Author's Purpose Review: Asking Why It Was Written

Use every purpose tool together to analyze any text.

Let's put all your author's purpose tools together. When you read any text, work through these questions. What is the main purpose: persuade, inform, or entertain, or more precisely, explain, describe, or instruct? What clues prove it? Are there facts, opinions, or both? What is the author's point of view, and which words reveal it? Who is the audience? How does the structure support the purpose?

Does the author prove the point? Try it on this text: 'Every night, our street is too dark to walk safely. Two neighbors tripped last month. Please sign our letter asking the city to repair the broken streetlights. ' Purpose: persuade. Clues: the request to sign. Facts: two neighbors tripped. Point of view: concern for safety. Audience: neighbors. Structure: problem, then solution.

Asking these questions makes you a thoughtful, critical reader.

• 1Name the purpose and prove it with clues.
• 2Check facts, opinions, point of view, and audience.
• 3Notice structure and whether the point is proven.