RI.11-12.6
Description:
Craft and Structure
Discern an author’s point of view or purpose in a text in which the rhetoric is particularly effective, analyzing how style and content contribute to the power, persuasiveness, or aesthetic impact of the text.
Maps to Reading Plus skills:
6A
Exemplars
6A: Recognizing Author's Intent
6A: Recognizing Author's Intent
Description:
Recognizing Author's Purpose
SeeReader
✓ standard met
Selection:
K-39
K-39
Grade level: 11
Word count: 1650 words
Author: Christopher Morley
Synopsis: If you have ever been asked to write a certain number of words on a topic, you'll certainly understand the frustration expressed by the newspaper reporter who penned this essay.
Excerpt:
We thought of some books we had seen up on East Fifty-ninth Street, in that admirable row of old bookshops, particularly Mowry Saben's volume of essays, "The Spirit of Life," which we are going back to buy one of these days, so please let it alone. We then got out a small notebook in which we keep memoranda of books we intend to read and pored over it zealously. Just for fun, we will tell you three of the titles we have noted there: "The Voyage of the Hoppergrass," by E.L. Pearson, "People and Problems," by Fabian Franklin, and "Broken Stowage," by David W. Bone.
Question:
Why does Morley list the names of the books he purchased on Fifty-ninth Street in this essay?
- Listing the books adds words to the essay and brings him closer to meeting his word count.
- He wanted to make sure the books received some publicity.
- Listing the books allows him to demonstrate he is a well-read person.
- He was friendly with the authors of the books he mentions.
Writing
✓ standard met
Writing prompt:
How effective were the words and writing style used by the author of a selection? Explain why.
Evaluator
Organization:
Certica Solutions