What is The Authors Purpose

Heres your heads up for the day: most standardized tests have a reading comprehension section. Im fairly certain you knew that, but in case you didnt, youre welcome. What you may not have known is that in most reading comprehension sections, you will  be called upon to answer questions about the authors purpose, along with other concepts like main idea, vocabulary in context, inferences and more. If you have no idea what authors purpose means youre going to have a hard time finding it, huh? I thought so. Take a peek below to read a little more about this reading skill and how you can find it in those long reading passages on standardized tests.   Authors Purpose Practice Authors Purpose Basics The authors purpose is basically the reason he or she chose to act in a particular way, whether thats writing the passage, selecting a phrase, using a word, etc. It differs from the main idea in that authors purpose not the point youre supposed to get or understand; rather, its the why behind why the author picked up a pen or selected those words in the first place. It can be difficult to determine because, after all, you may not be inside the mind if the writer. You may not actually know why she or he chose to include a particular phrase or idea. The good news? The majority   of authors purpose questions will come in multiple choice format. So you wont have to come up with the reason for an authors behavior. Youll just need to select the best choice.   If youre trying to determine the authors purpose on a standardized test, your question may look a little something like this: 1. The author most likely mentions the Depression in lines 33 - 34 to:A. identify the primary purpose for Social Security.B. criticize FDRs adoption of a program that would run out of money.C. contrast the effectiveness of the Social Security Program with that of family care.D. list another factor that contributed to the need for the Social Security Program. Authors Purpose Key Words There are a few key words associated with the authors purpose. Often times, you can narrow down what an author was trying to accomplish by looking at the language he or she used while writing. Take a look at the words below. The bold word will be used in the answer choices. The phrase following the bold words is an explanation of what it really means when you see it. If you click on the How to Find the Authors Purpose below, youll see each of these phrases explained thoroughly so you can understand how to determine when each is being used in context.   Compare: Author wanted to show similarities between ideasContrast: Author wanted to show differences between ideasCriticize: Author wanted to give a negative opinion of an ideaDescribe/Illustrate: Author wanted to paint a picture of an ideaExplain: Author wanted to break down an idea into simpler termsIdentify/List: Author wanted to tell the reader about an idea or series of ideasIntensify: Author wanted to make an idea greaterSuggest: Author wanted to propose an idea If you can master these bad boys, then youll have a much easier time answering those reading comprehension questions on your next  standardized test, mostly because these key words are often used so very often in those questions! Bonus! How to Find The Authors Purpose Sometimes, reading for the authors purpose is as simple as just that; you read, and you figure out that the writer really hated the Red Sox and wanted to criticize the whole franchise. Other times, it isnt so simple, so its good to have a technique to guide you when youre looking!