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Revision Guidelines for Text Analysis

Text analysis: you describe, analyze, and evaluate the choices the author makes to support his main point and how effective those choices are.

1. Summarize the article briefly. Remember to discuss the major points the author, Alan Schwarz, is making, not just the story of Richard Fee.

2. Identify the author’s main claim as part of the summary. What does he want his audience to know about the topic?

3. Include a thesis statement indicating what techniques you’ll be examining: Schwarz supports his claim using appeals to pathos and ethos, diction, and organization.

4. In the body of the essay, elaborate on the techniques the writer uses to support his claim. Include examples from the article. You might look at

· Organization of information: what’s first, what’s last, how the middle is arranged.

· Types of evidence used

· Examples

· Expert testimony

· Statistical information

· Research results

· Context of the article, including the place of publication and timing of the piece

· Appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos

· What information or techniques are not present in the article?

5. Discuss why these choices were effective or not. This is your opinion.

6. Use your research article as a point of comparison in a few places in your essay. For example, does your article appeal to pathos like Schwarz does? Does it rely on some other technique? Does it work more effectively in Schwarz’s article or yours? Why?

7. Keep focus of the essay on the techniques. DO NOT discuss the topic of the article (your perspective on Adderall abuse) or on the article you found.

8. Use signal phrases to indicate you're inserting info from a source: According to Schwarz…

9. Cite both the New York Times piece and the article you found in the paper and on a works cited list at the end of your essay. Use the Field Guide (Ch. 46, 48, and 49) for examples how to cite sources in-text and on your works cited.

Editing

· The title of a newspaper, magazine, or academic journal should be placed in italics: New York Times, Wall Street Journal

· Article title should be placed in quotation marks with important words capitalized: “Drowning in a Stream of Prescriptions”

· Direct quotations from your sources must make sense in your paper. If you need to change or add words in a quote, enclose the change in square brackets:

· ORIGINAL: “Avery argued that he needed more time.”

· WORD CHANGED: “Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time.”

Punctuating Quotations (see also p. 432-438 in Field Guide)

Quote ending a sentence

“Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time.”

Quote with commentary, comma needed

“Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time,” but prosecutors denied the request.

Quote with commentary, no comma needed

“Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time” but did not receive an extension.

Quote with commentary using semicolon

“Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time”; prosecutors denied the request.

Quote ending with full parenthetical citation

“Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time” (Smith 74).

Quote with author’s name in signal phrase

In his article, “A Few Good Men,” Smith revealed that “Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time” (74).

Quote if author mentioned in signal phrase, no page numbers given

In his article, “A Few Good Men,” Smith revealed that “Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time.”

Quote if author not mentioned in signal phrase, no page numbers given

In the article, “A Few Good Men,” it is asserted that “Avery argued that [Nolan] needed more time” (Smith).