Movin'

                Each work of writing has its own unique “moves” that the author intentionally utilizes for various reasons. Examining the course reader makes it apparent that each author’s moves were implemented in hopes of making the audience more conscious readers and writers. From the book They Say, I Say by Gerald Graff, Cathy Birkenstein, and Russel Durst, the index of templates provides many examples of common moves. While the same types of moves may be used by multiple authors, it is not uncommon if each author has his or her own take on the execution of the move. “Introducing what “they say”” is a move that is discussed in They Say, I Say. This move makes a good introduction because it essentially leads into a topic by generalizing something that other people believe—making it more relatable. For example, an author can introduce something by saying “A number of _____ have recently suggested that ___” (Graff 681). By mentioning how others are in agreement with the idea, the credibility of the topic at hand is immediately more reliable. In Alex Reid’s “Why Blog? Searching for Writing on the Web” essay, Reid utilizes this move when he says “Of course, most students aren’t interested in becoming expert writers” (Reid 303). Talking about most students adds the element of relatability, which can capture the readers’ attention. Another move discussed in They Say, I Say is “Making what “they say” something you say.” An example of this move is evident in Reid’s essay when he says “The specifics of my experience starting out as a blogger…” (Reid 309). This is a move where the author puts in his or her own beliefs, often making use of the first person. The impact this type of move has on the readers is that it prompts them to compare their own experience, opinions, or beliefs to that of the author. Something as simple as introducing quotations can also be known as a move. In Janet Boyd’s essay “Muder! (Rhetorically Speaking),” Boyd uses quotes from outside sources to back up her thoughts. For instance, she introduces a quote by saying “perhaps these words came easy for Kirstin Flynn who writes…” (Boyd 94). Providing context before a quote is always vital in ensuring that readers understand the flow and sequence of the content. Adding metacommentary is another common move that authors incorporate in order shed light on what is more significant. In Kerry Dirk’s “Navigating Genres,” he demonstrates this metacommentary when he says “But above all, …” (Dirk 250) to effectively redirect the reader’s attention to what the focus is.

There are also many other moves that authors implement to better portray their message across to the audience. Alex Reid demonstrates the use of charts and tables to show the types of course-assigned blogs and their characteristics. These charts are to help clearly separate the types and characteristics by making it more visually obvious that there’s a difference. It also prompts the audience to compare the types, ultimately effectively attracting more attention towards the content. In “So What? Who Cares?,” the author uses the move that I call “The Author is Talking to You.” The author uses words such as “let’s” to make the readers feel more interactive in order to maintain the attentiveness of the audience by lowering the level of formality. Saying “let’s” makes the reader feel as though the author is a friend wanting to do something fun together with the audience. This move is an effective way to make the essay feel more personalized, as the purpose of the piece is not for a formal setting but rather a guidance for the readers. Anne Lamott demonstrates her own unique move that I call “But.” She starts sentences with conjunctions to effectively decrease the formal tone. For instance, Lamott says “But this is just the fantasy of the uninitiated” and “But this is a very hostile and aggressive position.” By making these clauses its own stand-alone sentence, there is a pause in the reader’s voice when reading the sentences. “But” is a good substitute for “however” because “but” is at a lower register than is “however” in terms of formality. Since the overall tone of Lamott’s essay “Shitty First Drafts” is clearly not a formal one, the use of “but” successfully engages the readers in a casual manner. Janet Boyd’s essay “Murder! (Rhetorically Speaking)” uses italics pretty often. Italicizing words such as, “jargon, slang, au courant, diction, tone, colloquial, dysphemisms,” emphasizes the key terms of the essay and points out the focus of the essay. While the italics does hone in the audience’s attention, there may be too many words that are italicized, which can cause the italics to lose its effect. Another common move is the use of questions. Rhetorical questions used in Dirk’s “Navigating Genres” also helps capture the reader’s attention. Asking the reader “So why was I talking about country songs?” makes the essay feel more like a conversation, and therefore attracting the reader’s attention. The moves that these authors make are all intended to improve the quality and effectiveness of the essays or articles.