Analyzing Your Audience for an Evaluation Essay

1.) You need to choose an audience (and/or publication scenario) to address your essay to:

• You may not write to those in this room, college students who have already read the book.
• You might decide to write for other college students who have not read the book (such an essay might appear in the college newspaper).
• You might decide to write for high school teachers who are thinking of including the book in one of their classes (your essay might then be mailed to local high school English departments).
• You could also choose to write to high school students who are looking for a book to read (your essay might then appear in a high school newspaper).
• You could write to your parents' or your own church members.
• You could write to your parents' or your own book group.
• Other ideas are possible -- check them out with me.

2.) WRITE: Who is your chosen audience? Why did you choose this particular audience? How or why are they important to you?

3.) You need to analyze your readers carefully -- and assume that they have not read the book.

• What might be their likes and/or dislikes in books?
• What might they have already read that is similar to this book?
• What might they already know about Sandra Benitez?
• What might they already know about Central America?
• What might they already know about El Salvador and Honduras?
• What might they already know about civil wars?

4.) WRITE: First, respond to the questions in #3. Then: What are your readers likely to know? What do you think your readers are going to be most interested in about Sandra Benitez and herbook?

5.) Based on your audience analysis, you can decide how you want to write the essay -- basically, the audience analysis should help you make decisions about how to write the essay.

• How much summary will you need?
• How much author background will be helpful?
• How much historical background will be helpful?
• What reasons / arguments will your audience find most convincing -- what do they most value in books?
• What reasons / arguments will your audience find least convincing -- what do they least value in books?

6.) WRITE: How much "work" do you think you are going to have to do to persuade your audience to agree with your thesis / recommendation about Sandra Benitez's novel, The Weight of All Things?

7.) You will need to clearly identify your audience (and/or publication scenario) when you hand in your final draft of this essay.