RaWS

• Context


  The foundation for the author in constructing his/her written text, including how the writer has researched the topic and how he/she organized the content
• The way writers shape their texts is dramatically influenced by their context
• Moxley's questions on the analysis of context


  1. What is going on in the world of readers that will influence the reader's thoughts and feelings about the document?

  2. Does the intellectual content of the document rest on the shoulders of other authors? Will readers expect the author to mention particular scholars or researchers who did the original, ground-breaking work on the subject you are exploring?

  3. What background information can you assume your reader is already familiar with?
• Hypertextuality


  A non-linear way of presenting information.
• Rather than reading or learning about things in the order that an author, or editor, or publisher sets out for us, readers of hypertext may follow their own path, create their own order – their own meaning out the material
• Hypertext


  A text which contains links to other texts, enabling users to click on links to obtain more information on a subsequent page on the same site or from a website anywhere in the world
• Hypertext includes pictures, video materials animated and audio illustrations
• Hypertext connects the topic on a screen to related information, graphics, videos, and music – information is not simply related to text
• Intertextuality


  The complex interrelationship between a text and other texts taken as fundamental to the creation and interpretation of the text
• Intertext


  The relationship between texts and how culture and other writers influence a text
• Types of Intertextuality


  • Allusion
  • Retelling
  • Quotation
  • Parody
  • Pastiche
• Allusion


  An expression that calls attention to something without explicitly mentioning it, often a "passing reference"
• Retelling


  A re-expression or statement of a narrative
• Quotation


  The method of directly lifting the exact statements or set of words from a text another author has made
• Parody


  When one piece of writing uses many of the same elements of another but does it in a new and funny way
• Pastiche


  Borrows elements from one or more works and reconfigures them to create something new
• Critical Reading


  A more active way of reading, a deeper and more complex engagement with a text, involving analyzing, interpreting and sometimes evaluating
• To non-critical readers, text provide facts. Readers gain knowledge by memorizing the statements within a text. Critical readers recognize not only what a text says, but also how the text portrays the subject matter
• The Three Steps or Modes of Analysis


  • Restatement
  • Description
  • Interpretation
• Fact


  A statement that can be checked or proved, often containing numbers, dates or ages, and specific information about a person, place or thing
• Opinion


  A statement that cannot be proved or checked, telling what someone thinks, feels or believes
• Author's Purpose


  The reason for or intent in writing, which may be to amuse, persuade or inform the reader, reflected in the author's tone
• Tone


  The author's attitude in approaching the topic, and how the author expects the reader to respond to the material
• Elements to analyze in a written text

  • Purpose/Context
  • Authors
  • Audience
  • Topic and Position
  • Research/Sources
  • Proof/Evidence
  • Organization
  • Style
• Inference


  An "educated guess", an idea or conclusion drawn from evidence and reasoning
• Assertion


  A strong declaration, a forceful or confident and positive statement regarding a belief or a fact, often without proof or support
• Types of Assertion


  • Statement of Fact
  • Statement of Opinion
  • Statement of Convention
  • Statement of Preference
• Claim


  A statement that asserts facts based on one's understanding about a particular topic or issue
• Counterclaim


  A statement that contradicts one's claim and is usually proven and supported by both reasons and evidence
• Reason


  The part of an argument where a statement offers an explanation behind a party's claim
• Evidence


  The statement that proves the truth of a claim and generally leads to the conclusion of an argument
• A counterclaim is an opportunity to address opposing views, and should include credible sources as evidence for the opposing side