TOW #1- How to Say Nothing in 500 Words by Paul Roberts (written text)

Many students connect to feeling this frustration when writing essays, as stated by Roberts. Source: http://jackiemurphy21.wordpress.com/2013/03/20/students-who-struggle-with-written-expression/

How to Say Nothing in 500 Words is written by Paul Roberts. Roberts was an accomplished writer of multiple English textbooks, and he focused on writing rules and descriptions about the art of writing. In this particular excerpt, Roberts writes about word choice and making your writing more meaningful. It is intended for student writers who write just because there is an assignment (and are only writing to fulfill the number of words they need), and it is meant to help the student writers improve their writing and word choice. As a result, Roberts needs to write the passage in a way that is interesting to students, and in a way that students will connect to his ideas. Roberts does this by using anecdotes to show the students he knows what they are going through, and he connects with them on an emotional level. For example, Roberts writes, “It’s Friday afternoon, and you have almost survived another week of classes...the English instructor says: ‘For Monday you will turn in a five-hundred-word composition on college football.’ Well, that puts a good big hole in the weekend” (Roberts 1). Most students have experienced a similar situation, and perhaps even a very similar essay prompt about which to write, and in the first few sentences of his writing, Roberts is able to catch the students’ attention. The student is now drawn in and is waiting for Roberts to tell him/her how he/she should write the essay, as opposed to the way he/she usually writes this type of essay. By doing this, Roberts is also using pathos (by connecting to his readers on an emotional level). As a result, the constant connections to the reader throughout the passage are effective at getting the reader to listen to Roberts’ ideas and learn about ways to improve word choice and writing styles.