PB2B - What'd The Farmer Say To The Cow In The Road? MOOOOve Out The Way!

My last move was called ‘Lemme tell you' and was once again, found in Navigating Genres. Dirk writes, “Although textbooks are directed at students, they are often more formal affairs meant to serve a different purpose than this essay.” The cause behind Dirk’s implication of this move was to eMoves are everywhere, in all kinds of forms. Famous athletes have signature moves they do in games. The White House make moves towards peace with other countries. Dancers perform moves at concerts or recitals. Writers use moves—both big and small—that are meant to have some sort of impact on their reader. Moves are everywhere.

First I’m going to start off with stating which moves I found in the readings from the They Say, I Say appendix.

One of the first moves—and most common among all the readings—I came across was from Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps toward Rhetorical Analysis by Laura Bolin Carroll. Carroll writes, “In other words, the audience should be able to help address the problem.” In this case Carroll was elaborating on what she meant when she said, “The audience should be able to respond to the exigence.” Some readers may not know what the word exigence means, so Carroll uses this move to help her reader comprehend the point she is making. This is an incredibly effective move because it makes it easier for the reader to understand what the author is saying.

            In Navigating Genre’s by Kerry Dirk, Dirk also used the “In other words,” move. Dirk says, “In other words, knowing what a genre is used for can help people accomplish goals, whether that goal be getting a job by knowing how to write a stellar resume, winning a persons heart by writing a romantic love letter, or getting into college by writing an effective personal statement.” Dirk—just as Carroll did—utilizes the “In other words,” move to explain something. Preceding the move, Dirk quotes another writer and he explains in his own words what that writer is trying to say. The effectiveness of this comes from Dirk guiding his reader through the evidence he uses—some readers may not understand the language used by the author Dirk quoted.

Another move I noticed from Navigating Genres by Kerry Dirk was, “Devitt argues that “people do not label a particular story as a joke solely because of formal features but rather because of their perception of the rhetorical action that is occurring” (Writing 11).” The move implicated here was “X argues…” and its used to help support a claim. Dirk is trying to convince his readers that when applying certain genres to their writing they did more than just fill in the blanks. The use of this move is effective because Dirk’s utilizing outside sources to support his own claims, which establishes credibility with the reader and makes them more apt to listen to what he is saying in the text. 

In addition, I found a move in Why Blog? Searching for Writing on the Web by Alex Reid. Reid states, “According to the 2008 National Survey of Student Engagement, the typical first year student writes 92 pages, while average college seniors write 146 pages (21).” Reid applies the “According to X,” move to argue against a claim he quoted, to help explain the point of the text. Reid’s move is effective because like Dirk, Reid is trying to establish credibility with his readers by providing a factual statistic that disputes the claim he quoted as well as supports his own claim. 

The last move I noticed was my favorite because it didn’t happen in the beginning of the sentence, and it comes from How to Read Like a Writer by Mike Bunn. Bunn says, “As one former student, Alison states: “The reading I did in college asked me to go above and beyond, not only in breadth of subject matter, but in depth, with regards to informed analysis and background information on context.” Bunn exercises the use of the “X states…” move in his writing. The purpose of the move was to provide student examples to his readers, to make it relatable in order for them to actually process what he was saying. The use of this move is highly effective to me, if a reader can relate on some personal level to what a writer is saying they are more inclined to be attentive and comprehend what the author’s talking about. 

Now I’ll discuss which “moves” I chose out of the readings and what they’re purpose/effectiveness is within each piece.

The first move I picked I called ‘Reasons’ it is from Navigating Genres by Kerry Dirk. The move is “My purposes are to expand your definition of genre (or to introduce you to a definition for the first time) and to help you start thinking about how genres might apply to your own writing endeavors.” I think the author chose this because he wanted to explain to his readers clearly what the purpose of him writing the piece was. I think this is effective because it gives the reader a direct sense of what they’re about to get into.

Another move I chose was also from Navigating Genres, called ‘Examples’. Dirk states, “For example, I recently needed to write a letter about removing a late fee on a credit card.” I think Dirk uses this to provide samples to his readers of what information he’s giving them. Evidence or examples are very effective because it helps guide the reader and enable them to comprehend the information on a different level.

The third move I chose was called ‘Evidence’ from Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps towards Rhetorical Analysis by Laura Bolin Carroll. Carroll articulates, “In fact, the more art kids get, the more smarter they become in subjects like math and science.” Carroll’s reason for using this move was to provide a fact relative to what she was discussing. This move is effective because evidence provides a bond of trust between the author and reader, in turn making the reader really believe what the writer is saying. 

One of the other moves I chose called ‘Basically’ was also from Backpacks vs. Briefcases: Steps towards Rhetorical Analysis. Carroll says, “In other words, most of our actions are persuasive in nature.” The purpose of this move is to further explain to the reader’s something being discussed in the text. Carroll’s use of this is effective because it leaves the reader understanding what they’re reading and not confused and uninterested. 

xpand on a previous thought he wrote. Before the quoted move, he is discussing how unusual it is for teachers to write so directly to students. The effectiveness of the move is for Dirk to acknowledge that even though some teachers write to students, his writing to students is from a different level. 
Once I analyzed all of these moves—some writers using different moves, and some using the same—I realized all the various ways they can be implicated. Two writers can use the exact same move and it be for different reasons and effects. Some moves are miniscule, and some are vital to the writing. However, all moves in writing are important to the text in some way.