Audience and Purpose
The two most important features of writing are the intended audience and purpose. It is also interesting to look for the audience and purpose while reading. I found a formal article written by a speech therapist (http://ajslp.asha.org/cgi/content/abstract/22/3/503) and a blog about speech therapy (http://playonwords.com/blog/), in order to compare their audience and purpose.
The article I found is from the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. Speech Sound Disorders in a Community Study of Preschool Children was written by professionals in the speech therapy field. The purpose of the article was to tell about their study of children who were identified as having trouble with some speech skills. This purpose made the article rather formal in structure and tone. The audience was the readers of the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. Because most of their intended audience is speech professionals, the writers did not 'water down' any of the information.
The blog, Play On Words, is different then the article in several key ways. First, the purpose of the blog is to give advice and update care givers for children with speech difficulties. Further, the blog is directed toward parents of children who need more speech attention. Although the intended audience is parents, the actual audience is much larger because any one on the internet can read the blog.
The audience and purpose is incredibly important to understand while reading. The audience can make the difference between a very casual and an extremely formal writing style. Similarly, the purpose determines how organized a writing can be.
Works Cited
McLeoda, Sharynne. "Speech Sound Disorders in a Community Study of Preschool Children- McLeod Et Al. 22 (3): 503 -- American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology" Speech Sound Disorders in a Community Study of Preschool Children -- McLeod Et Al. 22 (3): 503 -- American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. N.p., Aug. 2013. Web. 10 Sept. 2013.
Artemenko, Sherry. "Play On Words." 9 Sept. 2013. Web. 10 Sept. 2013.
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