Synopses & Reviews
For introductory and advanced composition courses.
When Muriel Harris was first asked about the textbooks she used for tutoring in her Purdue University writing center, she said she didn't use any. At that time she hadn't found any text that could effectively help her students. When asked what would make a textbook effective, the answer came easily: 30 years of tutoring experience had taught her that a truly useful textbook would have ways to help students find the information they were looking for without having to know the terminology, would be clear and easy to understand for all students, and would be written in a student-friendly language and tone to avoid the intimidating formal instructional tone of some handbooks. Before long, these principles became the foundation of Harris's Prentice Hall Reference Guide, now its 7th edition. With new material and emphasis on writing research papers, visual argument, multimedia, document design, and a visual guide to documentation, PHRG 7e continues to help students find the information they need.
With easy to find information, clarity of instruction, and a student-friendly language and tone, PHRG 7e continues to help students effectively use and understand their handbook.
Review
“I would say ease of use for students is the greatest strength. I've not had any students tell me they didn't like the book. Every semester I have students who tell me they really like it and will keep it for future classes because they found it to be so helpful and easy to understand.”
–Judy Hatcher, University of Houston–Clear Lake
“The seventh edition has everything you and your students need in freshman composition.”
–Anne Kuhta, Northern Virginia Community College
“…[A] great book for freshman composition classes. There are plenty of examples for all the grammar mistakes students make. In addition there are examples to cover all the rhetorical strategies as well as help in doing MLA documentation.”
–Martha Bachman, Camden County College
“Well-organized, user-friendly, and clear.”
–Richard Turner, Ozarks Technical Community College
“The Prentice Hall Reference Guide offers every teacher a "one-book, one resource" strategy for providing the means for near total success in an English class, regardless of prior English experience from grade school to college.”
–Allen Swords, Clemson University
Review
“I would say ease of use for students is the greatest strength. I've not had any students tell me they didn't like the book. Every semester I have students who tell me they really like it and will keep it for future classes because they found it to be so helpful and easy to understand.”
—Judy Hatcher, University of Houston—Clear Lake
“The seventh edition has everything you and your students need in freshman composition.”
—Anne Kuhta, Northern Virginia Community College
“…[A] great book for freshman composition classes. There are plenty of examples for all the grammar mistakes students make. In addition there are examples to cover all the rhetorical strategies as well as help in doing MLA documentation.”
—Martha Bachman, Camden County College
“Well-organized, user-friendly, and clear.”
—Richard Turner, Ozarks Technical Community College
“The Prentice Hall Reference Guide offers every teacher a "one-book, one resource" strategy for providing the means for near total success in an English class, regardless of prior English experience from grade school to college.”
—Allen Swords, Clemson University
Synopsis
Muriel Harris was the director of the Purdue Writing Center where she worked elbow-to-elbow with students for over twenty-five years. Based on her experience assisting thousands of writing students, she authored the Prentice Hall Reference Guide with several goals in mind. The handbook is brief, with the most concise explanations possible. It is tabbed for ease of use, enabling students to quickly find what they’re looking for. And, it features the foundational teaching tools she developed during her tenure at the writing center: the innovative Question and Correct and Compare and Correct features. These features address the challenges that student writers face in an accessible, easy-to-use manner. The streamlined and user-friendly organization and innovative student-focused features make the Prentice Hall Reference Guide the easiest handbook for students–and instructors–to use.
About the Author
Muriel Harris was the director of the Purdue Writing Center where she worked elbow-to-elbow with students for over twenty-five years. Based on her experience assisting thousands of writing students, she authored the Prentice Hall Reference Guide with several goals in mind. The handbook is brief, with the most concise explanations possible. It is conveniently tabbed, enabling students to efficiently locate resources. It also features the foundational teaching tools she developed during her tenure at the writing center: the innovative Question and Correct and Compare and Correct features. These features address the challenges that student writers face in an accessible, easy-to-use manner. The streamlined and user-friendly organization and innovative student-focused features make the Prentice Hall Reference Guide the easiest handbook for students and instructors to use.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
Prentice Hall Reference Guide, 7th Edition by Muriel Harris
Tab 1 Question & Correct/ Compare & Correct/ Try This
Tab 2 Writing Processes
1. Thinking about Writing
a. Rhetorical Triangle
b. Topic
c. Audience
d. Purpose
e. Medium
f. Thesis
2. Writing Processes and Strategies
a. Planning
b. Drafting
c. Organizing
d. Collaborating
e. Revising
f. Editing and Proofreading
3. Paragraphs
a. Unity
b. Coherence
c. Development
d. Introductions and Conclusions
e. Organization patterns
4. Argument
a. Reading and Writing Arguments
b. Considering the Audience
c. Finding a Topic
d. Developing Your Argument
e. Recognizing and Avoiding Fallacies
f. Organizing Your Argument
5. Visual Argument
a. Similarities and Differences between Written and Visual Arguments
b. Appeals in Visual Argument
c. Logical Fallacies in Visual Argument
d. Writing Visual Arguments
6. Document Design
a. Principles of Document Design
b. Incorporating Visuals
c. Paper Preparation
d. Multimedia Presentations
e. Web Page Design
Tab 3 Common Categories of Writing
7. Writing Essay Exams
8. Writing About Literature
a. Ways to Write About Literature
b. Writing the Assignment
c. Conventions in Writing About Literature
d. A Sample Paper
9. Professional Writing
a. Memos
b. E-Mail Communications
c. Business Letters
d. Cover Letters
e. Résumés
f. Newsletters and Brochures
10. Writing Portfolios
Tab 4 Revising Sentences
11. Comma Splices and Fused Sentences
12. Subject-Verb Agreement
13. Sentence Fragments
14. Dangling and Misplaced Modifiers
15. Parallel Constructions
16. Consistency (Avoiding Shifts)
17. Faulty Predication
18. Coordination and Subordination
19. Sentence Clarity
20. Transitions
21. Sentence Variety
Tab 5 Parts of Sentences
22. Verbs
23. Nouns and Pronouns
24. Pronoun Case and Reference
25. Adjective and Adverbs
26. Prepositions
27. Subjects
28. Phrases
29. Clauses
30. Essential and Nonessential Clauses and Phrases
31. Sentences
Tab 6 Style and Word Choice
32. Style versus Grammar
33. General and Specific Language
a. General versus Specific Statements
b. General versus Specific Words
c. Concrete versus Abstract Words
34. Conciseness and Wordiness
35. Passive versus Active Voice
36. Unnecessary and Inappropriate Words
a. Cliches
b. Pretentious Language
c. Offensive Language
37. Appropriate Language
a. Standard English
b. Formality Levels
c. Emphasis
d. Denotation and Connotation
e. Colloquialisms, Slang, and Regionalisms
f. Jargon and Technical Terms
38. Nonsexist Language
a. Alternatives to Man
b. Alternative Job Titles
c. Alternatives to the Male or Female Pronoun
Tab 7 Punctuation
39. Commas
40. Apostrophes
41. Semicolons
42. Colons
43. Quotation Marks
44. Hyphens
45. End Punctuation
46. Other Punctuation
Tab 8 Mechanics and Spelling
47. Capitals
48. Abbreviations
49. Numbers
50. Underlining/Italics
51. Spelling
Tab 9 ESL and Multilingual Writers
52. American Style in Writing
53. Verbs
54. Omitted Words
55. Repeated Words
56. Count and Noncount Nouns
57. Adjectives and Adverbs
58. Prepositions
59. Idioms
Tab 10 Research
60. Finding a Topic
a. Deciding on a Purpose and Audience
b. Deciding on a Topic
c. Narrowing a Topic
d. Formulating a Research Question
e. Formulating a Thesis
61. Searching for Information
a. Choosing Primary and Secondary Sources
b. Searching Libraries and Library Databases
c. Searching the Internet
d. Searching Other Sources
62. Using Web Resources
63. Evaluating Sources
a. Getting Started
b. Evaluating Internet Sources
c. Evaluating Bibliographic Citations
d. Evaluating Content
64. Collecting Information
a. Keeping Notes on a Computer
b. Printing and Annotating Photocopies and Printouts
c. Starting a Working Bibliography
d. Writing Notecards
65. Using Sources and Avoiding Plagiarism
a. Understanding Why Plagiarism is Wrong
b. Recognizing Plagiarism and Documenting Sources Responsibly
c. Summarizing without Plagiarising
d. Paraphrasing without Plagiarising
e. Using Quotation Marks to Avoid Plagiarizing
f. Using Signal Words and Phrases to Integrate Sources
66. Writing the Research Paper
a. Getting Started
b. Planning and Organizing
c. Writing a Draft
d. Reviewing the Draft
e. Revising, Editing, and Checking the Format
Tab 11 MLA Documentation
67. Documenting in MLA Style
a. In-text Citations
b. Endnotes
c. Works Cited List
d. Sample MLA-style Research Paper
Tab 12 APA and Other Documentation
68. Documenting in APA Style
a. In-text Citations
b. Footnotes
c. References List
d. Sample APA-style Research Paper
69. Documenting in Other Styles
a. Chicago Manual of Style (CMS)
b. Council of Science Editors (CSE)
c. Resources for Other Styles