Jauch 1

Devyn Jauch
Matt Wilson
Writing 2
October 14 2015
Writing Project 1: What Makes This Thing This Thing
Writing is a process composed of many pieces. Each written essay, article or poems is
composed of unique parts, all moving together to create one individual genre of writing. If a
writer uses different parts than commonly called for, they no longer get the same result. There
are specific conventions that make up a certain genre, that do not fit into another. For example, a
scientific article should not have the same rhyme and rhythm that is expected from poetry. These
distinctive conventions add meaning to the piece of writing, and that meaning is what the readers
are looking for when they pick up a poem or search for a scientific article. Writing conventions
not only create expectations for the readers, but they help to create a message in order to
communicate the purpose of the text.
The main reason why scientific articles are written is to communicate facts. In order to
properly communicate, these articles must be credible, which can be done through the use of
evidence and sources. Sources can range from previous research done on the topic to information
contributed by experts in the field. For example, a Live Science article titled How Change of
Seasons Affect Animals and Humans, uses a variety of sources to explain the impact seasonal
changes have on human behavior, including a 2001 study published in the journal Archives of
General Psychiatry, the Comprehensive Textbook of Psychiatry by Lippincott Williams and input
from Iggy Provencio, a circadian biologist from the University of Virginia, who also contributed

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to Williamss textbook. These sources are all very reputable, and thus provide the article with the
credibility it requires.
Writing a scientific article can be tricky. The writer must remain completely objective,
using only quantitative proof and leaving out any personal intuition or emotion, as this can lead
to bias. The language within the article must also be precise, in order to clearly communicate the
message. However, the information needs to be as detailed as possible, but without confusing the
readers or adding personal emotion. Our year is not exactly an even number of days; and Earth's
slightly noncircular orbit, plus the gravitational tug of the other planets, constantly changes our
planet's orientation to the sun from year to year, (Parry, 2010). This passage includes a wealth of
information, in just one sentence, and communicates that information in a precise and detailed
way that is academic, but still relatively easy to understand. There is no piece here that can be
left out of the equation that equals a proper scientific article.
The language clear, detailed, but not too much, and unbiased as well as the proven
facts and credible sources are why people read scientific article. These conventions create
expectations. A scientist picks up an article, knowing that the information he or she reads will be
true. An educator uses an article to teach their students, believing that the data will be clearly
stated and understandable. Without these conventions, there would be no expectations, no rules,
for writing a scientific article. Anybody could write an article and call it science, but that would
not communicate the proper information. Thus, the conventions of scientific articles, create a
basis of credibility and understanding for those who choose to read them.
A poem is very different from a scientific article. Quite possibly the greatest difference is
that a poem does not have to be based off of fact and can be completely imaginary. However,
once again, any written work cannot simply be called poetry. Like articles, poetry has specific

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conventions that make up a piece. The goal of these conventions are to create a lasting effect on
the reader of the poem through the use of varying forms of sound and sense. The sense of a poem
is the meaning of it, which is often communicated through syntax. The syntax, or language, of a
poem includes figurative language, sentence structure and description. Literary devices
commonly used in poetry include similes, metaphors and personification. Each device
contributes to the description woven throughout the poem. The sentence structure of a poem is
also imperative to the genre. Poems are usually made up of short, concise, yet detail filled
sentences. These sentences rarely pay attention to proper grammatical technique and focus more
on the sounds of the words, as poetry is often written to be spoken. Sentence structure is not the
only way to create sound in a poem. There is also rhyme, which occurs through patterns of
similarly sounding words. In the case of the poem The Springtimes Pallid Landscape, by Emily
Dickinson, there is a rhyme at the end of every other sentence. And in this case, the words do not
have to rhyme exactly, though some such as sang and hang on lines 6 and 8 do. This is seen in
lines 14 and 16 through the comparison of the words gown and done. Though the words do
not rhyme, they still contribute to the overall flow of the poem.
People artists, writers, scholars, or even just those looking for an escape from their
reality - often read poetry to experience an emotional response. This is created by the poets
unique way of seeing and communicating their experiences of the world. The readers expect to
find literary devices and imagery in order to illicit an emotional reaction to each piece of poetry.
For example, Emily Dickinson uses description and metaphors to paint an abstract portrait of
spring. She uses light and colorful words to convince the reader to hold onto the beauty of a new
spring, even after the summer time has fold[ed] her miracle/ as women do their gown, (13-14).

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This illustration of the end of spring and summer and the slow, yet beautiful transition to winter
through the fall satisfies the readers desire, not only form imagery, but for emotion as well.
Science uses fact to communicate information, while poetry uses description to
communicate emotion. Though very different in purpose, these two genres both must be made up
of specific conventions. When it comes to scientific articles, the information is in the facts and
language used to communicate the changing of the seasons and the effects these changes have on
the natural world. Poetry works to provide the readers with an emotional experience through
sound and sense created by language and description. The genres of poetry and scientific articles
may be different, but they both work to communicate their purpose to their readers by the use
and manipulation of specialized writing conventions.

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Works Cited
Dickinson, Emily. 83. The springtimes pallid landscape. Part Two: Nature. Dickinson,
Emily. 1924. Complete Poems. Bartleby. 1924. 2 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.bartleby.com/113/2083.html>.
Parry, Wynne. How Change of Seasons Affects Animals and Humans. LiveScience.
LiveScience.com, 21 Sept. 2010. 12 Oct. 2015.
<http://www.livescience.com/8639-change-seasons-affects-animals-humans.html>.