Synopses & Reviews
With the 2008 MLA Update edition, A Writers Resource, 2/e continues to set the bar for contemporary handbooks. Writing and research have changed dramatically since the first hardcover handbooks appeared. Today's students don't rely on pens or typewriters: they use computers to write. They don't just do research: they find their way through a maze of online information. They don't just read print: they analyze visuals. They don't just come to class: they participate in an online learning community. These changes have put new demands on composition courses. With its focus on writing in todays environment, integrated coverage of technology and visual rhetoric, hallmark coverage of writing across the curriculum, and brief, tabbed format A Writers Resource, 2/e has been designed to provide todays students with a compact, easy-to-use resource for writing in college and beyond.
About the Author
KATHLEEN BLAKE YANCEY, Professor and Director of the graduate program in Rhetoric and Composition at FSU, Ph.D, Purdue University (1984), where she held a David Ross Summer Fellowship as well as a David Ross Dissertation Fellowship. The Kellogg W. Hunt Professor of English, she has edited, co-edited or authored eight books as well as over 60 articles and book chapters. A ninth volume, the edited collection The Fifth Canon: Delivering College Composition, is in press; and another, Electronic Portfolios in the English Classroom, is in preparation. She co-founded the journal Assessing Writing and co-edited it for seven years; with Barbara Cambridge, she co-founded and co-directs the National Research Coalition on Electronic Portfolios. She is a consultant for the National Assessment of Adult Literacy, and she is the lead researcher for the national study "Portraits of Composition: How Writing Gets Taught in the 21st Century."
Contact Information:
Kathleen Blake Yancey
The Florida State University
Department of English
224 Williams Building
Tallahassee, FL 32306-1580
Phone: 850 645 6896
[email protected]
Table of Contents
1. Learning across the Curriculum
1. Writing to Learna. Studying the world through a range of disciplinesb. Using writing as a tool for learningc. Taking responsibility for reading, writing, and researchd. Recognizing that writing improves with practice
*2. Learning in a Multimedia Worlda. Becoming aware of the persuasive power of imagesb. Making effective use of multimedia elementsc. Taking advantage of online and other electronic tools for learning
3. Learning in English as a Second Languagea. Becoming aware of cultural differences in communicationb. Using writing to learn more about Englishc. Using learning tools that are available for multilingual students
2. Writing and Designing Papers
4. Reading, Thinking, Writing: The Critical Connectiona. Reading criticallyb. Thinking criticallyc. Writing critically
5. Planning and Shapinga. Learning how to approach assignmentsb. Exploring your ideasc. Developing a working thesisd. Planning a structure that suits your assignmente. Considering visuals
6. Draftinga. Using online tools for draftingb. Developing ideas and using visualsc. Writing focused, clearly organized paragraphsd. Integrating visuals effectively
7. Revising and Editinga. Getting comments from readersb. Using online tools for revisingc. Focusing on the purpose of your writingd. Testing your thesise. Reviewing the structure of your paper as a whole f. Revising for paragraph development, paragraph unity, and coherenceg. Revising visualsh. Editing sentences i. Proofreading carefullyj. Using campus, Internet, and community resourcesk. Learning from one students revisions
8. Designing Academic Papers and Portfoliosa. Considering audience and purposeb. Using computer toolbarsc. Thinking intentionally about design*d. Compiling a portfolio
3. Common Assignments across the Curriculum
9. Informative Reportsa. Understanding the assignmentb. Approaching writing an informative report as a processc. Student paper: Informative reportd. Writing reviews of the literature
10. Interpretive Analyses and Writing about Literaturea. Understanding the assignmentb. Approaching writing an interpretive analysis as a processc. Student paper: Interpretive analysis
11. Argumentsa. Understanding the assignmentb. Approaching writing an argument as a processc. Student paper: Argument
12. Other Kinds of Writing Assignmentsa. Personal essaysb. Lab reports in the experimental sciencesc. Case studies in the social sciencesd. Essays examse. Coauthored projects
13. Oral Presentationsa. Planning and shaping your presentationb. Drafting your presentationc. Preparing for your presentation
14. Multimedia Writinga. Learning about tools for creating multimedia textsb. Analyzing imagesc. Creating a hypertext essayd. Creating multimedia presentationse. Creating a Web sitef. Creating and interacting with weblogs
4. Writing beyond College
15. Service Learning and Community-Service Writinga. Addressing the community on behalf of your organization or yourselfb. Designing brochures, posters, and newsletters
16. Letters to Raise Awareness and Share Concern
17. Writing to Get and Keep a Joba. Exploring internship possibilitiesb. Keeping an up-to-date résuméc. Writing an application letterd. Preparing for a job interviewe. Applying college writing to writing on the jobf. Writing as a consumer
5. Researching
18. Understanding Researcha. Understanding primary and secondary researchb. Recognizing the connection between research and college writingc. Choosing an interesting research questiond. Understanding the research assignmente. Creating a research plan
19. Finding and Managing Print and Online Sourcesa. Using the library in person and onlineb. Consulting various kinds of sourcesc. Understanding keywords and keyword searchesd. Using printed and online reference workse. Using print indexes and online databasesf. Using search engines and subject directories to find Internet sourcesg. Using your librarys online catalog or card catalog to find booksh. Taking advantage of printed and online government documentsi. Exploring online communication
20. Finding and Creating Effective Visualsa. Finding quantitative data and displaying it visuallyb. Searching for appropriate images in online and print sources
21. Evaluating Sourcesa. Questioning print sourcesb. Questioning Internet sourcesc. Evaluating a sources arguments
22. Doing Research in the Archive, Field, and Laba. Adhering to ethical principlesb. Preparing yourself for archival researchc. Planning your field research carefullyd. Keeping a notebook when doing lab research
23. Working with Sources and Avoiding Plagiarisma. Maintaining a working bibliographyb. Taking notes on your sourcesc. Taking stock of and synthesizing what you have learned d. Integrating quotations, paraphrases, and summariese. Avoiding plagiarism and copyright infringement
24. Writing the Papera. Planning and drafting your paperb. Revising your draftc. Documenting your sources
25. Discipline-Specific Resources in the Library and on the Internet
*6. MLA Documentation Style*26. MLA Style: In-Text CitationsMLA In-Text Citations: Directory to Sample Types*27. MLA Style: List of Works CitedMLA Works-Cited Entries: Directory to Sample Types*28. MLA Style: Explanatory Notes*29. MLA Style: Paper Format*30. Student Paper in MLA Style
7. APA Documentation Style31. APA Style: In-Text CitationsAPA In-Text Citations: Directory to Sample Types32. APA Style: ReferencesAPA Reference Entries: Directory to Sample Types33. APA Style: Paper Format34. Student Paper in APA Style
8. Chicago and CSE Documentation Styles35. Chicago Documentation Stylea. Chicago style: In-text citations and notesb. Chicago style: Bibliographyc. Sample Chicago-style notes and bibliography entriesd. Sample from a student paper in Chicago style
36. CSE Documentation: Name-Year StyleCSE Name-Year Style: Directory to Sample Typesa. CSE name-year style: In-text citations b. CSE name-year style: List of referencesc. CSE name-year style: Sample references list
37. CSE Documentation: Number styleCSE Number Style: Directory to Sample Typesa. CSE number style: In-text citationsb. CSE number style: List of referencesc. CSE number style: Sample references list
9. Editing for Clarity
38. Wordy Sentencesa. Eliminating redundanciesb. Avoiding unnecessary repetitionc. Replacing wordy phrasesd. Reducing clauses and phrasese. Combining sentencesf. Making sentences straightforward
39. Missing Wordsa. Adding words needed in compound structuresb. Including that when it is needed for clarityc. Making comparisons cleard. Adding articles (a, an, the) where necessary
40. Mixed Constructionsa. Untangling mixed-up sentence structuresb. Making sure predicates fit subjectsc. Editing sentences with is when, is where, the reason . . . is because
41. Confusing Shiftsa. Making your point of view consistent in person and numberb. Keeping verb tenses consistentc. Avoiding unnecessary shifts in mood and voiced. Avoiding shifts between direct and indirect quotations and questions
42. Faulty Parallelisma. Making items in a series parallelb. Making paired ideas parallelc. Repeating function words as needed
43. Misplaced and Dangling Modifiersa. Putting modifiers close to the words they modifyb. Clarifying ambiguous modifiersc. Moving disruptive modifiersd. Checking split infinitives for ambiguitye. Fixing dangling modifiers
44. Coordination and Subordinationa. Using coordination to express equal ideasb. Using subordination to express unequal ideasc. Avoiding subordination of major ideasd. Combining short, choppy sentencese. Avoiding excessive subordination
45. Sentence Varietya. Varying sentence openingsb. Varying sentence length and structurec. Including cumulative and periodic sentences and rhetorical questionsd. Trying inversions
46. Active Verbsa. Considering alternatives to be verbsb. Preferring the active voice
47. Appropriate Languagea. Avoiding slang, regionalisms, and nonstandard Englishb. Using an appropriate level of formalityc. Avoiding jargond. Avoiding euphemisms and doublespeake. Removing biased or sexist language
48. Exact Languagea. Choosing words with suitable connotationsb. Including specific, concrete wordsc. Using standard idiomsd. Avoiding clichése. Creating suitable figures of speechf. Avoiding misuse of words
49. The Dictionary and the Thesaurusa. Using the dictionary as a habitb. Consulting a thesaurus50. Glossary of Usage
10. Editing for Grammar Conventions
51. Sentence Fragmentsa. Identifying sentence fragmentsb. Editing sentence fragmentsc. Phrases as fragmentsd. Dependent clauses as fragments
52. Comma Splices and Run-on Sentencesa. Identifying commas splices and run-on sentencesb. Learning five ways to edit commas splices and run-on sentencesc. Joining two clauses with a comma and a coordinating conjunctiond. Joining two clauses with a semicolone. Separating the clauses into two sentencesf. Making one clause dependentg. Transforming two clauses into one clause
53. Subject-Verb Agreementa. Standard subject-verb combinationsb. A word group between subject and verbc. Compound subjects connected by conjunctions (and, but, either . . .or)d. Collective subjects (committee, jury)e. Indefinite subjects (everybody, no one)f. Subject following verbg. Subject complementsh. Relative pronouns (who, which, that)i. –ing phrases (gerund phrases) as subjectsj. Titles, company names, words considered as words
54. Problems with Verbsa. Principal forms of regular and irregular verbsb. Lay and lie, sit and set, rise and raisec. –s or –es endingsd. –d or –ed endingse. Complete verbsf. Verb tensesg. Past perfect tenseh. Special uses of the present tensei. Tense with infinitives and participlesj. Mood
55. Problems with Pronounsa. Pronoun-antecedent agreementb. Pronoun referencec. Making pronouns consistentd. Pronoun case (for example, I vs. me)e. Who vs. whom
56. Problems with Adjectives and Adverbsa. Adverbsb. Adjectivesc. Positive, comparative, and superlative adjectives and adverbsd. Double negatives
11. Editing for Correctness: Punctuation, Mechanics, and Spelling
57. CommasCommon Uses of the Commaa. Introductory word groupsb. Items in a seriesc. Independent clauses joined by a coordinating conjunctiond. Series of adjectivese. Nonessential additions to a sentencef. Transitional and parenthetical expressions, contrasting comments, absolute phrasesg. Words of direct address, yes and no, mild interjections, tag questionsh. Direct quotationsi. Parts of dates, letters, addresses, peoples titles, and numbersj. Omitted words or phrases, confusing combinationsCommon Misuses of the Commak. To separate major elements in an independent clausel. In front of the first or following the final item in a seriesm. To separate compound word groups that are not independent clausesn. To set off restrictive modifiers, appositives, or slightly parenthetical elementso. Other common errors
58. Semicolonsa. Independent clausesb. Independent clauses with transitional expressionsc. Items in a series that contain commasd. Common errors
59. Colonsa. With lists, appositives, or quotationsb. With a second independent clause that elaborates on the first onec. Other conventional usesd. Common errors
60. Apostrophesa. To indicate possessionb. For missing letters in contractions and for missing numbersc. Distinguishing between possessive pronouns and contractionsd. To form plural numbers, letters, abbreviations, words used as wordse. Common errors
61. Quotation Marksa. Exact words of a speaker or writerb. Long quotations in indented blocksc. A quotation within a quotationd. Titles of short workse. A word or phrase used in a special wayf. Other punctuation marks with quotation marksg. Integrating quotations into sentencesh. Common errors
62. Other Punctuation Marksa. Periodsb. Question marksc. Exclamation pointsd. A dash or dashese. Parenthesesf. Bracketsg. Ellipsesh. Slashes
63. Capitalizationa. Names of people and derived names, including brand names, certain abbreviationsb. Titles of personsc. Titles of creative worksd. Names of areas and regionse. Names of races, ethnic groups, and sacred thingsf. First word of a quoted sentenceg. First word of a sentenceh. First word of an independent clause after a colon
64. Abbreviations and Symbolsa. Titles that precede or follow a persons nameb. Familiar vs. unfamiliar abbreviationsc. Words typically used with times, dates, and numerals; units of measurement in charts and graphsd. Latin abbreviationse. Inappropriate abbreviations and symbols
65. Numbersa. Numbers up to one hundred and round numbers over one hundredb. Numbers that begin a sentencec. Numbers in technical and business writingd. Dates, times of day, addresses
66. Italics (Underlining)a. Titles of lengthy works or separate publicationsb. Names of ships, trains, aircraft, and spaceshipsc. Foreign termsd. Scientific namese. Words, letters, and numbers referred to as themselvesf. Overuse
67. Hyphensa. Compound wordsb. Compound adjective or noun formsc. Fractions and compound numbersd. With some prefixes and suffixese. To divide words at the ends of lines
68. Spellinga. Spelling rules and exceptionsb. Words pronounced alike but spelled differently
12. Basic Grammar Review with Tips for Multilingual Writers
69. Parts of SpeechTip: Recognizing language differencesa. VerbsTip: Using verbs followed by gerunds or infinitivesTip: Matching helping verbs (do, have, be) with the appropriate form of the main verbTip: Understanding the form and meaning of modal verbsb. NounsTip: Using quantifiers with count and noncount nounsTip: Using articles (a, an, the) appropriatelyc. Pronounsd. AdjectivesTip: Using adjectives correctlye. Adverbsf. PrepositionsTip: Using prepositionsg. ConjunctionsTip: Using coordination and subordination appropriatelyh. Interjections
70. Parts of SentencesTip: Putting sentence parts in the correct order for Englisha. SubjectsTip: Including a subject (but not two)b. Verbs and their objects or complementsTip: Including a complete verbTip: Including only one direct object
71. Phrases and Dependent Clausesa. Noun phrasesb. Verb phrases and verbalsc. Appositive phrasesd. Absolute phrasese. Dependent clausesTip: Understanding the purposes and constructions of if clauses
72. Types of Sentencesa. Sentence structuresb. Sentence purposes
13. Further Resources for LearningTimeline of World HistorySelected Terms from across the CurriculumWorld Map and Quick Reference for Multilingual Writers and Guide to Weights and Measures(fold-out sheet)IndexIndex for Multilingual WritersAbbreviations and Symbols for Editing and Proofreading