Question

Author’s Purpose:
What is the author trying to do? (inform, persuade, argue, explain, evaluate)

Answer 1

Authors usually write with one main purpose. Here’s a quick guide to the five options you listed, how they differ, and clues to identify each one.

1. Inform
- Goal: give facts or information so the reader learns something.
- Tone: neutral, objective.
- Evidence: data, dates, definitions, descriptions.
- Clues: no call to action, no strong opinion words; phrases like “is,” “are,” “reports,” “according to.”
- Example: “The Amazon rainforest contains thousands of plant species and influences global rainfall.”

2. Persuade
- Goal: change the reader’s belief or get them to act.
- Tone: emotive or motivational.
- Evidence: appeals to emotion, values, some facts; often a direct call to action.
- Clues: imperative sentences, strong adjectives, direct appeals (“you should,” “now is the time”).
- Example: “You should recycle more to protect our children’s future.”

3. Argue
- Goal: make a claim and support it with reasons and evidence; a logical case for a position.
- Tone: reasoned, sometimes forceful.
- Evidence: claims, premises, facts, studies, counterargument and rebuttal.
- Clues: a clear thesis, supporting points, acknowledgment of opposing views.
- Example: “Because X causes Y and Z, policy A should be adopted.”

4. Explain
- Goal: clarify how or why something works or happened.
- Tone: instructional, clarifying.
- Evidence: step-by-step details, cause-and-effect, examples.
- Clues: sequencing words (“first,” “then”), “how” or “why” in topic, emphasis on process.
- Example: “Photosynthesis converts sunlight into chemical energy by ...”

5. Evaluate
- Goal: judge the value, quality, or effectiveness of something.
- Tone: critical, comparative, measured.
- Evidence: criteria, strengths and weaknesses, verdict or rating.
- Clues: comparisons, qualifiers (“better,” “more effective”), final judgment.
- Example: “The new model improves battery life but is more expensive, making it a mixed value.”

Quick checklist to decide author’s purpose:
- Is there a clear opinion or call to action? → Persuade/Argue.
- Is the piece mainly factual with no conclusion? → Inform.
- Does it explain steps or causes? → Explain.
- Does it weigh pros/cons and give a judgment? → Evaluate.
- Look at the thesis, tone, calls to action, and types of evidence.

If you have a specific passage, paste it and I’ll identify the author’s purpose for that text.