Author’s purpose is closely tied to text structure. In narrative text, the author entertains; in expository text, the author informs; in argumentative text, the author persuades the reader; and technical writing presents a process. Students should, however, put on their detective hats to discover if the author may have an underlying purpose separate from the text structure.
| Text Type | Author's Purpose |
| Narrative | To Entertain |
| Expository | To Explain, Inform |
| Argumentation | To Convince, Persuade |
| Technical | To Instruct,Tell How |
Web Resources
Can you Determine the Author's Purpose for Writing?
TEACHnology: the online teacher resource
Resources
Author's Purpose Chart: This graphic organizer allows students to collect examples of author's purpose from multiple points in a passage to help them determine the author’s overall purpose for writing.
Author's Purpose and Tone of Voice: This is a high school lesson by Patricia Penrose.
Graphic Organizer: shows visually the four text types with questions to identify author's purpose
Identifying Persuasive Text: This handout provides helpful questions to use when trying to discriminate between expository and persuasive text.