It's All About the Moves- PB2B

            The idea of a “move” is an interesting one. I like to think of moves as actions that people take in order to get closer to accomplishing a goal. These moves can be seen in a wide variety of complexes, but writing is an easy way to see these moves. Every author has individual elements to their writing. These elements are unique actions that they take in their writing, and can be referred to as moves. These moves are very important to differentiating writing from one another. In all of the articles that we have read so far this quarter, all of the authors have distinct qualities within their writing. In the They Say, I Say appendix, several of the moves that they discuss can be seen in these articles that we have read in our class.

·      Introducing Standard Views: In this move, authors try to make claims using the information that appeals to the general public. The wording is general and attempts to keep the playing field level. These are mostly general claims that are assumed as common knowledge. In Navigating Genres, Dirk says that “It is well known that Bob is one of the wealthiest people in Cash City” (256). In this example, Dirk uses the standard view in assuming that this face of Bob’s wealth is commonly known. Many writers incorporate the use of the “standard view”.

·      Introducing Quotations: Many authors supplement their writing with quotations from other sources. These sources could be other people or other research studies that could potentially further their argument. In order to incorporate a quote, one must use a specific format to do so. Using the specific format to incorporate quotations ensures that it is clear to the reader which words are not the author’s own. In Embracing Contraries: Explorations in Learning and Teaching, Peter Elbow uses examples in quotations. Elbow uses correct formatting in this example: As a teacher, it helps me to have these two clear goals in mind when I come across a student about whom I must say, “She clearly is a smart person but why is she so often wrong?” (60). The quote is introduced in the middle of a sentence, so a comma is put in place before the quotations and the end punctuation is inside of the quotations.

·      Capturing Authorial Action: When writing many pieces, it is important to clearly define who is saying what. This often can be accomplished with quotation marks, but in other circumstances, when giving examples of other author’s ideas, authors use particular wording to capture authorial action.  In the “So what, who cares?” piece that we have studied this quarter, there are examples of authorial action. In one of the sentences, it states; “Notice how Grady’s writing reflects the central advice we give in this book…” (94). The wording used clearly demonstrates that Grady is responsible for this concept of the central advice given and that if anyone were to dispute this information, Grady would be responsible.

·      Establishing Why Your Claims Matter: In my opinion, this is probably the most important move. For any argument, it is important to back up your claim with evidence, and then further analyze that claim as to why it is important to your argument. This move is crucial to any well-written piece, because without explaining the importance of your claims, you have very little credibility. Elbow discusses in his piece how it is important to wait in time to revise and backs up his claim by saying that “but if we hold off criticism or revising for a while, we can build a safe place for generative thinking” (61). Elbow elaborates on his reasoning as to why he believes what he does which is crucial to his argument.

·      Adding Metacommentary: This move is used to help the writer be clear in what he or she is trying to say. As mentioned in other moves, the author must distinguish what he or she is saying from other people and must do so in the clearest way possible. Adding metacommentary further clarifies what is happening in writing. A common phrase that is used to clarify in this technique is “In other words,” which Dirk uses in his piece (252). Adding in these phrases keeps the reader on a clear path to understanding the author.

There are several other moves that are used throughout the articles that we have read through. Below I will name some of the moves that I have come up with for these articles.

·      The Bro: In some pieces, authors choose to be extremely informal in their writing style. Dirk often refers to the reader as “you,” which creates a more friendly tone for the reader to understand.

·      What If: Some writers decide to engage the reader by asking them to think of a hypothetical situation so that he or she has a further connection to the writer. Dirk does this when he asks the reader to “think about a time when you were asked to write a research paper” (255).

·      Just Not on Time: Authors sometimes use the technique of delaying a thought to add emphasis. Elbow starts a second paragraph to further a point that he has that he is not content with merely asserting a link (33). He waits to give this information in a separate section so that it is further emphasized.

·      On Display: There are many times when authors put examples on display to further emphasize them. They will take the example and put them in the middle of the paragraph but then create spaces between the top and bottom so that it is clearly distinguishable from the words. This can be seen in the “So What, Who Cares” article.

·      Boom Boom: As certain examples, authors sometimes include bulleted lists of examples or information. These lists help to supplement an authors point and are stated as a list to be more clear and concise rather than writing flowery which would confuse the reader.

Works Cited

Dirk, Kerry. "Navigating Genres." Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. Vol. 1. Parlor.

Print.

Elbow, Peter. Embracing Contraries: Explorations in Learning and Teaching. New York:

Oxford U Press. 1986.