146
Reading Nonfiction
Nonfiction articles and books offer factual information from every area of human endeavor: science, math, social studies, English, and the arts. News articles tell what is happening in the world, and editorials argue for specific positions. To gain the most from reading nonfiction, read with a plan.
Before . . .
- Analyze the communication situation. Who is the sender (the author)? What is the message (subject and purpose)? What is the medium? Who is the intended receiver (the reader)? What is the context?
- Understand why you are reading. What is your purpose?
- Skim the selection. Pay attention to headings, boldfaced words, graphics, captions, and the beginning and ending paragraphs.
- Predict what you will learn. Plan to watch for those ideas as you read.
- Note features of the medium. If you are reading printed material, look for a table of context, an index, a list of figures, and other features that can help you. If you are reading Web material, note links, videos, photo galleries, and other media.
During . . .
- Read actively. Use a strategy such as KWL or SQ3R. (See page 143.)
- Take notes. Paraphrase the main points, note new vocabulary words, and ask questions. (See page 144.)
- Annotate the text. Underline, star, number, and note key points. (See page 145.)
- Read important parts aloud. This will help you remember them.
After . . .
- Summarize the reading. Put it into your own words.
- Share your observations. Talk with a friend, classmate, or family member.
- List any questions that you still have about the material.
Your Turn Use the tips above to read the article on the facing page, material from a textbook, or an online article. Skim the article, paying attention to its special features. Predict what you will learn. Then read actively. Afterward, write a paragraph that summarizes the piece.
147
Nonfiction Article
The following nonfiction Web page includes a title, byline, article, and video, as well as links to additional information about the topic.
Secrets of the Brain
The article title sums up the main point. By Cristina Reddick
The human brain is an amazing and mysterious organ. It has 100 billion neurons and 100 trillion synapses. Every time a brain learns, it grows new connections. A video provides additional information. It also routinely prunes old connections to run as efficiently as possible. The brain’s tremendous capacity and plasticity makes it more powerful than a supercomputer. In fact, every accomplishment of human civilization including supercomputers is a product of this uniquely brilliant organ.
A Premium Organ at a Premium Price
Human beings have paid a high price for their huge brains. Childbirth is dangerous because our brains are so large that emerging is a struggle. Babies’ skulls aren’t even fused yet to allow for growth after birth. While other mammals can walk within hours of birth, humans take many months to do so. While other mammals quickly learn everything they need to know to survive, humans take many years to do so. Links lead to other articles and resources. In the United States, society spends an average of $100,000 per child for K–12 education, and those who go to college may double that amount.
A quotation gives an additional perspective. While those brains are being educated, they’re also consuming a huge portion of the body’s resources. Human brains require high-protein diets to grow and function. They also require 20 percent of the body’s oxygen and a large proportion of the blood sugar. And the brain resides within its own pocket of fluid with a blood barrier that keeps it safe from disease.
Though the brain produces our consciousness, it also requires unconsciousness. The average person will spend 25 years asleep, five of those years dreaming. During that time, the brain sorts information, culls unneeded pathways, and optimizes.
148
Nonfiction Glossary
Allusion is a reference to an event or story to explain another idea.
Analogy is a comparison of two relationships (for example, a battery is to current as a heart is to blood).
Anecdote is a brief story that demonstrates an idea.
Antithesis is something that shows the opposite of an idea or thesis.
Argument refers to a series of statements made to logically prove something.
Author is the person who writes a piece of information.
Autobiography is the story of a person’s life told by the person him- or herself.
Balance refers to information that shows both sides of an argument.
Bias refers to information that shows only one side of an argument.
Biography is the story of a person’s life told by another person.
Blog is a Web log—a series of articles published on the Internet.
Byline refers to the line of text that identifies the author of an article, usually appearing below the title.
Cause-effect writing explores the reasons something happened and the things that result from it.
Comparison is an analysis of the similarities between two topics.
Connotation refers to what a word suggests, as opposed to the word’s direct meaning (denotation).
Contrast is an analysis of the differences between two topics.
Copyright is a law that protects the rights of those who own writing and other intellectual property.
Definition refers to the meaning of a term, often including denotation, connotation, etymology, and examples.
Denotation refers to the literal meaning of a word, as opposed to the associated meanings (connotations).
Description literally means “drawing a line around” something—explaining its key features and its overall identity.
Diction refers to the level of language, from very formal to very informal or slangy.
Editorial is a piece of writing that expresses the opinion of the author.
Editorialize is to express your opinion about a topic; often used as a criticism of supposedly objective reporting.
Epistle is a letter, a term used most often to refer to historical correspondence.
Epitaph is a short piece of prose in honor of a dead person, often on a gravestone.
Epithet is a name given to describe someone, such as “The Hammer” or “Queen of the Nile.”
Essay is a form of writing that explores a specific nonfiction topic.
Etymology refers to the origins of a word, often through several languages.
Example refers to a specific case that demonstrates a general idea.
Exposition refers to explanatory writing and also to the beginning of a narrative in which setting, character, and conflict are established.
Evidence refers to facts, statistics, examples, and other supporting details.
Figure of speech refers to a set of literary devices that include analogy, antithesis, hyperbole, metaphor, metonymy, personification, simile, and understatement.
Hyperbole is exaggeration for effect (for example, his brain got stuck in the doorway).
Instructions are a set of commands that tell how to do something.
149
Intellectual property refers to ideas that are created, sold, and owned, including copyright.
Irony occurs when an action meant to create a specific outcome actually creates the opposite outcome (for example, my toothbrush knocked out a tooth).
Journal refers to a series of entries made regularly to record personal observations of a period of life or a specific experience.
Letter to the editor refers to a letter written to a newspaper or periodical and usually published on the op/ed page.
Manuscript is a printed draft of a piece of writing, usually of a longer work.
Masthead refers to a list of staff members published in a newspaper or magazine.
Memoir is a reflection on the meaning of one’s accomplishments.
Metaphor is a comparison saying that one thing is another.
Metonymy is using one word to substitute for an associated word (for example, using bench to refer to a judge).
News refers to current information reported through various media and deemed to be important to readers and other news consumers.
Objective means expressing information in a factual, nonbiased way, without taking a specific perspective.
Op/ed page is the page of a newspaper, usually opposite the editorial page, on which letters to the editor and other nonstaff perspectives are published.
Overstatement is intentionally exaggerating for dramatic effect (for example, it feels like the surface of the sun in here).
Oxymoron is a combination of words that sound contradictory (for example, black light or serious fun).
Paradox refers to a situation or statement that appears to be contradictory (for example, George Orwell’s statement “Ignorance is strength”).
Periodical refers to information published on a regular basis—such as a newspaper, magazine, or journal.
Personal commentary is a writer’s thoughtful reaction to some aspect of life.
Personification gives human traits to a nonhuman thing (for example, the car groaned and went back to sleep).
Persuasion refers to writing that is meant to convince the reader to agree with the writer or to take action.
Point-counterpoint is a style of editorial in which two people with opposing positions debate a topic.
Proceedings are the published papers from a professional or academic conference.
Process writing gives instructions for doing something or describes how something works.
Pseudonym refers to a false name that a writer uses (also called a pen name or nom de plume).
Satire refers to a presentation that makes fun of a topic by imitating it in an absurd way.
Simile is a comparison of two things using like or as.
Subjective means expressing personal opinion instead of objective fact.
Tone is the quality formed by word choice and ideas, revealing the author’s opinion of the topic.
Understatement minimizes by referring in a calm way to something emotionally charged (for example, when the sun becomes a red giant, picnics will be less enjoyable).
