9
Rhetorical Synthesis
College Board skill: Rhetorical Synthesis
GoalRead a student’s notes and a writing goal, and choose the sentence that uses exactly the right information from the notes to reach that goal.
On the test
Expression of Ideas is about 20% of the Reading and Writing section (8–12 of 54 questions), and Rhetorical Synthesis is one of its two skills. Each question shows a short list of bullet-point notes, states what the student wants to do, and asks which of four sentences does it best.
Key words
goal · what the student wants the sentence to do, such as introduce, compare or emphasizeaudience · the readers the student is writing for, and what they already knowrelevant · connected to the goal, so that the sentence needs itsynthesis · joining pieces of information from several notes into one clear sentence
Explanation
What the question asks
The notes are facts. They are all true, but the student does not need all of them. The question names a goal, and the right choice is the one sentence that does exactly what the goal says. You are not judging which sentence is nicest; you are checking which one gives the right information for this goal and no important piece missing.
Read the goal first→Underline: audience + what to do→Find the notes that serve the goal→Check each choice against the goal→Check each fact against the notes
Common goals
The same few goals appear again and again. Learn what each one needs. If the goal says “compare”, the choice must include information about both things. If it says “emphasize a difference”, it needs the same kind of detail for both sides. If it says “introduce to readers who do not know it”, it needs to say what and where.
| Goal says… | The sentence must… |
|---|---|
| introduce X to readers unfamiliar with it | say what X is and give one or two basic identifying facts |
| compare / emphasize a difference | give the same kind of fact for both things |
| emphasize a similarity | name something both share |
| present a finding | say what was studied and the result |
| explain a process | list the steps in the right order |
| define a term and give an example | define it and include a matching example |
| explain why something matters | give the fact and its effect (cause and result) |
Why wrong choices are wrong
Most wrong choices are true. They fail in one of four ways. They answer a different goal (for example, they give details when the goal is to introduce). They are incomplete: they cover only half of what the goal asks. They are too vague: they say little. Or they include a fact that is not in the notes (not allowed) or one that is in the notes but is off-topic.
| Mistake | What it looks like |
|---|---|
| Off goal | accurate fact, wrong purpose |
| Incomplete | only one side of a comparison; missing a step |
| Too narrow / too vague | tiny detail, or a general statement without facts |
| Not in the notes | adds a fact, a number or a cause the notes do not give |
Match the sentence to the notes
Check numbers, names and relationships in the sentence against the notes. A choice may change a detail, for example swapping which thing has the larger number, or say that one fact caused another when the notes only list them. Cross out any choice that misstates the notes. Then compare the remaining choices with the goal one more time.
Worked examples
Example 1.
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Zebo Tashmatova was born in 1968.
- She is a textile artist who works with silk and cotton.
- She dyes her fabrics with colors made from local plants.
- Her best-known piece, Pomegranate Garden, is six meters wide.
- Pomegranate Garden has been shown in three cities.
The student wants to introduce an artist and her work to an audience that is not familiar with her. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
- Zebo Tashmatova, a textile artist, makes works from silk and cotton that she dyes with colors from local plants.
- Zebo Tashmatova was born in 1968.
- Pomegranate Garden, which is six meters wide, has been shown in three cities.
- Zebo Tashmatova’s best-known piece is Pomegranate Garden.
- Goal: introduce the artist and her work to readers who do not know her. So the sentence should say who she is and what she makes.
- Notes that serve this goal: textile artist, silk and cotton, plant dyes.
- Choice A does this. B gives one fact that does not say what she does. C is about one piece and not about the artist. D names a piece without saying what kind of art it is.
Answer: A) Zebo Tashmatova, a textile artist, makes works from silk and cotton that she dyes with colors from local plants.
Trap: Choices B, C and D are all true and use the notes, but only A introduces the artist and her work.
Example 2.
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Garden A is behind the school and has 40 plots.
- Garden B is next to the library and has 25 plots.
- Both gardens opened in the same year.
- Garden A has a tool shed.
- Neighbors may rent one plot for a season.
The student wants to emphasize that one garden is larger than the other. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
- Garden A, behind the school, has a tool shed.
- Both gardens opened in the same year.
- Garden A has 40 plots, while Garden B has only 25.
- Neighbors may rent a plot in either garden for a season.
- Goal: emphasize a difference in size. We need the same kind of fact for both gardens: the number of plots.
- Notes: A has 40 plots, B has 25 plots.
- Choice C gives both numbers and contrasts them. The other choices are true but do not compare the size.
Answer: C) Garden A has 40 plots, while Garden B has only 25.
Trap: Choice B compares the gardens too, but it is a similarity, not a difference in size.
Example 3.
While researching a topic, a student has taken the following notes:
- Chimpanzees push thin sticks into termite mounds to catch food.
- Sea otters hold rocks to break open shellfish.
- In some cities, crows drop nuts onto roads so that cars crack the shells.
- Many animals use objects in their surroundings to get food.
The student wants to support the claim that animals sometimes use tools by giving one example involving a bird. Which choice most effectively uses relevant information from the notes to accomplish this goal?
- Many animals use objects in their surroundings to get food.
- Chimpanzees push thin sticks into termite mounds to catch food.
- In some cities, crows drop nuts onto roads so that passing cars crack the shells.
- Sea otters hold rocks to break open shellfish.
- Goal: give one example, and it has to involve a bird.
- Only the crow note is about a bird.
- Choice C is the only specific example with a bird. A is a general statement, and B and D are examples about other animals.
Answer: C) In some cities, crows drop nuts onto roads so that passing cars crack the shells.
Trap: Choices B and D support the claim about tools, but the goal asked for a bird.
Common traps
- Choosing the sentence with the most factsA longer sentence is not better. Choose the sentence that does what the goal says. Extra facts that are off the goal can make it wrong.
- Answering a different goalSay the goal in your own words before you read the choices (“compare sizes”, “introduce”, “give an example”). Cross out choices that do something else.
- Only half of a comparisonIf the goal compares two things, both must be in the sentence, with the same kind of fact for each.
- Missing audience words“Readers unfamiliar with…” means you must say what and where. “Readers who already know” may allow more specific details.
- Choosing a sentence that changes a factGo back to the notes for each number, name and cause. If the sentence says something the notes do not, it is wrong.
- Ignoring a limit in the goalWords like “one example”, “a bird”, “emphasize a difference” or “briefly” narrow the answer. Only one choice will fit all of them.
Quick check
1
Goal: “introduce a river to readers who have never heard of it.” Which type of information is needed: where it flows and what it is, or the exact date of its first bridge?
Where it flows and what it is.
2
Goal: “emphasize a similarity between two bridges.” Which choice fits: “Bridge A is 90 m long and Bridge B is 140 m long” or “Both bridges were built of stone”?
“Both bridges were built of stone”: it names something they share.
3
A choice says a study “proved” a result, but the notes say it “suggests” the result. Is the choice acceptable?
No. It changes the strength of the notes’ claim.
4
A goal says “explain how the process works.” What must the right choice include?
The main steps, in the correct order.
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