Questions to Help Writers Elicit Response:
While I was reading this, what was my emotional response to it? (In other words, while I was reading this I felt _________.)
Why do I think that I had that response to the reading?
If I told someone that I felt X while reading this, and that person disagreed, what passages would I point to to explain why I felt the way I did while reading?
What thoughts popped into my head while I was reading? In particular, what thoughts that I suspect are specific to me popped into my head? (For example, nearly everyone reading a passage with a thesis will think about the thesis. But one reader might read the thesis and then also think of a story about a time that their uncle did something funny because that story connected in some way to the thesis.)
Did I like the reading? Why or why not?
Did I dislike the reading? Why or why not?
What, specifically, did I like about the reading?
What, specifically, did I dislike about the reading?
Questions to Help Writers Elicit Analysis:
How does this reading get its point across to readers?
How effectively does this readig get its point across to readers? Could it do a better job? If so, what might that more effective version look like?
How convincing is the argument in this reading? (Remember that some kinds of writing my not have a stated thesis, but they may still have an implied argument.)
Are there changes that the author could have made to make the argument in the reading more convincing?
Why does the reading work for me? Or why doesnt it work for me? Or why does one part work and another part not work?
Is there additional evidence that the author could have provided to make the reading more convincing? Is there a different argumentative frame that the author could have provided to make the argument more convincing?
Are there assumptions or implied arguments that the thesis (or a main point) in this reading rely upon? Are those assumptions also supported by the evidence?
Does the article suggest any biases that get in the way of the argument? {Instructors Note: Ill try hard not to assign such readings without cueing you that you mgiht want to watch out for that, but you may find articles of lower standards in other places.}
Who is the imagined audience for this piece of writing? How effectively does the author address that audience?
