Read, Reason, Write

Read, Reason, Write unites instruction in critical reading, analysis of argument, and research strategies. A rich collection of contemporary and classic readings provides both practice for these skills and new ideas and insights for readers. Read, Reason, Write shows students how reading, argumentative, research, and analytic skills are interrelated and how these skills combine to develop each student's critical-thinking ability.

Read, Reason, Write supports and aligns with the Council of Writing Program Administrators Outcomes Statement for First-Year Composition (National Council of Teachers of English, 2014). This text's content and presentations are guided by decades of classroom experience and by research and theory in composition and rhetoric. This combination has made Read, Reason, Write a best-selling text for now twelve editions.


•Teaches critical thinking, reading, and composing by taking a step-by-step approach to inquiry, analysis, and writing. 
•Provides instruction for beginning, drafting, completing, and then revising summaries, analyses, and arguments. 
•Provides instruction in both classical and contemporary rhetorical theory. 
•Includes guidelines and revision boxes throughout the text. 
•Offers thorough and easy-to-reference coverage of both Modern Language Association (MLA) and American Psychological Association (APA) documentation requirements.
•Features nine student essays and presents a rich collection of readings. 
•Offers a brief but comprehensive introduction to reading and analyzing literature. 


New to This Edition
•A rich collection of 80 readings, both timely and classic, provides examples of the varied uses of language and strategies for argument. Forty-six of these readings are entirely new to this edition.
•A new section in Chapter 5 introduces students to the concepts of visual rhetoric and visual literacy, including Gestalt principles and the contrast, alignment, repetition, and proximity (C.A.R.P.) design model.
•Chapter 6 includes additional in-depth coverage of deductive reasoning in written argument. 
•Updates in Chapter 13 address changes in technology for drafting, revising, editing, and proofreading a paper as well as for submitting a paper.
•Readings in this edition feature compelling visuals that illustrate the topics discussed therein. 
•Updated MLA coverage aligns with the eighth edition of the MLA Handbook. 
•Current issues highlight content that is relevant to students.

Dorothy Seyler holds advanced degrees from Columbia University and the State University of New York at Albany and is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of the College of William and Mary. Dr. Seyler is professor emerita of English at Northern Virginia Community College and has taught at Ohio State University, the University of Kentucky, and Nassau Community College. In addition to articles published in both scholarly journals and popular magazines, Dr. Seyler is the author of 10 college textbooks, including Introduction to Literature, Doing Research, Steps to College Reading, and Patterns of Reflection. Read, Reason, Write was first published in 1984. In 2007, Dr. Seyler was elected to membership in the Cosmos Club in Washington, D.C., for excellence in education.