PB2B

Lets Move it Along

 “Moves” are rhetoric devices used by writers to reach a specific goal in writing. “They say, I say” provides a few examples of the most common moves most writers tend to use.

               One of these moves is called Something you Say. Something you Say is presented as being the opinion of the writer. It is the part of the paragraph where the writer describes its own thoughts, beliefs, and feelings about their specific subject. This move is used very commonly as it was very easy to find it amongst our readings. In Navigating Genres, the writers presents this when he writes “I think it’s time to try our hand at approaching genre...” (24). As you can see, Dirk begins this sentence with “I” to inform the reader that what he is was about to say is coming from Dirk, himself, and not a text book.

               The second move I will be discussing is Introducing Standard Views. Introducing Standard Views is when the writer incorporates a common subject and their writing piece. Whether it is a common belief, ideology, quote, or fact, it will discuss −as the name implies− standard views. Unlike the previous move this one was a little more challenging to find with in our readings. Carroll manages to present this move in her writing pieces, Backpacks vs. Briefcases. As Carroll discusses personal interactions with in people, she writes “we have all heard that you can’t judge a book by its cover, but in fact, we do it all the time” (38). In this sentence, Carroll brought up a standard view known by the general public, and then added her two cents in by commenting on the phrase.

               The third move mentioned in the appendix is Explaining Quotations. In shorter words Explaining Quotation technically means analysis. It is when a writer further explains and analyses a quote. Like the first move described above, this one is also very common. All writers need to provide evidence in their papers, therefore need to provide an analysis as well.  This is seen in Carroll’s writing piece once again. After introducing a quote to one of her paragraphs she follows by writing “In other words (…)”, explains the meaning of the quote (40). That is basically the just of Explaining Quotations. After, introducing a quotation in a paragraph the writer must further explaining by breaking it down or provided further information on the quote used.

               The fourth move that will be discussed from the appendix is Introducing Objections informally. As a writer you know many readers will not agree with your argument no matter how well supported it is. For this reason, writers use something called a counter argument. Introducing Objection Informally is similar to a counter argument. The writer discussed certain objection one may have of their topic and defends it. For example, in page 33 Elbow writes “But does freewriting or uncensored, generative writing really enhance creative first-order thinking?” By stating this, Elbow is challenging the readers to question his claim, but then establishes credibility by providing evidence to support his point of view.

               Last but not least, the fifth move I will be discussing from the appendix is (drum roll please), Agreeing and Disagreeing.  As the name infers, it is when the writer discusses why someone might agree with something, but then explains his/her reasons for disagreeing with it. An example of this is shown in the So what who Cares reading. In page 53, the write wrote “Although answering the “who cares?” is crucial, in many cases it is not enough, especially if you are writing for (…)”The author first begins by saying something positive about the topic, “it is crucial” however, he/she then disagrees by saying it is not as important standing alone.

               Now let’s get into moves not described in the appendix.

               The first non-appendix related move is give me directions. In give me directions the reader provides information to their reader in form of directions. For example, Carroll provides an example of this in her subtopic called beginning to analyze. Her first sentence of this paragraph is “once you have established the context for the rhetoric you are analyzing, you can being to think about (…).” In his paragraph Carrol is directing the reader through a process. She is providing the reader with directions to successfully analyze.

               The second non-appendix move is the checklist. Similar to that of give me directions, the writer uses a checklist to direct the reader in the direction they want. The checklist is a list of thing presented in a form of bullet points to provide a guide for the reader. For example, in page 66 Boyd inserts a list of bullet points as a check list for reports.

               The third move I will discuss is engaging the reader. There are different ways to engage a reader to a writing piece. The check list with questions of how to do or how the reader did something could be one, but a specific type if when the writer forces the reader to engage. If they are discussing a confusing topic and then provide a “you try”, or any form of hand on hand practice. A good example of this is in page 52 from So What Who Cares. The author provides a list of practice examples so that the reader can understand the topic with more clarity.

               The fourth move seen in many writing pieces is the use of italics.  Many authors italicize different word to create emphasis and make the word stand out to the reader. For example, in Navigating Genres Dirk states “people learned how to do small talk to ease the social discomfort of the large group (…).” In this sentence Dirk italicized small talk to emphasize that it is the word of importance and the focus of that particular sentence.

               The final and last move I will be discussing is the long quotation effect. This move is when the writer is inputting a long quotation, and changes the spacing and possibly the font of that the specific words in the quotation. An example of this is in How to Read like a Writer page 83.