When the walls came tumbling down by trey ellis

For Bedford/St. Martin’s

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Library of Congress Control Number: 2009932161 (with Handbook) 2009932166 (without Handbook)

Copyright © 2010, 2008, 2004, 2001 by Bedford/St. Martin’s All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, except as may be expressly permitted by the applicable copyright statutes or in writing by the Publisher.

Manufactured in the United States of America.

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For information, write: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 75 Arlington Street, Boston, MA 02116 (617-399-4000)

ISBN-10: 0-312-53612-7 ISBN-13: 978-0-312-53612-1 (with Handbook) ISBN-10: 0-312-53613-5 ISBN-13: 978-0-312-53613-8 (without Handbook)

Acknowledgments

Acknowledgments and copyrights appear at the back of the book on pages A1-A3, which consti- tute an extension of the copyright page.

Advisory Board

We owe an enormous debt to all the rhetoricians and composition specialists whose theory, research, and pedagogy have informed The St. Martin’s Guide to Writing. We would be adding many pages if we were to name everyone to whom we are indebted.

The members of the Advisory Board for the ninth edition, a group of dedicated composition instructors from across the country, have provided us with extensive insights and suggestions for the chapters in Part One and have given us the benefit of their advice on new features. The St. Martin’s Guide to Writing has been greatly enhanced by their contributions.

Samantha Andrus-Henry Grand Rapids Community College

Melissa Batai Triton College

Mary Bishop Holmes Junior College–Ridgeland

Jo Ann Buck Guilford Technical Community College

Kevin Cantwell Macon State College

Anne Dvorak Longview Community College

Leona Fisher Chaffey College

Diana Grahn Longview Community College

Dawn Hubbell-Staeble Bowling Green State University

Amy Morris-Jones Baker College of Muskegon

Gray Scott University of California, Riverside

Susan Sebok South Suburban College

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Preface for Instructors

When we first wrote The St. Martin’s Guide to Writing, we aimed to demystify writing and authorize students as writers. We wanted to help students learn to commit them- selves to writing projects, communicate effectively with chosen readers, and question their own certainties. We also wanted them to understand that knowledge of writing comes both from analyzing writing and from working hard on their own writing. To achieve this aim, we took what we had learned from classical rhetoric and from con- temporary composition theory and did our best to make it accessible to students.

The response from instructors and students was overwhelmingly positive: The first edition of The Guide, published in 1985, immediately became the most widely adopted text of its kind in the nation.

As with every new edition, we began work on this ninth edition with the goal of adapting the best of current composition research and practice to the needs of instructors and students. We listened closely to our Advisory Board and dozens of talented reviewers (students as well as instructors), and we were confirmed in our belief that the essential purpose and approach of The Guide is more relevant than ever: Students need clear guidance and practical strategies to harness their potential as writers — an achievement that will be key to their success in their other college courses, in their jobs, and in the wider world.

At the same time, we realized that we needed to reach out to these students, and help them connect with writing, in new ways.

Every aspect of the academic landscape has changed since we wrote the first edition. The texts we read and write, the tools we use to find them, the options we have for communicating, the habits of mind we rely on, even the students them- selves — all are more varied and complex than in the past, sometimes overwhelm- ingly so. At the same time, students and instructors alike are increasingly burdened with demands on their time, attention, and energy that emanate from outside the classroom.

For all of these reasons, this edition represents a bold reimagining of our origi- nal vision. The chapters containing the Guides to Writing have been reengineered to reflect and build on the actual writing processes of students, and the Guides them- selves are streamlined and more visual. Throughout the book, we attempt to help students focus on what is important, yet offer multiple options for critical reading and writing. The result of this reimagining is what you hold in your hands: a text that we believe to be more flexible, more engaging, and more pedagogically effective than any previous edition.

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