Ex. 4. Use the previous text to answer the following questions. 1. What are different situations when one might need to write an academic paper?
1. What are different situations when one might need to write an academic paper?
2. What are the characteristics of the formal writing?
3. What are the characteristics of the informal writing?
4. Why is it so important for the writer to analyze the audience?
5. What helps the writer to connect with and to persuade the audience?
6. Do you know any techniques to win the audience immediately?
Ex. 5. Choose the correct words out of the given list to answer the following question: «When planning a paper addressed to or pertinent to a certain audience what factors are you to consider identifying the audience? ». State your point of view.
The audience’s age, hobbies, marital status, sex, social status, level of education, special interests or needs, profession, nationality, knowledge of French, weight, cultural or racial background, family members, feelings and attitudes, relationship to you, occupation.
Ex. 6. There are many occasions when a student needs to be convincing and persuasive in writing for different reasons (purposes). Below there is a short list of some situations. Can you think out some more?
You are writing to fulfill an academic assignment, complete an essay test in your major, share information with family or friends, get a scholarship, solve a problem, apply for a job, borrow money from your father, persuade a publisher to publish your book, win a short-story contest, …
Listening
Script 3
Ex. 7. Alan Bradshaw gives some basic advice on the audience the students are writing for. Listen to his speech and decide whether the following statements are true (T) or false (F).
1. Audience you are writing for is one of the most important parts of the process of writing.
2. There is no need to consider your audience and adjust your style accordingly when writing an oral presentation.
3. Your audience will influence your choice of vocabulary, sentence structure, and even the kind of evidence you use to support your thesis.
4. Writing a paper for a university professor obviously requires a lower level of stylistic polish than writing a letter to your friend.
5. There is no need to keep in mind the preferences of the instructor, as well as the requirements of the essay while writing.
6. The person who gave the initial directions (your professor) determines a variety of approaches that may be taken and the appropriate path to follow when writing an essay.
Script 4
Ex. 8. Alan Bradshaw gives some basic advice to his students on the tone of the essay. Listen to the tape and note down as many as you can recognize.
Introduction
Levels of Formality
There are different degrees of formality, but these descriptions should help you find the right level for academic writing. Academic writing can be technical, especially when the audience and situation require specialized knowledge. Formal academic writing is usually less technical because the audience and/or level of knowledge may be more general. Personal writing, however, can range from informal to colloquial, depending on the relationship the writer has with the reader and the situation. The closer the relationship between the writer and the audience, the more relaxed the language is. Therefore, the most informal discourse is colloquial (conversational).
The range of formality
Technical → Formal → Informal → Colloquial