aka (info. text)
Purpose: to convey
knowledge about a
topic from someone
credible about that
information to
someone less
knowledgeable
about the topic
• Facts, statistics, true
information
• Explains or gives the
audience
information on a
specific topic
• Examples:
Textbooks,
cookbooks,
informational
brochures, etc.
1. Clear Purpose
• What is the author
trying to inform or
explain?
• Three different
kinds of purposes
when addressing an
audience:
– To inform
– To argue/persuade
– To entertain
• What type of
evidence does the
author use? Is this
2. Credible
Author
• Do you trust
the author?
• Have they had
life experience
about the
topic?
• Are they
educated?
3. Intended Audience
• Who is the author
talking to or writing
for?
• What can you
assume about the
audience?
• Is the audience
educated? How old
is the audience?
4. Specific Word
Choice (aka Diction)
• Denotation – literal
or dictionary
meaning
• Denotative: “Animals
are killed for food.”
• Connotation –
figurative or
associated meaning
– Connotative: “The Falcon’s
basketball team
slaughtered WWS.”
4. Specific Word Choice
(aka Diction)
• What words really
jump out and are
important?
• Does the author need
to define certain words
for the audience?
• How does this diction
contribute to the tone
or emotional feeling of
the text?
5. Tone
• Tone: the
authors attitude
towards the
topic
• Expressed
through diction
• Two categories
of tone:
subjective or
objective.
• Objective tone is
“impartial”
• Does not show
feelings, and is neither
for or against a topic
• Unbiased or neutral
• Does not use pronouns
such as “I and You”
• Examples: Textbooks,
some newspaper
articles
• Subjective tone
=personal and biased
• Characteristic of
narrative writing
• Author writes to
evoke an emotion
within the audience
• Author uses words
that describe
feelings, experiences,
or thoughts
• Example: Stories or
Poems