Guidelines for Writing a Rhetorical Précis

A rhetorical précis differs from a summary in that it is a less neutral, more analytical condensation of both the content and method of the original text. (“Précis” means “concise summary.”) Its structure is designed for presentation of insights about a text from the perspective of a rhetorical reader. If you think of a summary as primarily a brief representation of what a text says, then you might think of a rhetorical précis as a brief representation of what a text both says and does. Although less common than summary, a rhetorical précis is a particularly useful way to sum up your understanding of how a text works rhetorically.

 

Part summary and part analysis, the rhetorical précis is also a powerful skill-building exercise often assigned as a highly structured four-sentence paragraph. As laid out below, these sentences provide a condensed statement of a text’s main point (the summary part), followed by brief statements about its essential rhetorical elements: the purpose, methods, and intended audience (the analytical part). Note the Précis’ Format:

 

How to Structure a Rhetorical Précis (in APA format)

 

Sentence 1: Include genre, “Title of work”, (publication year parentheses), name of author; a

 

rhetorically accurate verb (such as “claims,” “argues,” “asserts,” “suggests”); and a THAT clause

 

containing the major assertion or thesis statement in the work.

 

Sentence 2: An explanation of how the author develops and supports the thesis, usually in

 

chronological order (Does the author use stats? summarize data? use personal experience? etc.).

 

Sentence 3: A statement of the author’s apparent purpose, followed by an “in order to” phrase.

 

(The author’s purpose is to_____, “in order to” _____).

 

Sentence 4: A description of the intended audience and /or the relationship the author establishes

 

with the audience (who is the intended audience, and what is your assessment of the intended

 

audience based on?).

 

Example

 

In her online article “Seven secrets to a great nap” (2007), Sarah Kliff reports that

 

mid-afternoon naps are good for adults and lists seven tips from researchers for getting the most

 

out of a nap. Kliff supports her claim by summarizing advice from a sleep researcher on the

 

benefits of drinking coffee just before a nap, on the best ways to schedule a nap, and on ways to

 

avoid problems with naps. Her purpose is to inform readers that naps are beneficial from a

 

scientific perspective and to offer surprising, helpful, and positive information about naps in an

 

upbeat, easy to digest way in order to encourage her readers to try napping. Her intended

 

audience seems to be busy young professionals who surf the Web (this is an online article) and

 

who must be hooked into a quick read through casual vocabulary (such as “sleep doc,” “cup of

 

joe,” “snoozing habits”), and upbeat advice.

 

*Remember that the precis must be typed using APA format–times new roman, 12 pt font, double spaced, etc., and it must follow the 4-sentence order outlined above.

 

Word Bank: Feel free to use any of the words below to help you complete the rhetorical précis.

 

Genre:

 

news story,

 

magazine article,

 

book review,

 

editorial personal

 

essay, research

 

report

 

Rhetorically

 

Accurate

 

Verbs:

 

analyzes,

 

argues,

 

asserts,

 

discusses,

 

focuses,

 

explains,

 

suggests

 

How author

 

accomplishes

 

his/her goal:

 

comparing,

 

contrasting,

 

comparing,

 

retelling,

 

explaining,

 

justifying, pointing,

 

highlighting.

 

Author’s

 

Purpose:

 

argue, call

 

attention to,

 

deny, point out,

 

prove, suggest,

 

persuade,

 

convince.

 

Tone:

 

humorous,

 

emotional,

 

friendly,

 

reasoned,

 

logical,

 

exaggerated.

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