Comprehension
In expository writing, comprehension is crucial, as it
involves understanding the key elements that shape the
text. There are the three aspects of comprehension
audience, purpose and context.
The
rhetorical triangle
Before you start to write, you need to know:
• Who is the intended audience? (Who are you writing
this for?)
• What is the purpose? (Why are you writing this?)
• What is the context? (What is the situation, when is
the time period, and where are your readers?)
We will examine each of these below.
AUDIENCE ~ Who are you writing for?
Your audience are the people who will read your writing,
or listen to your presentation.
There are some questions you might think about as you’re
deciding what to write about and how to shape your
message:
• What do I know about my audience? (What are their
ages, interests, and biases? Do they have an opinion
already? Are they interested in the topic? Why or
why not?)
• What do they know about my topic? (And, what does
this audience not know about the topic? What do they
need to know?)
• What details might affect the way this audience
thinks about my topic? (How will facts, statistics,
personal stories, examples, definitions, or other types
of evidence affect this audience?)
In academic writing, your readers will usually be your
classmates and instructors. Sometimes, your instructor may
ask you to write for a specific audience. This should be
clear from the assignment prompt; if you are not sure, ask
your instructor who the intended audience is.
PURPOSE – Why are you writing?
Your primary purpose for academic writing may be to
inform, to persuade, or to entertain your audience.
Audience and purpose work together, as in these examples:
• I need to write a letter to my landlord explaining why
my rent is late so she won’t be upset. (Audience =
landlord; Purpose = explaining my situation and
keeping my landlord happy)
• I want to write a proposal for my work team to
persuade them to change our schedule. (Audience =
work team; Purpose = persuading them to get the
schedule changed)
• I have to write a research paper for my environmental
science instructor comparing solar to wind power.
(Audience = instructor; Purpose = informing by
analyzing and showing that you understand these two
power sources)
How Do I Know What My Purpose Is?
Sometimes your instructor will give you a purpose, but
other times, in college and in life, your purpose will depend
on what effect you want your writing to have on your
audience. What is the goal of your writing? What do you
hope for your audience to think, feel, or do after reading it?
There are a few possibilities:
• Persuade or inspire them to act or to think about an
issue from your point of view.
• Challenge them or make them question their thinking
or behavior.
• Argue for or against something they believe or do;
change their minds or behavior.
• Inform or teach them about a topic they don’t know
much about.
• Connect with them emotionally; help them feel
understood.
There are many different types of writing in college:
essays, lab reports, case studies, business proposals, and so
on. Your audience and purpose may be different for each
type of writing, and each discipline, or kind of class. This
brings us to context.
CONTEXT ~ What is the situation?
When and where are you and your readers situated? What
are your readers’ circumstances? What is happening
around them? Answering these questions will help you
figure out the context, which helps you decide what kind
of writing fits the situation best. The context is the
situation, setting, or environment; it is the place and time
that you are writing for.
There is an example: Imagine that A high school
science teacher is preparing a presentation for parents
about a new environmental initiative.
Audience: Parents of high school students.
Purpose: To inform and persuade parents to support and
encourage their children to participate in the school's new
environmental project.
Context: A parent-teacher meeting at the end of the
school year, where the school is introducing a recycling
and sustainability initiative.