In this Section we are going to look at how to Analyise a writing.
Can you summarise an article?
Can you examine the writer's perspective and purpose in his writing?
Can you provide an evaluation of what has been written?
What is a Summary?
General Information:
A summary is a brief account that contains the main points of something. Some examples that you hear or see almost everyday are news reports given on the radio ot TV. Students often have to write summaries of books they have read. Writing a summary lets you, or your teacher, know how much you understood of what you read or saw. Summaries are a great way to remember what has happened. When you write a summary, you first look for the most important ideas. Then, you then put all the main ideas together, in a logical order.
We have lots of samples of summaries in our Book Reviews section!
How to write a summary These guidelines are an addition to those given in Study Skills and in New Directions
What is a good summary?
1. A good summary should give an objective outline of the whole piece of writing. It should answer basic questions about the original text such as "Who did what, where, and when?", or "What is the main idea of the text?", "What are the main supporting points?", "What are the major pieces of evidence?". It should not be a paraphrase of the whole text using your own words. 2. You should not give your own ideas or criticisms as part of the summary. However, if you want to comment on a piece of writing it is usual to begin by summarizing it as objectively as possible. 3. A good summary should not include selected examples, details, or information which are not relevant to the piece of writing taken as a whole. 4. A good summary should probably include the main idea of each paragraph, and the main evidence supporting that idea, unless it is not relevant to the article or essay as a whole. A summary does not need a conclusion, but if the original ends with a message to the reader this should not be left out. 5. A good summary may use key words from the original text but should not contain whole phrases or sentences from the original unless quotation marks are used. Quotations should only be made if there is a reason for using the original words, for example because the choice of words is significant, or because the original is so well expressed. 6. Rearranging the words used in the original, or keeping the same structure but just substituting different words is not enough. You must express the sense of the original using your own words and structures.
How to write a summary of a short piece of writing:
1. As you read, underline all the important points and all the important evidence. For example, you could look for all the topic sentences. 2. List or cluster the main idea of the whole piece, the main supporting ideas, and the main evidence for each idea. Be careful to use your own words rather than copying or just rearranging. Do not include too much detail. 3. Change the order if necessary, so that the main idea comes first and is followed by the supporting ideas and evidence in a logical sequence. Omit any repetitions. 4. If the original uses 'I' replace this with the writer's actual surname, "the writer", or "s/he". If the original uses 'you', substitute "people" or "they". 5. You should now be ready to write the summary. Start with a sentence that a) identifies the writer and the piece of writing, for example by giving the writer's name, the title of the piece and where/when it appeared, and b) gives the main idea. Use transition words to join everything together. For a model summary of "School Is Bad For Children", click here.
What is the writer's Purpose?
Providing the Main Idea/s for the Summary, is not the same as answering the question: 'What is the writer's purpose?'.
In the section on 'Summary' it states: (1.) A good summary should give an objective outline...... This means that you state the facts - not your opinions. When discussing the writer's Purpose, what you write will be 'your opinion' of his purpose, and so it is a subjective piece of writing. However, you are writing about 'the writer's purpose' as is revealed to you in what he has actually written. Writing about his purpose, is not about 'offering your opinions' on the writer, or the correctness or otherwise of what he writes. It is not about your 'opinion'. Writing about what the Author's purpose is, requires 'objectively' stating what the writer has stated, and forming an opinion about his intent. This does not mean, that you decide to discuss a million issues never mentioned in the article because you 'feel' that there is a connection between those issues and something that the writer has said.
"Lack of Evidence" = "Evidence of Nothing!" When writing about an article or a book, you are supposed to write about 'what is written', the evidence of which is visible for all the world to see. When you begin to write about what is not visible, you 'f a i l' to do the job correctly.
Use the Evidence provided by the Author, to demonstrate the Author's intent - as you see it! You may in fact be wrong! Therefore, when you see that the Author's intent and purpose is to say this or that, it is just your 'opinion'; but that opinion is based in observation of what is visible to all. As per the Section above on 'Summary': (2.) List the main supporting ideas, and the main evidence for each idea. Be careful to use your own words rather than copying or just rearranging. Do not include too much detail. The amount of detail will depend on how many words you are required to write. The more you need to write, the more detail or personal expression that is required. Questions to ask yourself about the writer's purpose: Is he just telling a story? (Objective) Is he revealing his own (subjective) opinion when he tells the story?
Does his writing show bias?
Does he give more time to one side of an arguement than another?
Is his language overly strong - indicating bias, prejudice or preference?
Is the writer using one story to tell a different story - a many layered story? (A Moral?)
Does the writer have a personal connection to the story told? (Country, Religion, Culture?)
Is the writer writing from personal experience? (Life Experiences?)
Remember: You are writing about HIS PURPOSE AND OPINION - not yours!
Evaluate the Writers Actual Message!
This is where you give your opinions of the Message that is delivered through the writing. You cannot do this however, unless you have already examined the writer's purpose.
In giving your opinions however, you have to be careful that you don't provide opinions on what is not written. Opinion (Evidence) about that which is not written, is Opinion (Evidence) of nothing. Let me give an illustration: In Australia, there is a very high incidence of alcoholism in Aboriginal communities, and one day, a person was discussing this issue and began to complain that the Australian government 'should do something' to help the poor aboriginal alcoholics. I made the statement that 'No one can truly help an alcoholic, until the alcoholic actually wants to be helped!' That person then turned on me, accusing me of racism; of being against Aboriginal people. That opinion was not based in what actually was said, because what was actually said was true. The opinion was based in what was not said. But how can a person make a judgement about what is not said. What this person did not know was that 3 branches of my family are aboriginal; my statement was not about prejudice. What this person also did not know was that when I made my statement, I was thinking about an alcoholic white person in my family. Although we were in conversation, that person did not ask me to explain my statement. They simply drew evidence from 'nothing' and began to abuse me. At that point, I had to demonstrate that that person's opinion itself was prejudiced. When you provide opinion or personal perspective about what a writer has written, you are not able to question the writer, and the writer cannot answer your accusations. Therefore you cannot base your statements on opinions about that which is not revealed. [You can however speculate!] Once you have some idea (from the evidence provided in the writing) of what the writer's purpose and thinking is, then you can begin to discuss your opinions about what the writer wrote. You must however be careful. If you rush into giving your opinions (positive or negative), you may fail to notice that the writer has already covered that topic elsewhere in his writing. So! I have a question! Can you, without copying, copying, copying and copying what a writer has written:
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