English 101
Audience

Everything you write (speak, do) depends on audience reception. If you want whatever you are saying to achieve its ends, your audience must not only understand the message, but they must connect and react to it how you hoped they would.

In order for you to reach an audience, you must first understand that you have an audience and you must figure out what will appeal to them.

For example, while I am writing this, I am considering my audience the whole time (though they might not think I am!). I know that I am addressing an audience who probably hasn't thought too much about audience in the past, and probably is asking "what's the big deal anyway?"

I could tell you that this stuff is important because lots of people say it is. You would probably go ahead and try to meet my expectations in the class and not think too much more about it. But, I would not have achieved my goal at all. My goal is that you get a sense of how to write and communicate and that you will have some idea of how to approach writing and communicating for all occasions in your life. Therefore, it is important to me that you REALLY understand what I am trying to convey about audience.

So, instead of giving you the "rules" and leaving it at that, I try to give you examples and contexts to understand these features of writing at work. When I consider you as my audience, I make a few generalizations, but I attempt to consider what might be important to you, what you already know, what you may want to know, what your ÒvaluesÓ are.

Keeping you in mind, I try to keep my tone fairly conversational, fairly friendly. I do that because I know that you prefer that tone to academic, stuffy prose. I make jokes (though everyone doesnÕt always agree that they are funny) because my experience with you has been that you prefer to laugh now and then rather than to be serious, serious all the time. I try to use relevant examples (like this extended example of me talking to you) that I think will matter in your life. I might talk about music or movies that many of you are familiar with; I might use an example of deciding on a major, or choosing a career because my feeling is that these are things going on in your life right now.

However, even though I keep your wants and needs in mind, I know that the most important part is that I get you to listen and to hear what I have to say. When I make a joke, I am considering you, but I am also hoping that the joke might make whatever I am saying more interesting and that you might take it more to heart. When I tell you my opinion on a subject and then ask if I have missed something, I am considering that you want to have your say too; but, at the same time, I am hoping that you see things critically and consider other points of view.

So, communicating with an audience is a mutual relationship. I have something I want to accomplish, but I canÕt accomplish it unless you listen and interact with me. This is the way effective communication works (I think).

"Okay," you say, "I see what you are saying, but how do I know who my audience is all the time?"

Oh, you have questions, do you? You really are interacting. Well, you can never know all you probably need to know about most audiences. If you happen to be communicating with your girl- or boyfriend, or your parents, or your best friend, you have more information about your audience than you will about most audiences. You probably know exactly what arguments will work to make your partner do what you want (or at least you think you do!). But, when you are considering audiences youdon't know so personally, you need to ask some questions:

  1. Who am I writing to? Are you writing for someone who will be making THE decision. For example, are you writing to a boss in hopes s/he accepts your proposal, or to a prospective employer who will decide whether or not to hire you? Or, are you writing to a general audience?
  2. How much does your audience know or care about your issue? Is your audience already knee-deep in the issue, or are you bringing it to their attention? Can you assume that your audience already cares about the issue, and if not, what sort of things will make them care?
  3. What is your audience's current attitude toward your issue? Is your audience opposed to your position on the issue or are they neutral? Are they open-minded? What other points of view besides yours will your audience most likely be considering?
  4. What weaknesses will your audience find in your argument? Why might they oppose your view? What parts of your argument will they find possibly threatening?
  5. What values, beliefs, or assumptions do you and your audience share? Despite differences of opinions on the issue, where can you and your audience find common ground? What are the common links between you and your audience? How might you use these to build a bridge between you and your audience?

After you answer these questions as best you can, you should have a good place to start addressing and appealing to your audience. Of course, your argument needs to actively show your audience that you are considering them. You "show" your audience this by establishing ethos and pathos as you develop your logos. So much information! Do you feel you are getting your money's worth yet?

If you missed classed on February 4 (you may have actually been there, but you don't remember a thing about it...), you can review an exercise on audience. If you like, you can e-mail me your responses and we can discuss the concept further.

 

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