How to Write A Critical Précis Your Professor Will Never Forget

A critical prà ©cis is a type of academic writing where you summarize another piece of text, its main ideas and arguments, in particular, to provide insight into its authors thesis.So, it happened again. Your teacher assigned yet another paper to you. It sounds something like write a prà ©cis, in 800-1000 words (approximately four double-spaced pages), of the first two-thirds of Reading: An Intertextual Activity, by Robert Scholes. Your precis should cover Scholes’s essay through the top of page 28.And we can almost hear you thinking:What the heck is going on here, what is a precis?Derived from French, the word â€Å"prà ©cis† means a summary. So, if your professors give you such writing assignments, they want you to summarize some text and convey the summary in minimum words.A critical prà ©cis is a clear, concise, and logical summary of a passage preserving its essential ideas only.Before writing a prà ©cis, make sure you clearly understand its peculiarities and specification.The first and foremost:A prà ©cis is NOT an essay or re-writing. It shouldnt tell but summarize a core essence of the original document and provide readers with the information about its significance and worth.In other words:Even if your audience didnt read the original abstract, they should have a clear idea about its content and meaning after checking your prà ©cis. A prà ©cis explains the main point and structure of the original work but doesnt offer any evaluations or your personal reactions.A Critical Prà ©cis CharacteristicsWhen assigned to write a critical prà ©cis, make sure you understand its characteristics which are:A prà ©cis is a critical summary of writing abstracts.A prà ©cis is NOT re-writing or interpretation of the original.It is NOT written with words from the original, though you are welcome to use some quotes if appropriate.It summarizes the content of the original.A prà ©cis reveals a meaning of the original and explains its value.As a rul e, a prà ©cis is 1/4 of the original in length, except as noted.It follows the standard format: an authors thesis and methods he uses to represent it, results, and conclusion.Why do professors assign a critical prà ©cis writing to students?First, it helps them understand how good you are with critical thinking, summarizing, and highlighting the crucial information. And second, writing a prà ©cis is a great way of learning new material.A Critical Prà ©cis QualitiesA prà ©cis will demonstrate your writing skills to professors, as well as your ability to express your thoughts intelligibly. Make sure your paper highlights the following qualities:Clarity, which means your reader should understand what a writer intended to convey. Achieve it through using simple language and structure of your precis.Correctness, which means you should watch spelling, grammar, and punctuation you use, as well as facts, figures, and dates you address.Objectivity, which means candid construal of the inf ormation. Dont give your opinion in a prà ©cis.Coherence, which means the logical interconnection of the originals ideas. Your audience shouldnt lose their interest while reading.Conciseness, which means avoiding unnecessary details in your prà ©cis. Dont omit essential facts but avoid wordy expressions, repetitions, wateriness, etc.How to Write A Critical Prà ©cisâ€Å"I didnt have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.† ― Mark TwainOne of the most famous American essayists, Mr. Twain nailed it: short doesnt equal quick and easy to write, especially if you write a summary, not simple re-writing of the original. So, the process of writing a prà ©cis starts with critical reading and research:Read the original piece carefully.Specify its main points and arguments.Consider the evidence used by the author.Research unfamiliar material (definitions, statements, unknown words, data, etc.)Identify the appeals used by the writer.Evaluate how the author conveyed meaning.Restate the thesis.Write a 1-2 sentence summary of each section of the article.Describe the piece in your own words.Reread the article and compare it with your summary.Now its time to start writing the final draft of your critical prà ©cis. Begin with paraphrasing the thesis and your 1-2 sentence statements, then review it to make sure youve explained the main point, identified the evidence, and used the logical structure.Finally, check your prà ©cis for clarity, correctness, and coherence.This sample of a critical prà ©cis will help to understand the sense of such a writing assignment better.Sample 1:Sandra M. Gilbert, professor of English at the University of California, Davis, in her essay â€Å"Plain Jane’s Progress† (1977), suggests that Charlotte Brontà « intended Jane Eyre to resemble John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress in that Jane’s pilgrimage through a series of events based on the enclosure and escape motif eventually lead toward the equality that Brontà « herself sought. Gilbert supports this conclusion by using the structure of the novel to highlight the places Jane has been confined, the changes she undergoes during the process of escape, and the individuals and experiences that lead to her maturation concluding that this marriage of true minds at Ferndean – this is the way (501). Her purpose is to help readers see the role of women in Victorian England in order to help them understand the uniqueness and daring of Brontà «Ã¢â‚¬â„¢s work. She establishes a formal relationship with her audience of literary scholars interested in feminist criticism who are familiar with the work of Brontà «, Bunyan, Lord Byron and others and are intrigued by feminist theory as it relates to Victorian literature.Source: Winthrop.eduFollow the StructureA critical prà ©cis is not an essay, but its structure looks the same. As well as an essay, a precis consists of three parts:IntroductionThis is a single sentence including the following information:the authorthe title of the piecethe date of its publishing (in parentheses)power verbs determining the authors thesis (such asâ€Å"explains†, â€Å"argues†, â€Å"proves†, etc.)the thesis itselfSome experts suggest starting your prà ©cis with a hook and then restate the authors thesis; others say this type of academic writing doesnt need hooks in introduction. The best decision would be asking a professor about the format of introduction you may use.Example of a critical prà ©cis introduction:BodyEach paragraph explains a separate section of the original piece, providing the authors evidence, purpose, and ideas. Dont forget that you cant interpret arguments from your point of view but should analyze the authors stands on an issue. Feel free to use quotes here, but be brief and attribute them correctly.This sample of a critical prà ©cis makes it all clear:Sample 2:In her article â€Å"Who Cares if Johnny Cant Read ?† (1997), Larissa MacFarquhar asserts that Americans are reading more than ever despite claims to the contrary and that it is time to reconsider why we value reading so much, especially certain kinds of â€Å"high culture† reading. MacFarquhar supports her claims about American reading habits with facts and statistics that compare past and present reading practices, and she challenges common assumptions by raising questions about readings intrinsic value. Her purpose is to dispel certain myths about reading in order to raise new and more important questions about the value of reading and other media in our culture. She seems to have a young, hip, somewhat irreverent audience in mind because her tome is sarcastic, and she suggests that the ides she opposes are old-fashioned positions.Source: Bakersfieldcollege.eduConclusionIt should restate the main idea. Summarize everything and remember to avoid any personal statements about the original piece.Source: TeacherWeb.comMo re samples needed to understand the nature of a critical prà ©cis and get a better idea of how to write it right? No problem!Sample 3:In her essay â€Å"Cyberspace and Identity† (1999), Sherry Turkle argues that â€Å"today’s life on the screen dramatizes and concretizes a range of cultural trends that encourage us to think of identity in terms of multiplicity and flexibility† (272). Turkle supports her assertion by juxtaposing theories of cyberspace and identity formation with older understandings of identity found in psychology, sociology, and philosophy. Her purpose is to show readers that theories on cyberspace and identity, which claim that identity is multiple and cyclical, do not overturn, but rather add to our understandings of identity in order to encourage her audience â€Å"to rethink our relationship to the computer culture and psychoanalytic culture as proudly held joint citizenship† (278). Turkle’s tone assumes a highly educated audi ence who is familiar with theories not only of cyberspace and identity, but sociology and psychology as well.Source: RSU.eduSample 4:Charles S. Peirces article The Fixation of Belief (1877) asserts that humans have psychological and social mechanisms designed to protect and cement (or fix) our beliefs. Peirce backs this claim up with descriptions of four methods of fixing belief, pointing out the effectiveness and potential weaknesses of each method. Peirces purpose is to point out the ways that people commonly establish their belief systems in order to jolt the awareness of the reader into considering how their own belief system may the product of such methods and to consider what Peirce calls the method of science as a progressive alternative to the other three. Given the technical language used in the article, Peirce is writing to a well-educated audience with some knowledge of philosophy and history and a willingness to consider other ways of thinking.Source: Oregonstate.eduFurt her reading:Rhetorical Prà ©cis WritingThe Rhetorical Prà ©cis: Explanations and ExamplesThe Rhetorical Prà ©cis Format