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Mr. Burke, Yoda…and others.
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You may not be a professional writer (yet), but you still use
the same tools.
Writing is communication. An author wants to show you
something, help you understand something, convince you of
something. He has tools at his disposal (a painter's palette,
if you will).
He has words (diction).
He has choices (selection of detail).
He has comparisons (figurative language).
He has sentences (syntax).
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Diction simply means word choice. The words you decide to
use in your writing to get your message to the reader.
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We often don't think about the
power of words. Consider the
following photographs, which
cover a similar episode during
the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina with the notable
exception of word choice.
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Consider the different
reactions to the words looting
and finding. The first suggests
a crime, the second
serendipity (or good fortune).
Now consider the race of the
people in the pictures.
FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPT: The author’s choices reveal
the author’s intent.
Writers make choices. In Pre-AP English you need to learn
to understand WHY a writer has made particular choices.
Why use that word? (diction)
Why use that simile? (figurative language)
Why use intentional repetition? (sentence structure)
In order to communicate ideas, writers must make
choices. All choices can be categorized as a literary tool
or device.
FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPT: The author’s choices reveal the
author’s intent.
For example:
A writer might use some form of repetition (e.g., alliteration,
assonance, motif, etc.) in order to draw the reader's attention to
something important.
A writer might construct a sentence in an unusual way in order to
draw the reader's attention to certain ideas or images.
A writer might make usual comparisons or analogies (e.g., similes,
metaphors) in order to help the reader better see his or her
understanding. So, a writer's choices reveal his or her intended
meaning.
Think of figurative language in this way: A writer creatively uses
words either (1.) to explain something otherwise difficult or (2.) to
draw attention to something deemed important. By using words
figuratively, the writer often changes their original meaning or
intent. Generally speaking, figurative language is fun, fanciful, and
imaginative.
For example
"She's hot!" (Most likely, the person uttering such a proclamation
is referring to a person's beauty and not body temperature.)
"That dirty rat ain't seen nothin' yet!" (The rat is probably a human
being.)
“…We saw three gallows erected in the Appelplatz, three black
ravens.”
Syntax = syn (together) + tax (arrangement), or the
arrangement of words in a sentence.
Syntax (noun), Syntactical (adjective)
In writing, our thoughts are expressed through words. First, we
choose what words to use. This word choice, or selection, is
called diction. Syntax refers to how we arrange the chosen
words to express thoughts. Note that a writer can choose
innumerable ways to express the same thought via diction,
detail, and arrangement.
As writers, we tend to use certain patterns to arrange our words into sentences.
Being unique, we have our own “favorite” sentence patterns; such distinctive
choices contribute to our style.
From an AP standpoint, we want to pay careful attention to a writer’s syntax. A
writer’s choice of word arrangement may contribute to the meaning. Consider
three of the above examples:
I went to the store in the morning.
To the store I went in the morning.
In the morning to the store went I.
Observe the three positions of the subject “I.” The emphasis in each sentence
shifts. The first emphasizes “I,” the second “store,” and the third “morning.” In
other words, the focus shifts from person to place to time. A writer can choose
what element to emphasize by its placement in the sentence. The information
is the same, but the emphasis differs—thereby potentially affecting the
meaning in the context of the larger passage.
Few consider punctuation a tool of expression; however, think of the possibilities:
Compose a sentence revealing anger…
Get. Your. Butt. Over here. NOW!!!!!
[Note how the use of punctuation and capitalization reveals the speaker’s rage.]
Compose a sentence revealing panic…
Have you seen, Cindy?—I checked the kitchen and parlor but didn’t see her.—Wasn’t
she in the living room?—I just stepped out for a minute. Cindy!—She can’t be far,
can she?
[Note the effect of the dashes. Tying the sentences together suggests racing
thought—or, in this case, panic.]
Compose a sentence revealing confusion…
I think . . . well, I know . . . Hand me that book.
[The use of ellipsis in this case suggests trailing thought.]
Taking the time to think about
WHAT you need to write about…
WHO you have to write it for…
WHY (purpose)…
Will help you figure out the
HOW you will write.
Thinking this way doesn’t hurt
your brain…it actually makes it
work better. Got it my young
masters?
Using what you know now,
you will learn to create a
THESIS.
You will use that thesis to
set up your persuasive
essay, choose 2-3
examples to PROVE your
thesis and provide
analysis/explanations
HOW each example proves
your thesis.