© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Chapter 6: Critical Reading Reading Across the Disciplines: College Reading and Beyond, 2/e Kathleen McWhorter

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers In this chapter you will learn how to:  Distinguish between fact and opinion.  Determine the author’s purpose.  Recognize the author’s tone.  Recognize bias.  Evaluate data and evidence.  Recognize connotative language.  Recognize figurative language.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Fact or Opinion? Facts:  Statements that can be verified.  Statements that can be proven to be true or false. Opinions:  Statements that express feelings, attitudes, or beliefs.  Statements that are neither true nor false.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Examples of Facts  More than 1 million teenagers become pregnant every year.  The costs of medical care increase every year.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Examples of Opinions  Government regulation of our private lives should be halted immediately.  By the year 2025, most Americans will not be able to afford routine health care.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Author’s Purpose ASK: Who is the intended audience?  To present information (academic textbooks)  To compile facts (reference books)  To express an opinion  To write for a specific interest group

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Purpose: To Give Information About 14,000 ocean- going ships pass through the Panama Canal each year. This averages to about three ships per day.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Purpose: To Persuade New Unsalted Dry Roasted Almonds. Finally, a snack with a natural flavor and without salt. We simply shell the nuts and dry-roast them until they’re crispy and crunchy. Try a jar this week.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Purpose: To Amuse Man is the only animal that blushes or has a need to.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Purpose: To Explain If a choking person has fallen down, first turn him or her face up. Then knit together the fingers of both your hands and apply pressure with the heel of your bottom hand to the victim’s abdomen.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Purpose: To Give Advice If your boat capsizes, it is usually safer to cling to the boat than to try to swim ashore.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Author’s Tone  Instructive  Sympathetic  Persuasive  Humorous  Nostalgic

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Words Describing Author’s Tone (Table 6.1)  Cheerful  Optimistic  Sarcastic  Formal  Mocking  Nostalgic  Serious  Solemn  Sympathetic  Indignant  Distressed  Cynical  Amused  Joyful  Earnest  Detached

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Is the Author Biased?  Bias refers to an author’s partiality, inclination toward a particular viewpoint, or prejudice.  A writer is biased if he or she takes only one side of a controversial issue.  Example: A car advertisement describing only positive, marketable features.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Types of Data and Evidence  Personal experience or observation  Expert opinion  Research citation  Statistical data  Examples, descriptions of particular events, or illustrative situations  Analogies  Historical documentation

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Denotative and Connotative Meanings  Denotative: literal meaning –group  Connotative: implied meanings that carry either a positive or negative, favorable or unfavorable impression –Crowd –Gang –Congregation –Mob

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Figurative Language  Similes: compare using the word “like” or “as.” –The food tasted like cardboard.  Metaphors: directly equate the two objects or ideas. –Our computer is a dinosaur.

© 2005 Pearson Education Inc., publishing as Longman Publishers Summing It Up: Critical Reading Questions  Is the material fact or opinion?  What is the author’s purpose?  What is the tone?  Is the author biased?  How strong are the data and evidence?  How is connotative language used?  How is figurative language used?

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