1. A.P. Language & Composition Mrs. McAuliffe
Writing the Precis
A.P. Language & Composition
Mrs. McAuliffe

2. A precis is …
A method of writing for you to show that you understand the complete work, can abstract the central argument and express it concisely and completely.
A presentation of the author’s central argument, exactly as the author has presented it.
A reduced work by 75% - 80% of its size

3. 1. Read the article/essay/quote multiple times and make careful and thoughtful annotations.
2. Write a precis in which you state the entire argument and present the logical progression (the development of the argument).
3. Reduce the article to one-fifth to one-quarter of its original length and omit nothing from the essential argument. This, in reality, is the key to the whole game!
Central Rule: Do NOT copy full sentences of the passage. You may use key words and phrases only when you are expressing ideas which are technically precise or when you feel comfortable using the author’s own words, and there is really not better way to express the concept.
The longer the passage, the longer the precis will be, as author’s support their assertions in multiple ways.
The Rules of the Game
This isn’t meant to be a “quick and easy” assignment. It takes careful, close reading and narrowing down skills.

4. The Decline of Radicalism
“Dissent is the great problem of America today. It overshadows all others It is a symptom, an expression, a consequence, and a cause of all others. I say dissent and not disagreement. And it is the distinction between dissent and disagreement which I really want to make. Disagreement produces debate but dissent produces dissension. Dissent (which comes from the Latin dis and sentire) means originally to feel apart from others. “People who disagree have an argument, but people who dissent have quarrel. People may disagree and both may count themselves in the majority. But a person who dissents is by definition a minority. A liberal society thrives on disagreement but is killed by dissension. Disagreement is the life blood of democracy, dissension is its cancer.
The Decline of Radicalism
By Daniel J. Boorstin
Consider the implications of the distinction Boorrstin makes between dissent and disagreement.

5. Student Example
Sentence 1 (Who/What) The (author’s name) in the (genre), (title), (verb) that (major thesis/assertion). Sentence 2 (How?) (Author’s last name) supports his/her (verb) by (how) Sentence 3 (Why?) The author’s purpose is to in order to / so that Sentence 4 (To Whom?) The author writes in (tone word) tone for (specific audience).
Daniel J. Boorstin, in the book, The Decline of Radicalism (1969), argues that dissent, differing from the liberal foundation that is disagreement, poses a great threat to America’s democracy. Boorstin supports his argument by defining dissent and listing the differences between people who disagree and people who dissent and by describing disagreement as the “life blood of democracy” while dissension is the “cancer.” The author’s purpose is to suggest that dissension is a major problem that needs to stop in order for America. While disagreement is acceptable, violence is not. The author writes in a formal tone for an American audience.

6. Practice with “Declaration”
Sentence 1 (Who/What)
The (author’s name) in the (genre), (title), (verb) that (major thesis/assertion).
Sentence 2 (How?)
(Author’s last name) supports his/her (verb) by (how)
Sentence 3 (Why?)
The author’s purpose is to in order to / so that
Sentence 4 (To Whom?)
The author writes in (tone word) tone for (specific audience).
Author’s Name
Genre/Style
Title
Verb
Major Assertion
How argument is developed/assertions supported
Author’s Purpose
So that…
Tone
Audience

7. Example
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, in her speech at the Women’s Rights Convention at Seneca Falls in July 1848, enumerated the areas of life where women were treated unjustly in America. Stanton supports her assertion by modeling her own declaration after the original document and by changing some of the language to include the word “women.” She continues by listing18 specific grievances against America’s revolutionary forefather’s as listed in the Declaration of Independence. She closes her speech by insisting that women have “immediate admission to all the rights and privileges which belong to them” and by claiming that women will “use every instrumentality within” their power until this occurs. The author’s purpose is to demand that the rights of women as right-bearing individuals be acknowledged and respected by society so that they are accepted as equal to men. She writes in a formal and passionate tone for an audience of American women and men.