Columnists

Here are some links to New York Times and Los Angeles Times columnists:

New York Times Columnists

Los Angeles Times Columnists

 It will be better for you if you start skimming over some of these columnists soon. That way you can choose one; if you don't like her work, you will have time to switch. Post questions and I will respond as soon as I can.

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SOAPSTONE

The SOAPS Tone Document Analysis allows students to trace an examination of a document
using the seven components listed. This approach to analysis is relevantly used in poetry,
speeches, short stories, newspaper articles, and countless other documents.


Speaker
Who is the speaker who produced this piece? What is the their background and why are they
making the points they are making? Is there a bias in what was written? You must be able to cite
evidence from the text that supports your answer. No independent research is allowed on the
speaker. You must “prove” your answer based on the text.


Occasion
What is the Occasion? In other words, the time and place of the piece. What promoted the author
to write this piece? How do you know from the text? What event led to its publication or
development? It is particularly important that students understand the context that encouraged
the writing to happen.


Audience
Who is the Audience? This refers to the group of readers to whom this piece is directed. The
audience may be one person, a small group or a large group; it may be a certain person or a
certain people. What assumptions can you make about the audience? Is it mixed racial/sex
group? What social class? What political party? Who was the document created for and how do
you know? Are there any words or phrases that are unusual or different? Does the speaker use
language the specific for a unique audience? Does the speaker evoke God? Nation? Liberty?
History? Hell? How do you know? Why is the speaker using this type of language?


Purpose
What is the purpose? Meaning, the reason behind the text. In what ways does he convey this
message? How would you perceive the speaker giving this speech? What is the document
saying? What is the emotional state of the speaker? How is the speaker trying to spark a reaction
in the audience? What words or phrases show the speaker’s tone? How is the document supposed
to make you feel? This helps you examine the argument or it's logic.


Subject
What is the subject of the document? The general topic, content, and ideas contained in the text.
How do you know this? How has the subject been selected and presented? And presented by the
author?


Tone
What is the attitude of the speaker based on the text? What is the attitude a writer takes towards
this subject or character: is it serious, humorous, sarcastic, ironic, satirical, tongue-in-cheek,
solemn, objective. How do you know? Where in the text does it support your answer?


You must have complete answers for each of the columns you analyze.  You must turn in your SOAPSTone analysis and the document (either taken from the print paper, or print it from the online edition).