You Can Learn To Write In General By: Elizabeth Wardle
Social Norms: In this reading, one of the social norms that is displayed is that there is no such thing as writing in general. Writing gives you the freedom to be “particular,” as she puts it. It is not drawn to technical writing written in a subjective tone and personal style, but it does have context. Wardle does not want writers to feel compelled in any manner when it comes to how they write; instead, if you want to improve as a writer, it’s all about practice and research.
Audience: The target audience for this reading is primarily incoming freshmen college students who should prepare to compose essays for college lecturers. Wardle speaks to her audience in a confident manner, persuading them to don’t let writing in general get to you, because there is no such thing as it.
Speaker: Elizabeth Wardle is the speaker in “You Can Write In General.” She is a Howe English college professor and the director of Miami University’s Roger and Joyce Howe Center for Writing Excellence (Oxford, OH). She has directed the writing programs at the University of Central Florida and the University of Dayton, that has fueled her continuous interest in how students use and transfer prior writing skills, as well as how courses and programs might best help students learn to write more effectively.
Message: Wardle’s message throughout the text is that she wants her writers to improve as writers by studying and exploring the perspectives that can lead you to focus on one issue and move on to the next in the way that you think is important. This means that if writers/students want to improve, they must apply these abilities to their everyday writing. Wardle wants her people to develop and she has so much trust that it will happen, just by her tone throughout the text.
Purpose: Wardle brings up the idea that learning how to write,”…tells us that every new situation, audience, and purpose requires writers to learn to do and understand new possibilities and constraints for their writing.”
Context: The kairos/timing/exigence for Elizabeth Wardle’s “You Can Learn To Write In Generic” is that people often feel forced to write “general,” which is writing that covers a wide range of topics or is based on imaginative prose. When you don’t know who someone is, there should be no formal writing. This is why Wardle uses her voice to communicate with her audience, informing them that there is no such thing as in writing in general, so don’t imagine there is or adopt that style. It should be able to allow writers to continue to learn and experiment with various types of writing in new contexts.