Remember to post your initial ideas by Wednesday night, and meaningful responses to at least 2 classmates by Sunday night. Chapter 4 1. How do Freud’s ideas relate to our discussion of superheroes? Provide at least one specific example in your answer. 2. How do Jung’s ideas relate to our discussion of superheroes? Provide at least one specific example in your answer. 3. How do Rank’s ideas relate to our discussion of superheroes? Provide at least one specific example in your answer. 4. Both Rank and Sharon Packer list characteristics of superheroes. How do their lists compare? What is interesting about any similarities or differences you see between their lists? Chapter 5 1. Packer calls our fascination with superheroes a “secular religion”. What does she mean by that? What do you make of her claim? 2. Packer points out that superman is an alien immigrant. What cultural myths do we have in the U.S. with immigrants and aliens? 3. How do the myths related to immigrants and aliens relate to the American ideal of “Truth, Justice, and the American way”? 4. Thinking about the latest superhero films that have come out in the US (Wonder woman, Thor, etc), describe how Packer’s ideas appear in these new film narratives? Provide at least one specific example in your answer here. Readings: Superheroes ch 4-5. Also read Rules for Writers “Research” pp. 419-456. Short Writing Assignment 9 Length: 1-2 pages Due: Sunday, May 5 at midnight, California time 1. identify 2 Superheroes and 2 Supervillains that you find interesting (These must be "super" in some way rather than real life heroes). 2. Write a short paragraph about each, describing why this character is interesting to you, and speculate on why he/she may be interesting to other people. Consider their stories, myths they represent, fears or desires they may represent, etc. This is NOT a research assignment. For this assignment, you need only use your own thinking brain, using the tools and ideas we’ve been considering in the past few months You’re a writer. Rules for Writers is here for you. No one learns everything about writing in a single course or even two; we all need to consult the rules or seek out advice sometimes. Having a reliable support system is key. Your peers, your instructor, and your writing center are part of your support system — and so is your Rules for Writers. Whatever the assignment, whatever your purpose for writing, Rules for Writers has answers and advice you need for papers and projects in every course. The more you rely on your handbook and learn from its advice, the more successful you’ll be as a college writer. According to a recent survey of 700 students at 50 colleges, 79% of students feel that their handbook makes them more effective academic writers. E ighth Edit ion 2016 MLA Update Rules for WRITERS More support for you online If your instructor has assigned this book with LaunchPad Solo for Rules for Writers, use the activation code to access even more support. Visit macmillanhighered.com/rules8e to check out 192 grammar and research exercises, 39 sample student papers, and 30 LearningCurve adaptive quizzes. macmillanhighered.com Diana Hacker Nancy Sommers mech_HackerSommers-Rules8-SE-031816 The Writing Process f with infinitives g with gerunds 25 Case of who and whom case 227 26 Adjectives and adverbs adj/adv 230 a adjectives b adverbs c good, well, bad, badly d comparatives and superlatives e double negatives 27 Verb forms, tenses, moods vb 237 a irregular verbs b lie and lay c -s (or -es) endings d -ed endings e omitted verbs f tense g mood 1 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting 3 2 Revising, editing, and reflecting 30 3 Building effective paragraphs 49 Academic Reading, Writing, and Speaking 4 5 6 7 Clarity 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 125 Active verbs 126 Parallel ideas 129 Needed words 133 Mixed constructions 137 Misplaced and dangling modifiers 140 Shifts 147 Emphasis 152 Variety 163 Wordy sentences 166 Appropriate language 170 Exact words 180 Grammar 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Multilingual/ESL 255 28 Verbs ESL 256 29 Articles; types of nouns ESL 270 30 Structure ESL 279 31 Prepositions and idioms ESL 288 Punctuation 293 32 The comma ^, 294 187 a with and, but, etc. b introductory elements c series d coordinate adjectives e nonrestrictive elements f transitions g direct address, yes and no, etc. h he said etc. i dates, addresses, titles, numbers j to prevent confusion 33 Unnecessary commas no , 308 34 The semicolon ; Sentence fragments 188 Run-on sentences 195 Subject-verb agreement (is or are etc.) 202 Pronoun-antecedent agreement (singular or plural) 213 Pronoun reference (clarity) 218 Pronoun case (I and me etc.) 222 who and whom 227 Adjectives and adverbs 230 Standard English verb forms, tenses, and moods 237 Multilingual Writers and ESL Challenges 28 29 30 31 65 Reading and writing critically 66 Reading and writing about multimodal texts 80 Reading and writing arguments 91 Speaking confidently 119 255 Verbs 256 Articles 270 Sentence structure 279 Prepositions and idiomatic expressions 288 Rules8_SE_IFC_IBC.indd 2 b transitional expressions c series d misuses 35 The colon : 317 a with lists, appositives, quotations b conventional uses c misuses 36 The apostrophe ’ 319 a possessive nouns b indefinite pronouns c contractions d plurals of numbers, letters, etc. e misuses 37 Quotation marks “” 6/17/15 7:51 AM Rules8_SE_IFC_IBC.indd 3 323 Grammar Basics 361 46 Parts of speech basic 362 47 Sentence patterns basic 375 48 Subordinate word groups basic 383 49 Sentence types basic 392 Research 395 50 Conducting research res 396 51 Managing information; taking notes res 408 52 Evaluating sources res 416 a direct quotations b quotation within a quotation c titles of short works d words as words e with other punctuation marks f misuses 38 End punctuation 330 a period . b question mark ? c exclamation point ! 39 Other punctuation marks 332 a dash — b parentheses ( ) c brackets [ ] d ellipsis mark . . . e slash / MLA Papers 431 Mechanics 337 62 Manuscript format 40 Abbreviations 41 42 43 44 313 a independent clauses ^ Brief Menu 45 abbr 338 Numbers num 341 Italics ital 343 Spelling sp 345 The hyphen hyph 353 Capitalization cap 356 53 Thesis MLA 435 54 Avoiding plagiarism MLA 441 55 Integrating sources MLA 445 56 Documenting sources MLA 458 57 Manuscript format MLA 513 Sample paper 517 APA Papers 527 58 Thesis APA 530 59 Avoiding plagiarism APA 534 60 Integrating sources APA 537 61 Documenting sources APA 546 APA 580 Sample paper 585 Appendixes 597 Document design 597 Glossary of usage 608 Answers to lettered exercises 622 Index 636 6/17/15 7:51 AM mech_HackerSommers-Rules8-SE-031816 Punctuation 293 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 The comma 294 Unnecessary commas 308 The semicolon 313 The colon 317 The apostrophe 319 Quotation marks 323 End punctuation 330 Other punctuation 332 Mechanics 337 40 41 42 43 44 45 Abbreviations 338 Numbers 341 Italics 343 Spelling 345 The hyphen 353 Capitalization 356 Grammar Basics 46 47 48 49 361 Parts of speech 362 Sentence patterns 375 Subordinate word groups 383 Sentence types 392 Research 395 50 Thinking like a researcher; gathering sources 396 51 Managing information; taking notes responsibly 408 52 Evaluating sources 416 Writing Papers in MLA Style 53 54 55 56 57 Writing Papers in APA Style 58 59 60 61 62 431 Supporting a thesis 435 Citing sources; avoiding plagiarism 441 Integrating sources 445 MLA documentation style 458 MLA manuscript format; sample research paper 513 527 Supporting a thesis 530 Citing sources; avoiding plagiarism 534 Integrating sources 537 Documenting sources in APA style 546 APA manuscript format; sample paper 580 Appendixes 597 A document design gallery 597 Glossary of usage 608 Answers to lettered exercises 622 Index 636 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 1 7/31/15 10:20 AM this page left intentionally blank 05_HAC_01131_PT2_065_124.indd 124 5/4/15 12:04 PM Eighth Edition Rules for WRIteRS Diana Hacker Nancy Sommers Harvard University Contributing ESL Specialist Kimberli Huster Robert Morris University Bedford /St. Martin’s A Macmillan Education Imprint Boston • New York 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 3 7/31/15 10:20 AM For Bedford/St. Martin’s Vice President, Editorial, Macmillan Higher Education Humanities: Edwin Hill Editorial Director, English and Music: Karen S. Henry Publisher for Composition: Leasa Burton Executive Editors: Michelle M. Clark and Brendan Baruth Senior Editor: Mara Weible Senior Media Editor: Barbara G. Flanagan Assistant Editor: Stephanie Thomas Senior Production Editor: Gregory Erb Senior Production Supervisor: Jennifer Wetzel Marketing Manager: Emily Rowin Copy Editor: Hilly van Loon Indexer: Ellen Kuhl Repetto Director of Rights and Permissions: Hilary Newman Permissions Manager: Kalina Ingham Photo Editor: Martha Friedman Senior Art Director: Anna Palchik Text Design: Claire Seng-Niemoeller Cover Design: William Boardman Composition: Cenveo Publisher Services Printing and Binding: RR Donnelley and Sons Copyright © 2016, 2012, 2008, 2004 by Bedford/St. Martin’s All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, except as may be expressly permitted by the applicable copyright statutes or in writing by the Publisher. 1 f 0 e 9 d 8 c 7 b 6 a For information, write: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 75 Arlington Street, Boston, MA 02116 (617-399-4000) ISBN 978-1-319-08349-6 (Student Edition) Printed in China ISBN 978-1-319-01134-5 (Instructor’s Edition) Manufactured in U.S. ISBN 978-1-319-08351-9 (Student Edition with Writing about Literature) Printed in China Acknowledgments Acknowledgments and copyrights appear on the same page as the text and art selections they cover; these acknowledgments and copyrights constitute an extension of the copyright page. It is a violation of the law to reproduce these selections by any means whatsoever without the written permission of the copyright holder. 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 4 25/03/16 10:10 PM Photo by Mara Weible A letter from the author Dear Students: Welcome to Rules for Writers — your college writing handbook. One of the pleasures of college writing is exploring ideas and discovering what you think about a subject. You may find that the writing process leads you in unexpected directions — the more you read about a topic, the more questions arise for you to consider; new questions may lead you to challenge your initial assumptions. It is in the process of writing — of thinking in depth about ideas — that you learn what’s interesting in a subject and why you care about it. And it is through this process that you figure out not just what you think, but why you think it. Rules for Writers will be your companion throughout the writing process, helping you to develop your authority as a thoughtful and effective writer. College offers many opportunities to write and to learn from the process of writing and revising. In a criminal justice course, for example, you may be asked to write a policy memo or a legal brief; in a nursing course, you may be asked to write a case study or a nursing practice paper. To write in these courses is to learn how to think like a criminologist or a nurse and to contribute your ideas to the discipline’s important conversations and debates. As you write college papers, you’ll have questions about how to engage with other writers who have written about your topic, how to support your ideas with well-documented evidence, and how to communicate your points effectively. Rules for Writers provides the guidance you’ll need to write successful college papers in all your courses. v 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 5 7/31/15 10:20 AM As you flip through Rules for Writers, you’ll see that it’s easy to use and convenient to keep with you as you draft and revise. You’ll find answers to all your writing questions — forming a thesis, developing an argument, evaluating and citing sources, and managing information to avoid plagiarism. You’ll find documentation models and formatting advice in MLA and APA. You’ll also find answers to your questions about grammar, punctuation, and mechanics — how to tighten wordy sentences, for example, or how to use commas or quotation marks correctly. The more you rely on Rules for Writers and learn from its advice, the more successful you’ll be as a college writer. For each assignment, flag sections that contain information you need to write a successful paper. And when you get feedback on a draft, flag sections to help you address your writing challenges. Rules for Writers supports your writing in every college course. Use it. Being a successful college writer starts here. With all good wishes, vi 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 6 7/31/15 10:20 AM Making the most of your handbook Want to be successful with writing assignments in all your college courses? Using Rules for Writers is a key first step. Make the most of your handbook by turning to it whenever you’re writing, revising, conducting research, or documenting sources. You’ll find advice you can use for nearly every college writing assignment, starting with answers to common questions like these: ● How can I improve my thesis? ● How should I format a research essay in MLA style? ● What is critical reading? Why does it matter? ● How do I write a speech? 7a–7d What are multimodal texts, and how do I write about them? 5a–5e ● I’ve gotten feedback on a draft. What do I do next? 2a–2i ● How can I make my writing flow better? ● What is the right way to use an apostrophe? 36a–36e How do I know whether a source is reliable and worth my time? 52a–52e ● ● ● ● ● How should I introduce a source in my paper? 1c 57a, 57b 4a–4e, 5a–5e 3d 55c (MLA) and 60c (APA) Are there easy ways to avoid plagiarism? 54 (MLA) and 59 (APA) How do I cite online videos and social media posts? 56 (MLA) and 61 (APA) vii 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 7 7/31/15 10:20 AM ExErcisE 8–1 Revise unemphatic sentences by replacing passive verbs or be verbs with active alternatives. You may need to name in the subject the person or thing doing the action. If a sentence is emphatic, do not change it. Possible revisions appear in the back of the book. More practice: The ranger doused the campfire before giving us The campfire was doused by the ranger before we were given a ^ ticket for unauthorized use of a campsite. a. The Prussians were victorious over the Saxons in 1745. Quick b.tips for finding morebyhelp The entire operation is managed Ahmed, the producer. c. The sea kayaks were expertly paddled by the tour guides. d. At the of rocket and mortar blasts, I jumped from the top Whatever writing andcrack research questions you have, finding help in Rules bunkThe andfollowing landed onreference my buddy below, was crawling on the for Writers is easy. aids offerwho convenient, reliable looking for help for writingfloor assignments in his anyboots. course. ● ● ● ● e. There were shouting protesters on the courthouse steps. the brief and detailed contents inside the front and back covers allow you to quickly spot the help you need. 9 the index includes user-friendly terms such as “flow” to point to help with coherence. Balance parallel ideas. Color-coded MLA and APA sections give discipline-specific advice for working with sources. Directories at the beginning of each section If two or more ideas are parallel, they are easier to grasp when exlist documentation models. pressed inin parallel grammatical form.definitions Single words should be balthe glossaries the Appendixes offer useful and help anced with single words, phrases with phrases, clauses with clauses. with commonly confused or misused words such as affect and effect. If your instructor has assigned this book with for A kiss a comma, a question mark, or an exclamation Rules for Writers, usecan the be activation code to access the exercises, sample student papers, and LearningCurve game-like quizzing. Visit point. — Mistinguett macmillanhighered.com/rules8e to log in. ● ● ● 260 writing, grammar, and research exercises help you improve is notsources. to be tossed lightly aside, but to be hurled your writingThis andnovel integrate 39 sample student papers provide guidance in writing and formatting with great force. — Dorothy Parker your work in any course. 30 LearningCurve adaptive quizzes offer game-like sentence-level In let matters of principle, stand like a rock; in matters of taste, practice and you track your progress. References to swim additional support appear throughout Rules with online the current. — Thomas Jefferson for Writers. Writers often use parallelism to create emphasis. (See 14f.) macmillanhighered.com/rules8e 8 Active verbs > Exercises: 8–2 to 8–6 > LearningCurve: Active and passive voice 07_HAC_01131_PT3_125_186.indd 129 5/6/15 4:06 PM viii 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 8 7/31/15 10:20 AM Preface for instructors Dear Colleagues: As college teachers, we have an important mission. We prepare students to write for different purposes and for different audiences. We show students how to read critically and write effectively, preparing them to join ongoing research conversations as contributors (not just consumers) of ideas. In college, students learn to write, and they learn through writing. Effective writing is fundamental to academic success — across the disciplines. When you adopt Rules for Writers for your students, you send an important message: Writing is worth studying and learning. And you give students the resource to answer their questions and to learn from the answers. College writing is high stakes: Students learn to become nurses and teachers, biologists and criminal justice professionals through writing. They might focus on psychology or economics, but they’ll most likely write in each college class they take. Rules for Writers is the one text that students will need for all their college work. When students have a trusted handbook to answer their writing questions, they become more confident writers. Confident college writers are more flexible learners; they’re more willing to try new approaches, and they feel comfortable thinking critically. I recently surveyed 700 first-year writers about the relationship between handbook use and writer confidence. When students were asked about this relationship, 79% of survey participants, many of whom use Rules for Writers, reported that using a handbook made them more confident academic writers. Students reported that using Rules for Writers helped them become more efficient and effective writers than if they had simply searched the Internet for answers to their questions about comma usage, for example, or about citing and documenting sources. A Google search might call up 46 million results to their question about comma usage, but these results are often more confusing than illuminating, and never as straightforward and authoritative as the confidence-building instruction they receive from relying on Rules for Writers. Each new feature in the eighth edition is designed to answer students’ writing questions and address specific problems students face as college writers. And each new feature of Rules for Writers is designed to support your teaching with the handbook. One such feature is an emphasis on the relationship between ix 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 9 7/31/15 10:20 AM x Preface for instructors reading critically and writing effectively. The eighth edition shows students how to read carefully to understand an author’s ideas, how to read with skepticism to question those ideas, and how to present their own ideas in response. The entire academic writing section is focused on the important reading and writing relationship, because the more students learn to take from their reading, the more they have to give as writers. My goal in revising Rules for Writers was to create an even more useful classroom resource to save you time and increase students’ learning. The eighth edition is informed by teachers and students who use it and who helped me look squarely at the writing problems students face and the practical solutions they need to become confident academic writers. You’ll find new instruction on effective peer review, successful paraphrasing, accurate citation of online sources, and meaningful research — turning topics into questions; finding entry points in debates; and evaluating, integrating, and citing sources. And you’ll find step-bystep writing guides to help students write common assignments, such as an annotated bibliography. Teaching with Rules for Writers has become easier than ever. The eighth edition is now available with LaunchPad Solo for Rules for Writers — an online product with assignable exercises, sample student writing, and other resources. I’ve included “Writing Practice” prompts to help students apply handbook advice to their own drafts and to offer practice with core academic skills — thesis statements, research questions, peer review, and more. You and your students will also find videos; practice exercises for grammar, style, and citation; and LearningCurve, gamelike adaptive quizzing. As the author of Rules for Writers, I bring to this handbook the belief that writing is worth studying and learning — that all students who use this book will learn to read deeply and write clearly, that they will find in their reading ideas they care about, and that they will write about these ideas with care and depth. I am eager to share this handbook with you, knowing that in the eighth edition you’ll find everything you and your students trust and value about Rules for Writers. 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 10 7/31/15 10:20 AM Preface for instructors xi Acknowledgments I am grateful for the expertise, enthusiasm, and classroom experience that so many individuals brought to the eighth edition. Reviewers I thank those instructors who offered detailed feedback on various parts of the handbook and its supplements: Kirk Adams, Tarrant County College; Kathryn Allen, University of North Carolina– Pembroke; David Arnold, University of Wisconsin–Stevens Point; Kevin Burke, University of Delaware; Sherry Clark, Hopkinsville Community College; Kristen di Gennaro, Pace University; Marylynne Diggs, Clark College; Kimberly Dozier, College of the Desert; Candice Floyd, Prince George’s Community College; Ann Guess, Alvin Community College; Derek Handley, Community College of Allegheny County; Peter Harvan, Beachwood High School; Anne Helms, Alamance Community College; Elizabeth Joseph, Tarrant County College; Chippy McLain, Walters State Community College; L. Adam Mekler, Morgan State University; Matt Miller, Oxford High School; Candice Rowe, University of Massachusetts– Boston; Tony Russell, Central Oregon Community College; Jim Schrantz, Tarrant County College; Art Schuhart, Northern Virginia Community College; Cynthia Scurria, Alcorn State University; Alex Tavares, Hillsborough Community College; Janel Mays Thompson, Durham Technical Community College; Brandon Wallace, Montgomery College; Sander Zulauf, County College of Morris. Contributors I am grateful to the following individuals, fellow teachers of writing, for their smart revisions of important content: Kimberli Huster, ESL Specialist at Robert Morris University, updated the advice for multilingual writers, and Sara McCurry, Instructor of English at Shasta College, coauthored the second edition of Teaching with Hacker Handbooks with Jonathan Cullick, Professor of English and Chair of the Department of English at Northern Kentucky University. Students I would like to thank the following students who have let us adapt their papers as models: Ned Bishop, Sophie Harba, Sam 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 11 7/31/15 10:20 AM xii Preface for instructors Jacobs, Luisa Mirano, Michelle Nguyen, Emilia Sanchez, and Ren Yoshida. Thanks also to Alyson D’Amato and Marisa Williamson for permission to use their multimodal projects as models. Bedford/St. Martin’s A comprehensive handbook is a collaborative writing project, and it is my pleasure to acknowledge and thank the enormously talented Bedford/St. Martin’s editorial team, whose deep commitment to students informs each new feature of Rules for Writers. Edwin Hill, vice president for the humanities, Leasa Burton, publisher for composition, and Karen Henry, editorial director for English, have helped shape the handbook’s identity and have guided us with their insights about how the college handbook market is changing and how we can continue to meet the needs of today’s college writer. Michelle Clark, executive editor, is a treasured friend and colleague and an endless source of creativity and clarity. Michelle combines wisdom with patience and imagination with practicality. Mara Weible, senior editor, brings to the eighth edition her superb editorial judgment and her teacher’s sensibility. It is a deep personal and professional pleasure to work with an editor as thoughtful and talented as Mara. Her creativity has shaped the eighth edition and made it an even more practical and innovative handbook. Barbara Flanagan, senior media editor, has worked on the Hacker handbooks for more than 25 years and brings attention to detail, keen insights, and unrivaled expertise in documentation and media. Thanks to Stephanie Thomas, assistant editor, for help with art and permissions, for managing the review process, and for developing several ancillaries. Many thanks to Gregory Erb, senior production editor, for keeping us on schedule and for producing the book with skill and care. And I am grateful to the media team — especially media producer Allison Hart — for creating engaging media for the writing course. Practical advice from Bedford colleagues Emily Rowin, Brendan Baruth, Jimmy Fleming, and Nick Carbone, who, like me, spend many, many hours on the road and in faculty offices, is always treasured. Thanks to Hilly van Loon, copy editor, for her thoroughness and attention to detail; to Claire Seng-Niemoeller, text designer, who crafted another open and beautifully designed edition of the book; and to William Boardman, art director, who has given the book a strikingly beautiful cover. 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 12 7/31/15 10:20 AM Preface for instructors xiii Last, but never least, I offer thanks to my own students who, over many years, have shaped my teaching and helped me understand their challenges in becoming college writers. Thanks to my friends and colleagues Suzanne Lane, Maxine Rodburg, Laura Saltz, and Kerry Walk for sustaining conversations about the teaching of writing. And thanks to my family: to Joshua Alper, an attentive reader of life and literature, for his steadfastness across the drafts; to my parents, Walter and Louise Sommers, and my aunt Elsie Adler, who encouraged me to write and set me forth on a career of writing and teaching; to my extended family, Ron, Charles Mary, Alexander, Demian, Devin, Liz, Kate, and Sam for their good humor and good cheer; and to Rachel and Curran, to Alexandra and Brian, witty and wise beyond measure, always generous with their instruction and inspiration in all things that matter. And to Lailah Dragonfly, my granddaughter, thanks for the joy and sweetness you bring to life. Nancy Sommers 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 13 7/31/15 10:20 AM xiv Preface for instructors Welcome to the eighth edition Rules for Writers speaks to everything student writers need. Many students want to turn to popular search engines for quick answers, but the real shortcut is right in their hands. Rules for Writers provides authoritative, trustworthy advice that’s easy to understand and apply. No guesswork involved. And while writing-related resources on the Web offer information (sometimes accurate, sometimes not), they don’t offer the instruction students will find in their handbook. With the eighth edition, students have access to reference content that has been classtested by millions of students, along with the following new content to meet their evolving needs. An emphasis on critical reading The second section of Rules for Writers — Academic Reading, Writing, and Speaking — has been substantially revised to emphasize the importance of reading to college research and writing. The handbook offers students a reading process, teaching them to analyze various types of texts, sources they discover through research, their own writing, and the work of their peers. Help with analyzing multimodal texts A new chapter, “Reading and writing about multimodal texts” (pp. 80–91), introduces new genres and practical strategies for analysis. Writing guides throughout Rules for Writers (see pp. 76–77 for an example) help students work through college assignments in a variety of genres. New annotated sample papers provide helpful models. More help for composing in a variety of genres Practical advice for public speaking A new chapter, “Speaking confidently” (pp. 119–23), helps students develop effective oral communication strategies, whether they’re writing a speech from scratch or turning a paper into a presentation. More help with peer review and revising with comments A new chapter, “Revising, editing, and reflecting” (pp. 30–49), advises students on giving and receiving comments on assignments and applying feedback to revisions of their own work. Substantially revised sections teach students to find an entry point in a debate and develop authority as a researcher. Students will find new practical advice for writing a research proposal. Rules for Writers now includes more than 200 documentation models for sources in MLA and APA styles. And because some sources are especially Research and documentation help for every course 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 14 7/31/15 10:20 AM e. There were shouting protesters on the courthouse steps. 9 Balance parallel ideas. If two or more ideas are parallel, they are easier to grasp when expressed in parallel grammatical form. Single should bexv balPreface words for instructors anced with single words, phrases with phrases, clauses with clauses. hard to cite, new how-to boxes address tricky issues such as auA kiss can be a comma, a question mark, or an exclamation thorship of reposted online content. for Rules for Writers — handbook-specific online point. — Mistinguett assignments and exercises LaunchPad Solo isfor Writers, This novel notRules to be for tossed lightlyavailable aside, but free to bewhen hurledpackaged with the print text, includes 36 interactive writing prompts great force. — Dorothyand Parker relatedwith to specific handbook content; 260 writing, grammar, research exercises; 39 additional sample student papers in MLA and APA styles; and 30 adaptive quizzes. Targeted In matters of principle, standLearningCurve like a rock; in matters of taste, cross-references throughout the handbook connect you and your students to with related resources in LaunchPad Solo—for RulesJefferson for swim the current. Thomas Writers. ISBN 978-1-319-08691-6 Writers often use parallelism to create emphasis. (See 14f.) macmillanhighered.com/rules8e 8 Active verbs > Exercises: 8–2 to 8–6 > LearningCurve: Active and passive voice Writer’s Help 2.0 for Hacker Handbooks — a complete online handbook, and more For searchable, assignable Hacker handbook content online, you can package Rules for Writers with Writer’s Help 2.0 for Hacker Handbooks. Instead of turning to Google for hit-or-miss advice, students can search Writer’s Help 2.0 for the same straightforward, reliable content they find in their handbook as well as exercises, videos, and additional coverage of topics such as writing in the disciplines and analyzing and composing multimodal texts. With Writer’s Help 2.0, you can assign online pages and activities and track students’ use and progress. User-friendly help for college writers also means useful data for instructors and administrators — two benefits of Writer’s Help 2.0 for Hacker Handbooks. ISBN 978-1-319-08690-9 07_HAC_01131_PT3_125_186.indd 129 5/6/15 4:06 PM LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers — prebuilt teaching and learning units Rules for Writers can be packaged with LaunchPad Solo for Readers and Writers, which provides multimedia content and assessments — including LearningCurve adaptive quizzing — organized into prebuilt, curated units for easy assigning and assessment of student progress. ISBN 978-1-319-08662-6 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 15 23/03/16 9:40 PM xvi Preface for instructors Supplements and media Visit the catalog page for Rules for Writers to see a complete list of instructor supplements, including Teaching with Hacker Handbooks, student supplements, e-books (various formats), and other media: macmillanhighered.com/rules/catalog. Custom solutions Many schools opt for a custom edition of Rules for Writers. Some programs choose to add a section about course outcomes and policies; others choose to customize by adding sample writing by their own students. Custom covers with the school’s name and school colors or a photo help emphasize that the handbook provides advice students can count on in all their courses, across the disciplines and throughout their college careers. 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 16 7/31/15 10:20 AM Contents Preface for instructors  ix The Writing Process 1 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting a b c d e f g h 3 Assess the writing situation. 3 Explore your subject. 12 Draft and revise a working thesis statement. Draft a plan. 19 Draft an introduction. 22 Draft the body. 24 Draft a conclusion. 25 Manage your files. 29 2 Revising, editing, and reflecting 14 30 a b c d See revision as a social process. 30 Use peer review: Revise with comments. 30 Use peer review: Give constructive comments. 33 Highlights of one student’s peer review process 35 SAMPLE ROUGH DRAFT WITH PEER COMMENTS 35 e Approach global revision in cycles. 38 f Revise and edit sentences. 43 g Proofread the final manuscript. 44 h Sample student revision 45 SAMPLE REVISED LITERACY NARRATIVE  45 i Prepare a portfolio; reflect on your writing. 48 3 Building effective paragraphs a b c d e 49 Focus on a main point. 49 Develop the main point. 52 Choose a suitable pattern of organization. 52 Make paragraphs coherent. 59 If necessary, adjust paragraph length. 63 xvii 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 17 7/31/15 10:20 AM xviii Contents Academic Reading, Writing, and Speaking 4 Reading and writing critically 65 66 a Read actively. 66 Sample annotated article 67 b Outline a text to identify main ideas. 71 c Summarize to deepen your understanding. 72 d Analyze to demonstrate your critical reading. 73 Writing guide: Analytical essay  76 e Sample student writing: Analysis of an article 77 Sample analysis paper  78 5 Reading and writing about multimodal texts 80 a Read actively. 81 83 Outline to identify main ideas. 84 Summarize to deepen your understanding. 85 Analyze to demonstrate your critical reading. 86 Sample student writing: Analysis of an advertisement Sample analysis of an advertisement 88 Sample annotated advertisement b c d e 6 Reading and writing arguments 88 91 a Distinguish between reasonable and fallacious argumentative tactics. 92 b Distinguish between legitimate and unfair emotional appeals. 98 c Judge how fairly a writer handles opposing views. 100 d When writing arguments, consider purpose and context. 103 e View your audience as a panel of jurors. 103 f In your introduction, establish credibility and state your position. 105 g Back up your thesis with persuasive lines of argument. 106 h Support your claims with specific evidence. 107 i Anticipate objections; counter opposing arguments. 109 j Build common ground. 111 k Sample student writing: Argument 111 Sample argument paper  112 Writing guide: Argument essay  118 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 18 7/31/15 10:20 AM Contents 7 Speaking confidently a b c d 119 Identify your purpose, audience, and context. Prepare a presentation. 120 Focus on delivery. 122 Remix an essay for a presentation. 123 Clarity xix 120 125 8 Prefer active verbs. 126 a Active versus passive verbs 126 b Active versus be verbs 127 c Subject that names the actor 128 9 Balance parallel ideas. 129 a Parallel ideas in a series 130 b Parallel ideas presented as pairs 130 c Repetition of function words 132 10 Add needed words. a b c d 133 In compound structures that 134 In comparisons 134 a, an, and the 136 133 11 Untangle mixed constructions. 137 a Mixed grammar 137 b Illogical connections 138 c is when, is where, and reason . . . is because 139 12 Repair misplaced and dangling modifiers. a b c d e 13 Eliminate distracting shifts. a b c d 140 Limiting modifiers 140 Misplaced phrases and clauses 141 Awkwardly placed modifiers 142 Split infinitives 142 Dangling modifiers 144 147 Point of view (person, number) 147 Verb tense 148 Verb mood, voice 149 Indirect to direct questions or quotations 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 19 150 7/31/15 10:20 AM xx Contents 14 Emphasize key ideas. a b c d e f 152 Coordination and subordination 152 Choppy sentences 157 Ineffective or excessive coordination 158 Ineffective subordination 160 Excessive subordination 160 Other techniques 162 15 Provide some variety. 163 a Sentence openings 163 b Sentence structures 164 c Inverted order 164 16 Tighten wordy sentences. a b c d e 166 Redundancies 166 Unnecessary repetition 166 Empty or inflated phrases 167 Simplifying the structure 168 Reducing clauses to phrases, phrases to single words 169 17 Choose appropriate language. a b c d e f 18 Find the exact words. a b c d e f Connotations 180 Specific, concrete nouns Misused words 181 Standard idioms 182 Clichés 184 Figures of speech 185 Grammar 180 181 187 19 Repair sentence fragments. a b c d 170 Jargon 171 Pretentious language, euphemisms, “doublespeak” 171 Slang, regional expressions, nonstandard English 174 Levels of formality 175 Sexist language 176 Offensive language 179 Subordinate clauses 190 Phrases 191 Other fragmented word groups Acceptable fragments 194 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 20 188 192 7/31/15 10:20 AM Contents 20 Revise run-on sentences. a b c d Revision Revision Revision Revision xxi 195 with coordinating conjunction 197 with semicolon, colon, or dash 198 by separating sentences 199 by restructuring 200 21 Make subjects and verbs agree. 202 a b c d Standard subject-verb combinations 202 Words between subject and verb 202 Subjects joined with and 203 Subjects joined with or, nor, either . . . or, or neither . . . nor 206 e Indefinite pronouns 206 f Collective nouns 207 g Subject following verb 209 h Subject, not subject complement 209 i who, which, and that 210 j Words with plural form, singular meaning 211 k Titles of works, company names, words mentioned as words, gerund phrases 211 22 Make pronouns and antecedents agree. 213 a Singular with singular, plural with plural (indefinite pronouns, generic nouns) 213 b Collective nouns 215 c Antecedents joined with and 215 d Antecedents joined with or, nor, either . . . or, or neither . . . nor 216 23 Make pronoun references clear. a b c d e 218 Ambiguous or remote reference 218 Broad reference of this, that, which, and it 219 Implied antecedents 219 Indefinite use of they, it, and you 220 who for persons, which or that for things 221 24 Distinguish between pronouns such as I and me. 222 a Subjective case for subjects and subject b c d e f g complements 223 Objective case for objects 223 Appositives 224 Pronoun following than or as 225 we or us before a noun 225 Subjects and objects of infinitives 225 Pronoun modifying a gerund 226 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 21 7/31/15 10:20 AM xxii Contents 25 Distinguish between who and whom. 227 a In subordinate clauses 228 b In questions 229 c As subjects or objects of infinitives 229 26 Choose adjectives and adverbs with care. a b c d e 230 Adjectives to modify nouns 231 Adverbs to modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs good and well, bad and badly 233 Comparatives and superlatives 234 Double negatives 235 232 27 Choose appropriate verb forms, tenses, and moods in Standard English. a b c d e f g 237 Irregular verbs 237 lie and lay 241 -s (or -es) endings 242 -ed endings 245 Omitted verbs 246 Verb tense 247 Subjunctive mood 252 Multilingual Writers and ESL Challenges 28 Verbs a b c d e f 256 Appropriate form and tense 256 Passive voice 259 Base form after a modal 261 Negative verb forms 264 Verbs in conditional sentences 265 Verbs followed by gerunds or infinitives 29 Articles a b c d e f 255 267 270 Articles and other noun markers 270 When to use the 271 When to use a or an 274 When not to use a or an 276 No articles with general nouns 277 Articles with proper nouns 277 30 Sentence structure 279 a Linking verb between a subject and its complement 280 b A subject in every sentence 280 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 22 7/31/15 10:20 AM Contents xxiii c Repeated nouns or pronouns with the same grammatical d e f g h function 281 Repeated subjects, objects, and adverbs in adjective clauses 282 Mixed constructions with although or because 283 Placement of adverbs 284 Present participles and past participles as adjectives 285 Order of cumulative adjectives 287 31 Prepositions and idiomatic expressions a b c d 288 Prepositions showing time and place 288 Noun (including -ing form) after a preposition 290 Common adjective + preposition combinations 291 Common verb + preposition combinations 291 Punctuation 32 The comma 293 294 a b c d e f Independent clauses joined with and, but, etc. 294 Introductory elements 295 Items in a series 297 Coordinate adjectives 297 Nonrestrictive and restrictive elements 299 Transitions, parenthetical expressions, absolute phrases, contrasts 303 g Direct address, yes and no, interrogative tags, interjections h he said etc. 305 i Dates, addresses, titles, numbers 306 j To prevent confusion 307 33 Unnecessary commas 305 308 a b c d Between two words, phrases, or subordinate clauses 308 Between a verb and its subject or object 309 Before the first or after the last item in a series 309 Between cumulative adjectives, an adjective and a noun, or an adverb and an adjective 309 e Before and after restrictive or parenthetical elements 310 f Before essential concluding adverbial elements 310 g After a phrase beginning an inverted sentence 311 h Other misuses 311 34 The semicolon 313 a Between independent clauses not joined with a coordinating conjunction 313 b Between independent clauses linked with a transitional expression 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 23 314 7/31/15 10:20 AM xxiv Contents c In a series containing internal punctuation 315 d Misuses 315 35 The colon 317 a Before a list, an appositive, or a quotation 317 b Conventional uses 318 c Misuses 318 36 The apostrophe a b c d e 319 Possessive nouns 319 Possessive indefinite pronouns 320 Contractions 321 Not for plural numbers, letters, abbreviations, words as words 321 Misuses 322 37 Quotation marks a b c d e f 323 Direct quotations 324 Quotation within a quotation 325 Titles of short works 325 Words as words 325 With other punctuation marks 326 Misuses 328 38 End punctuation 330 a The period 330 b The question mark 331 c The exclamation point 331 39 Other punctuation marks a b c d e Mechanics 337 40 Abbreviations a b c d e 332 The dash 332 Parentheses 333 Brackets 334 The ellipsis mark 334 The slash 335 338 Titles with proper names 338 Familiar abbreviations 338 Conventional abbreviations 339 Units of measurement 339 Latin abbreviations 340 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 24 7/31/15 10:20 AM Contents xxv f Plural of abbreviations 340 g Misuses 340 41 Numbers 341 a Spelling out 341 b Using numerals 342 42 Italics a b c d 43 Spelling a b c d 343 Titles of works 343 Names of ships, spacecraft, and aircraft 344 Foreign words 344 Words as words, letters as letters, numbers as numbers 345 Spelling rules 345 The dictionary 347 Words that sound alike 351 Commonly misspelled words 351 44 The hyphen a b c d e f 353 Compound words 353 Hyphenated adjectives 354 Fractions and compound numbers 354 With certain prefixes and suffixes 355 To avoid ambiguity or to separate awkward double or triple letters 355 Word division 355 45 Capitalization a b c d e f 356 Proper vs. common nouns 356 Titles with proper names 358 Titles and subtitles of works 358 First word of a sentence 359 First word of a quoted sentence 359 First word after a colon 359 Grammar Basics 361 46 Parts of speech 362 a b c d 344 Nouns 362 Pronouns 363 Verbs 365 Adjectives 367 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 25 7/31/15 10:20 AM xxvi Contents e f g h Adverbs 368 Prepositions 369 Conjunctions 370 Interjections 371 47 Sentence patterns 375 a Subjects 375 b Verbs, objects, and complements 378 c Pattern variations 382 48 Subordinate word groups a b c d e 383 Prepositional phrases 384 Verbal phrases 385 Appositive phrases 388 Absolute phrases 388 Subordinate clauses 389 49 Sentence types 392 a Sentence structures 392 b Sentence purposes 394 Research 395 50 Thinking like a researcher; gathering sources a b c d e f 396 Manage the project. 396 Pose questions worth exploring. 398 Map out a search strategy. 401 Search efficiently; master a few shortcuts to finding good sources. 402 Conduct field research, if appropriate. 406 Write a research proposal. 408 51 Managing information; taking notes responsibly 408 a Maintain a working bibliography. 409 b Keep track of source materials. 410 c Take notes carefully to avoid unintentional plagiarism. 410 52 Evaluating sources a b c d 416 Think about how sources might contribute to your writing. Select sources worth your time and attention. 418 Select appropriate versions of online sources. 421 Read with an open mind and a critical eye. 422 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 26 416 7/31/15 10:20 AM Contents xxvii e Assess Web sources with care. 424 f Construct an annotated bibliography. 427 Writing guide: Annotated bibliography  428 Writing Papers in MLA Style 53 Supporting a thesis a b c d e 431 435 Form a working thesis. 435 Organize your ideas. 436 Use sources to inform and support your argument. Draft an introduction for your thesis. 439 Draft the paper in an appropriate voice. 440 54 Citing sources; avoiding plagiarism 437 441 a Understand how the MLA system works. 441 b Avoid plagiarism when quoting, summarizing, and paraphrasing sources. 442 55 Integrating sources a b c d 445 Summarize and paraphrase effectively. 446 Use quotations effectively. 447 Use signal phrases to integrate sources. 450 Synthesize sources. 454 56 Documenting sources in MLA style 458 a MLA in-text citations 458 b MLA list of works cited 468 c MLA information notes 512 57 MLA manuscript format; sample research paper 513 a MLA manuscript format 513 b Sample MLA research paper 516 Writing Papers in APA Style 58 Supporting a thesis 527 530 a Form a working thesis. 530 b Organize your ideas. 531 c Use sources to inform and support your argument. 532 59 Citing sources; avoiding plagiarism 534 a Understand how the APA system works. 534 b Avoid plagiarism when quoting, summarizing, and paraphrasing sources. 535 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 27 7/31/15 10:20 AM xxviii Contents 60 Integrating sources a b c d 537 Summarize and paraphrase effectively. 538 Use quotations effectively. 539 Use signal phrases to integrate sources. 541 Synthesize sources. 545 61 Documenting sources in APA style 546 a APA in-text citations 547 b APA list of works cited 553 62 APA manuscript format; sample paper 580 a APA manuscript format 581 b Sample APA research paper 584 Appendixes 597 A document design gallery Glossary of usage 608 597 Answers to lettered exercises  622 Index 636 01_HAC_01131_SE_FM_i_xxviii.indd 28 7/31/15 10:20 AM The Writing Process 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting, 3 2 Revising, editing, and reflecting, 30 Student writing: Highlights of one student’s peer review process, 35 Student writing: Revised literacy narrative, 45 3 Building effective paragraphs, 49 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 1 5/18/15 12:01 PM draft 2 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting College offers many opportunities to write and learn from the process of writing and revising. As you write, you will read and respond to what others have written, use evidence to support your ideas, and develop your ability to think carefully and creatively. In a sociology class, you might be asked to write a field report; in a nursing class, a case study; and in a literature class, a critical analysis. By writing in these classes, you contribute your ideas and join thinkers and writers who share interests, ideas, and ways of communicating with one another. Developing the following habits of mind — curiosity, engagement, responsibility, and reflection — will help you write successfully in all of your college courses. Be curious. Good college writing starts with curiosity. What issues intrigue you? What questions need to be explored? Writing is more interesting and rewarding when you explore questions you don’t have answers to, questions that matter to you and to those in the discipline in which you are writing. Writing is a social activity that brings you into conversations with scholars, instructors, classmates, librarians, and writing center tutors. Reading actively allows you to consider and respond to the ideas of other writers. Participating in classroom or online discussions deepens your thinking and gives you opportunities to engage with your peers. Effective college writers reach out to readers who can help shape their work in progress. Be engaged. Engaging with the ideas of other writers and thinkers requires responsibility — to represent their ideas accurately and honestly and to acknowledge their contributions to your work. By giving credit to your sources and differentiating your own ideas from those of your sources, you encourage your readers to trust you and take you seriously. Be responsible. Be reflective. Being reflective in a writing class often means stopping to think about your own writing habits or approaches to writing assignments. By examining your decisions, successes, and challenges, you’ll be able to figure out what’s working and what needs more work and to transfer skills from one writing assignment to the next. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 2 5/4/15 10:47 AM 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting Writing is a process of figuring out what you think, not a matter of recording already developed thoughts. Since it’s not possible to think about everything all at once, you’ll find the process more manageable if you handle a piece of writing in stages. You will generally move from planning to drafting to revising, but as your ideas develop, you will find yourself circling back and returning to earlier stages. Before composing a first draft, spend some time generating ideas. Mull over your subject while listening to music, taking a walk, or driving to work; or jot down inspirations or explore your questions with a willing listener. Consider these questions: What do you find puzzling, striking, or interesting about your subject? What would you like to know more about? Be curious and open to new ideas and different points of view. Explore questions you don’t have answers to. 1a Assess the writing situation. Begin by taking a look at your writing situation. The key elements of a writing situation include the following: • • • • • • subject purpose audience genre sources of information constraints (length, document design, reviewers, deadlines) It is likely that you will make final decisions about all of these matters later in the writing process — after a first draft, for example — but you will become a more effective writer if you think about as many of them as possible in advance. For a quick checklist, see the chart on pages 4–5. 3 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 3 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 1a 4 Exploring, planning, and drafting checklist for assessing the writing situation Subject ● ● ● ● Has the subject (or a range of possible subjects) been assigned to you, or are you free to choose your own? What interests you about your subject? What questions would you like to explore? Why is your subject worth writing about? How might readers benefit? Do you need to narrow your subject (because of length restrictions, for instance)? Purpose and audience ● ● ● ● Why are you writing: To inform readers? To persuade them? To call them to action? To offer an interpretation of a text? Do you have more than one purpose for writing? Who are your readers? How well informed are they about the subject? What do you want them to learn? How interested and attentive are your readers likely to be? Will they resist any of your ideas? What possible objections will you need to anticipate and counter? What is your relationship to your readers: Student to instructor? Citizen to citizen? Expert to novice? Employee to supervisor? Genre ● ● ● ● ● What genre (type of writing) does your assignment require: A report? A proposal? An analysis of data? An essay? If the genre is not assigned, what genre is appropriate for your subject, purpose, and audience? What are the expectations and conventions of your assigned genre? For instance, what type of evidence is typically used in the genre? Does the genre require a specific design format or method of organization? Does the genre require or benefit from visuals, such as photos, drawings, or graphs? Sources of information ● Where will your information come from: Reading? Research? Direct observation? Interviews? Questionnaires? 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 4 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Assess the writing situation ● ● 1a 5 What type of evidence suits your subject, purpose, audience, and genre? What documentation style is required: MLA? APA? Length and format ● ● Do you have any length specifications? If not, what length seems appropriate, given your subject, purpose, audience, and genre? Is a particular format required? If so, do you have guidelines to follow or examples to consult? Deadlines ● What are your deadlines? How much time will you need to allow for the various stages of writing, including proofreading and printing or posting the final draft? academic english What counts as good writing varies from culture to culture and even among groups within cultures. In some situations, you will need to become familiar with the writing styles — such as direct or indirect, personal or impersonal, plain or embellished — that are valued by the culture or discipline for which you are writing. Subject Frequently your subject will be given to you. In a psychology class, for example, you might be asked to discuss Bruno Bettelheim’s Freudian analysis of fairy tales. In a composition course, assignments often ask you to analyze texts and evaluate arguments. In the business world, you may be assigned to draft a marketing plan. When you are free to choose your own subject, let your own curiosity focus your choice. Make connections between yourself and what you are learning. If you are studying television, radio, and the Internet in a communications course, for example, you might ask yourself which of these subjects interests you most. Perhaps you want to learn more about the role streaming video can play in activism and social change. Look through your readings and class notes to see if you can identify questions you’d like to explore further in an essay. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 5 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 1a 6 Exploring, planning, and drafting Make sure that you can reasonably investigate your subject in the space you have. If you are limited to a few pages, for example, you could not do justice to a broad subject such as “videos as agents of social change.” You could, however, focus on one aspect of the subject — perhaps contradictory claims about the effectiveness of creating video content for small, specific audiences. If your interest in a subject stems from your personal experience, you will want to ask what it is about your experience that would interest your audience and why. For example, if you have volunteered at a homeless shelter, you might have spent some time talking to homeless children and learning about their needs. Perhaps you can use your experience to broaden your readers’ understanding of the issues, to persuade an organization to fund an after-school program for homeless children, or to propose changes in legislation. Whether or not you choose your own subject, it’s important to be aware of the expectations of each writing situation. The following chart suggests ways to interpret assignments. understanding an assignment Determining the purpose of an assignment The wording of an assignment may suggest its purpose. You might be expected to do one or more of the following in a college writing assignment: ● ● ● ● summarize information from course materials or research (See 4c.) analyze ideas and concepts (See 4d.) take a position on a topic and defend it with evidence (See 6h.) synthesize (combine ideas from) several sources and create an original argument (See 55d and 60d.) Understanding how to answer an assignment’s question Many assignments will ask you to answer a how or why question. You cannot answer such questions using only facts; instead, you will need to take a position. For example, the question “What are the survival rates for leukemia patients?” can be answered with facts. The question “Why are the survival rates for leukemia patients in one state lower than those in a neighboring state?” must be answered with both a claim and facts. If a list of questions appears in the assignment, be careful — instructors rarely expect you to answer all the questions in order. Look instead for topics or themes that will help you ask your own questions. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 6 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Assess the writing situation 1a 7 Recognizing implied questions When you are asked to discuss, analyze, agree or disagree with, or consider a topic, your instructor will often expect you to answer a how or why question. Discuss the effects of the No = How has the No Child Left Child Left Behind Act on special Behind Act affected special education programs. education programs? Consider the recent rise of = Why are diagnoses of attention attention deficit hyperactivity deficit hyperactivity disorder disorder diagnoses. rising? purpose Your purpose, or reason for writing, will often be dictated by your writing situation. Perhaps you have been asked to draft a proposal requesting funding for a student organization, to report the results of a psychology experiment, or to write about the controversy surrounding genetically modified foods for the school newspaper. Even though your overall purpose may be fairly obvious in such situations, a closer look at the assignment can help you make some necessary decisions. How detailed should the proposal be? How technical does your psychology professor expect your report to be? Do you want to inform students about the controversy surrounding genetically modified foods or to change their attitudes toward it? In many writing situations, part of your challenge will be discovering a purpose. Asking yourself why readers should care about what you are saying can help you decide what your purpose might be. Perhaps your subject is magnet schools — schools that draw students from different neighborhoods because of features such as advanced science classes or a concentration on the arts. If you have discussed magnet schools in class, a description of how these schools work probably will not interest you or your readers. But maybe you have discovered that your county’s magnet schools are not promoting diversity as had been planned, and you want to call your readers to action. Although no precise guidelines will lead you to a purpose, you can begin by asking, “Why am I writing?” and “What is my goal?” Identify which one or more of the following aims you hope to accomplish. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 7 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 8 1a Exploring, planning, and drafting PURPOSES FOR WRITING to inform to evaluate to persuade to recommend to entertain to request to call readers to action to propose to change attitudes to provoke thought to analyze to express feelings to argue to summarize to reflect to synthesize Writers often misjudge their own purposes, summarizing when they should be analyzing, or expressing feelings about problems instead of proposing solutions. Before beginning any writing task, pause to ask, “Why am I communicating with my readers?” This question will lead you to another important question: “Just who are my readers?” audience Take time to ask questions about your readers and their expectations. Consider questions such as these: Who will be reading your draft? What is your relationship to your readers? What information will your audience need to understand your ideas? The choices you make as you write will tell readers who you think they are (novices or experts, for example) and will show respect for your readers’ perspectives. In college writing, considerations of audience can be more complex than they seem at first. Your instructors will read your essay, of course, but most instructors play multiple roles while reading. Their first and most obvious roles are as coach and evaluator; but they are also intelligent and objective readers, the kind of people who might be informed or called to action by what you have to say and who want to learn from your insights and ideas. academic audiences Writers in the business world often find themselves writing for multiple audiences. A letter to a client, for instance, might be distributed to sales representatives as well. Readers of a report might include people with and without Business audiences 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 8 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Assess the writing situation 1a 9 technical expertise, or readers who want details and those who prefer a quick overview. public audiences Writers in communities often write to a specific audience — a legislative representative, readers of a local newspaper, fellow members of a social group. With public writing, it is more likely that you are familiar with the views your readers hold and the assumptions they make, so you may be better able to judge how to engage those readers. For help with audience when composing e-mail messages, see the following chart. considering audience when writing e-mail messages In academic, business, and public contexts, you will want to show readers that you value their time. Here are some strategies for writing effective e-mails: ● ● ● ● ● Use a concise, meaningful subject line to help readers sort messages and set priorities. State your main point at the beginning so that your reader sees it without scrolling. Write concisely; keep paragraphs short. Avoid writing in all capital letters or all lowercase letters. Proofread for typos and obvious errors that are likely to slow down readers. You will also want to follow conventions of etiquette and academic integrity. Here are some strategies for writing responsible e-mails: ● ● ● ● E-mail messages can easily be forwarded to others and reproduced. Do not write anything that you would not want attributed to you. Do not forward another person’s message without asking his or her permission. If you write an e-mail message that includes someone else’s words — opinions, statistics, song lyrics, and so forth — let your reader know the source for that material and where any borrowed material begins and ends. Choose your words carefully because e-mail messages can easily be misread. Without hearing your voice or seeing your facial gestures or body language, readers can misunderstand your message. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 9 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 10 1a Exploring, planning, and drafting genre When writing for a college course, pay close attention to the genre, or type of writing, assigned. Each genre is a category of writing meant for a specific purpose and audience, with its own set of agreed-upon expectations and conventions for style, structure, and document design. Sometimes an assignment specifies the genre — an essay in a writing class, a policy memo in a criminal justice class, or an executive summary in a business class. Sometimes the genre is yours to choose, and you need to decide if a particular genre — a poster presentation, an audio essay, a Web page, or a podcast, for example — will help you communicate your purpose and reach readers. If the genre has been assigned, the following questions will help you figure out how to present your ideas: • Do you have access to sample projects in the genre that has been assigned? • Who is the audience? What specialized vocabulary do readers expect in the genre? • What type of evidence is usually required in the genre? • What format, organization, and citation style are expected? If you are free to choose the genre, consider the following questions when deciding which genre to use: • What is your purpose: To argue a position? To instruct? To present a process? To inspire? To propose? Do you have more than one purpose? • Who is your audience? What do you know about your readers or viewers? • What method of presenting information would appeal to your audience: Reasoned paragraphs? Diagrams? Video? Slides? Sources of information Where will your evidence — facts, details, and examples — come from? What kind of reading, observation, or research is necessary to meet the expectations of your assignment? 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 10 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Assess the writing situation 1a 11 Reading is an important way to deepen your understanding of a topic and expand your perspective. It will be your primary source of information for many college assignments. Read with an open mind to learn from the insights and research of others. Take notes on your thoughts, impressions, and questions. Your notes can be a way to enter a conversation with the authors of the texts you read. (See 51c.) And always keep careful records of any sources you read and consult. (See 51c.) Reading Observation Observation is an excellent means of collecting information about a wide range of subjects, such as gender relationships on a popular television program, the clichéd language of sports announcers, or a current exhibit at the local art museum. For such subjects, do not rely on your memory alone; your information will be fresher and more detailed if you actively collect it, with a notebook, laptop, or voice recorder. Interviews and questionnaires Interviews and questionnaires can supply detailed and interesting information on many subjects. A nursing student interested in the care of terminally ill patients might interview hospice nurses, for example. It is a good idea to record interviews to preserve any vivid quotations that you might want to weave into your essay. Circulating questionnaires by e-mail or on a Web site will facilitate responses. Keep questions simple, and specify a deadline to ensure that you get a reasonable number of replies. Length and format Writers seldom have complete control over length requirements. Journalists usually write within strict word limits set by their editors, businesspeople routinely aim for conciseness, and most college assignments specify an approximate length. Your writing situation may also require a certain format. In the academic world, you may need to learn precise disciplinary and genre conventions for formatting lab reports, critiques, research papers, and so on. For most undergraduate essays, a standard academic format is acceptable. (See pp. 597–607.) 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 11 6/2/15 9:46 AM draft 12 1b Exploring, planning, and drafting Narrow three of the following subjects into topics that would be manageable for an essay of two to five pages. eXerciSe 1–1 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Treatments for mental illness An experience with racism or sexism Cyberbullying Images of women in video games Public health care eXerciSe 1–2 lowing subjects. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Suggest a purpose and an audience for three of the folMore practice: Genetic modification of cash crops Government housing for military veterans The future of print magazines Working with special needs children Hybrid cars 1b Explore your subject. Experiment with one or more techniques for exploring your subject and discovering your purpose: talking and listening; reading and annotating texts; asking questions; brainstorming and freewriting; keeping a journal; blogging. Whatever technique you turn to, the goal is the same: to generate ideas that will lead you to a question, a problem, or a topic that you want to explore further. talking and listening Conversation can help you develop your ideas before you begin to write them down. By talking and listening to others, you can also discover what they find interesting, what they are curious about, and where they disagree with you. If you are planning to develop an argument, you can try it out on listeners with other points of view. macmillanhighered.com/rules8e 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting > Writing practice: Exploring a subject > Exercise: 1–3 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 12 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Explore your subject 1b 13 reading and annotating texts Reading is an important way to deepen your understanding of a topic, learn from the insights and research of others, and expand your perspective. Annotating a text, written or visual, encourages you to read actively — to highlight key concepts, to note contradictions in an argument, or to raise questions for further research and investigation. asking questions Whenever you are writing about ideas, events, or people, whether current or historical, asking questions is one way to get started. You might try the questions journalists routinely ask themselves: Who? What? When? Where? Why? and How? If you were writing about a negative reaction to a film, for instance, you might want to ask — Who objected to the film and why? What were the objections and when were they voiced? Such questions will help you investigate your subject to discover important facts. In academic writing, scholars often generate ideas by posing questions related to a specific discipline. If you are writing in a particular discipline, try to find out which questions its scholars typically explore. Look for clues in assigned readings, assignments, and class discussions to understand how a discipline’s questions help you understand its concerns. Brainstorming and freewriting Brainstorming and freewriting are good ways to figure out what you know and what questions you have. Write whatever comes to mind without pausing to think about word choice, spelling, or even meaning. The goal is to write quickly and freely to discover what questions are on your mind and what directions you might pursue. Keeping a journal A journal is a collection of informal, exploratory, sometimes experimental writing. In a journal, often meant for your eyes only, you can take risks. You might freewrite, pose questions, comment on an interesting idea from one of your classes, or keep a list of questions that occur to you while reading. You might imagine a conversation between yourself and your readers or stage a debate to understand opposing positions. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 13 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 14 1c Exploring, planning, and drafting Blogging Although a blog is a type of journal, it is a public writing space rather than a private one. You can explore an idea for a paper by blogging about it in different ways or from different angles. Since most blogs have a commenting feature, you can create a conversation by inviting readers to give you feedback — ask questions, make counterarguments, or suggest other sources on a topic. 1c Draft and revise a working thesis statement. For many types of writing, you will be able to state your central idea in a sentence or two. Such a statement, which ordinarily appears in the opening paragraph of your finished essay, is called a thesis. understanding what makes an effective thesis statement An effective thesis statement is a central idea that conveys your purpose — your reason for writing — and requires support. Keep the following guidelines in mind to help you develop an effective thesis statement: • A thesis should take a position that needs to be explained and supported. • A thesis should be your answer to a question, your solution to a problem, or your position on a topic or debate. • A thesis should be appropriate for the length requirements of the assignment. It should not be too broad or too narrow. • A thesis should be sharply focused. Use concrete language and make sure your thesis lets readers know what you plan to discuss. • A thesis should stand up to the “So what?” question. (See p. 16.) drafting a working thesis As you explore your topic, you will begin to see possible ways to focus your material. At this point, try to settle on a tentative central idea, or working thesis statement. The more complex your topic, the more your focus may change. Think of your 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 14 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Draft and revise a thesis statement 1c 15 working thesis as preliminary, open for consideration and revision, as you clarify your purpose and consider the expectations of your audience. As your ideas develop, you’ll need to revisit your working thesis to see if it presents the position you want to take and if it can be supported by the sources of evidence you have accumulated. You’ll find that the process of answering a question you have posed, resolving a problem you have identified, or taking a position on a debatable topic will focus your thinking and lead you to develop a working thesis. Here, for example, are one student’s efforts to pose a question and draft a working thesis for an essay in his ethics course. QUESTION Should athletes who enhance their performance through biotechnology be banned from athletic competition? WORkING ThESIS Athletes who boost their performance through biotechnology should be banned from athletic competition. The working thesis offers a useful place to start writing — a way to limit the topic and focus a first draft — but it doesn’t take into consideration the expectations of readers who will ask “Why?” and “So what?” The student has taken a position — athletes who boost their performance through biotechnology should be banned from athletic competition — but he hasn’t answered why athletes should be banned. To fully answer his own question and to claim something specific in his thesis, he might push his own thinking with the word because. STRONGER WORkING ThESIS Athletes who boost their performance through biotechnology should be banned from athletic competition because biotechnology gives athletes an unfair advantage and disrupts the sense of fair play. revising a working thesis As you move to a clearer and more specific position you want to take, you’ll start to see ways to revise your working thesis. You may find that the evidence you have collected supports a different thesis; or you may find that your position has changed as you learned more about your topic. Revision is ongoing; as your 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 15 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 16 1c Exploring, planning, and drafting ideas evolve, your working thesis will evolve, too. One effective way to revise a working thesis is to put it to the “So what?” test (see the box below). A test like this can help you keep audience and purpose — and the expectations of your assignment — in mind as you revise. putting your working thesis to the “So what?” test Use the following questions to help you revise your working thesis. ● ● ● ● Why would readers want to read an essay with this thesis? How would you respond to a reader who hears your thesis and asks “So what?” or “Why does it matter?” Will any readers disagree with this thesis? If so, how might your thesis respond to a counter perspective? Is the thesis too obvious? If you cannot come up with interpretations that oppose your own, consider revising your thesis. Can you support your thesis with the evidence available? using a problem/strategy approach as you revise Revising a working thesis is easier if you have a method or an approach. The following problem/strategy approach is an effective way to evaluate and revise a working thesis, especially if you tend to start out with thesis statements that are too factual, too broad, too narrow, or too vague. A thesis should require proof or further development through facts and details; it cannot itself be a fact or a description. WORkING ThESIS REvISED ThESIS The first polygraph was developed by Dr. John A. Larson in 1921. pROBLEM The thesis is too factual. A reader could not disagree with it or debate it; no further development of this idea is required. stRatEgy Enter a debate by posing a question about your topic that has more than one possible answer. For example: Should the polygraph be used by private employers? Your thesis should be your answer to the question. Because the polygraph has not been proved reliable, even under controlled conditions, its use by private employers should be banned. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 16 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Draft and revise a thesis statement 1c 17 A thesis should be an answer to a question, not a question itself. WORkING ThESIS REvISED ThESIS Would John F. Kennedy have continued to escalate the war in Vietnam if he had lived? pROBLEM The thesis is a question, not an answer to a question. stRatEgy Take a position on your topic by answering the question you have posed. Your thesis should be your answer to the question. Although John F. Kennedy sent the first American troops to Vietnam before he died, an analysis of his foreign policy suggests that he would not have escalated the war had he lived. A thesis should be of sufficient scope for your assignment; it should not be too broad. WORkING ThESIS REvISED ThESIS Mapping the human genome has many implications for health and science. pROBLEM The thesis is too broad. Even in a very long research paper, you would not be able to discuss all the implications of mapping the human genome. stRatEgy Focus on a subtopic of your original topic. Once you have chosen a subtopic, take a position in an ongoing debate and pose a question that has more than one answer. For example: Should people be tested for genetic diseases? Your thesis should be your answer to the question. Although scientists can now detect genetic predisposition for specific diseases, policymakers should establish clear guidelines about whom to test and under what circumstances. A thesis also should not be too narrow. WORkING ThESIS REvISED ThESIS A person who carries a genetic mutation linked to a particular disease might or might not develop that disease. pROBLEM The thesis is too narrow. It does not suggest any argument or debate about the topic. stRatEgy Identify challenging questions that readers might ask about your topic. Then pose a question that has more than one answer. For example: Do the risks of genetic testing outweigh its usefulness? Your thesis should be your answer to this question. Though positive results in a genetic test do not guarantee that the disease will develop, such results can cause psychological trauma; genetic testing should therefore be avoided if possible. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 17 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 18 1c Exploring, planning, and drafting A thesis should be sharply focused, not too vague. Avoid fuzzy, hardto-define words such as interesting, good, or disgusting. WORkING ThESIS REvISED ThESIS The Vietnam Veterans Memorial is an interesting structure. pROBLEM This thesis is too fuzzy and unfocused. It’s difficult to define interesting, and the sentence doesn’t give readers any cues about where the essay is going. stRatEgy Focus your thesis with concrete language and a clear plan. Pose a question about the topic that has more than one answer. For example: How does the physical structure of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial shape the experience of visitors? Your thesis — your answer to the question — should use specific language. By inviting visitors to see their own reflections in the wall, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial creates a link between the present and the past. In each of the following pairs, which sentence might work well as a thesis for a short paper? What is the problem with the other one? Is it too factual? Too broad? Too vague? Use the problem/ strategy approach from pages 16–18 to evaluate each thesis. eXerciSe 1–4 More practice: 1. a. By networking with friends, a single parent can manage to strike a balance among work, school, a social life, and family. b. Single parents face many challenges as they try to juggle all of their responsibilities. 2. a. At the Special Olympics, athletes with disabilities show that, with hard work and support from others, they can accomplish anything — that they can indeed be winners. b. Working with the Special Olympics program is rewarding. 3. a. History 201, taught by Professor Brown, is offered at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays. b. Whoever said that history is nothing but polishing tombstones must have missed History 201, because in Professor Brown’s class history is vibrantly alive. 4. a. So far, research suggests that zero-emissions vehicles are not a sensible solution to the problem of steadily increasing air pollution. macmillanhighered.com/rules8e 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting > Writing practice: Revising a thesis > Exercises: 1–5 and 1–6 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 18 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Draft a plan 1d 19 b. Because air pollution is of serious concern to many people today, several US government agencies have implemented plans to begin solving the problem. 5. a. Anorexia nervosa is a dangerous and sometimes deadly eating disorder occurring mainly in young, upper-middle-class teens. b. The eating disorder anorexia nervosa is rarely cured by one treatment alone; only by combining drug therapy with psychotherapy and family therapy can the client begin the long journey to wellness. 1d Draft a plan. Once you have drafted a working thesis, listing and organizing your supporting ideas can help you flesh out the thesis. Creating outlines, whether informal or formal, can help you make sure your writing is focused and logical and can help you identify any gaps in your support. when to use an informal outline You might want to sketch an informal outline to see how you will support your thesis and to figure out a tentative structure for your ideas. Informal outlines can take many forms. Perhaps the most common is simply the thesis followed by a list of major ideas. Working thesis: In the Hunger Games, the games help transform Katniss Everdeen’s love for her sister into the spark of revolution. • Pitting the districts against each other in the games helps the Capitol maintain control by discouraging widespread revolt. • Before the games, Katniss and Gale think about leaving the district in search of a better life for their families. They don’t imagine ways of improving life within their district or across districts. • Katniss volunteers for the games to save her sister, Prim, with whom Katniss shares a close bond. • In the arena, Katniss acts like a big sister to Rue, who reminds her of Prim. • By protecting Rue and mourning her death, Katniss begins to use the Capitol’s instrument of control — the games — to undermine the Capitol’s hold on the districts. • More than a temporary alliance, the sister-like bond between Katniss and Rue gives Katniss, and the rest of Panem, an opportunity to imagine a world in which members of one district might fight for the well-being of those in another. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 19 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 1d 20 Exploring, planning, and drafting If you began by jotting down a list of ideas, you can turn the list into a rough outline by crossing out some ideas, adding others, and putting the ideas in a logical order. when to use a formal outline Early in the writing process, rough outlines have certain advantages: They can be produced quickly, they are obviously tentative, and they can be revised easily. However, a formal outline may be useful later in the writing process, after you have written a rough draft, especially if your topic is complex. It can help you see whether the parts of your essay work together and whether your essay’s structure is logical. The following formal outline brought order to the research paper that appears in 57b, on regulating healthy eating. The student’s thesis is an important part of the outline. Everything else in the outline supports it, directly or indirectly. FORMAL OUTLINE Thesis: In the name of public health and safety, state governments have the responsibility to shape public health policies and to regulate healthy eating choices, especially since doing so offers a potentially large social benefit for a relatively small cost. I. Debates surrounding food regulation have a long history in the United States. A. The 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act guarantees inspection of meat and dairy products. B. Such regulations are considered reasonable because consumers are protected from harm with little cost. C. Consumers consider reasonable regulations to be an important government function to stop harmful items from entering the marketplace. II. Even though food meets safety standards, there is a need for further regulation. A. The typical American diet—processed sugars, fats, and refined flours—is damaging over time. B. Related health risks are diabetes, cancer, and heart problems. C. Passing chronic-disease-related legislation is our single most important public health challenge. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 20 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Draft a plan 1d 21 III. Food legislation is not a popular solution for most Americans. A. A proposed New York City regulation banning sale of soft drinks greater than twelve ounces failed in 2012, and in California, a proposed soda tax failed in 2011. B. Many consumers find such laws to be unreasonable restrictions on freedom of choice. C. Opposition to food and beverage regulation is similar to the opposition to early tobacco legislation; the public views the issue as one of personal responsibility. D. Counterpoint: Freedom of “choice” is a myth; our choices are heavily influenced by marketing. IV. The United States has a history of regulations to discourage unhealthy behaviors. A. Tobacco-related restrictions faced opposition. B. Seat belt laws are a useful analogy. C. The public seems to support laws that have a good costbenefit ratio; the cost of food/beverage regulations is low, and most people agree that the benefits would be high. V. Americans believe that personal choice is lost when regulations such as taxes and bans are instituted. A. Regulations open up the door to excessive control and interfere with cultural and religious traditions. B. Counterpoint: Burdens on individual liberty are a reasonable price to pay for large social health benefits. VI. Public opposition continues to stand in the way of food regulation to promote healthier eating. We must consider whether to allow the costly trend of rising chronic disease to continue in the name of personal choice, or whether we are willing to support the legal changes and public health policies that will reverse that trend. planning with headings When drafting a research paper or a business document, consider using headings to guide your planning and to help your readers follow the organization of your final draft. While drafting, you 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 21 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 1e 22 Exploring, planning, and drafting can insert your working thesis, experiment with possible headings, and type chunks of text beneath each heading. You may need to try grouping your ideas in a few different ways to suit your purpose and audience. Headings help writers plan and readers understand a document. See page 41 for help using headings and page 585 for a sample paper organized with headings. note: 1e Draft an introduction. The introduction to a piece of writing announces the main point; the body develops it; and the conclusion drives it home. You can begin drafting, however, at any point. If you find it difficult to introduce a paper that you have not yet written, try drafting the body first and saving the introduction for later. Your introduction will usually be a paragraph of 50 to 150 words (in a longer paper, it may be more than one paragraph). Perhaps the most common strategy is to open with a few sentences that engage, or hook, the reader and that establish your purpose for writing and your central idea, or thesis. In the following introduction, the thesis is highlighted. As the United States industrialized in the nineteenth century, using immigrant labor, social concerns took a backseat to the task of building a prosperous nation. The government did not regulate industries and did not provide an effective safety net for the poor or for those who became sick or injured on the job. Immigrants and the poor did have a few advocates, however. Settlement houses such as Hull-House in Chicago provided information, services, and a place for reform-minded individuals to gather and work to improve the conditions of the urban poor. Alice Hamilton was one of these reformers. Her work at Hull-House spanned twenty-two years and later expanded throughout the nation. Hamilton’s efforts helped to improve the lives of immigrants and drew attention and respect to the problems and people that until then had been ignored. — Laurie McDonough, student Each sentence leading to your thesis should engage readers by drawing them into the world of the essay and showing them why your essay is worth reading. Whether you are writing for a scholarly audience, a professional audience, a public audience, or a general audience, you 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 22 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Draft an introduction 1e 23 cannot assume your readers’ interest in the topic. The hook should spark readers’ curiosity and offer them a reason to continue. The chart that follows provides strategies for drafting an introduction. Different writing situations call for different introductions. For more examples of effective introductions, see pages 88 (Yoshida), 112 (Jacobs), and 517 (Harba). note: Strategies for drafting an introduction The following strategies can provide a hook for your reader, whether you are composing a traditional essay or a multimodal work such as a slide show presentation or a video (see p. 80). ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● Offer a startling statistic or an unusual fact Ask a question Introduce a quotation or a bit of dialogue Provide historical background Define a term or concept Propose a problem, contradiction, or dilemma Use a vivid example or image Develop an analogy Relate an anecdote As you draft your introduction, think about your writing situation, especially your genre. For some types of writing, it may be difficult or impossible to express the central idea in a thesis statement; or it may be unwise or unnecessary to put a thesis statement in the essay itself. A literacy narrative, for example, may have a focus too subtle to be distilled in a single sentence. Strictly informative writing, like that found in many business memos or nursing reports, may be difficult to summarize in a thesis. In such instances, do not try to force the central idea into a thesis statement. Instead, think in terms of an overriding purpose and of the genre’s conventions and expectations. (See 1a and 1c.) macmillanhighered.com/rules8e 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting > Writing practice: Revising an introduction > Exercise: 1–7 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 23 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 24 1f Exploring, planning, and drafting academic english If you come from a culture that prefers an indirect approach in writing, you may feel that asserting a thesis early in an essay sounds unrefined and even rude. In the United States, however, readers appreciate a direct approach; when you state your point as directly as possible, you show that you understand your topic and value your readers’ time. 1f Draft the body. The body of your essay develops support for your thesis, so it’s important to have at least a working thesis before you start writing. What does your thesis promise readers? What question are you trying to answer? What problem are you trying to solve? What is your position on the topic? Keep these questions in mind as you draft the body of your essay. asking questions as you draft You may already have written an introduction that includes your working thesis. If not, as long as you have a draft thesis, you can begin developing the body and return later to the introduction. If your thesis suggests a plan or if you have sketched a preliminary outline, try to organize your paragraphs accordingly. Draft the body of your essay by writing at least one paragraph about each supporting point you listed in the planning stage. If you do not have a plan, pause for a few moments and sketch one. As you draft the body, keep asking questions; keep anticipating what your readers may need to know. Keep in mind that often you might not know what you want to say until you have written a draft. It is possible to begin without a plan — assuming you are prepared to treat your first attempt as a “discovery draft” that may be radically rewritten once you discover what you really want to say. Whether or not you have a plan when you begin drafting, you can often figure out a workable order for your ideas by stopping each time you start a new paragraph to think about what your readers will need to know to follow your train of thought. For more detailed help with drafting and developing paragraphs, see 3. As you draft, keep careful notes and records of any sources you read and consult (see 51). If you quote, paraphrase, or summarize a source, include a citation, uSing SourceS reSponSiBly: 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 24 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft Draft a conclusion 1g 25 even in your draft. You will save time and avoid plagiarism if you follow the rules of citation while drafting. adding visuals as you draft As you draft, you may decide that some of the support for your thesis could come from one or more visuals. Visuals can convey information concisely and powerfully. Graphs and tables, for example, can simplify complex numerical information. Images — including photographs and diagrams — often express an idea more vividly than words can. Keep in mind that if you download a visual — or use published information to create your own visual — you must credit your source. Always consider how a visual conveys your purpose and how your audience might respond to it. Choose visuals to support your writing, not to substitute for it. For an example of an effective use of a visual, see page 46. In writing about the shift from print to online news, student writer Sam Jacobs used a screen shot of a link embedded in a news article to illustrate his argument (see 6k). The chart on pages 26–27 describes eight types of visuals and their purposes. 1g Draft a conclusion. A conclusion should remind readers of the essay’s main idea without repeating it. Often the concluding paragraph can be relatively short. By the end of the essay, readers should already understand your main point; your conclusion drives it home and, perhaps, gives readers something more to consider. Strategies for drafting a conclusion In addition to echoing your main idea, a conclusion might do any of the following: ● ● ● ● ● ● Briefly summarize your essay’s key points Propose a course of action Offer a recommendation Discuss the topic’s wider significance or implications Redefine a key term or concept Pose a question for future study 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 25 5/4/15 10:47 AM draft 26 1g Exploring, planning, and drafting Choosing visuals to suit your purpose Pie chart Pie charts compare a part or parts to the whole. Segments of the pie represent percentages of the whole (and always total 100 percent). Health insurance coverage in the United States (2007) Uninsured 15% Medicaid 13% Medicare 12% Individual 5% Other public insurance 1% Employer-insured 54% Bar graph (or line graph) THE PURSUIT OF PROPERTY Home ownership rates in the United States Bar graphs highlight trends over a period of time or compare numerical data. Line graphs display the same data as bar graphs; the data are graphed as points, and the points are connected with lines. 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 1930 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 Infographic An infographic presents data in a visually engaging form. The data are usually numerical, as in bar graphs or line graphs, but they are represented by a graphic element instead of by bars or lines. Just 8% of kids growing up in low-income communities graduate from college by age 24. Table Tables display numbers and words in columns and rows. They can be used to organize complicated numerical information into an easily understood format. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 26 6/10/15 9:57 AM draft 1g Choose visuals 27 Photograph Photographs vividly depict people, scenes, or objects discussed in a text. Behrouz Mehri/AFP/Getty Images Diagram Diagrams, useful in scientific and technical writing, concisely illustrate processes, structures, or interactions. NIAMS Flowchart Flowcharts show structures (the hierarchy of employees at a company, for example) or steps in a process and their relation to one another. (See also p. 145 for another example.) Proposed action Affect a designated wilderness area? YES NO Prevent fire, insects, Not or disease? applicable YES Permissible NO Follow wilderness guidelines Map Maps illustrate distances, historical information, or demographics and often use symbols for geographic features and points of interest. 03_HAC_01131_PT1_001_064.indd 27 6/10/15 10:08 AM draft 28 1g Exploring, planning, and drafting To conclude an essay analyzing the shifting roles of women in the military services, one student discusses her topic’s implications for society as a whole. As the military continues to train women in jobs formerly reserved for men, our understanding of women’s roles in society will no dou...
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