Purpose

Name_____________________________________________ Date______________ Hour_____________ Form= Audience + Purpose Example #1: During the Holocaust, six million Jews were murdered. Many other people like Gypsies, Jehovah’s Witnesses, homosexuals, and “social outcasts” were also killed. How could a country allow this to happen? How did so many die? It all started in the very beginning of Christianity. Anti-Semitism started before Hitler. Jews had been called “Christ-killers” and a “diseased race”. They were accused of causing the plague, and in some areas they were not allowed to own land (Greenfeld 21). Then Hitler showed up on the political scene. Germany had been struggling after World War I. They had to help rebuild everything they had destroyed in the war. Hitler claimed he could solve the country’s financial problems, but many figured he had no chance of winning. After the elections, however, he won by a one-third vote. That started it all (Axelrod 12-13). Who is this piece written for? Who is the author’s audience? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __ Why was this piece written? What was the purpose of writing it? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __ Example #2: John Fitzgerald Kennedy once claimed, “Ask not what your country can do for you – ask what you can do for your country” (Loviny and Touze 54). John F. Kennedy was not only remembered by Americans as the 35 th President of the United States, but furthermore remembered by his first-class personality, numerous achievements, faithful compassion, and strong leadership. As the years have shown, the assassination of Kennedy instantaneously transformed him into a legendary, larger-than-life inspiration whose hold on the nation’s imagination reverberates to this very day (Bugliosi 11). It was on November 22, 1963 that America would lose one of its most admired Presidents (Delano [on-line]). The assassination of President John F. Kennedy was and still is one of the most tragic and controversial events in America’s historical past. Who is this piece written for? Who is the author’s audience? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __ Why was this piece written? What was the purpose of writing it? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __ Example #3: Obesity is the main cause of death among Americans today. Over 64 percent of American adults are either overweight or obese (Mirkin 258). Over eating, the lifestyle one leads, and one’s age all contribute to the basic foundation of obesity. Over a long period of time obesity is developed by excess energy intake and not enough energy expenditure (McMillan 31). Some say that being overweight and obese are the same and use them interchangeably. This, of course, is not the case. Being overweight means there is an excess amount of body weight. This extra weight may come from excess muscle, bone, fat, or water. Being obese means there is an accumulation of body fat that is getting stored in the wrong places (Lemberg 87-88). Eating is obviously a necessary fact of life; due to societal pressures, obesity has become one of America’s largest epidemics. Who is this piece written for? Who is the author’s audience? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __ Why was this piece written? What was the purpose of writing it? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________

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