Professional and Public Writing A Rhetoric and Reader for Advanced Composition

by Coleman, Linda S.; Funk, Robert W.

• ISBN13: 9780131838857
• ISBN10: 0131838857
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2020-01-22
• Publisher: Pearson

Summary

This book introduces readers and writers to the techniques of discourse analysis, genre theory, and primary (including ethnographic) and secondary research. It also engages learners in extensive practice and a sequence of increasingly complex and comprehensive "Writer's Profiles," ending with a researched literature review and argument. Two casebooks offer illustrative and thematically-linked readings from a wide variety of public and professional sources.The bonk contains a broad-based sampling of academic writing, and professional and public genresjournal essays, fact sheets, newsletters, Web sites, and proposals.For individuals taking stock of their acquired personal skills and those required of professionals in the writing careers to which they aspire.

Table of Contents

Preface	ix
Being Aware of Your Writing Practices	1	(18)
Chapter Preview	1	(1)
Reviewing the Core Elements: Purpose, Audience, Thesis, and Persona	2	(1)
Refining Your Purpose	3	(2)
Knowing Your Audience	5	(2)
Focusing Your Thesis	7	(1)
Controlling Your Persona	8	(3)
Conclusion	11	(1)
Checklist for Analyzing the Core Elements of Writing	12	(1)
Writer's Workshop	12	(3)
Writers on Writing	15	(3)
President in Search of a Publisher	15	(1)
Jimmy Carter
Practicing History	16	(1)
Barbara Tuchman
Making the Truth Believable	17	(1)
Tracy Kidder
Writer's Notebook	18	(1)
Being Aware of Your Rituals, Practices, and Habits	19	(22)
Chapter Preview	19	(1)
Writing Rituals	20	(1)
Composing Practices	21	(6)
Prewriting: Generating Content	21	(3)
Prewriting: Organizing Your Material	24	(3)
Working Habits	27	(7)
Drafting	27	(2)
Drafting Collaboratively	29	(1)
Revising	30	(2)
Editing and Proofreading	32	(2)
Checklist for Analyzing Writing Rituals, Composing Practices, and Working Habits	34	(1)
Writer's Workshop	34	(1)
Writers on Writing	35	(2)
Strengthened by a Pale Green Light	35	(2)
Reynolds Price
Writer's Notebook	37	(1)
Writer's Profile One: How Did I Become the Writer I Am?	38	(3)
Becoming Aware of Professional Writing Practices	41	(28)
Chapter Preview	41	(1)
Investigating the Profession	42	(1)
Analyzing a Discourse Community	43	(1)
Reflecting on Your Experiences: Asking Questions	43	(1)
Observing a Discourse Community	43	(1)
Writer's Notebook	44	(1)
Studying Forms of Communication	44	(10)
Genre	45	(1)
Writing Situation and Medium	45	(2)
Expanding the Definition: Oral and Visual Genres	47	(3)
Style	50	(2)
Design	52	(2)
Studying Writers in Their Environments: Primary Research	54	(1)
Ethnographic Research	54	(1)
Writer's Notebook	55	(1)
Getting Started on Primary Research	56	(2)
Ethical Considerations	56	(1)
Making Contacts	57	(1)
Keeping Things Organized	58	(5)
The Project Notebook	58	(2)
Note Taking When Interviewing and Observing	60	(1)
Getting Ready to Take Notes	61	(1)
Preparing for an Interview	62	(1)
Writer's Workshop	63	(1)
Writers on Writing	64	(5)
Natural Selections	64	(5)
E. O. Wilson
Learning from Professional Writing	69	(86)
Chapter Preview	69	(1)
Tracing the Genealogy of a Profession	69	(1)
Writer's Notebook	70	(1)
Putting Your Discourse Analysis Skills to Work	71	(1)
Casebook of Readings: Privacy in the Information Age	72	(1)
Writer's Notebook	72	(44)
Is Privacy Still Possible in the Twenty-First Century?	72	(9)
Jerry Berman
Paula Bruening
Technology as Security	81	(10)
Declan McCullagh
Balancing Security & Privacy in the Internet Age, Institute of Management & Administration	91	(7)
American Nursing Association Action Report: Privacy and Confidentiality, Introduced	98	(6)
Beverly L. Malone
Stop That Face!	104	(4)
Linda Rothstein
Talk Show Telling versus Authentic Telling: The Effects of the Popular Media on Secrecy and Openness	108	(8)
Evan Imber-Black
Writer's Workshop	116	(1)
Casebook of Readings: Weight, Body Image, and Identity	117	(1)
Writer's Notebook	117	(35)
Eating Disorders Information Sheets from the BodyWise Handbook, The National Women's Health Information Center	117	(8)
Fat World/Thin World: ``Fat Busters,'' ``Equivocators,'' ``Fat Boosters,'' and the Social Construction of Obesity	125	(16)
Karen Honeycutt
Shallow Hal (Movie Review)	141	(4)
Roger Ebert
Let Us Refer You. Today. (Advertisement), American Society of Plastic Surgeons	145	(2)
Buff Enough? (Book Review)	147	(5)
Jonathan Rauch
Writer's Profile Two: Where Am I Going as a Professional Writer?	152	(3)
Learning from Public Writing	155	(64)
Chapter Preview	155	(1)
Finding a Public Voice: Problem-Solving Strategies	155	(2)
Solving Problems with Others: Analyzing the Writing Situation	156	(1)
Solving Problems Alone: Analyzing the Writing Situation	156	(1)
Writer's Notebook	157	(1)
Putting Your Discourse Analysis Skills into Service	157	(1)
Casebook of Readings: Targeting Discrimination	158	(1)
Writer's Notebook	158	(27)
Take Action: Children's Rights Are Human Rights	158	(6)
Marc Kielburger
Craig Kielburger
Make Age Irrelevant by Beating Negative Attitudes	164	(4)
Sally James
Just Walk On By: A Black Man Ponders His Power to Alter Public Space	168	(5)
Brent Staples
Reality Bites	173	(3)
Lisa Bennett
I Spy Sexism: A Public Education Campaign, Third Wave Foundation	176	(4)
Stigma Watch: Being Alert to Mental Health Stereotyping	180	(5)
Otto Wahl
Writer's Workshop	185	(1)
Casebook of Readings: Responding to Homelessness	186	(1)
Writer's Notebook	186	(28)
National Alliance to End Homelessness Web Site Home Page and FAQ	186	(4)
Transitions: Newsletter of the Center for Women in Transition	190	(6)
Let's Solve S. F.'s No. 1 Problem, Mike Sullivan and Plan C	196	(3)
Vehicularly Housed Residential Community: Project Description, Vehicularly Housed Residential Association & the Coalition on Homelessness	199	(9)
San Francisco
``Can You Spare 20p for a Cup of Tea?'' (Campaign Poster), Thames Reach Bondway (TRB)/Imagination (GIC) Ltd.	208	(2)
These Are Our Neighbors (Student Essay)	210	(4)
Nicole Stewart
Writer's Workshop	214	(1)
Writer's Profile Three: What Might I Do as a Public Writer?	215	(4)
Becoming a Practicing Writer	219	(18)
Chapter Preview	219	(1)
The Secondary Research Process: Resources, Techniques, and Styles	219	(1)
Selecting and Using Secondary Sources	220	(5)
Specialized Reference Works	220	(3)
Indexes and Abstracts	223	(1)
Specialized Professional Journals	224	(1)
The World Wide Web	225	(1)
Researching for Public Writing	225	(1)
Evaluating Sources	225	(4)
Recognizing Bias	225	(3)
Assessing Electronic Resources	228	(1)
Writer's Workshop	229	(1)
Documenting Your Sources	229	(3)
What to Document	230	(1)
Styles of Documentation	230	(1)
Informal Documentation	231	(1)
The Project Notebook	232	(2)
Keeping Track of Your Research	232	(1)
Reading and Analyzing Sources	233	(1)
Writing Project: Critique of a Published Professional Essay	234	(3)
Argument	237	(36)
Chapter Preview	237	(1)
Persuasion and Argument	237	(1)
Making Assumptions	238	(2)
Reviewing the Elements of Argument	240	(4)
Claims	240	(1)
Evidence	240	(3)
Refutation	243	(1)
Strategies for Arranging Arguments	244	(3)
The Counterargument	245	(1)
The Pro and Con Argument	245	(1)
The Problem-Solution Argument	246	(1)
Finding a Middle Ground	247	(1)
Writer's Workshop	248	(3)
Writing Project: Researched Position Paper	251	(1)
Sample Student Research Papers	252	(17)
Full or Partial Inclusion: A Look at the Debate about Where and How to Educate Special-Needs Students	253	(7)
Toni Spainhour
The Decline and Fall of the Soviet Union	260	(9)
Marty Ruhaak
Guidelines for Making an Oral Presentation	269	(4)
Writing and Speaking	269	(1)
Presentation and Delivery	270	(1)
Practice, Practice, Practice	271	(2)
Appendix A Using and Designing Web Sites	273	(14)
Before You Start: Protecting Your Privacy	273	(1)
Successful Surfing	274	(3)
Getting There: Search Engines	274	(1)
Conducting Your Search	275	(1)
Evaluating Sites	276	(1)
Constructing and Maintaining Your Own Web Site	277	(3)
Tools for Construction: HTML and Servers	277	(1)
Designing a Web Site	278	(1)
Ways of Reading: Print versus Hypertext	279	(1)
Visual Complexity: Adding Images	279	(1)
Navigating: Overall Site Organization	280	(7)
Page Layout	281	(2)
Homepage: Core Information	283	(1)
Looking at a Sample Design	283	(2)
Editing and Maintaining Your Site	285	(2)
Appendix B Styles for Documenting Sources	287	(28)
Documenting Sources Using MLA Style	288	(7)
In-Text Citations	288	(1)
Preparing the List of Works Cited	289	(1)
Sample Entries for a List of Works Cited	290	(5)
Documenting Sources Using APA Style	295	(6)
In-Text Citations	295	(2)
Preparing the References List	297	(1)
Sample Entries for a List of References	298	(3)
Documenting Sources Using Chicago Manual Style	301	(7)
Using the Chicago Notes and Bibliography Style	302	(1)
Sample Entries for Notes and Bibliography Entries	303	(5)
Documenting Sources Using CSE Style	308	(4)
Using the CSE Citation-Sequence Style	308	(1)
Using a CSE References List	309	(1)
Sample Entries for a References List	310	(2)
List of Style Manuals and Supplementary Internet Sources	312	(3)
Index	315

Excerpts

College students are projected to make several career changes within their working lifetimes. These transitions and the challenges of their complex personal and public lives will require informed flexibility. Professional and Public Writing: A Rhetoric and Reader for Advanced Compositionis designed to guide students through the writing required of them as students, professionals, and citizens. Its two central goals are: To help advanced students become confident, refined, and effective writers through an active critique of their undergraduate writing practices and of the writing requirements of their academic majors. To prepare students for the work required of professional and public writers in their varied discourse communities, each of which operates from distinct cognitive assumptions and within specific rhetorical contexts. Two core strategies are used to achieve these goals: Review of and in-depth engagement with the rhetorical principles introduced in the students'' earlier composition courses Introduction to and application of the principles and techniques of discourse analysis necessary for success in academic, professional, and public writing Instructor Expertise Because few English teachers are fully familiar with the many styles and genres required of student writers in their various majors, let alone the full range of demands made on all professional and public writers, Professional and Public Writing depends primarily on instructor expertise in teaching the fundamental rhetorical and research skills that enable any writer to enter a discourse community and identify its cognitive assumptions (values, interests, etc.) and rhetorical features (genres, style, design, etc.). The book provides guidelines and extensive materials for meeting these instructional goals. Student Readiness Although students are introduced to key concepts in freshman writing courses, they come to Advanced Composition actively pursuing a major and consciously moving into their professional and civic lives. This timing provides them with significant motivation and interest in refining their current academic skills and understanding the value of applying these skills to real-life situations. Professional and Public Writingis grounded in the assumption that these students can be taught the advanced rhetorical knowledge and research practices needed to write successfully for any discourse community within which they might find themselves. This same proficiency is of immediate use in completing the writing required by their advanced college courses. Writing Assignments The text is structured around extensive "Writing Activities" and sequenced assignments that meet the needs of students from a range of disciplines and with diverse learning styles and interests. As part of the process, students are asked to keep a "Writer''s Notebook" and to engage in collaboration, peer review, and both primary and secondary research. Formal assignments include three increasingly complex and comprehensive "Writer''s Profiles," a critical discourse analysis of a student-selected professional essay, and an argument based on a researched literature review. Each chapter also contains genre- and theme-based "Writer''s Workshops" that provide additional writing opportunities. Genre Modeling Samples of academic writing from a range of disciplines are used throughout the text for purposes of illustration and practice. In addition, two casebook chapters provide students the opportunity to read and analyze thematically linked readings: Professional Writing:"Privacy in the Information Age" and "Weight, Body Image, and Identity" Public Writing:"Targeting Discrimination" and "Responding to Homelessness" The readings represent genres employed by public and professional writers from diverse discourse communities--for example, a proposal by a grassroots community organization, a case study by a sociologist, fact sheets prepared by the government for educators, a Web site for homeless advocates, a position paper by a professional nursing organization, a literary essay published in an interdisciplinary humanities journal, and a researched journal article written for a law journal. Extensive reading apparatus prompts students to apply the concepts of discourse and genre analysis introduced in the opening chapters. Additional Features Frequent activities that encourage students to explore the correlation between their personal skills and those required of professionals in the careers to which they aspire Illustrations and readings from Across the Curriculum, including illustrative "Writers on Writing" selections in Chapters 1-3 An opportunity for students without a major to explore possible careers through research and writing An appendix on basic Web use and site construction that offers students and instructors options for research and publishing The nuts and bolts of both print and electronic research from project start to finish, including the skills necessary to evaluate and select appropriate sources Two complete sample student research projects illustrating MLA and APA styles and varied structures for argument Suggestions for formal oral presentations An appendix that describes the basic procedures and forms for citing and documenting sources according to MLA, APA, CMS, and CSE styles Although Professional and Public Writingis indebted to research in the areas of advanced composition, writing across the curriculum, ethnography, genre theory, discourse community analysis, and multiple literacies, chapters are written in a clear and engaging tone, introducing appropriate jargon only when it supports more conscious understanding of a practice or concept.