Tips and tricks
I write ... therefore, I persuade?
Having recently completed the written analysis task of the “Using Language to Persuade” area of study, it is really important that you reflect on how you went. Your teachers should have given you feedback in the form of comments and – usually – “tick-a-box” criteria. You should read these carefully, aiming to ensure that you understand the comments – meaning that you can see, when you look back over your writing what aspects of your analysis the comments refer to. The “ticks” can be helpful too. Remember that in the exam – which is the next time this year that you’ll do this task “for dough” – the assessors use exactly those criteria to determine your mark on a ten-point scale. So working out which aspects you can best and most effectively improve to gain a better result is a very good start. The next step is often to sit down with your teacher (or even a tutor) to work out HOW you can do that.
There are also a few ‘errors’ or problems that are common – look at the list below to see if any do apply to you.
1. Spelling. It’s such a simple thing in this aspect of the course that it can cost you dearly. If you get the name of an author wrong, or can’t spell common terms of analysis (“rhetorical” not … well this word gets butchered more ways than I can count! Article – not artical! Argument – no “e”!) you are suggesting that you don’t really have a good grasp of the foundation skills. That’s a bad message to send.
2. You can’t “make” something think or feel anything. No one can. The writers try to, they aim to, they intend to … They suggest, they imply … They attempt to generate MANY different reactions and responses in their readers … But you must not claim that their efforts are successful, because you don’t KNOW this!
3. Background info – like recognising the journal the article came from, and realising that it caters to a particular audience CAN be helpful in recognising common persuasive strategies – targeted pejorative language, or a political bias, for example. But these aren’t the uses of language that you need to explore – these are the signposts to what language strategies you can expect (you can be surprised, sometimes, when they don’t conform to your [low!] expectations!) Make sure you focus on the ways the writer uses words and phrases, and perspectives, and structures aiming to influence the way a reader receives the views expressed.
4. Authority … writers seldom use “authority” as a definite, “it’s ME talking” persuasive strategy. However, having particular qualifications may well influence the nature of their argument, imbuing it with conviction: a lawyer writing on a complex legal case; an emergency department doctor dealing with road-trauma issues … The fact that they deal with these things in the course of their job will determine the strategies they use (detailed information from legal precedents; or intimate knowledge of the aftermath of an incident reported widely – but perhaps not accurately – in the mainstream press.) The language each uses to argue will also be affected by this expertise – terms with meanings particular to their craft. It may also be true that a regular columnist develops a “voice” and a “style” that marks his writing … This ought to be commented on for its specific strategies (say, perjorative language, or dripping sarcasm!), rather than the catch-all “authority as a well-known journalist”.
Which one's Andrew?
