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Table of Contents

1 Composing Literacy

Understanding the Rhetorical Situation 

Reflecting on Your Own Literacy 

Composing Your Own Literacy Narrative 

Apply the rhetorical framework: who? what? when? where? how? and why?

Devise a topic.

Readings

Katherine Kachnowski, Beyond the Microwave, or How I Learned to Cook with a French Accent

David Sedaris, Me Talk Pretty One Day 

PART 1 WRITING ACTIVITIES 

GUIDE TO READING 

Analyzing Remembered Event Essays 

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings

Jean Brandt, Calling Home 

Annie Dillard, The Chase [[aka From An American Childhood]]  

Ta-Nehisi Coates, My Lost Innocence 

Jenée Desmond-Harris, Tupac and My Non-thug Life 

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Remembering an Event 

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose an event to write about.  

Give your story a dramatic arc.  

Use tenses to clarify the sequence of actions.  

Describe key people and places vividly, and show their significance.  

Use dialogue to portray people and dramatize relationships.  

Clarify your story’s significance.  

Write the opening sentences.  

Draft your story.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread your draft.  

A WRITER AT WORK: Developing Significance in Jean Brandt’s Remembered Event Essay  

REFLECTING 

GUIDE TO READING 

Analyzing Profiles 

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings 

Brian Cable, The Last Stop

Victoria Moré, Dumpster Dinners: An Ethnography of Freeganism 

Amanda Coyne, The Long Good-Bye: Mother’s Day in Federal Prison 

Gabriel Thompson, A Gringo in the Lettuce Fields 

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Writing a Profile  

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a subject to profile.  

Conduct your field research.  

Use quotations that provide information and reveal character.  

Consider adding visual or audio elements.  

Create an outline that will organize your profile effectively for your readers.  

Determine your role in the profile.  

Develop your perspective on the subject.  

Clarify the dominant impression.  

Write the opening sentences.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread your draft.  

A WRITER AT WORK: Brian Cable’s Interview Notes and Write-Up  

REFLECTION 

GUIDE TO READING 

Analyzing Concept Explanations 

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings 

Rosa Alexander, The Meme-ing of Trigger Warnings 

Anastasia Toufexis, Love: The Right Chemistry 

Lindsay Grace, Persuasive Play: Designing Games That Change Players 

Susan Cain, Shyness: Evolutionary Tactic?  

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Explaining a Concept  

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a concept to write about.  

Conduct initial research on the concept.  

Focus your explanation of the concept.  

Conduct further research on your focused concept.  

Draft your working thesis.  

Create an outline that will organize your concept explanation effectively for your readers.  

Design your writing project.  

Consider the explanatory strategies you should use.  

Use summaries, paraphrases, and quotations from sources to support your points.  

Use visuals or multimedia illustrations.  

Use appositives to integrate sources.  

Use descriptive verbs in signal phrases to introduce information from sources.  

Write the opening sentences.  

Draft your explanation.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread the final draft.  

A WRITER AT WORK: Focusing Rosa Alexander’s Concept Explanation 

REFLECTION 

GUIDE TO READING 

Analyzing Opposing Arguments  

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings 

Max King, Freedom of or from Speech 

Maya Gomez, Should Kidney Donors Be Compensated? 

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Analyzing and Synthesizing Opposing Arguments 

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a controversial issue to write about.  

Conduct research. 

Create an annotated bibliography. 

Analyze your audience. 

Choose opposing arguments to analyze. 

Analyze and synthesize the opposing arguments. 

Draft a working thesis. 

Create an outline to assess your organization. 

Develop your analysis. 

Draft the opening sentences.

Draft your comparative analysis.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread the final draft. 

A WRITER AT WORK: Max King’s Analysis  

REFLECTION 

GUIDE TO READING 

Analyzing Position Arguments  

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings 

Jessica Statsky, Children Need to Play, Not Compete 

Amitai Etzioni, Working at McDonald’s 

Laura Beth Nielsen, The Case for Restricting Hate Speech  

Daniel J. Solove, Why Privacy Matters Even If You Have "Nothing to Hide"

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Arguing a Position  

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a controversial issue on which to take a position.  

Frame the issue for your readers.  

Formulate a working thesis stating your position.  

Develop the reasons supporting your position.  

Research your position.  

Use sources to reinforce your credibility.  

Identify and respond to your readers’ likely reasons and objections.  

Create an outline that will organize your argument effectively for your readers.  

Consider document design.  

Use visuals or multimedia illustrations.  

Write the opening sentences.  

Draft your position argument.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread the final draft.  

A WRITER AT WORK: Jessica Statsky’s Response to Opposing Positions  

REFLECTION 

Analyzing Proposals  

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

A Clear, Logical Organization 

Readings 

Patrick O’Malley, More Testing, More Learning 

David Figlio, Starting High School Later 

David J. Smith, Getting to "E Pluribus Unum" 

Kelly D. Brownell and Thomas R. Frieden, Ounces of Prevention — The Public Policy Case for Taxes on Sugared Beverages 

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Proposing a Solution  

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a problem for which you can propose a solution. 

Frame the problem for your readers. 

Assess how the problem has been framed, and reframe it for your readers. 

Develop a possible solution. 

Explain your solution. 

Research your proposal. 

Develop a response to objections or alternative solutions.

Create an outline that will organize your proposal effectively for your readers. 

Write the opening sentences. 

Draft your proposal. 

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread the final draft.  

A WRITER AT WORK: Patrick O’Malley’s Revision Process  

REFLECTION

Analyzing Evaluations 

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.

Readings

William Akana, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World: A Hell of a Ride 

Tasha Robinson, Moana: The Perfect Disney Movie 

Katherine Isbister, Why Pokémon Go Became an Instant Phenomenon 

Malcolm Gladwell, What College Rankings Really Tell Us

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Proposing a Solution  

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a subject to evaluate. 

Assess your subject and consider how to present it to your readers. 

Formulate a working thesis stating your overall judgment. 

Develop the reasons and evidence supporting your judgment. 

Research your evaluation. 

Respond to a likely objection or alternative judgment. 

Organize your evaluation to appeal to your readers. 

Consider document design.

Write the opening sentences. 

Draft your proposal.

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.

A Troubleshooting Guide

Edit and proofread the final draft.

A WRITER AT WORK: William Akana’s Thesis and Response to Objections

REFLECTION 

Analyzing Cause-Effect Arguments 

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience.  

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings 

Clayton Pangelinan, #socialnetworking: Why It’s Really So Popular 

Jean M. Twenge, Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?  

Stephen King, Why We Crave Horror Movies 

Shankar Vedantam, The Telescope Effect 

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Arguing for Causes or Effects  

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Choose a subject to analyze. 

Present the subject to your readers.  

Analyze possible causes or effects.

Conduct research.  

Cite a variety of sources to support your causal analysis.  

Formulate a working thesis stating your preferred cause(s) or effect(s).  

Draft a response to objections readers are likely to raise.  

Draft a response to the causes or effects your readers are likely to favor.  

Create an outline that will organize your causal argument.  

Write the opening sentences.  

Draft your causal argument.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review 

A Peer Review Guide 

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading 

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide 

Edit and proofread the final draft.

A WRITER AT WORK: Clayton Pangelinan’s Analysis of Possible Causes  

REFLECTION 

10 Analyzing Stories 

Analyzing Essays That Analyze Stories 

Determine the writer’s purpose and audience. 

Assess the genre’s basic features.  

Readings

Iris Lee, Performing a Doctor’s Duty  

Isabella Wright, "For Heaven’s Sake!"  

GUIDE TO WRITING 

The Writing Assignment 

Starting Points: Analyzing Stories 

Writing a Draft: Invention, Research, Planning, and Composing 

Find a story to write about.  

Analyze the story.  

Generate ideas by moving from specific to general or the reverse.  

Formulate a working thesis.  

Provide support for your argument.

To build on your support, consider doing outside research.  

Create an outline that will organize your argument effectively.  

Write the opening sentences.  

Draft your analysis.  

Evaluating the Draft: Using Peer Review  

A Peer Review Guide  

Improving the Draft: Revising, Editing, and Proofreading

Revise your draft.  

A Troubleshooting Guide  

Edit and proofread the final draft.

WRITER AT WORK: Isabella Wright’s Invention Work  

Reflection  

AN ANTHOLOGY OF SHORT STORIES  

Kate Chopin, The Story of an Hour  

James Joyce, Araby  

William Carlos Williams, The Use of Force  

Jamaica Kincaid, Girl  

11 A Catalog of Invention and Inquiry Strategies 

Mapping

Create a cluster diagram to reveal relationships among ideas.  

Make a list to generate a plan quickly.  

Create an outline to invent and organize.  

Writing 

Use cubing to explore a topic from six perspectives.

Construct a dialogue to explore an experience or alternative view.

Use dramatizing to analyze behavior.

Freewrite to generate ideas freely and creatively.

Use looping to explore aspects of a topic.  

Take notes in a journal.  

Ask questions to explore a subject systematically.  

12 A Catalog of Reading Strategies 

Annotating 

Martin Luther King Jr., An Annotated Sample from "Letter from Birmingham Jail"  

Taking Inventory 

Outlining 

Paraphrasing 

Summarizing 

Synthesizing 

Contextualizing 

Exploring the Significance of Figurative Language 

Looking for Patterns of Opposition

Reflecting on Challenges to Your Beliefs and Values

Evaluating the Logic of an Argument 

Test for appropriateness.  

Test for believability.  

Test for consistency and completeness.

Recognizing Emotional Manipulation 

Judging the Writer’s Credibility

Test for knowledge.

Test for common ground.  

Test for fairness.  

Orienting Statements

Use thesis statements to announce the main idea.  

Use forecasting statements to preview topics.  

Paragraphing 

Paragraph indents signal related ideas.  

Topic sentences announce the paragraph’s focus.  

Cohesive Devices 

Pronouns connect phrases or sentences.

Word repetition aids cohesion.  

Synonyms connect ideas.

Repetition of sentence structure emphasizes connections.  

Collocation creates networks of meaning.  

Transitions 

Transitions emphasize logical relationships.  

Transitions can indicate a sequence in time.

Transitions can indicate relationships in space.  

Headings and Subheadings 

Headings indicate sections and levels.  

Headings are not common in all genres.

At least two headings are needed at each level.  

Narrating 

Use narrating strategies to sequence and dramatize events. 

Use narrating strategies to explain and instruct.  

Describing 

Use naming to give an overall impression.  

Use detailing to add specifics and convey thoughts, feelings, and judgments.

Use comparisons to make a description vivid and convey emotion.  

Use sensory description to convey what you saw, heard, felt, and tasted.

Use description to create a dominant impression.  

15 Defining, Classifying, and Comparing

Defining

Use sentence definitions to explain terms and concepts briefly. 

Use extended definitions to convey the meaning of complex concepts.

Use historical definitions to explain how a meaning has changed over time or across cultures. 

Use stipulative definitions to reach an agreement on the meaning of a term or concept. 

Classifying 

Use topics and subtopics to organize classifications.  

Use graphics to depict a classification scheme. 

Use cues to maintain clarity and coherence in a classification. 

Comparing and Contrasting

Use chunking or sequencing to organize comparisons and contrasts. 

Use analogies to make comparisons clear and vivid. 

16 Arguing 

Asserting a Thesis 

Make arguable assertions.

Use clear and precise wording. 

Qualify the thesis appropriately. 

Giving Reasons and Support 

Use representative examples for support. 

Use up-to-date, relevant, and accurate statistics.

Cite reputable authorities on relevant topics. 

Use vivid, relevant anecdotes. 

Use relevant textual evidence. 

Responding to Objections and Alternatives 

Acknowledge readers’ concerns. 

Concede readers’ concerns. 

Refute readers’ objections. 

Identifying and Correcting Logical Fallacies 

PART 4 RESEARCH STRATEGIES

Analyzing Your Rhetorical Situation and Setting a Schedule 

Choosing a Topic and Getting an Overview 

Focusing Your Topic and Drafting Research Questions

Establishing a Research Log 

Develop a list of search terms.

Create a working bibliography.  

Annotating Your Working Bibliography 

Taking Notes on Your Sources

Finding Sources 

Search library catalogs and databases.

Find books (and other sources).

Find articles in periodicals.  

Find government documents and statistical information.

Find Web sites and interactive sources.  

Conducting Field Research 

Conduct observational studies.  

Conduct interviews.  

Conduct surveys.  

Selecting Relevant Sources 

Evaluating Sources 

Who wrote it?  

How recently was it published?  

Is the source scholarly, popular, or for a trade group?  

Who published it?  

How is the source written?  

What does the source say?  

Synthesizing Sources 

Acknowledging Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism 

What does and does not need to be acknowledged?  

Avoid plagiarism by acknowledging sources and quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing carefully.  

Using Information from Sources to Support Your Claims 

Deciding whether to quote, paraphrase, or summarize.  

Copy quotations exactly, or use italics, ellipses, and brackets to indicate changes.  

Use in-text or block quotations.  

Use punctuation to integrate quotations into your writing.  

Paraphrase sources carefully.  

Write summaries that present the source’s main ideas in a balanced and readable way.

Citing Sources in the Text 

Directory to In-Text Citation Models 

Creating a List of Works Cited 

To cite a source without a model, use a similar model or devise your own using the general principles.  

Format your list of works cited.  

Directory to Works-Cited-List Models 

Student Research Project in MLA Style 

Citing Sources in the Text

Directory to In-Text Citation Models 

Creating a List of References

Directory to Reference-List Models 

A Sample Reference List in APA Style 

PART 5 COMPOSING STRATEGIES FOR COLLEGE AND BEYOND 

Understanding Multimodality 

Analyzing Multimodal Texts 

Criteria for Analyzing Multimodal Texts 

Composing Multimodal Texts 

Reimagine your writing in a new genre or medium.  

Design a multimodal text.  

Embed visuals and media in texts.  

Criteria for Analyzing Document Design 

Creating a Multimodal Presentation 

Assess your rhetorical situation.  

Determine how much information you can present in the allotted time.  

Use cues to orient audience members.  

Design your presentation effectively.  

23 Taking Essay Examinations 

Preparing for an Exam 

Read the exam carefully.

Review typical essay exam questions.

Write your answer.  

Purposes of a Writing Portfolio 

Assembling a Portfolio for Your Composition Course 

Select your work.

Reflect on your work and what you learned.  

Organize your portfolio.

25 Writing in Business and Scientific Genres

Business Letters 

E-mail 

Résumés and Online Professional Profiles 

Job-Application Letters

Web Sites

Lab Reports 

Writing about Your Service Experience 

Find a topic.  

Gather sources.  

Writing for Your Service Organization

Working with Others on Your Individual Writing Projects 

Collaborating on Joint Writing Projects 

Authors

Rise B. Axelrod

Rise B. Axelrod is McSweeney Professor of Rhetoric and Teaching Excellence, Emeritus, at the University of California, Riverside, where she was also director of English Composition. She has previously been professor of English at California State University, San Bernardino; director of the College Expository Program at the University of Colorado, Boulder; and assistant director of the Third College (now Thurgood Marshall College) Composition Program at the University of California, San Diego. She is the co-author, with Charles R. Cooper, of the best-selling textbooks The St. Martin's Guide to Writing and The Concise St. Martin's Guide to Writing, as well as Reading Critically, Writing Well.

Charles R. Cooper

Charles R. Cooper an emeritus professor at the University of California, San Diego served as coordinator of the Third College (now Thurgood Marshall College) Composition Program at the University of California, San Diego, and co-director of the San Diego Writing Project, one of the National Writing Project Centers. He advised the National Assessment of Educational Progress writing study and coordinated the development of California's first statewide writing assessment. He taught at the University of California, Riverside; the State University of New York at Buffalo; and the University of California, San Diego. Co-editor, with Lee Odell, of Evaluating Writing and Research on Composing: Points of Departure, and he was co-author, with Rise Axelrod, of the best-selling textbooks The St. Martin's Guide to Writing and The Concise St. Martin's Guide to Writing, as well as Reading Critically, Writing Well.

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