Quoting Twenge

My approach to annotating typically starts off with highlighting information which I find important and then writing down notes to the side for any comments or reactions that I have in response to the highlighted section. I make notes for where I find claims, evidence, and any other literary techniques, such as pathos, ethos, or logos. I often write questions with certain parts of text that I think could be developed more or need more information. For example, in the Twenge source pictured above, I wrote questions on areas which I felt lacked sufficient evidence to fully prove a claim and seemed more like a generalization. Susan Gilroy, the librarian for undergraduate programs for writing at Harvard University, titles one of her selections “Interrogating Texts: 6 Reading Habits to Develop in Your First Year at Harvard” from Harvard Library: Research Guides (1980); By using the word “interrogating”, Gilroy highlights a key aspect of successful annotating. Being able to question the text to better understand its concept is the main purpose of annotating and, as can be seen in my annotations for Twenge’s piece, I frequently question the veracity of her claims and what certain phrases mean to further increase my comprehension of the text. Learning Objective number three states, “Employ techniques of active reading, critical reading, and informal reading responses for inquiry, learning, and thinking.” Through my annotations, I am able to portray how I read the text critically and Gilroy highlights this in her selection as well when she states how it is important to “get in the habit of hearing yourself ask questions.” I then use all of these annotation techniques to incorporate quotes into my writing. In my blog post, “Quoting Twenge”, I focus more on responding informally to a text by selecting and framing a quote to increase my learning and thinking skills; I focus on a claim that I have annotated in the source, locate the evidence I have also identified, and develop my own claim based off of them. Framing the quote also becomes much easier as in my annotations I have already wrote reactions to certain parts of the text which I can use as my voice in the paragraph. Gilroy mentions, “analyzing adds an evaluative component to the summarizing process,” essentially tying with my previous claim in how the highlighting and notes in my annotations along with the framing in my informal response serve as deep analysis of the writing. With these annotation techniques, I am capable of actively engaging with the text and as Gilroy puts it, I am having a “dialogue” with the author and topic of the text.