the writing triangle writer audience text. writing context writer audience purpose
DESCRIPTION
Who is the writer? How is he/she related to his/her subject? Does the author have a reputation for honesty, thoroughness, fairness and knowledge? Is the author an expert? Is the author associated with any group, organization or belief system?TRANSCRIPT
The Writing Triangle
Writer
Audience Text
Writing Context
Writer
Audience Purpose
Who is the writer? How is he/she related to his/her subject?
• Does the author have a reputation for honesty, thoroughness, fairness and knowledge?
• Is the author an expert?• Is the author associated with any
group, organization or belief system?
Who is the author’s audience (how does he/she understand them?)?• Popular audience• General, but well educated• Specialized• Others: culture, belief/religion,
membership in an organization, etc.
• How does the author expect his/her audience to react?
What is his/her purpose in writing?• To Inform• To Persuade• To Entertain• Combination of these
Group work: Exercises 1 on page 34, Seyler.
The Elements of Style
Word choice• Level of diction (formal or informal)• Connotative/denotative meanings• Jargon/Doublespeak
How does the author’s language affect how you read the article? Is it appropriate for the author’s audience and purpose in writing?
Group work: Exercises 1 and 2 on page 37, Seyler.
Attitude/Tone• What does the author’s word
choice tell you about his/her attitude towards the subject (positive, negative, neutral)?
• What is the writer’s Tone (how does his/her voice come across in the piece of writing?
Group work: Collaborative Exercise on Tone, page 38).
Sentence Structure• Simple• Expanded simple sentence• Compound (two or more independent
clauses)• Complex (at least one independent and
one dependent clause)• Fragments• Parallelism• Antithesis
What does the sentence structure tell you about the formality/informality of the document? Is it appropriate? What techniques does the author use for emphasis?
Metaphorical LanguageWhat comparisons and specific
images does the author use? What is their effect on the reader – what seems to be the reason behind them?
Together: Exercise on Style, page 44
Organization• In what order are ideas
introduced?• Which subjects are discussed at
length?• How does the writer lead us
through the organization (transitions, headings, subheadings)?
What techniques does the author use to guide your reading of the document? Is the organization Direct or Indirect?
Examples (Content)What kind of evidence does the
author use to clarify and support his/her ideas? Is it solid? Is it appropriate to the author’s purpose and audience? Is it valid?
Others:• Repetition• Hyperbole, Understatement, Irony• Formatting – Quotation Marks,
Italics, Capital Letters