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CM 220College Composition II

Unit 5:Understanding Your Audience

Instructor NameGeneral Education, Composition

Kaplan University

UNIT 5Assignments

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What to do this week. . .

• Reading: Introduction to unit, The Kaplan Guide to Successful Writing, ch. 7 (audience) and 22 (persuasive essays), Writing Center resources on audience, logical fallacies, supporting an argument, and formal vs. informal writing

• Tech Lab: Podcasts and videos

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Invention Lab

• This week’s Invention Lab will include the first component of your final project portfolio, the formal letter.

• Write two messages to audiences, one formal and one informal.

• Write one response to a classmate. Include an actual response to the formal message, then analyze the effectiveness of both messages.

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AUDIENCE, PURPOSE, AND STYLE

The next step

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Audience

• Why is paying attention to your audience KEY to successful persuasion?

• Who is the audience you would like to communicate to?

• What do you know about them and what do you need to know about them?

• What do you want to communicate to that audience?

• How can you best communicate your information to that audience?

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Purpose

• What are your goals for writing the message?

• What would you like to persuade your audience to do or to believe?

• What is the most effective means of achieving your purpose?

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Formal vs. Informal Writing

Formal• Avoids slang• Avoids personal references (I,

me, etc.)• Avoids shorthands like texting

abbreviations and contractions• Speaks to professional

audience • Uses Standard American

English• May use language for specific

field• (“What is the Difference

between Formal and Informal Writing,” 2012)

Informal• Often uses slang or

makes personal references

• Less concerned with grammar, spelling, and mechanics

• Examples include texting, personal e-mails, Facebook posts

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Letters to the Editor

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Washington Post Editorial Guidelines

• Submission format: letter or e-mail (not as attachment)

• Length: 200 words or less• Purpose: Response to an article or

other item from the WP

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Other WP recommendations

• Edit carefully for errors in grammar and punctuation

• Fact check carefully!• Include contact information• “Disclose any personal or financial

interest in the subject matter of their letters” (Washington Post editors, 2011, para. 2).

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Other Tips for Writing Editorial Letters

• Keep it short and simple (maximum 250 words)

• Let readers know who you are• Know that editors have right to alter your

submission

(University of British Columbia, n.d.)

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Letters to the Editor: Topics

• Pappas, G.A. (2012, January 2). Closing the suspension gap in D.C.-area schools. [Editorial]. The Washington Post.

• December 30, 2011 “No Simple Solution to Universities’ Budget Woes,” which are selected readers’ responses to a Washington Post article published on December 27, 2011, titled “Investment in Public’s Ivory Towers Is Eroding”

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Pappas letter

• Does he agree or disagree with the ideas expressed in “Wide Gaps in School Discipline”?

• What information does Pappas disclose about himself in the letter? Does this strengthen his argument?

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Universities’ Budget Woes

• Which of the four responses to the “Investment in Public’s Ivory Towers is Eroding” article do you find the most effective and why?

• How do the editorial writers differ in their reactions to the article?

• How do they support their claims?

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Letters to the Editor: Discussion

• Are these letters effective?• What is the argument each makes?• Are the authors and publications credible?• Are the facts that the authors use credible? You

can go to FactCheck.org to read credible information on this topic.

• Select at least one argument in each letter that you can verify, or not, and discuss how this adds to or detracts from the writer’s argument.

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Selecting An Audience

• What newspaper might be most appropriate?

• How can I learn more about that newspaper?

• Other recipients could include local politicians, state legislators, or organization leaders

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Informal Message

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What other forms might I use to present my big idea to a wider

audience?

• Post on Facebook page • Blog post• Email to friend• Flyer to distribute to community• Twitter feed

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Helpful Writing Center Tutorials

Topic URL link to Archive

Audience and Purpose http://khe2.acrobat.com/p19397839/?launcher=false&fcsContent=true&pbMode=normal

Developing Ideas http://khe2.acrobat.com/p35695303/?launcher=false&fcsContent=true&pbMode=normal

Avoiding Writer’s Block http://khe2.acrobat.com/p13592508/?launcher=false&fcsContent=true&pbMode=normal

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SENTENCE STRUCTURE AND COMMAS

Extra, Extra!

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Run-ons and Comma Splices

Run-ons and comma splices are terms describing two independent clauses that are joined together with no connecting word or punctuation to separate the clauses.

Incorrect (run-on): They weren't dangerous criminals they were detectives in disguise.Correct: They weren't dangerous criminals; they were detectives in disguise.

Incorrect (comma splice): I didn't know which job I wanted I was too confused to decide.Correct: I didn't know which job I wanted, so I was too confused to decide.

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To correct. . .

1. Join the two with one of the coordinating conjunctions (and, but, for, or, nor, so, yet), and use a comma before the connecting word._________________________, and _________________________.(He enjoys walking through the country, and he often goes backpacking on his vacations.)

2. When you do not have a connecting word (or when you use a connecting word other than and, but, for, or nor, so, or yet between the two independent clauses) use a semicolon (;).__________________________;_____________________________.(He often watched TV when there were only reruns; she preferred to read instead.)or __________________________; however,____________________.(He often watched TV when there were only reruns; however, she preferred to read instead.)

3. Put a period between the two independent clauses and make them separate sentences.4. You can turn one of the independent clauses into a dependent clause as well:While she preferred to read, he often watched TV when there were only reruns.

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Fragments

A fragment is a dependent clause or phrase punctuated as if it were a complete sentence: Which help screen his yard from the street.Having driven across the desert.

To correct, simply join to another sentence:He enjoys flowers and shrubs, which help screen his yard from the street. Having driven across the desert, we enjoyed the cool weather.

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Commas

When to use

• Before coordinating conjunctions

• After introductory words, phrases, and clauses

• To separate items in a series

• To set off “nonessential” items

When not to use• Between subject and verb

or verb and object• After coordinating

conjunctions• Before coordinating

conjunctions that don’t link independent clauses

• To set off essential phrases and clauses

• Before the first or after the last item in a series

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Incorrect comma usage

• Numerous psychological and social factors, have a strong influence on how people age.

• She enjoyed gardening, and exercising. • People, who are good shoppers, spend

many hours planning their purchases.• She enjoyed, gardening, exercising,

and traveling.

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Examples of correct usage

• Everyone in our class was assigned to an editing group, but only three of the groups could work together efficiently.

• While waiting to put my tax return in the box, I began to lose my temper.

• She bought pens, pencils, and paper at the supply store.

• Susie, who is a nurse, wanted to go to the beach for vacation.

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References

The University of British Columbia. (n.d.) Writing an effective opinion-editorial piece or letter to the editor. Retrieved from http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/services-for-ubc-faculty-staff/writing-an-effective-opinion-editorial-piece-or-letter-to-the-editor/

Washington Post editors. (2011, November 11). How to send a letter to the editor. The Washington Post. Retrieved from http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/ask-the-post/post/how-to-send-a-letter-to-the-editor/2011/11/17/gIQAoi7IlN_blog.html

What is the difference between formal and informal writing? (2012). Kaplan University Writing Center. Retrieved from https://kucampus.kaplan.edu/MyStudies/AcademicSupportCenter/WritingCenter/WritingReferenceLibrary/WritingTypesAndTools/samplesOfFormalWriting.aspx

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