{"id":219,"date":"2016-06-10T21:04:10","date_gmt":"2016-06-10T21:04:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/waymaker-level3-english\/?post_type=chapter&p=219"},"modified":"2016-10-06T20:17:58","modified_gmt":"2016-10-06T20:17:58","slug":"text-types-of-support","status":"publish","type":"chapter","link":"https:\/\/courses.lumenlearning.com\/suny-fmcc-engcomp1-2\/chapter\/text-types-of-support\/","title":{"raw":"Types of Support","rendered":"Types of Support"},"content":{"raw":"You'll find authors use a variety of kinds of support as they develop their thoughts in a text. Here are a few categories of resources you might encounter in the body of your reading:\r\n

Exhibits<\/h2>\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_221\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"300\"]\"18 Shakespeare's Sonnet 18, which might serve as an exhibit in a text[\/caption]\r\n

Exhibits are examples or excerpts from the object of study. Humanities (like English or religious studies) makes use\u00a0of exhibits in the form of\u00a0primary texts. For example, an article about\u00a0Shakespeare\u2019s sonnets would quote small sections of the poems. A text about\u00a0Buddhism might quote English translations of the sutras (and perhaps the Sanskrit originals).<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Exhibits can also include visual reproductions. A\u00a0paper on Michelangelo might attach images of the paintings in the Sistine Chapel. A book about the\u00a0Great Depression might use reproductions of photographs by the WPA. A\u00a0study of the Jurassic period might provide photographs of dinosaur bones and excavation sites.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Exhibits allow readers to see the part of the text or the image that supports a\u00a0<\/span>claim<\/span>. By themselves, they are not <\/span>evidence<\/span>. Only when the author\u00a0explains how the image or text supports a\u00a0reason does it become evidence<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n

Expert Testimony<\/h2>\r\n

Expert testimony includes quotations from scholars and summaries of previous research or scholarship. Expert testimony can reinforce an\u00a0<\/span>argument<\/span> when readers will resist a\u00a0claim; however, a quotation by an expert with similar claims is rarely sufficient as evidence on its own. Readers should\u00a0expect an author to explain how that expert supports his or her argument. They will also want an author to reinforce the\u00a0claim with evidence from other sources.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

\"neonBefore quoting an expert, an author\u00a0must determine whether he or she counts as an authority. Just because someone has published an academic paper or book does not mean that, as a reader, you will believe that his theories are valid. In the sciences and social sciences, readers should expect expert testimony to be the most\u00a0<\/span>current<\/span> research. Quoting a paper written even ten years ago may not be convincing expert testimony.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In the sciences, readers rarely expect direct quotations of secondary sources as evidence. Instead, science writers use summaries of previous research and the findings, or <\/span>data<\/span>, to support their own claims.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n

Interviews and Surveys<\/h2>\r\n

Interviews and surveys are often used as evidence in the social sciences. For example, a psychology paper might interview teachers and parents about their children\u2019s gender identities and then observe the their children behave when playing. Quotations and detailed descriptions of an author's\u00a0observations count as evidence here.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n[caption id=\"attachment_224\" align=\"alignright\" width=\"300\"]\"Screen Results from a Dallas Morning News article survey relating to students and digital social networking.[\/caption]\r\n

Surveys are often mistaken for \u201cfacts\u201d or used as \u201cdata.\u201d While they look like statistics or \u201chard numbers,\u201d surveys are created through interviews. Therefore, when seeing\u00a0a survey as evidence, whether it is one an author\u00a0created or one found through research,\u00a0it is important for\u00a0readers to question the <\/span>method<\/span> of the survey. Who were the participants? How were they selected? How were the questions phrased? Surveys are valid evidence in many disciplines, but they require explanation before the reader should\u00a0trust the numbers.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

In some texts, stories about the author's personal experience may be appropriate. Personal anecdotes may be appropriate in some sociology or psychology papers, but only when accompanied by\u00a0additional evidence. In some humanities writings, personal anecdotes are acceptable as a stylistic choice in the conclusion or introduction, but not as evidence in the body paragraphs.<\/span><\/p>\r\n

Readers should\u00a0not be persuaded by personal anecdotes if authors\u00a0rely on them to support all claims, or they're used\u00a0to prove a controversial claim. Readers should\u00a0ask whether an author's\u00a0personal experience represents a common occurrence, or one that just happened to that one person.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","rendered":"

You’ll find authors use a variety of kinds of support as they develop their thoughts in a text. Here are a few categories of resources you might encounter in the body of your reading:<\/p>\n

Exhibits<\/h2>\n
\"18<\/p>\n

Shakespeare’s Sonnet 18, which might serve as an exhibit in a text<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Exhibits are examples or excerpts from the object of study. Humanities (like English or religious studies) makes use\u00a0of exhibits in the form of\u00a0primary texts. For example, an article about\u00a0Shakespeare\u2019s sonnets would quote small sections of the poems. A text about\u00a0Buddhism might quote English translations of the sutras (and perhaps the Sanskrit originals).<\/span><\/p>\n

Exhibits can also include visual reproductions. A\u00a0paper on Michelangelo might attach images of the paintings in the Sistine Chapel. A book about the\u00a0Great Depression might use reproductions of photographs by the WPA. A\u00a0study of the Jurassic period might provide photographs of dinosaur bones and excavation sites.<\/span><\/p>\n

Exhibits allow readers to see the part of the text or the image that supports a\u00a0<\/span>claim<\/span>. By themselves, they are not <\/span>evidence<\/span>. Only when the author\u00a0explains how the image or text supports a\u00a0reason does it become evidence<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Expert Testimony<\/h2>\n

Expert testimony includes quotations from scholars and summaries of previous research or scholarship. Expert testimony can reinforce an\u00a0<\/span>argument<\/span> when readers will resist a\u00a0claim; however, a quotation by an expert with similar claims is rarely sufficient as evidence on its own. Readers should\u00a0expect an author to explain how that expert supports his or her argument. They will also want an author to reinforce the\u00a0claim with evidence from other sources.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"neonBefore quoting an expert, an author\u00a0must determine whether he or she counts as an authority. Just because someone has published an academic paper or book does not mean that, as a reader, you will believe that his theories are valid. In the sciences and social sciences, readers should expect expert testimony to be the most\u00a0<\/span>current<\/span> research. Quoting a paper written even ten years ago may not be convincing expert testimony.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the sciences, readers rarely expect direct quotations of secondary sources as evidence. Instead, science writers use summaries of previous research and the findings, or <\/span>data<\/span>, to support their own claims.<\/span><\/p>\n

Interviews and Surveys<\/h2>\n

Interviews and surveys are often used as evidence in the social sciences. For example, a psychology paper might interview teachers and parents about their children\u2019s gender identities and then observe the their children behave when playing. Quotations and detailed descriptions of an author’s\u00a0observations count as evidence here.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Screen<\/p>\n

Results from a Dallas Morning News article survey relating to students and digital social networking.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Surveys are often mistaken for \u201cfacts\u201d or used as \u201cdata.\u201d While they look like statistics or \u201chard numbers,\u201d surveys are created through interviews. Therefore, when seeing\u00a0a survey as evidence, whether it is one an author\u00a0created or one found through research,\u00a0it is important for\u00a0readers to question the <\/span>method<\/span> of the survey. Who were the participants? How were they selected? How were the questions phrased? Surveys are valid evidence in many disciplines, but they require explanation before the reader should\u00a0trust the numbers.<\/span><\/p>\n

In some texts, stories about the author’s personal experience may be appropriate. Personal anecdotes may be appropriate in some sociology or psychology papers, but only when accompanied by\u00a0additional evidence. In some humanities writings, personal anecdotes are acceptable as a stylistic choice in the conclusion or introduction, but not as evidence in the body paragraphs.<\/span><\/p>\n

Readers should\u00a0not be persuaded by personal anecdotes if authors\u00a0rely on them to support all claims, or they’re used\u00a0to prove a controversial claim. Readers should\u00a0ask whether an author’s\u00a0personal experience represents a common occurrence, or one that just happened to that one person.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\t\t\t

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Candela Citations<\/h3>\n\t\t\t\t\t
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CC licensed content, Original<\/div>