RWS11 4Q

• Context


  The background of the text - socially, politically, culturally, or historically or by circumstances
• Intertextuality


  The connection among texts - relationships among texts in terms of language, images, characters, themes, or subject/topic
• Hypertext


  A non-linear way of showing information, connecting related info., graphics, videos, or sounds to the text using hyperlinks
• Critical reading as reasoning


  Engaging in analytic activity which involves the reader by asking questions about the text and the author's claim, evaluating, analyzing, and interpreting the assertion of the hidden meaning of the whole text
• Hedges


  Words or phrases used to express unfavorable statements in a courteous tone, such as modals, frequency adverbs, and probability adverbs
• Steps in critical reading as reasoning

  1. Identifying assertions

  2. Formulating counterclaim

  3. Determining evidence
• Book review


  Describes and evaluates a work of fiction or nonfiction, offering the book's overall purpose, structure, and style of narration to the unknown readers
• Book review


  • Combines skills of describing the content of the pages, analyzing how the book achieved its purpose, and expressing personal comments, reactions, and suggestions
• Writing a book review

  1. Read the book and ask questions about the author's viewpoint, purpose, main points, evidence, relation to other books, author's expertise, and criteria to judge the book

  2. Determine the appropriate length of the review based on the book's length

  3. Write the review with an engaging title, identifying the book, specifying the type, mentioning the theme, providing necessary background, and using an interesting quote/fact/explanation

  4. For nonfiction, pay attention to the major points and sources; for fiction, pay attention to setting, plot, style, characters, theme, language, and voice

  5. Provide reactions, describe the book, respond to the author's opinions, and explore issues the book raises

  6. Conclude by relating the book to other works or larger issues, restating main points and thesis, and indicating how well the book achieved its goal
• Revising the draft of a book review involves allowing time to elapse, correcting mistakes, reading for unity and organization, making major revisions if necessary, and verifying quotations and references