Writing-A-Critique 2
Writing-A-Critique 2
Writing-A-Critique 2
What is a critique?
■ Is a genre of academic writing that briefly summarizes and
critically evaluates a work or a concept.
■ Uses a formal, academic writing style and has clear
structure
■ The Body of critique includes summary of the work and a
detailed evaluation
■ The purpose of evaluation is to gauge the usefulness or
impact of work in a particular field.
Why do we write critiques?
■ It helps us to develop:
A knowledge of the work’s subject area or related
works
An understanding of the work’s purpose, intended
audience, development of an argument, structure of
evidence or creative style
A recognition of the strengths and weaknesses
How to write a critique?
■ Study the work under discussion
■ Make notes on the key parts of the work
■ Develop an understanding of the main
argument or purpose being expressed in the
work
■ Consider how the work relates to a broader
issue or context
Seven (7) Principles of Effective Critique
that CRITICS should adhere:
■ Objective – limit your critique to be observed behavior of the writer
and do not criticize her/his personality, general psychological traits,or
physical characteristics.
■ Specific – a student/writer sometimes cannot understand an error
and correct it if the critic is not specific enough
■ Constructive – try to give support writer’s true strengths in your
criticisms
■ Comprehensive – critique should be balanced and include both good
and bad points
■ Acceptable – critique must be perceived as a legitimate authority
before the critique can be accepted by the writer.
■ Flexible – a critique should be able to shape his critique depending on the audience,
context, etc.
■ Organized – a good critique takes the writer by the hand and leads her through as
few steps as possible to the desired goal of the instruction or the critique session.