Close Reading, book report, For both genres, she will begin by giving her readers general information about the text (tile, author, publisher, copyright date, number of pages, genre). She will discuss setting, characters, plot; and she will offer a personal opinion, Awareness of gente helps readers and writers However, the knowledgeable writer knows that the two genres differ in purpose. The purpose of the book report is to summarize the main characteristics of the book and to offer a brief personal opinion. The object of the book: review is to evaluate the book The writer does this by assessing whether oF not the author has accomplished his or her purpose and by comparing the text to other books in the gente or to other books written by the same author. The weiter knows her readers will expect her to devote a good portion of the review to evaliration. Readers of book reviews asstume that they will receive a synopsis ofthe book, but more important, they expect to read the writer's evaluation, Their purpose for reading the review s 10 see whether the book is worth reading, Ifthe writer breaches the contract by offering too much summary and too litle evaluation, readers will be dissatisfied, As you familiarize sourself with the genres of academic writing, you will acquire clear expectations about the purpose of texts, their conventions and organization, and their shyistic features. To identify the genre, ask questions about how the text functions. The questions are preserited in the box below © Est For eerie Tie cng OF ros + Does the text demonstrate an identifiable genre? + Can deserve the form or components of this genre? + How isthe text organized? | + How do the diferent parts function in relation to the whole? *+ Can |identiy distinctive conventions ofthe genre? Organization As you know, texts have recognizable parts, such as introduetions, conclusions, theses or mnain-idea statements, topie sentences, and paragraphs. As you read, ask yourself such questions as: + Where does this introdiction end? + What point is the author making in this paragraph? + How does this paragraph relate to the one that comes before and after it? + How does the paragraph contribute to the main idea? 21CHAPTER | Actve Crial Resting Prereading and Cose Reading ‘TABLE 1-2 Patterns for Developing and Organizing Texts, TABLE 2 Se Patter Writer's Purpose Time order, saratoa, process “Te present devs or events in a chronological sequence, to tell “shat happened (naration), or to describe a sequence of actions (process Antecedent and consequence “To present causes (antecedents) or examine efits orcauseand- ect outcomes (consequences) to reveal the causes ofa particule Sutcomse or phewomenos ot explain tx consequences. ually by ‘plaining the relationship between the eausesand eects Desesiption “To present the physical attebutes, parts. or setting of the topic, often in crderto givea pesonal impresion ofthe person, place, or thing being described Statement and response “To presenta satement and give areaction, often in aqueston-and- answer problemaniésolution, oF remarkand-eply frat Comparisow and contrast “To peeunt the similarities cr differences between objets, approaches, exvienpoints Example “To present illustatione o instances that support an idea ‘Analisis and clastication “To divide the topic into parts (analyze) orto group parts or facets tthe mpc acording to =1me principle or characteristic (classy) Definition “To explain a word, concept or principle Analogy “To show the similarity between things that otherwsse bear litle ne resemblance to explain somet ‘ith something similar eee eee 1g by comparing it point by point ‘Texts are also arranged in identifiable patterns, In your own essays, you have used ovgmnizaiondl patterns such as cause and elect and comparison and contast. Table 1-2 {dentifes the most common pattems and gives a brief description of each. ‘Occasionally, writers tell readers how they are organizing the text In the introduc- tory paragraph to “Academie Dishonesty: What Is Itand Why Do Students Engage in I, Bemard E, Whitley, Jr and Patricia Keith-Spiegel inform their readers that they will explore four features of the topic: In this chapter we disciss the nanure of academic dishonesty and its definitions. rea- ‘ons students give for cheating, institutional and student characteristics associated with Cheating, andthe extent to which cheating actually leads to higher grades. (16) When writers explain what they are doing and direct you to read in a certain way, you row what to expect, When they dox't supply this information, you have to determine the pattern of development yourself "A key to unlocking the meaning of a tent is to identify the pattern of organization ‘Texts may display a single organizational pattern, but more likely they have overlap ping patterns An inital, quick read will give you a sense of the text's major organiza. Tonal pattern. Keep this patter in mind during your close reading, At that time, annotate the passages that display other patterns of development. Consider how our student anno- tated the following pasages from Joshua Foer's article “The Kiss of Life.”Close Reaong 23 JOSHUA FOER, “THE KISS OF LIFE™ Since it's Valentine's Day, let's dvell for « moment on the profoundly bizarre activity of kissing, Is thete.a more expressive gesture in the human repertoite? When parents kiss their children it means one thing, but Comparison | when they hiss each other i! means something entiels and different. People will greta ttl stanger nth a ison the ‘contrast cheek, and then use an identical gesture to express their most intimate eeings to lover. The mob kingpin gives he Rss of death, Catholis ge the “Kiss of peace,” Jews kis the Torah, nervous Byers kis the round, and the enraged sometinies demand thata kiss be applied to their hindquarte's. Judas ised fesus, Madonne bussed Britney, a gambler kisses the dice for luck. Someone ance even kissed a car for 5 hours straight |—Questow: ont Tieeeate clits glee ltaaes SS ee a Se Hey ora erngtotonl te poser } Aa Statement at Example sauavis, The 17th-century polymath Martin von Kempe wrote sthousisd page eneyclopedia of kissing tht rcoguiced 2 different vanities. including “the Kiss bestowed by superios am inferiors” and “the hypocritical kiss Time order: ‘The German language has words for 30 diferent kinds of. kisses, inzluding naclkussen, which is defined ws a hiss “taking up for kisses that have been omitted"(The Geroians Lpetniion ate also sid to have coined the inexplicable phrase "a kiss without a beard i Hike an eg withont salt") How did a sine act become a medium for so many messages? Analysis “Joshua Foer, “The Kis of Life” The New York Tames, February 1, 2006, section 1, Op Ed page. Copyright 2006 The New York Times Conipany, ‘The general plan for this article is Statement and Response. The opening pa sguph asks about Kissing, “Is there a more expressive gesture in the human repertoire?” and the article answers this question. Within this overall patter of question and answer. we see paragraphs organized to present comparisons and contrast (see paragraph 2, “When ..., but when ..."), examples (paragraph 3), and time order (paragraph 4), And in a paragraph organized with time order, we see seutencesthat display anahsis.2A CHAPTER | Acthe Citic Reading Prereading and Close Reading EXERCISE 1.5 Choste fom among the nine patterns of onprizton 6 Table 1-2 to dently the pater: © the folowng passages: «pages 39-70, gargs 9-10 onan Frazer us Cale to Say! Love YO 1 paps 433-34, pararahs 1-2. Andrew Chen ‘The Orgs of he Arbialert Acepiancs of Daoree" «pages 410-1: parragh 5 Robert L Bart and Bryan E Robinson “Chien of Say fathers’ Remember that in some instances, Fattems of development will overap Stylistic Features Ie addition to identifying gene and organizational patterns, critical readers pay attention to sblinic features of texts, They examine sentence structure and vocabulary. They ob- wo tat scholarly writers often draw extensively on evidence fram published sources or original research that they catefully document They expect academic teats to be written ora eI velee in sentences with a numberof coordinated and gaalel elements ‘They a orenacadevnie teats adopt a more conversational fone an informal style and de- viate from accepted conventions. “As you become familiar with a range of academic tests, you will anticipate certain textual estes, For example, when you read testa dealing wth science and technology, anne eet of the Fist three chapters in ou anthology, you wll lake nole ‘of specialized Tresinelogy, You will do this because you teengnize that technical vocabulary changes ‘constantly, so thal mastering the current buzzwords is ‘crucial, Like other critical readers ce lchnieal literature, you will seek out experimental verification of any news startling o onelusions or look for references to other work inthe Geld “To give you a clenervnderdanding of sic features, we will auring ve 1 peod fo Elonng pages by Barbara Bhreneich and Pauline nt rem before ye so! peed arson te bo text In he fist passge ray om “Serving in Pid (p 4), hrcnreich i describing ery’, aresurant where she has taken a ob as asener. Evenreich (paragraph 11): Picture & fat persons hell, and don’t mean 3 ples sth ne food. In there is everything you might eat if eating had no bodily canseaucts ru heese es, the cbickerefied steaks, the fudgeladen desserts only hese evs!) bite wrvat be paid fer, one way or another, in human discomfort ‘The kitchen iss everh sa heading tothe lower intestine that isthe garbage and dishwashing are, from som igsue bizarre sine combining the edible and the off: ereamy carrion, Pott rere tat uni and enigmatic Jerry's scent, eftusfar. The oor is slick with spills, forcings to walk through the klchen with ny steps like Susan MeDousa} leg rons Brats Seerere ate clogged with sraps of lettuce, decomposing lemon wedaes ©20% Togged toast rusts, Pur your hand down on any counter and yout Tisk being stuck to it by sone oat rent sytup ail, and tha is unfortnate beeause hand are wensis hereClose Reading 25, sed for scooping up lettuce onto the salad plates, lifting out pie slices, and even moving ‘nash browns from one plate to another. In the second passage, drawn from “What Is a Family?” (p. 417), Erera distinguishes 2mong institutional, ideological, and actual-practice definitions of “fami”: Erera (paragraph 4): ‘The family is not simply a social institution. [tis an ideologi- cal construct laden with symbolistn and with a history and polities of its own. As Jagger and Wright (1999) put i, “Phe groupings that are called families are socially constructed rather thar naturally or biologically given” (p. 3). In studying families, we need to keep clear the distinctions between the instlutionalized family, the ideology of the family, and the lives of actual families. Although social aud economic forces shape family life, our understanding of family is shaped by the evolving pattems of the actual families around us. Furthermore, conceptions of what constitutes a family ate necessarily rooted in time and place. White, Wester, two-parent families have generally heen regarded, explicitly or isnplicitly, as the model or template against which we compate all families, regardless of culture, ethnicity, rice, or class. This parochial view distorts our understanding of diverse families by considering them deviations from the norm (Smith, 1995; Thorne, 1982), Comparison of the Stylistic Features of the Texts Ehrenreich eaders directly, prompting them to action: “Pichure a ft person's Put your ltand down on any counter .."; and uses informal, second- person, “vou,"as well a Frs-person, “1,” point of view Voice ‘Uses active voice an asertve is/are verbs that register the writer's personal Observation: “this is unfortunate”; “The kitchen isa cavern”, “The floor is slick” Language Uses informal language, including contractions ~“dow't”—and colorful, col- and tone Aoquial language — pizza bar.” “citrus fart”—and creates an informal tone. Also uses figutative language: compares the kitchen toa stomach and the garbage and dishwashing areas to the lower intestine; makes a humorous sitile compar. ing the servers, walksng in small steps, to “Susan McDougal in leg irons.” Susan ‘MeDougal. a former business partner of President Clinton, was convicted of fraud and of refusing to testify against the president. Newspaper photos pictared her being led off to jail, shackled in ankle chains and handeuff Sentence (Uses complex senterice structure, but lengthy phrases and clauses seem clear to structure readers hecause their movement is sequential Textual sources Does not include parenthetial citations, alist of references, or endnotes. Point of view Erera Point of view Uses more formal, third-person point of view Voice Employs passive voice: “our understanding of family’ is shaped"; “two-parent fami- lies have generally been regarded,” Language ‘Uses formal language and tone: “we need to keep clear the distinctions”. “regarded, and tone explicitly or implicitly as the model or template.” Sentence Uses comples sentence structure, and lengthy phrases and clauses requite readers structure to connect their parts to larger wholes in order to understand theie meaning, Textual sources _Thieludes parenthetical citations inthe text and alist of references atthe end of the article. The parenthetical citations indicate where Erera found the information she has ‘quoted, surumarized, or paraphrased: for example: “( Smith, 1995: Thome, 1982)-”% CHAPTER | Active Critical Reacing. Prereacing and Close Reading Our analysis is based on point of view, voice, language, tone, choice of sentence structures, and reliance on other textual sources. Point of view establishes whether a text is written in the firstperson (I, we), second-peron (you), or third-berson (it they) form and voice refers to whether the verb is cast in an active mode (e.g, “I made a mistake") or a passive mode (eg., “A mistake was made”), Both are important shlstc features of academic writing, Use ofthe firstperson form is frowned upon in many fields of academic writing, If writers use it at all, they use it sparingly. Firstperson is appropriate for Ehrenrcich, however, be- cause she is wniting about her own experiences doing investigative fieldwork. Ehrenteich’s use ofthe first-person “I” and her direct references to the reader, “you,” lend force and vigor to her prose and enable her te write ina strong active voice, Erera on the other hand uses the third-person point of view and the passive voice, exemplifying a Iypical fashion of aca- demic writing, For example, “Although social and economic forces shape family life, our understanding offamily is shaped by the evolving patterns ofthe actual families around us.” is shows, Ehrenreich’s word choice and tone are less scholarly and more down-to-earth than Erera's, Ehrenreich uses witty, everyday language; humor; and vivid detail, Erexa's vocabulary’ is straightforward. She doesn’t use specialized terminol- ogy or jargon, but her language is much more formal than Ehrenreich’s. Both writers use comiplex sentences, some of which are packed with a good deal of information, The stylistic feature that clearly distinguishes Erera’s style from Ehrenreich’s and imatks Erera as a classic academic writer isher citing of textual sources. Ehrenreich draws oon published sources elsewhere in Nickel and Dimed, the book from which we excerpted the passage, but not to the extent we see in the Erera text. The practice of relating one's own text to other published texts by citing, quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing them is called intertextuality, We will discuss this hallmark of academic writing below. Our analysis of the two passages leads us to conclude that Erera writes in a formal style characteristic of many genres of acadetnic writing She uses a certain amount of pas sive voice, scholarly tone, and references to prior publications. In contrast, Ehrenreich has a relaxed, conversational style that we associate with informal writing, We have provided a detailed analysis of the two passages in order to show you the roles slistie features play in ‘writing, We don't expect you to perform an exhaustive stylistic analysis each time you read a text. However, knowledge of stylistic features such as point of view, voice, language, tone, choice of sentence structures, and reliance on other textual sources will better enable you to read critically and appreciate how the writer's style contribuites to the text. On the occasions when you wish to delve deeper to analyze style, ask yourself the questions in the box below In your own writing, you will learn to master styles that are appropriate to particular fields, The lab reports you write for science courses will be formal, with concise sentences describing procedural matters. The personal essays you compose for English courses will be less formal, with free-flowing sentences rich in descriptive detail, The stylistic feature that will be most important to master is the practice of drawing on other texts «isthe text writen in Rrst-person (|. we). second-person (you), or thire-person (it they)? What does the point of view contribute tothe style? + Are the verbs in active voice or passive voice?(Close Reading + Does the text contain straightforward language or is the vocabulary specialized? + What can | say about sentence length and complexity? Are the sentences simple and unpre- tentious or complex, remote. and scholarly? ‘+ How do the point of view, language. and sentence structure contribute to the tone? + How extensive are the references to other texts? Are there parenthetical citations ists of references, footnotes, or endnotes? + What do my answers to the preceding questions indicate about the stylistic features of the text? ‘Entertextuality Intertextuality is a conversation that a text records with other texts. It refers ‘the way writers relate the findings of other texts to their own texts often hy incorporating shem in the form of direct quotations, paraplirases, stmmiries, or ather types of references such as footnotes or endnotes, and always citing the source of the information. Footiotes sand parenthetical references provide classic examples of intertextuality. Look back to the passage by Pauline Erera on page 25. Erera quotes from G. Jager and G. Wright book (Changing Family Values, and she summarizes information from two scholarly articles, one by T-E. Smith and the other by B. Thome. She fully identifies these sources in the list of references at the end of her article. The convention of drawing on other texts is not confined to academic writing Newspapers and magazines contain articles that incorporate information from other texts, Bat the journalistic style of writing usually does not involve parenthetical citation, lists of references, footnotes, or endnotes. On page 23, we provided excerpts from Joshua Foer's New York Times article “The Kiss of Life.” Consider an additional paragraph from the same article, which draws upon Charles Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions in Mant cand Animals, Even though all of this might suggest that hissing i in our genes, not all human eultures do it, Charles Darwin was one of the fist to point this out. In his book “The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Aninnals.” he noted that kissing “is replaced in various parts ofthe world by the rubbing of noses.” Early explorers of the Arctic dubbed! this the Eskimo kiss: (Actually, it turns out the Inuit were not merely rubbing noses, they were smelling each other's cheeks.) Foet directly quiotes from Darwin's hook, but nowhere does he provide citations to pages ar give bibliographical information about publisher and date of pteblication, Nor does he represent the title of Darwin's book in italics, as the standard format of academic bibli- ographies requires. Instead Foer places hotl the title and the quotation within separate quotation marks, The convention of meticulously citing and documenting sources is not always followed outside of the academic commumity. Sometimes magazine writers like- ‘wise cite facts without explaining where they came from, and depending on their edito- rial policies, some newspapers publish reports based on statements of unnamed sources, In academic writing, however, there isa strict protocol of convention for citing sources, both to document the writer's use of sources and to enable readers to refer to these same sources for further information and clarification. In Chapter 8 and in the Appendix, we explain these conventions so that you, as an academe writer, can follow them when you cite sources. rrClose Reading + Does the text contain straightforward language or is the vocabulary specialized? + What can | say about sentence length and complexity? Are the sentences simple and unpre- ‘entious or complex remote, and scholarly? + How do the point of view, language. and sentence structure contribute to the tone? + How extensive are the references to other texts? Are there parenthetical citations, lists of references, footnotes. or endnotes! + What do my answers to the preceding questions indicate about the stylistic features of the tea? Intertextuality Intertextuality is a conversation that a text records with other texts. It tefers fo the way writers relate the findings of other texts to their own texts, ofien by incorporating thetn in the form of direct quotations, paraphrases, summaries, or other types of references such as footnotes or endnotes, and always citing the source of the information. Footnotes sand parenthetical references provide classic examples of intertextuality: Look back to the passage by Pauline Erera on page 25, Ereta quotes from G. Jager and C. Wrights book ‘Changing Family Values, and she stammarizes information from two scholarly articles, one by T.E. Smith and the other by B. Thome, She fully identifies these sources in the list of seferences at the end of her article The convention of drawing on other texts is not confined to academic writing. Newspapers and magazines contain articles that incorporate information from other texts, But the journalistic style of writing usually does not involve parenthetical citation, lists of seferences, footnotes, or endnotes. On page 23, we provided excerpts from Joshua Foer's New York Times article “The Kiss of Life.” Consider an additional paragraph frou the same article, which draws upon Charles Darwin's The Expression of the Emotions irs Man and Animals, Even though all ofthis might suggest that hissing isin our genes, not all human cultures do it, Charles Darwin was one of the first to point this out. In his book “The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals,” he noted that hissing “is replaced in various parts of the world by the rubbing of noses.” Early explorers ofthe Arctic dubbed this the Eskimo kiss. (Actually, it tums out the Inuit were not merely rubbing noses, they were smelling each other's checks.) Foer directly quotes ftom Darwin's book, but nowhere does he provide citations to pages ce give bibliograph ical information about publisher and date of publication. Nor does he sepresent the title of Darwin's book in itaics, asthe standard format of aademic bibli- cezaphies requires. stead Foer places both the title and the quotation within separate quotation marks. The convention of meticulously citing and documenting sources is not chaats followed outside of the academic community, Sometimes inagazitre writers like- sews cite facts without explaining where they eame from, and depending on their edito- 2A} policies, some newspapers publish reports based on statements of unnamed sources. 5 academic writing, however, there is a strict protocol of convention for citing sourees, oth to document the writer's use of sources and to enable readers to refer to these same sources for further information and clarification. In Chapter 8 and in the Appendix, we cxclain these conventions so that you, as an academic writer, can follow them when you cite sources. a28 CHAPTER | Actwe Crtcal Reading: Preveading and Ciose Reading EXERCISE 1.6 For ths exercise, use the Questions for Analyzing the Stylistic Features of Texts (p. 26-27) to anatyae the syistic features of passages from three reading selections ‘+ Noe! Sharkey, “The Ethical Frontiers of Robotics.” paragraph |. page 359 + Lynn Okcot, “The Balad ofa Single Mother" paragraphs |~4, page 446 + Brink Lindsey, "Culture of Success” paragraph |. page 455 Reading for Rhetorical Context Critical readers have a keen interest inthe rhetorical context ofthe text. When we speak of rhetoric, we mean the author's use of language for an intended effect. An important word here is intended. Both writing and reading are intentional. They are deliberate actions, guided by a purpose. When you do a close reading of the text focusing on its content, gente, organization, and stylistic features, you perform a textual analysis. Another type of analysis is also impor- tant: rhetorical analysis. Rhetorical analysis examines the author’ purpose and motivation for writing the text, the intended audience, the circumstances surrounding the text's produe- tion, the author's position toward other writers and other texts, and the larger conversation of which the text is a part. It also explores how the author's choice of genre, organizational structure, and stylistic features advances his or her purpose. To perform a rhetorical analysis, ask yourself the questions in the box below. + What the author's purpose? What do | perceive as the efiet the author intends to have con the audience? What role does the author assume in relation to the audience! ‘= What do | know about the author's background and credibilty? + How does the choice of genre, organizational structure, and stylistic features advance the author's purpose? + For whom is the author writing? In what type of publication—schoiarly journal, popular mag azine, local or national newspaper—was the text frst published? Who reads this publication? Ins what year was the text published? What was on people's minds? fs the text current or dated? ‘+ What feeling. event. phenomenon. circumstance. or social practice prompted the author to wie the text? + How isthe author drawing on other writers and other texts? How does he or she view | what others have said about the topic? You can answer some of these questions by drawing inferences from the text itself Other questions require you to undertake research.Reicng Equally important as the environment in which the author writes the text is the environment in which the reader receives it. You also need f0 consider the rhetorical context of the act of reading—the readers purpose and the cireumatances surrounding the reading. i this section, we explain how to analyze both contexts asa means of improving comprehension, Rhetorical Context of the Text We le depicted the rhetorical conten ofthe text inthe diagran in Figure I=L » RHETORICAL CONTEXT OF A TEXT AUTHORWRITER AUDIENCE/READER + What isthe author's purpose? * For whom is the author mtiting? # What do I perceives the effet the author # Where was the text fit published? iniends to have on the audience? '* Who reads this publication? # What do [ know about the uuthor's | buackground and credibility? + How does the autlir’s choice of genre, ‘organizational structure, and stylistic features advance his or her purpose? (CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING TEXT'S PRODUCTION/ LARGER CONVERSATION OF WHICH THE TENT IS A PART ‘+ In what year was the text published? What was on people's minds? '* What prompted the author to write the text? Can I identify a circumstance, event, or social practice? ‘+ How isthe author drawing on other wtitets ane other tes? How does he or she view what athers have said shout the topic? Figure t=1