The Brief Bedford Reader with 2020 APA and 2021 MLA Updates by X. J. Kennedy; Dorothy M. Kennedy; Jane E. Aaron; Ellen Kuhl Repetto - Fourteenth Edition, 2021 from Macmillan Student Store
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The Brief Bedford Reader with 2020 APA and 2021 MLA Updates

Fourteenth Edition ©2021New Edition Available X. J. Kennedy; Dorothy M. Kennedy; Jane E. Aaron; Ellen Kuhl Repetto

The ebook has been updated to give your students the latest guidance on documenting sources in MLA style and follows the guidelines set forth in the MLA Handbook, 9th edition (April 2021).

The first Bedford title ever published, The Brief Bedford Reader continues to make

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ISBN:9781319456153

The Brief Bedford Reader with 2020 APA and 2021 MLA Updates by X. J. Kennedy; Dorothy M. Kennedy; Jane E. Aaron; Ellen Kuhl Repetto - Fourteenth Edition, 2021 from Macmillan Student Store

Writers worth reading

The ebook has been updated to give your students the latest guidance on documenting sources in MLA style and follows the guidelines set forth in the MLA Handbook, 9th edition (April 2021).

The first Bedford title ever published, The Brief Bedford Reader continues to make its mark. One of the most popular composition readers on the market, it combines timeless readings with the leading voices of our time. It takes a practical and flexible approach to the rhetorical methods, focusing on their uses in varied writing situations. The unique “Writers on Writing” feature connects reflections from professional writers with point-of-need advice for student writers, and the Kennedys' proven approach to instruction helps students connect critical reading to academic writing. The fourteenth edition has been thoroughly revised with engaging new readings by remarkable and diverse writers, a stronger foundation in reading and writing, and new graphic organizers to visually outline how to use each method.

Features

48 compelling selections by extraordinary writers. Ranging from well-known favorites like David Sedaris and Amy Tan to emerging voices like Zadie Smith and Derek Thompson, the writers included in the text provide diverse perspectives on topics that engage and challenge students to think and write purposefully.

Innovative “Writers on Writing” selections. Writing advice from the professional and student writers in the book is directly tied to relevant instructional content.

Comprehensive coverage of reading and writing. Part One guides students through critical reading and academic writing with an emphasis on the editing and revising processes; examples illustrate how to annotate an essay and how to respond critically to a piece of writing. In Part Two, each rhetorical chapter contains readings supported by author and selection headnotes, a two-part journal prompt, three sets of discussion questions that encourage critical thinking and reading, and several writing suggestions.

Practical instruction in the rhetorical methods. Part Two presents in-depth instruction in ten methods of development. Chapter introductions address the purpose and uses of each method, with graphic organizers that visually sketch out how to organize each method. Part Three collects well-known essays that show how the best writers mix the methods to achieve their purposes.

Flexible apparatus. The Brief Bedford Reader provides support for a variety of teaching approaches, including support for instructors who teach thematically and those who hope to emphasize a more disciplinary approach to writing.

Emphasis on visual literacy. An in-depth analysis in Chapter 1 teaches students how to view images critically. Then each chapter in Part Two begins with an eye-catching visual and offers suggestions for approaching it with a critical eye.

New to This Edition

The ebook has been updated to give your students the latest guidance on documenting sources in MLA style and follows the guidelines set forth in the MLA Handbook, 9th edition (April 2021).

21 current and compelling new readings. Fresh voices along with classic authors explore topics that are relevant to students. Highlights include:

  • Scaachi Koul, “Impatiently Waiting for the Horror of Death,”  a humorous description of a father’s increasing preoccupation with his eventual demise.
  • Jourdan Imani Keith, “At Risk,” an exploration of the concept of endangered species.
  • Rebecca Solnit, “Division Street,” an investigation of a tent encampment in San Francisco includes some of Robert Gumpert’s haunting photographs to illustrate the continuing problem of homelessness. 

Two new casebooks. Casebooks on current issues offer opportunities to synthesize multiple perspectives in argument and allow students to examine timely questions. “Is capital punishment morally defensible?” includes two professional essays, while “Should colleges offer safe spaces for students?” offers the insights of two professional writers and one student writer, all who deftly assert their claims.

A greater emphasis on peer review. Coverage of the writing process is spread across three chapters for ease of comprehension and reference.  Reworked checklists for reviewing and revising in each method chapter support student writers and peer reviewers.

New graphic organizers. Graphic organizers in each rhetorical chapter visually outline how each method is typically structured and provides additional support for student writers in an easily digestible format.

More annotated professional essays. Two newly annotated essays--in the chapter on argument and in Part Three on mixing the methods--help students follow the methods and hone their critical reading skills.

Student’s Companion for The Bedford Reader. This guide offers additional support for students in ALP or corequisite courses and helps beginning college writers develop on-level skills. Coverage includes time management, writing activities in the methods, sentence guides, and additional grammar help.

“There is so much to like in The Brief Bedford Reader. I love that it begins with critical reading, moves on to the writing process, and continues with extensive chapters of each method of development, complete with readings that illustrate the methods. I also love the readings: thought-provoking, diverse, and interesting.”
-- Pamela Arlov, Middle Georgia State University
 
“The Brief Bedford Reader is an excellent reader with good supporting information for modes-based instruction. It includes a diverse selection of contemporary authors who mirror the experiences of my students and allow them to picture themselves as writers.”
-- Christina Marie Devlin, Montgomery College

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Table of Contents

* indicates new to the 14e

　

PREFACE FOR INSTRUCTORS

CONTENTS BY THEME AND DISCIPLINE

HOW (AND WHY) TO USE THIS BOOK

THE SELECTIONS

THE METHODS OF DEVELOPMENT

THE PRACTICAL GUIDANCE

THE WRITERS ON WRITING

 

PART ONE

ACADEMIC READING AND WRITING   

1  CRITICAL READING: Learning from Other Writers

READING ACTIVELY    

NANCY MAIRS  Disability (annotated essay)    

DEVELOPING AN UNDERSTANDING    

Checklist for critical reading    

ANALYZING WRITTEN WORKS  

Questions for analyzing a written work

EXAMINING VISUAL IMAGES    

Questions for examining an image    

Visual Image: Man Fishing by A Power Plant, photograph By Robin Nelson    

2  THE WRITING PROCESS: Discovery and Drafting    

ASSESSING THE WRITING SITUATION    

DISCOVERING IDEAS    

DRAFTING    

A STUDENT ESSAY-IN-PROGRESS

3  THE WRITING PROCESS: Reviewing and Revising

*REVIEWING A DRAFT

REVISING IN STAGES     

*Questions for peer review and revision    

INTEGRATING EVIDENCE    

A STUDENT ESSAY-IN-PROGRESS

4  THE WRITING PROCESS: Editing

USING EFFECTIVE LANGUAGE

Questions for editing

CRAFTING CLEAR AND ENGAGING SENTENCES

FIXING COMMON ERRORS

A STUDENT ESSAY-IN-PROGRESS    

ROSIE ANAYA  Mental Illness on Television (annotated student essay)


 

PART TWO

THE METHODS

5  NARRATION: Telling a Story

Visual Image: Proposal, drawing by Demetri Martin

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

Focus on verbs

*How to organize a narrative

Checklist for reviewing and revising a narrative

EMBARRASSMENT

AMY TAN　 Fish Cheeks　

NAOMI SHIHAB NYE　 Museum

Naomi Shihab Nye on Writing　

JONATHAN BETHARDS　 Code Three (student essay)

MAYA ANGELOU　 Champion of the World

Maya Angelou on Writing　　

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

6  DESCRIPTION: Writing with Your Senses

*Visual Image: Under the Passaic Falls, photograph by Todd R. Darling　

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

*How to organize a description

Focus on specific and concrete language

Checklist for reviewing and revising a description

*FATHERS

BRAD MANNING　 Arm Wrestling with My Father (student essay)

Brad Manning on Writing

*SCAACHI KOUL　 Impatiently Waiting for the Horror of Death

*Scaachi Koul on Writing

*SHONDA RHIMES　 My Summer of Scooping Ice Cream　

N. SCOTT MOMADAY　 The Way to Rainy Mountain

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

7  EXAMPLE: Pointing to Instances

*Visual Image: Costumes to Scare Millennials, cartoon by Sarah Andersen

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

Focus on sentence variety

*How to organize examples

Checklist for reviewing and revising an example essay

MISPERCEPTIONS

BRENT STAPLES　 Black Men and Public Space

Brent Staples on Writing

ISSA RAE　 The Struggle　

ANNA QUINDLEN　 Homeless

Anna Quindlen on Writing　

*ZANE RASSLER　 Looking Back (student essay)

*Zane Rassler on Writing

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

8  COMPARISON AND CONTRAST: Setting Things Side by Side

Visual Image: Excerpt from Fun Home, graphic memoir by Alison Bechdel　

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

*How to organize a comparison-and-contrast essay

Checklist for reviewing and revising a comparison-and-contrast essay

Focus on parallelism

*ENDANGERED SPECIES　　

*JOURDAN IMANI KEITH　 At Risk

*Jourdan Imani Keith on Writing

*TED CHIANG　 The Great Silence (short story)

*Visual Images: from The Great Silence, video installation by Allora & Calzadilla

*CAITLIN McDOUGALL　 So Enid and Dorothy from West Covina Can Hear You (student essay)

*Caitlin McDougall on Writing

DAVID SEDARIS　 Remembering My Childhood on the Continent of Africa

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

9  PROCESS ANALYSIS: Explaining Step by Step

Visual Image: Workers Making Dolls, photograph by Wally McNamee

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

*How to organize a process analysis

Checklist for reviewing and revising a process analysis

Focus on consistency

WRITING

ANNE LAMOTT　 Shitty First Drafts　 　　

KOJI FRAHM　 How to Write an A Paper (student essay)

Koji Frahm on Writing　

FIROOZEH DUMAS　 Sweet, Sour, and Resentful

Firoozeh Dumas on Writing　

JESSICA MITFORD　 Behind the Formaldehyde Curtain　 　　　

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

10  DIVISION OR ANALYSIS: Slicing into Parts

Visual Image: Deconstructing Lunch, cartoon by Roz Chast

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

*How to organize a division or analysis essay

Focus on paragraph coherence

Checklist for reviewing and revising a division or analysis essay

*SPORTS AND LEISURE

*PAUL THEROUX　 Football Matters

*Paul Theroux on Writing

*ZADIE SMITH　 Find Your Beach

*Visual Image: Find Your Beach, advertisement by Corona

*Zadie Smith on Writing

Laila Ayad　 The Capricious Camera (documented student essay)

Visual Image: Mounted Nazi Troops on the Lookout for Likely Polish Children, photograph

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

11  CLASSIFICATION: Sorting into Kinds

Visual Image: How the Poor, the Middle Class, and the Rich Spend Their Money, table by National Public Radio

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

Focus on paragraph development

*How to organize a classification

Checklist for reviewing and revising a classification

*LEO BRAUDY　 Where Our Monsters Come From

FAILURES TO COMMUNICATE

DEBORAH TANNEN　 But What Do You Mean?

Deborah Tannen on Writing

WILLIAM LUTZ　 The World of Doublespeak

William Lutz on Writing

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

12  CAUSE AND EFFECT: Asking Why

Visual Image: Wild Weather, bar graph by National Geographic

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

*How to organize a cause-and-effect analysis

Focus on clarity and conciseness

Checklist for reviewing and revising a cause-and-effect essay

*BEN HEALY　 Gossip Is Good

*DEREK THOMPSON　 What Makes Things Cool

*Visual Image: Raymond Loewy, illustration by Mark Weaver, with photographs by Bernard Hoffman, Jack Garofalo, and Sherman Oaks Antique Mall

GLOBALIZATION

CHITRA DIVAKARUNI　 Live Free and Starve　

Chitra Divakaruni on Writing

MARIE JAVDANI　 Plata o Plomo: Silver or Lead (documented student essay)　

Marie Javdani on Writing

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS　

13  DEFINITION: Tracing Boundaries

*Visual Image: This Expedition Called Life, advertisement by Outward Bound　

THE METHOD

THE PROCESS

*How to organize a definition

Focus on unity

Checklist for reviewing and revising a definition

PRIVILEGE

TAL FORTGANG　 Checking My Privilege (student essay)

Tal Fortgang on Writing

ROXANE GAY　 Peculiar Benefits

Roxane Gay on Writing

AUGUSTEN BURROUGHS　 How to Identify Love by Knowing What It’s Not

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS

14  ARGUMENT AND PERSUASION: Stating Opinions and Proposals

Visual Image: Corporate America Flag, image from Adbusters Media Foundation

THE METHOD

Focus on tone

THE PROCESS

*How to organize an argument

Checklist for reviewing and revising argument and persuasion

LINDA CHAVEZ　 Supporting Family Values (annotated essay)

Linda Chavez on Writing

*IS CAPITAL PUNISHMENT MORALLY DEFENSIBLE?

*DAVID B. MUHLHAUSEN　 How the Death Penalty Saves Lives

*SEMON FRANK THOMPSON　 What I Learned from Executing Two Men

*SHOULD COLLEGES OFFER SAFE SPACES FOR STUDENTS?

*DAWN LUNDY MARTIN　 Weary Oracle

*Dawn Lundy Martin on Writing　

*THOMAS CHATTERTON WILLIAMS　 Blanket Security

*Thomas Chatterton Williams on Writing

*SARAH HEMPHILL　 What Happened to Free Speech on College Campuses? (documented student essay)　　　

*Sarah Hemphill on Writing　

ADDITIONAL WRITING TOPICS


 

PART THREE

MIXING THE METHODS

JOAN DIDION　 Earthquakes (annotated essay)　　

Joan Didion on Writing　

*REBECCA SOLNIT　 Division Street

*Visual Images: from Division Street, photographs by Robert Gumpert

TRANSCENDENTALISM　

HENRY DAVID THOREAU　 What I Lived For　

*Henry David Thoreau on Writing

LUIS ALBERTO URREA　 Barrio Walden

Luis Alberto Urrea on Writing　

E. B. WHITE　 Once More to the Lake　


APPENDIX: RESEARCH AND DOCUMENTATION

CONDUCTING RESEARCH    

Questions for evaluating sources    

WRITING WITH SOURCES    

SOURCE CITATION USING MLA STYLE    

MARGARET LUNDBERG　 Eating Green (annotated student essay)

SOURCE CITATION USING APA STYLE    

ERIC KIM　 The Brain that Changes (annotated student essay)
　

GLOSSARY OF USEFUL TERMS    

DIRECTORY TO THE WRITERS ON WRITING

INDEX

X. J. Kennedy

X. J. Kennedy is an acclaimed poet, children’s author, college teacher, and textbook author. He has taught freshman composition at the University of Michigan; the University of North Carolina, Greensboro; and Tufts University. More than 2 million students have used his introductory literature texts and The Bedford Reader, now in its fourteenth edition.

Dorothy M. Kennedy

Dorothy M. Kennedy was a writer and editor whose articles and reviews have appeared in both professional and academic journals. She taught composition at the University of Michigan and Ohio University and, with X. J. Kennedy, was the recipient of the NCTE Teacher's Choice Award for Knock at a Star: A Child's Introduction to Poetry.

Jane E. Aaron

Jane E. Aaron is a professional writer and editor as well as an experienced teacher. She is the author of the best-selling Little, Brown Handbook and The Compact Reader. She has served as consultant, editor, or writer on more than a dozen other textbooks for the first-year composition.

Ellen Kuhl Repetto

Ellen Kuhl Repetto is an editor and writer who has contributed to more than twenty composition readers, handbooks, and rhetorics. She is the author of The Bedford Reader and The Compact Reader.