does/says analysis all writing both does something and says something. –what it does is its...
TRANSCRIPT
Does/Says Analysis
• All writing both does something and says something.– What it does is its purpose or function.– What it says is its semantic content.
EXAMPLE: “Dad, can I borrow the car tonight?”– What is this person saying? Obvious enough.
– What is this person doing? She is “asking for permission.”
Does/Says at the Paragraph Level
• Every paragraph – must serve a purpose/function in your paper
(what it does). • That purpose…
– must be linked directly to your thesis.
– is usually to establish part or all of a single claim.
– also expresses that purpose/function in its semantic content (what it says).
• Topic sentence: the sentence that expresses the paragraph’s purpose.
Functional Outlines
• An outline should reflect what each
paragraph does and what it says.
– The “functional outline”
• contains the purpose of each paragraph (does),
• the topic sentence of that paragraph (says) and
• a summary of the content of the paragraph (says).
An example from a simpler paper...
• Thesis:
• Cyberbullying is a growing problem in the United
States, sometimes leading to teen suicide.
An example from a simpler paper...
• Paragraph Two:
– Does/Purpose: Introduces subject leads in to
thesis.
– Topic sentence:Ryan was an outwardly happy-go-
lucky kid with two loving and supportive parents.
An example from a simpler paper...
• Paragraph Two:
– Says/Content:
• Describes Ryan so the readers feel they know him
Some writing purpose words
• Describe
• Provide
• ??
An example from a research paper...
• Working Thesis:
Although each side of the controversy around
sealed adoption records has good arguments,
the evidence seems to suggest that it is time to
open the records.
An example from a research paper...
• SAYSMany adoptive parents understand that that this search for information
is a personal need (Behne, 1996), and many adoptive parents support their
children’s searches for information (Hilderbrand, 2000). In one study, 83% of
adoptive mothers and 73% of adoptive fathers felt that adult adoptees should be
able to obtain a copy of their original birth certificate. (Avery, 1997) Most
adoptive parents know deep within themselves that they adopted because they
wanted the chance to parents, not because they were promised a lifetime of
secrecy.(Behne) Many adoptive parents find that their relationship with their
adoptees improve after a reunion with the biological parents, after the adoptee
has put aside their curiosity and fantasies about their biological parents, a
greater sense of appreciation for adoptive parents is finally possible (Kuhns,
1997).
An example from a research paper...
• Paragraph 3• DOES Supports assertion that parties are in
favor of opening records with findings from studies of adoptive parents
• T.S. Research studies also show that some adoptive parents lean towards accepting open records and support their adoptive children in looking for their biological parents.