Author's craft & word meaning · Topic 6 of 8

Author's Purpose

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Reading · author's purpose

Purpose is why the author wrote: mainly to inform, persuade or entertain; a how-to informs. Ask what the reader should walk away with.

01 · What it isPurpose = WHY it was written

02 · The key ideaInform · persuade · entertain

03 · The strategyWhat should the reader walk away with?

Purpose = why the author wrote it must know

Three main purposes: inform, persuade, entertain must know

On the exam, purpose is usually inform or persuade

Mixed purposes? Choose the aim the whole passage serves

Audience shapes word choice, formality and how much is explained

Ask: what should the reader walk away with?

Inform: facts and explanation in a neutral voice, no push to agree

Persuade: takes a side; should/must, emotion, a call to act

Entertain: story, characters, humor, vivid description

How-to steps and commands = informing how to do a task ("to instruct")

Neutral facts about a library, no side taken → inform

"Should … not worth a life … sign today" → persuade

First / next / finally + commands → a how-to that informs ("to instruct")

Main idea = what it says; purpose = why it was written

Commonly confused

	Inform	Persuade
Goal	Reader learns something	Reader agrees or acts
Voice	Neutral, usually third person	Takes a side
Telltale words	Facts, data, explanations	should, must, best; emotional appeals
Facts are used to	Explain the topic	Back up the author's side
Often ends with	A summary of what is known	A call to action

Trap: facts alone ≠ inform; facts backing one side = persuade

Trap: an opening story is often a hook, not the purpose

Trap: a topic or detail is not a purpose; look for "to explain / to argue"

Show 2 more facts

Title, preface and author background also hint at purpose

Finer purposes: narrate, describe, evaluate, criticize, satirize

Pearl

Main idea is what the passage says; purpose is why the author says it.

Practice this topic, then test the whole section.

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