Reading and Writing Quiz 1

Hermeneutics

- Study of context
- Needed to critically explain/interpret

Context

Social, political, & other related circumstances surrounding a text

Intertextuality

- Interconnectedness
- Modeling of a text’s meaning by another text

Hyptertext

Non-linear way of showing information

Non-Linear reading

Strays away from traditional reading (top to bottom)

Linear Reading

Read from top to bottom

Assertions

Declarative statements claiming something is true about something else

Fact

Statement that can be proven objectively from various factors

Convention

Way something is done, similar to traditions and norms

Opinion

Based on facts but are difficult to objectively verify

Preference

Based on personal choice

Counterclaims

Made to rebut a previous claim by providing contrasting perspectives

Argumentum ad Hominem

Personally attacking the claim of a person

Evidence

Details given by an author to support their claim

What does Evidence include

Facts & statistics; opinions from experts; and personal anecdotes

Characteristics of good evidence

- Unified
- Relevant to Central Point
- Specific & Concrete
- Accurate
- Representative or Typical

Writing Process

1. Pre-Writing

2. Writing

3. Revising

4. Editing

5. Publishing

Pre-Writing

Techniques which help discover ideas before writing the first draft

DO’s in writing

Know the kind of paper, determine the writing situation, and determining your purpose

DON’T’S in writing

Don’t critique your ideas and don’t forget to recognize your readers

PATT

Purpose, Audience, Topic, Tone

Topic

- Subject/specific issue which is interesting & relevant. Has to be related to your expertise for credibility

Tone

- Attitudes & feelings you want to reflect in your writing
- Shown through POV, sentence structures, and word choice

4 Purposes of Writing

• Inform

• Explain

• Persuade

• Entertain

Brainstorming

List down everything in your mind

Clustering/Mapping

Start with one word/phrase, then draw lines connecting to each other

Freewriting

Writing down your thoughts nonstop

Thesis Statement

The central idea of an essay that reflects the purpose for writing

Working Thesis Statement

Thesis statement that may still have to be adjusted

Creating a thesis statement results from?

Looking at your paper’s general subject and making it specific

If your thesis statement is too broad or narrow?

Go back to your pre-writing and draft a list of the contents of your essay

Characteristics of an effective thesis statement (1)

Responds to the assignment by following instructions

Characteristics of an effective thesis statement (2)

Expresses the main idea in 1-2 sentences

Characteristics of an effective thesis statement (3)

Focuses on a specific issue

Characteristics of an effective thesis statement (4)

States a stand on the topic

Characteristics of an effective thesis statement (5)

Answers “So what?”, “How?”, and “Why?”

Characteristics of an effective thesis statement (6)

Previews the rest of the essay by being placed in the introduction

Types of Thesis Statements

• Argumentative

• Analytical

• Expository

Structure of a Thesis Statement

• Mention the main “Topic”

• Take a “Position”

• Summarize the “Evidence”

Good thesis statement includes is:

• Coherent

• Concise

• Disputable

Step 1 of writing a Thesis Statement

Write a research question

Step 2 of writing a Thesis Statement

Find a tentative answer for the research question

Step 3 of writing a Thesis Statement

Keep developing and refining the thesis statement

Guidelines in writing thesis statements (1)

Avoid making overly-opinionated stands

Guidelines in writing thesis statements (2)

Avoid making announcements

Guidelines in writing thesis statements (3)

Avoid stating only facts

Outline

Summary that gives the essential features of a text

Reading Outline

Used to get main ideas of an already written text

Writing Outline

Skeletal version of your essay

Scratch Outline

Simple list of ideas that take form of words/phrases

Sentence Outline

Uses sentences to define the subject matter

Argumentative

States your opinion, trying to convince others to agree

Analytical

Breaks down a topic into parts to explain how they work together

Expository

Explains a topic clearly without giving an opinion