Features and Conventions of Academic Writing
What is Academic Writing?
Academic writing tends to be both informative and persuasive (according to Trimble). Consider this conception of
writing as a product:
James Britton imagined a continuum of discourse, placing the transactional and the poetic on opposite ends of the
spectrum, with the expressive occupying the middle distance:
• writing in the transactional-expressive range aims to get specific things accomplished
• writing in the poetic-expressive range exists as an end in and of itself.
Academic writing exists in the transactional-expressive range, both conveying information and attempting to
communicate and support a point of view as expressed in an arguable thesis.
Unconventional Writing:
You can see more if you compare the 2 essays.
Stephanie helps us see that Postman loses his authority. Lie of omission. Because for all the hyperactive fantasies of
cheerleaders. Neil never mentions the thousands of reasonable voices. And she allow us to understand it is deliberate.
There are consequences. So should we lissen to Postman if he is a liar or does
“I’m not advocating”
really act as enough of a qualifier. Duh!
Conventions of Academic Writing
Following conventions in academic writing is a reminder that we have an audience, and that we will not be present
when the writing is read. It cannot rely on body language or tone of voice to make sure the intended communication is
clear. Conventions operate as a commonplace between writer and reader to aid comprehension.
Academic writing tends to be more formal than informal (though this is not an absolute)
- It follows conventions in expressing numbers, with all numbers of ten or less spelled out as words
- It follows a naming convention similar to journalism, using a person’s full name upon first reference, and then only last
name (as long as this can be done without confusion) thereafter, never just first names (unless referring to a character
whose last name is unknown)
- That being said, it allows you to break the rules for effect, slipping into less formal constructions as appropriate (e.g.
direct address to the reader to ask rhetorical questions)
Academic writing demands closer adherence to grammar rules than informal writing or speech does
- Grammar is a convention of formality, but its purpose is also clarity
- In the absence of spoken word cues and to serve academic writing’s more formal nature, we attempt to follow all rules
- Major caveat: Except when following the rules gets in the way of clarity. Good grammar does not necessarily mean
clear writing. Consider which of these sentence makes its intent more clear:
Colorless green dreams sleep furiously. (grammatically correct)
If anyone calls while I am out, tell them I will call back later. (grammatically incorrect)
Academic writing is part of a discourse or conversation, and we must differentiate our contributions to that conversation
and the contributions of others
- Careful integration of quoted material into our own writing
- Indicating the source of all referenced materials, in our case using MLA citation format:
Works Cited – separate page, full citations of each cited work, alphabetized for easy indexing
In-Text or Parenthetical Citations – within the work, indicate where in Works Cited a reference can be found and
where in the referenced text the quotation or paraphrase can be found