who Are They?
■ Age, gender
■ Ethnic backgrounds, political philosophies, religious beliefs
■ Roles (student, parent, voter, wage earner, property owner, veteran, and
others)
■ Interests, hobbies
What Do They Know?
■ Level of education
■ Amount of general or specialized knowledge about the topic
■ Probable preconceptions and prejudices brought to the topic
*Note: Terms in SMALL CAPITAL LETTERS have been defined elsewhere in
the text. To find a definition, look up the term in the book’s index and turn to
the page number indicated in bold type.
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What does “audience” mean for writing? 1c
E S L N O T E : As someone from a non-US culture, you might be
surprised—even offended—by the directness with which people speak and
write in the United States. If so, we hope you’ll read our open letter on page
494 to multilingual students about honoring their cultures.
1c.1 What is a peer audience?
Your peers are other writers like you. In some writing classes, instructors
divide students into peer-response groups. Participating in a peer-response
group makes you part of a respected tradition of colleagues helping colleagues.
The role of members of a peer-response group is to react and discuss, not
to do the work for someone. Hearing or reading comments from your peers
might be your first experience with seeing how others read your writing. This
can be very informative, surprising, and helpful. Also, when peers share their
writing with the group, each member gets the added advantage of learning
about other students’ writing for the same assignment.
If your instructor gives you guidelines for working in a peer-response
group, follow them carefully. If you’ve never before participated in a peer-
response group, or in the particular kind of group that your instructor forms,
here are ways to get started: Consult the guidelines in Box 1-5 below; watch
what experienced peers do; and ask questions of your instructor (your interest
shows a positive, cooperative attitude). Otherwise, just dive in knowing that
you will learn as you go.
B OX 1 - 5 S U M M A RY
Guidelines for participating in peer-
response groups
One major principle needs to guide your participation in a peer-response
group: Always take an upbeat, constructive attitude, whether you’re
responding to someone else’s writing or receiving responses from others.
As a Responder
■ Think of yourself in the role of a coach, not a judge.
■ Consider all writing by your peers as “works in progress.”
■ After hearing or reading a peer’s writing, briefly summarize it to check
that you and your peer are clear about what the peer said or meant to say.
■ Start with what you think is well done. No one likes to hear only
negative comments.
■ Be honest in your suggestions for improvements.
➞
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1c THINKING ABOUT PURPOSES
Guidelines for participating in peer-response
groups (continued)
■ Base your responses on an understanding of the writing process, and
remember that you’re reading drafts, not finished products. All writing
can be revised.
■ Give concrete and specific responses. General comments such as “This is
good” or “This is weak” aren’t much help. Say specifically what is good or
weak.
■ Follow your instructor’s system for putting your comments in writing so
that your fellow writer can recall what you said. If one member of your
group is supposed to take notes, speak clearly so that the person can be
accurate. If you’re the note taker, be accurate, and ask the speaker to
repeat what he or she said if it went by too quickly.
As a Writer
■ Adopt an attitude that encourages your peers to respond freely. Listen
and try to resist any urge to interrupt during a comment or to jump in to
react.
■ Remain open-minded. Your peers’ comments can help you see your
writing in a fresh way, which, in turn, can help you produce a better-
revised draft.
■ Ask for clarification if a comment isn’t clear. If a comment is too general,
ask for specifics.
■ As much as you encourage your peers to be honest, remember that the
writing is yours. You “own” it, and you decide which comments to use or
not use.
1c.2 What is a general audience?
A general audience of readers is composed of educated, experienced read-
ers. These are people who regularly read newspapers, magazines, and books.
These readers, with general knowledge of many subjects, likely know some-
thing about your topic. However, if you get too technical, you’re writing for
readers who possess specialized knowledge on a particular subject (1c.3).
Consequently, avoid specialized or technical terms, although you can use a
few as long as you include everyday definitions.
1c.3 What is a specialist audience?
A specialist audience is composed of readers who have expert knowledge of
specific subjects or who are particularly committed to those subjects. Many
people are experts in their occupational fields, and some become experts in
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What does “audience” mean for writing? 1c
areas that simply interest them, such as astronomy or raising orchids. People
from a particular group background (for example, Democrats, Republicans,
Catholics, or military veterans) are knowledgeable in those areas.
Specialist readers, however, share more than knowledge: They share
assumptions and beliefs. Additionally, whenever you introduce a concept
that’s likely to be new to a specialist audience, explain the new concept thor-
oughly rather than assume that they’ll understand it right away.
1c.4 What is “tone” in writing?
Tone is more than what you say; tone is how you say it. As a writer, your tone
reveals your attitude toward your AUDIENCE as well as the topic. Tone in writ-
ing operates like tone of voice, except in writing you can’t rely on facial expres-
sions and voice intonations to communicate your message. (See Box 1-6.)
Your DICTION (choice of words), LEVEL OF FORMALITY, and writing style
create your tone. While you can use SLANG and other highly INFORMAL LAN-
GUAGE in a note to your roommate or a close friend, such a relaxed tone isn’t
appropriate for ACADEMIC WRITING or BUSINESS WRITING. As a rule, when you
write for an audience about which you know little, use more formality in your
tone. “More formality,” by the way, doesn’t mean dull and drab. Indeed, lively
language in a serious discussion enhances your message.
B OX 1 - 6 S U M M A RY
How to use tone in writing
■ Reserve a highly informal tone for conversational writing.
■ Use a formal or medium level of formality in your academic writing
and when you write for supervisors, professionals, and other people you
know from a distance.
■ Avoid an overly formal, ceremonial tone.
■ Avoid sarcasm and other forms of nastiness.
■ Choose language appropriate for your topic and your readers.
■ Choose words that work with your message, not against it.
■ Whatever tone you choose to use, be consistent in each document.
E X E R C I S E 1 - 2 Using the topics listed on the following page, work individu-
ally or with your peer-response group to think through specific ways the
tone of an essay would differ for the following three audiences: a college in-
structor, a close friend, and a supervisor at a job. Be ready to discuss in
some detail how the three essays on each topic would differ for each audi-
ence. For help, consult sections 1c and 1d.
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1d THINKING ABOUT PURPOSES
1. Suggestions for a fair way to evaluate each person’s work
2. Benefits of having a more casual dress code
3. An explanation of why you were absent from class yesterday
1d What does “sources for writing” mean?
Sources for writing consist of material that contains someone else’s ideas,
not yours. Sources, often called outside sources, include credible information
on the Internet, library collections, and the spoken words of experts. Sources
can add authority to what you write, especially if the topic is open to debate.
Some students wonder whether consulting sources for their writing
might suggest that they can’t come up with ideas of their own. Actually, the
opposite is true. When students use sources well, they demonstrate their
ability to locate relevant sources, assess whether the sources are credible and
worth using, integrate the material with skill, and credit the sources accu-
rately. To achieve this, follow the guidelines in Box 1-7.
Of course, no matter how many outside sources you refer to, you remain
your own first source. Throughout your life, you’ve been building a fund of
knowledge by reading, going to school, attending cultural and sports events,
hearing speeches, watching television, and exploring the Internet. The basis
for your writing is the information you have, as well as your ideas, reflections,
reactions, and opinions. Sources offer support and additional information and
points of view, but you’re always the starting point for your writing.
When you use sources in your writing, never plagiarize. As a student, you
want to become a full participant in the community of knowledge seekers
B OX 1 - 7 S U M M A RY
Guidelines for using sources in writing
■ Evaluate sources critically. Not all are accurate, true, or honest.
■ Represent your sources accurately. Be sure to quote, PARAPHRASE, and
summarize well so that you avoid distorting the material (Chapter 32).
■ Never plagiarize (Chapter 32).
■ Know the difference between writing a SUMMARY and writing a
SYNTHESIS. A summary means all you do is report the source material.
That is not enough. A synthesis means you make intelligent connections
between the source and your ideas, or among a variety of sources, or
between a variety of sources and your ideas. Synthesizing is what
college writers are expected to do.
■ Credit your sources with DOCUMENTATION that names them clearly and
completely. Ask your instructor which DOCUMENTATION STYLE to use.
Two widely used styles are presented in Chapters 31–34.
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What is the writing process? 2a
and makers. The expected honorable standard for participants is always to
credit thinkers who have come before you and upon whose shoulders you
stand as you learn and create. You therefore never want to behave unethi-
cally by stealing someone’s thinking or language.
If you forget to document your sources, you’re plagiarizing (Chapter 32).
Using quotation marks without naming your source is a form of plagiarizing.
Leaving out quotation marks from a direct quotation that you take from a
source, even if you name the source, is a form of plagiarizing. plagiarism is
a major academic offense. A student who plagiarizes can instantly fail a
course or be expelled from college.
New computer technologies make plagiarism especially easy to detect
today. If ethical reasons aren’t enough to prevent you from plagiarizing, then
the real chance of strong punishment definitely should be.
E S L N O T E : In many cultures other than those in the United States and
Canada, original thinking and responses to reading aren’t acceptable.
Instead, instructors expect students to respect and copy the thoughts and
exact language of scholars, without naming the people who wrote the schol-
arship. This practice is not acceptable in the United States and most British-
based educational systems. You always need to use documentation to credit
your source. Otherwise, you are plagiarizing—that is, “stealing” the ideas of
others, which is a major offense.
CHAPTER 2
Planning and Shaping
2a What is the writing process?
Many people think that professional writers can sit down at their
computers, think of ideas, and magically produce a finished draft, word
by perfect word. Experienced writers know better. They know that writing is
a process, a series of activities that starts the moment they begin
thinking about a subject and ends with proofreading the final draft. Experi-
enced writers also know that good writing is rewriting, again and yet
again. Their drafts are filled with additions, deletions, rewordings, and
rearrangements.
For example, see below how Lynn revised the paragraph you just read. She
didn’t make all the changes at the same time, even though it looks that way
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