From Idea to Essay: A Rhetoric, Reader, and Handbook, 10th Edition - Softcover

McCuen, Jo Ray; Winkler, Anthony C.

4.06

16 ratings by Goodreads

9780321163394: From Idea to Essay: A Rhetoric, Reader, and Handbook, 10th Edition

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0321163397 ISBN 13: 9780321163394

Publisher: Longman Pub Group, 2003

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One of the most successful all-inclusive rhetorics on the market, this classic distinguishes itself with a story, poem, and writing photo assignment in each modes chapter. This systematic rhetoric/reader/handbook carefully leads the student through the process of essay writing. It provides numerous sample readings—imaginative literature as well as the essay, specific guidelines on how to approach each rhetorical mode, writing assignments, and both student and professional models of completed assignments. In addition to covering nine rhetorical modes, the text includes a complete unit on the research paper and a comprehensive handbook section. Prereading, prewriting, and writing exercises throughout offer guidance in the fundamentals of reading and writing. Individuals interested in developing their writing skills.

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About the Author:

Born in Belgium, the daughter of an American minister, Jo Ray McCuen-Metherell had moved from Brussels to Paris to Bern, Switzerland, by the time she was seven years old. In Bern, she attended the Freies Gymnasium and spoke not only fluent French and German but also English, which was the language spoken to her by her American parents. After enduring World War II, Jo Ray's parents sent her and her brother to Pacific Union College (in the Napa Valley), where Jo Ray received a B. A. in English. After teaching English and French in high school for several years, Jo Ray started to take night classes at the University of Southern California in order to earn an M.A. and Ph.D., which would allow her to teach in college. While working on her doctorate, she was first hired to teach English at Glendale Community College and later to serve as Dean of the Evening College. A chance meeting in 1973 with Anthony C. Winkler, a successful novelist, led to a literary partnership that has produced 15 coauthored textbooks used at colleges and universities across the United States.

Review:

"The student essays are a strength. I really like to see an illustrated example or model of a paper as it evolves from draft to draft. I like the line by line editing notes. The emphasis on rhetorical devices is another strength. It's good to see so much of the book dedicated to so many devices of rhetoric. Also, when the book uses outlines, graphs, and charts, it succeeds tremendously."

"The overall organization of the book is effective. All important topics are covered quite thoroughly."

"I really like the idea of having the handbook inside the reader."

"Several years ago, while searching for a text that included the elements which I had found over the years were best for teaching composition, I discovered FROM IDEA TO ESSAY, 11e. It proved to be an excellent text, which I appreciated more during the successive years that I used it to teach my introductory classes. I was pleased to discover the elements I so appreciated in that text were kept in the current edition: an organization that began with an overview of the process of writing, a review of classic rhetorical structure, and grammar."

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