A Companion to Composition by Hugh Rank http://webserve.govst.edu/pa | HOME |

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The more you know about the various issues about an ad's purpose, the better able you are to understand your own purposes in writing.

The word "purpose" has multiple and ambiguous meanings.

Here, the first set of pages focuses on "purpose" as the motivation of the individual, both the writer who composes advertisements and the writer who composes exposition.

The second set of pages focuses on "purpose" as the goal, or the function, of different kinds of writing: persuasion, expression, and exposition.

"Hidden purposes" (including deception) are then discussed, a controversial topic related to persuasion, but perhaps less so to expository writing.

Finally, the focus is on the purpose of the audience: communication is a two-way transaction, with both senders and receivers.

Because people are benefit seekers, they also have purposes in attending to messages. These can be better understood in terms of four kinds of benefits (protection, relief, acquisition, prevention) easily seen in ads.

The chief benefit which audiences usually seek from expository writing is clear, coherent, and accurate information, as a means, direct or indirect, to the end of these same categories.