Table Of Contents:
Thematic Contents xv
Editing Editing Skills Contents xix

Active Reading 1(14)

Learning to Be an Active Reader 1(1)

Keeping a Journal 2(1)

Previewing the Reading 2(2)

Title 2(1)

Author and Other Publication Facts 2(1)

Visual Features and Supplements 3(1)

Responses and Predictions 3(1)

A First Reading 4(1)

Staying Aware of Conventions 4(2)

Subject 4(1)

Main Idea or Thesis 5(1)

Supporting Material 5(1)

Patterns of Organization 5(1)

Paragraphs 5(1)

Transitions 6(1)

A Sample Essay: ``Handled with Care'' 6(2)

Bob Greene

``[T]hey understood that the woman was troubled, and that what she was doing had nothing to do with sexual titillation; it was more a cry for help.''

Marking the Text 8(3)

Clarifying Meaning 11(1)

Using the Dictionary 12(1)

Reading Aloud 12(1)

Discussing 12(1)

Rereading 12(1)

Making Inferences and Associations 12(1)

Reading between the Lines 13(1)

Developing Inference Skills 13(1)

Writing to Understand and Respond 13(2)

The Reading-Writing Connection 15(14)

Writing in Response to Reading 15(1)

Building an Essay 15(6)

Finding Ideas 16(2)

Devising a Working Thesis 18(1)

Making a plan 19(1)

Composing a Draft 19(1)

Improving the Draft 20(1)

Getting Feedback 20(1)

Polishing the Final Draft 21(1)

Sample Student Essay 21(1)

``Someone to Help'' 22(2)

Tara Coburn

``The fragility I now see in my dad has given me the chance to be stronger.''

Resources for Writers on the Internet 24(1)

Responding to a Reading 24(1)

``Learning to Write'' 25(3)

Russell Baker

``[W]hat I was feeling was pure ecstasy at this startling demonstration that my words had the power to make people laugh.''

Suggestions for Writing 28(1)

Strategies for Conveying Ideas: Narration and Description 29(38)

The Point of Narration and Description 29(1)

Using Narratives 30(1)

Using Description 30(1)

The Principles of Narration and Description 30(3)

Organizing the Events 31(1)

Including Specific Details 31(1)

Selecting Descriptive Words 31(2)

The Pitfalls of Narration and Description 33(1)

What to Look For in Narration and Description 33(2)

William Least Heat-Moon, ``Wind!'' 35(6)

``The wind got louder, then the windows blew out, and we realized we were in trouble when the heat stove went around the corner and out a wall that had just come down.''

``Jackie's Debut: A Unique Day'' 41(8)

Mike Royko

``When Robinson stepped into the batter's box, it was as it someone had flicked a switch. The place went silent.''

``A Guard's First Night on the Job'' 49(7)

William Recktenwald

``[G]etting no worse than garbage thrown at you is the prison equivalent of everything going smoothly.''

``More Room'' 56(8)

Judith Ortiz Cofer

``Every time a child was due, she would demand, More spare, more spare.''

``Domestic Abuse'' 64(3)

Kelly Berlin

``My sister and Scott had been dating a couple of years, despite the disapproval of my family.''

Strategies for Making a Point: Example and Illustration 67(33)

The Point of Example and Illustration 68(1)

Using Examples to Explain and Clarify 68(1)

Using Examples and Illustrations to Convince 69(1)

The Principles of Example and Illustration 69(1)

Select Appropriate Examples 69(1)

Give Plenty of Examples 70(1)

Include Specific Information 70(1)

The Pitfalls of Example and Illustration 70(1)

What to Look For in Example and Illustration 71(2)

``Down with Forests'' 73(5)

Charles Kuralt

``I walked out into the morning wondering how our national forests can ever survive our breakfasts.''

``Just Walk On By': A Black Man Ponders His Power to Alter Public Space'' 78(7)

Brent Staples

``It was clear that she thought herself as the quarry of a mugger, a rapist, or worse.''

``One Man's Kids'' 85(8)

Daniel R. Meier

``My work is dominated by 6-year-olds.''

``Genius or Madness?'' 93(5)

Lynn Coady

``Society is not so much afraid of full-blown chemically imbalanced madness as it is of non-conformity.''

``My Key Chain'' 98(2)

David C. Lair

``Of these [possessions], I believe that my key chain says more about myself and my life than anything else does.''

Strategies for Clarifying Meaning: Definition and Explanation 100(36)

The Point of Definition and Explanation 100(1)

The Principles of Definition and Explanation 101(1)

Descriptive Details 101(1)

Examples 101(1)

Narration 101(1)

Comparison 102(1)

Contrast 102(1)

The Pitfalls of Definition and Explanation 102(1)

Missing Your Audience 102(1)

Going in Circles 102(1)

Abstraction 103(1)

Leaving Information Out 103(1)

What to Look for in Definitions and Explanations 103(2)

``Mommy What Does `Nigger' Mean?'' 105(8)

Gloria Naylor

``[T]he word `nigger' was used in my presence, but it was set within contexts and inflections that caused it to register in my mind as something else.''

``What Is Intelligence, Anyway?'' 113(6)

Isaac Asimov

``In a world where I could not use my academic training and my verbal talents but had to do something intricate or hard, working with my hands, I would do poorly.''

``I'm a Banana and Proud of It'' 119(7)

Wayson Choy

``I don't mind being called a `banana,' yellow on the outside and white inside.''

``Cultural Baggage'' 126(8)

Barbara Ehrenreich

``Motherhood put the screws on me, ethnicity-wise.''

``Nothing to Be Scared Of'' 134(2)

Kerri Mauger

``Hallucinations can include all of the senses, and my mother had both seen and heard things that weren't there.''

Strategies for Sorting Ideas: Classification and Division 136(39)

The point of Classification and Division 136(1)

The Principles of Classification and Division 137(1)

Give a Purpose to Your Classification 137(1)

Establish a Clear Basis for Your Classification 138(1)

Make Your Groups Parallel and Equal 138(1)

The Pitfalls of Classification and Division 138(2)

What to Look For in a Classification 140(2)

``Friends, Good Friends-and Such Good Friends'' 142(8)

Judith Viorst

``The best of friends, I still believe, totally love and support and trust each other, and bare to each other the secrets of their souls, and run-no questions asked-to help each other, and tell harsh truths to each other when they must be told.''

``I'm OK; You're a Bit Odd'' 150(8)

Paul Chance

``A sadist and a masochist may work out a mutually rewarding relationship, but does that make them healthy?''

``Types of Stress for Young People'' 158(7)

David Elkind

``The major task of psychological stress management is to find ways to balance and coordinate the demands that come from within with those that come from without.''

``Love Stories'' 165(7)

Louis Meuand

``What all the world really loves is not a lover. It's a love story. People can't get enough of love stories.''

``Stats on ER'' 172(3)

Megan Quick

``Some people are so obsessive about not missing one episode that all other activities cease while ER is on.''

Strategies for Examining two Subjects: Comparison and Contrast 175(39)

The Point of Comparison and Contrast 175(1)

Using Comparisons to Explain 175(1)

Using Comparisons to Persuade 176(1)

Using Contrast to Decide 176(1)

The Principles of Comparison and Contrast 176(2)

Using the Block Plan 176(1)

Using the Point-by-Point Plan 177(1)

The Pitfalls of Comparison and Contrast 178(1)

Avoid Using Too Many Transitional Words 178(1)

Avoid Repetition in Concluding 179(1)

What to Look For in Comparison and Contrast 179(2)

``Two Views of the Mississippi'' 181(7)

Mark Twain

``All the grace, the beauty, the poetry had gone out of the majestic river!''

``Neat People vs. Sloppy People'' 188(8)

Suzanne Britt

``I've finally figured out the difference between neat people and sloppy people. The distinction is, as always, moral.''

``Women and Men'' 196(6)

Scott Russell Sanders

``So I was baffled when the women at college accused me and my sex of having cornered the world's pleasures.''

``The Trouble with Talent: Are We Born Smart or Do We Get Smart?'' 202(9)

Kathy Seal

``Our national mania for positive self-esteem too often leads us to puff up kids' confidence, and we may forget to tell them that genius is 98 percent perspiration.''

``Shopping Online'' 211(3)

Dana Webb

``With only a computer and a credit card, you can shop online from your very own home.''

Strategies for Explaining How Things Work: Process and Directions 214(34)

The Point of Writing about Process and Directions 214(1)

The Principles of Process and Directions 215(1)

The Pitfalls of Process and Directions 215(1)

Reviewing Your Process 216(1)

Addressing Your Audience 216(1)

What to Look For in Process and Directions 216(3)

``How to Make Your Dendrites Grow and Grow'' 219(6)

Daniel Golden

``Date provocative people. Better yet, marry one of them.''

``How to Write a Personal Letter'' 225(7)

Garrison Keillor

``Probably your friend will put your letter away, and it'll be read again a few years from now-and it will improve with age.''

``The Box That Launched a Thousand Ships'' 232(6)

James Surowiecki

``Container ships make a six-thousand-mile, just-in-time supply chain possible.''

``There Are Rules, You Know'' 238(7)

Dave Barry

``The game is divided into four 15-minute quarters. Each of which lasts a little over three hours.''

``A Graceful Stride'' 245(3)

Ann Moroney

``At every one of my races, 1 sat in my blocks looking; at the line of hurdles in front of me with fear in my heart.''

Strategies for Analyzing Why Things Happen: Cause and Effect 248(36)

The Point of Cause-and-Effect Writing 248(1)

The Principles of Cause-and-Effect Writing 249(1)

Types of Causes and Effects 249(1)

Patterns of Cause and Effect 249(1)

The Pitfalls of Cause-and-Effect Writing 250(1)

What to Look For in Cause-and-Effect Writing 251(2)

``Ignorance Is Not Bliss'' 253(7)

Eric Marcus

``The actual telling was far less terrifying than all the anticipation. While my grandmother cried plenty, my family was wrong, because the truth didn't kill her.''

``Why We Crave Horror Movies'' 260(7)

Stephen King

``The mythic horror movie, like the sick joke, has a dirty job to do. It deliberately appeals to all that is worst in us.''

``Fifth Chinese Daughter'' 267(8)

Jade Snow Wong

``Did a daughter have any right to expect more than a fate of obedience, according to the old Chinese standard?''

``Working: Nobody Talks about the Common Person's Life'' 275(7)

Steve Lopez

``No one is talking about how to educate, train, and employ those who have fallen behind or never even got started.''

``Why We Watch Daytime Talk Shows'' 282(2)

Tricia Rooney

``Talk shows give us other people's problems and predicaments to make us feel very normal and well off.''

Strategies for Influencing Others: Argument and Persuasion 284(31)

The Point of Argument and Persuasion 284(1)

The Principles of Argument and Persuasion 285(1)

The Elements of Good Argument 285(3)

Claims 286(1)

Evidence 286(1)

Refutation 287(1)

A Sample Annotated Argument: ``Ignoring the Solution'' 288(2)

Joshua Wolf Shenk

``(T)here's another message leaders should heed-that no one has to die needlessly.''

The Pitfalls of Argument and Persuasion 290(2)

Taking on Too Much 290(1)

Mistaking the Audience 290(1)

Logical Fallacies 291(1)

What to Look For in Argument and Perusasion 292(2)

``Send Your Children to the Libraries'' 294(7)

Arthur Ashe

``I strongly believe the black culture expends too much time, energy and effort raising, praising and teasing our black children as to the dubious glories of professional sports.''

``The War on Drugs'' 301(7)

Bill Bryson

``The saddest part of this zealous vindictiveness is that it simply does not work.''

``A Crime of Compassion'' 308(7)

Barbara Huttmann

``(E)very night I prayed that Mac would die, that his agonized eyes would never again plead with me to let him die.''
Debate: Examining the Death Penalty 315(12)

``Death Penalty Showdown'' 315(4)

David Leibowitz

``Execution represents a proportional, measured response to mankind's most barbarous act.''

``We, On Death Row'' 319(8)

Ken Shulman

``It is in our nature to be killers. And we are never far from that most primal region of our nature.''
Debate: The Right to Same-Sex Marriage 327(32)

``When John and Jim Say, `I Do''' 327(3)

Charles Krauthammer

``Gay marriage is coming. Should it?''

``Same-Sex Marriage, For Better or Worse?: Readers' Forum'' 330(1)

Alex Tresniowski

``It seems hypocritical to be against gay marriages and at the same time in favor of family values''

``No One Has to Send a Gift'' 331(6)

David Mixner

``Gay and lesbian Americans should be accorded the same rights as other Americans-no more, but certainly no less.''

``Education Interrupted'' 337(3)

Steve Date

``You and the other students stand in the dorm parking lot, shivering in the early morning air, as the fire department arrives and casually runs through its seemingly routine motions.''

Further Readings 340(19)

``Salvation'' 341(2)

Langston Hughes

``So I decided that maybe to save further trouble, I'd better lie, too, and say that Jesus had come, and get up and be saved.''

```I Know What I Can Do''' 343(4)

Sheryl Flatow

```I never let my deafness hold me back. I never feel sorry for myself. Never.'''

``Navajo Code Talkers: The Century's Best Kept Secret'' 347(2)

Jack Hitt

``The language of the Code Talkers, their mission, and every detail of their messaging apparatus was a secret they were all ordered to keep, even from their own families.''

``The Discus Thrower'' 349(3)

Richard Selzer

```Every morning he orders scrambled eggs for breakfast, and, instead of eating them, he picks up the plate and throws it against the wall.'''

``Volkswagen's Campaign in America'' 352(3)

Roy Grace

``For the first time, advertising talked to people and not at them.''

``Wordstruck'' 355(4)

Robert MacNeil

``[O]ur language is not the special private property of the language police, or grammarians, or teachers, or even great writers.''
Glossary 359(12)
Credits 371(4)
Index 375