: Week 7: “Simplicity,” “Clutter,” and “Style” by William Zinsser
Instructions
Your participation in this discussion includes:
A Response Post that responds to the prompts below.
Replies to at least three of your classmates.
Response Post
In the first paragraph, consider the question: How does an author use evidence to reach an audience?
Think about this both generally and specifically. In general, how do authors use evidence to convey their ideas to their audience?
More specifically, how does the author of (see attached file), William Zinsser, utilize evidence to support his main claim in his text and convince his intended audience?
First, search for online sources about William Zinsser and identify his occupation and background. Then, search for one of the references in Zinsser’s text and locate some basic information about this reference.
What is this information about? How is it related to our text? Is there a connection between this reference and Zinsser’s own occupation and background? If so, what is the connection? How is it relevant to Zinsser’s text? You should post links to your findings to track your own research here.
In the second paragraph, consider this question: What effect does an author’s use of evidence have on their argument?
You should first identify Zinsser’s main claim in his text. What is he arguing? How do you know? Next, you should evaluate why Zinsser chose to include the information you researched.
What purpose does this information serve in his text? How many times does he mention it? How does he incorporate this evidence into his text? Does it strengthen his main argument?
If yes, how does it do so? If no, why not? You should remember that you are the intended audience of Zinsser’s text, so be critical in evaluating his use of evidence to convince you of his position on his topic.
This initial post should be at least two academic paragraphs (5-8 sentences in length) — sometimes you’ll be asked to write more (read the prompt!). Read here for a reminder on what constitutes an academic paragraph: Academic Paragraphs
