Preface for Students: Using This Book Preface for Instructors The Writing Process Assessing the Writing Situation Understanding how writing happens Analyzing the writing situation Discovering and limiting a subject Defining a purpose Considering the audience Developing and Shaping Ideas Discovering ideas Developing a thesis Organizing ideas Sample essay Drafting and Revising Writing the first draft Revising the first draft Examining a sample revision Editing the revised draft Preparing and proofreading the final draft Examining a sample final draft Giving and receiving comments Preparing a writing portfolio Writing and Revising Paragraphs Maintaining paragraph unity Achieving paragraph coherence Developing the paragraph Writing special kinds of paragraphs Linking paragraphs in the essay Designing Documents Designing academic papers and other documents Considering principles of design Using the elements of design Using illustrations Considering readers with disabilities Reading And Writing In College Developing Academic Skills Managing your time Listening and taking notes in class Reading for comprehension Becoming an academic writer Preparing for exams
Forming a Critical Perspective Using techniques of critical Reading Developing a critical response Viewing images critically Writing in Academic Situations Writing in response to texts Determining purpose Analyzing audience Choosing structure and content Using academic language Examining sample critical responses Sample critique of a text Sample critique of an image Reading Arguments Critically Recognizing the elements of argument Testing claims Weighing evidence Discovering assumptions Watching language, hearing tone Judging reasonableness Recognizing fallacies Writing an Argument Finding a subject Conceiving a thesis statement Analyzing your purpose and your audience Using reason Using evidence Reaching your readers Organizing your argument Revising your argument Examining a sample argument Reading and Using Visual Arguments Reading visual arguments critically Using visual arguments effectively Grammatical Sentences Understanding Sentence Grammar Understanding the basic sentence Expanding the basic sentence with single words Expanding the basic sentence with word groups Compounding words, phrases, and clauses Changing the usual word order
Classifying sentences Case of Nouns and Pronouns Compound subjects and complements Compound objects Weorus with a noun Appositives Pronoun afterthan oras in a comparison Subjects and objects of infinitives Who whom Case before a gerund Verbs Verb Forms Regular and irregular verbs Sit and set lie andlay rise andraise Omitted-s and-ed endings Helping verbs Verb plus gerund or infinitive Verb plus Particle Tense Appropriate tense for meaning Sequence of tenses Mood Subjunctive verb forms Voice Active vs passive voice Agreement Agreement between subject and verb Agreement between pronoun and antecedent Adjectives and Adverbs Adjectives only with nouns and pronouns Adjectives after linking verbs Adjectives with objects adverbs with verbs Comparative and superlative forms Double negatives Overuse of nouns as modifiers Present and past Participles as adjectives A, an, the, and other determiners Clear Sentences Sentence Fragments Tests for sentence completeness revision of fragments Subordinate clause Verbal or prepositional phrase Other fragments Acceptable uses of incomplete sentences Comma Splices and Fused Sentences Comma Splices
Main clauses not joined by coordinating conjunction Main clauses related by a conjunctive adverb or transitional expression Fused Sentences Main clauses with no conjunction or punctuation Pronoun Reference Clear reference to one antecedent Clear placement of pronoun and antecedent Reference to specific antecedent Indefinite use ofyou Clear use ofit Appropriate use ofwho, which, that Shifts Person and number Tense and mood Subject and voice Indirect and direct quotations and questions Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers Misplaced Modifiers Clear placement of modifiers Limiting modifiers Squinting modifiers Separation of subjects, verbs, and objects Separation of Parts of infinitives or verb phrases Position of adverbs Order of adjectives Dangling modifiers Dangling modifiers Mixed and Incomplete Sentences Mixed Sentences Mixed grammar Mixed meaning (faulty predication) Incomplete Sentences Compound constructions Comparisons Careless omissions Effective Sentences Emphasizing Ideas Using subjects and verbs effectively Using sentence beginnings and endings Arranging parallel elements effectively Repeating ideas Separating ideas Being concise Using Coordination and Subordination
Coordinating to relate equal ideas Subordinating to distinguish main ideas Choosing clear connectors Using Parallelism Using parallelism for coordinate elements Using parallelism to increase coherence Achieving Variety Varying sentence length and structure Varying sentence beginnings Inverting the normal word order Mixing types of sentences Punctuation Chart End Punctuation The period The question mark The exclamation point The Comma Main clauses linked by coordinating conjunction Introductory elements Nonessential elements Absolute phrases Phrases expressing contrast Series and coordinate adjectives Dates, addresses, place names, long numbers With quotations To prevent misreading Misuse and overuse The Semicolon Main clauses not joined by a coordinating conjunction Main clauses related by a conjunctive adverb or transitional expression Main clauses that are complicated or contain commas Series items that are long or contain commas Misuse and overuse The Apostrophe Possession Misuse with noun plurals, verbs, and personal pronouns Contractions Plurals of abbreviations, dates, and words or characters named as words Quotation Marks Chart Direct quotations Quotation within a quotation
Dialog Titles of songs, short stories, etc Words used in a special sense Overuse Placement with other quotation marks Other Punctuation Marks The colon The dash Parentheses Brackets The ellipsis mark The slash Mechanics Capitals First word of a sentence Titles of works Pronoun I and interjectiono Proper nouns and adjectives Titles before proper names Misuses of capitals Italics or Underlining Titles of books and periodicals Names of ships, aircraft, spacecraft, trains Foreign words and phrases Words, letters, and numbers named as words For emphasis In online communication Abbreviations Titles before and after proper names Familiar abbreviations and acronyms BC, BCE, AD, CE, AM, PM, no and$ Latin abbreviations Misuse with units of measurement, geographical names, etc Numbers Numerals vs For dates, addresses, etc Beginning sentences Effective Words Using Appropriate Language Revising nonstandard dialect
Revising shortcuts of online communication Using slang only when appropriate Using colloquial language only when appropriate Revising neologisms Using technical words with care Revising indirect or pretentious writing Revising sexist and other biased language Using Exact Language Using a dictionary and a thesaurus Using the right word for your meaning Balancing the abstract and concrete, the general and specific Using idioms Using figurative language Using fresh expressions Writing Concisely Focusing on subject and verb Cutting or shortening empty words and phrases Cutting unnecessary repetition Reducing clauses to phrases, phrases to single words Eliminatingthere is, here is andit is constructions Combining sentences Rewriting jargon Spelling and the Hyphen Recognizing typical spelling problems Following spelling rules Developing spelling skills Using the hyphen to form or divide words Research Writing Planning a Research Project Starting out Finding a researchable subject and question Developing a research strategy Making a working, annotated bibliography Finding Sources Finding sources through your library's Web site Searching electronically Finding reference works Finding books Finding periodicals Finding sources on the Web Finding other online sources
Finding government publications Finding images, audio, and video Generating your own sources Working with Sources Evaluating sources Synthesizing sources Mining and interacting with sources Using summary, paraphrase, and quotation Integrating sources into your text Avoiding Plagiarism and Documenting Sources Committing and detecting plagiarism on the Internet Knowing what you need not acknowledge Knowing what youmust acknowledge Acknowledging online sources Documenting sources Writing the Paper Developing a thesis statement Creating a structure Drafting the paper Revising and editing the paper Preparing and proofreading the final draft Using MLA Documentation and Format Using MLA in-text citations Preparing the MLA list of works cited Using MLA document format Two Research Papers in MLA Style The False Promise of Green Consumerism" Annie Dillard's Healing Visio Writing In The Academic Disciplines Working with the Goals and Requirementsof the Disciplines Using methods and evidence Understanding writing assignments Using tools and language Following styles for source citations and document format Reading and Writing About Literature Using the methods and evidence of literary analysis Understanding writing assignments in literature Using the tools and language of literary analysis Citing sources and formatting documents in writing about literature Drafting and revising a literary analysis Sample analysis of a short story
Writing about fiction, poetry, and drama Sample analysis of a poem Sample analysis of a play Writing in Other Humanities Using the methods and evidence of the humanities Understanding writing assignments in the humanities Using the tools and language of the humanities Citing sources in Chicago style Formatting documents in Chicago style Writing in the Social Sciences Using the methods and evidence of the social sciences Understanding writing assignments in the social sciences Using the tools and language of the social sciences Citing sources in APA style Formatting documents in APA style Examining a sample social science paper Writing in the Natural and Applied Sciences Using the methods and evidence of the sciences Understanding writing assignments in the sciences Using the tools and language of the sciences Citing sources in CSE style Formatting documents in CSE style Examining a sample science paper Special Writing Situations Essay Examinations Preparing for an essay examination Planning your time and your answer Starting the essay Developing the essay Sample essay exams ReReading the essay Writing Online Writing effective e-mail Collaborating online Creating effective Web compositions Public Writing Writing business letters and memos Sample letter and memo Writing a job application Sample letter and résumés Writing business reports and proposals
Sample report and proposal Writing for community work Sample flyer, newsletter, and brochure Oral Presentations Writing and speaking Considering purpose and audience Organizing the presentation Delivering the presentation Glossary of Usage Glossary of Terms Index Table of Contents provided by Blackwell's Book Services and R.R. Bowker. Used with permission.