1.1.2: Identifying Your Purpose
The second rhetorical element that influences the rhetorical situation is purpose. You have an audience, but why do you want to write for them? What are you trying to achieve? Purpose determines how you write to your audience, but also how your audience receives your writing. Aside from thinking about your own purpose, think about why the audience may be interested in reading your work. Read this article and think about the different types of purposes you might see in academic writing. How would each of these purposes change the way you write an academic essay?
Before you start writing, it is important to determine your purpose. Knowing what you want to achieve will help guide your ideas you draft. Read this article and think about how purpose influences what and how you write.