When trying to determine an author's purpose, which question best guides your analysis?

When trying to determine an author's purpose, which question best guides your analysis?

• A. What does the author want readers to think, do, or feel? Are they informing, persuading, entertaining, or explaining?
• B. Which quotes are the longest in the text?
• C. What is the author's favorite color?
• D. How many paragraphs are in the text?

Answer: (A)

Determining an author's purpose hinges on understanding what the author wants readers to think, do, or feel. This question guides analysis because it connects the text’s choices—tone, structure, evidence, and strategies—to the purpose behind the writing. If the goal is to inform, the text lays out facts clearly and helps readers learn something new. If the goal is to persuade, the writer presents arguments and appeals aimed at changing opinions or actions. If the aim is to entertain, the piece uses lively storytelling, humor, or suspense. If the aim is to explain, the author clarifies how something works or why a process happens. The other options don’t help reveal why the text was written. Length of quotes doesn’t determine purpose, a favorite color is unrelated, and the number of paragraphs doesn’t by itself reveal the writer’s intent. So, focusing on what the author wants readers to think, do, or feel—and whether the writing is informing, persuading, entertaining, or explaining—best guides the analysis of purpose.

Determining an author's purpose hinges on understanding what the author wants readers to think, do, or feel. This question guides analysis because it connects the text’s choices—tone, structure, evidence, and strategies—to the purpose behind the writing. If the goal is to inform, the text lays out facts clearly and helps readers learn something new. If the goal is to persuade, the writer presents arguments and appeals aimed at changing opinions or actions. If the aim is to entertain, the piece uses lively storytelling, humor, or suspense. If the aim is to explain, the author clarifies how something works or why a process happens.

The other options don’t help reveal why the text was written. Length of quotes doesn’t determine purpose, a favorite color is unrelated, and the number of paragraphs doesn’t by itself reveal the writer’s intent. So, focusing on what the author wants readers to think, do, or feel—and whether the writing is informing, persuading, entertaining, or explaining—best guides the analysis of purpose.