Writing More About Less
Attaining depth
Analyzing Evidence in Depth: “10 on 1”
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How do you move from (a) making details
speak and (b) explaining how evidence
confirms and qualifies the claim to composing
a paper?
Phrased as a general rule 10 on 1 holds that it
is better to make ten observations or points
about a single representative issue or example
than to make the same basic point about ten
related issues or examples (Writing Analytically, p. 207).
10 on 1
Point 1
Point 2
Point 3
Point 4
Point 5
Point 6
Point 7
Point 8
Point 9
Point 10
Representative
Example:
(conclusion,
argument, main
point, anecdote,
etc.)
Audience Interest
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The more interesting claims you can make
about your evidence and how it relates to your
thesis, the more interesting your paper will be.
The number “10” does not always have to be
reached in drawing conclusions about your
example; “you should draw out as much
meaning as possible from your best examples”
(Writing Analytically, p. 211).
Goals for 10 on 1
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to locate the range of possible meanings your evidence
suggests
to zoom in on specific variations within the general pattern of
data found
to make you less inclined to cling to your first claim
inflexibly
 open the way for you to discover a way of representing
more fully the complexity of your subject
to slow down the rush to generalization

ensure that when you arrive at a working thesis, it will be
more specific and better able to account for your
evidence.
Outcomes for 10 on 1
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Pushes you to start thinking more critically
about your topic
Allows you to draw out the implications lying
at the heart of your paper
Impels your mind to create as many new and
interesting claims as it can
Applying 10 on 1
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Find 10 examples that share a trait (or as
many examples, points, issues as you can).
Focus on one of these for in-depth analysis.
Proceeding in this way will guarantee that
your example is representative.
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In doing 10 on 1 you will take one part of the whole,
put it under a microscope, and
then generalize about the whole on the basis of your
analysis.
Writing Development
The Four Stages
Writing Development: Stage 1
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Dualism:
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typical of college freshmen
dualists believe in a fixed or single truth that is
available to all
when asked to choose between two or more
alternatives, likely to do so based on the belief
that a particular position is right or wrong
do not admit uncertainty and believe that
authorities (teachers, texts, etc.) have the answers
(From the Instructor's Manual for Writing and Reading Arguments: A Rhetoric and Reader, by
Richard P. Batteiger)
Writing Development: Stage 2
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Multiplicity: recognize that multiple views
can be found
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impossible to be certain which are right
because no way (writer believes) to compare or
evaluate alternatives; all are equally valid
(From the Instructor's Manual for Writing and Reading Arguments: A Rhetoric and Reader, by
Richard P. Batteiger)
Writing Development: Stage 3
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Relativism:
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recognize that most questions and issues are
complex and uncertain
compare and evaluate competing positions
may not know how to choose among equally
plausible and convincing alternatives
(From the Instructor's Manual for Writing and Reading Arguments: A Rhetoric and Reader, by
Richard P. Batteiger)
Writing Development: Stage 4

Commitment to Relativism:

use values to choose among
available alternatives

Have developed
CT Traits:
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(From the Instructor's Manual for Writing and Reading Arguments: A
Rhetoric and Reader, by Richard P. Batteiger)
Humility
Courage
Empathy
Integrity
Perseverance
Faith in reason
Fair mindedness
(From Gerald M. Nosich, Learning to Think Thins
Through , 2009)