The text introduces analyzing and composing in diverse genres, such as posters, editorial and opinion pieces, essays, and research projects. Chapters 1-3 introduce students to the basics of the composing process, with an emphasis on the rhetorical concepts of audience, purpose, context, and design. Chapter 4 on "researching" walks students through the research process, from developing an initial research question to producing a research project. Chapters 5-7 teach students key vocabulary and concepts for working in each of the three "modes" of communication -- written, visual, and oral. Here each "mode" is treated in depth, in its own chapter, with numerous examples and practice assignments. Chapter 8 on "advocacy" teaches students how they can use written, visual, and oral communication to advocate for change and to do work in the "public" world. It also includes several readings that show others practicing such "civic" communication. In Chapters 10-14, students learn about different genres by first doing a rhetorical analysis, then reading examples of each genre, and finally developing compositions of their own in each genre.

"Thinking through production" assignments throughout the book encourage students to practice composing in different genres and to use the tools of written, visual, and oral communication. Reading selections are diverse and engaging, ranging from Gary Smith''s "Higher Education" to U.S. wartime recruiting posters to opinion pieces concerned with video game violence to Lynda Barry''s "Common Sense." The text is written and designed by the authors , Anne Wysocki and Dennis Lynch. The authors have attempted to practice good principles of written and visual communication and to create a book with a distinctive look and voice. New in the 3rd Edition: NEW! Enhanced focus on multimodality: A new chapter (Chapter 9) pulls together the previous three chapters on writing, oral presentations, and visual communication to help students think directly about composing using different modes. In Chapter 9, they can follow how a student composes a web page using the research developed in Chapters 5-8.

ENHANCED! Enhanced rhetorical focus: In response to feedback from teachers and students, the rhetorical focus of this book has been enhanced. There are now more sample rhetorical analyses and an enhanced discussion of persuasion in Chapters 1 and 10-15. NEW! New readings and visual samples: Chapters 10-15 contain almost a host of all new readings and visual examples in addition to the best of the previous editions'' texts. NEW! New learning outcomes: Discusses the outcomes and how students might use them. We list each outcome, tied to its particular place in the book. NEW! More student sample texts: This edition includes new student texts; the blue box to the right lists many--but not all--the sample student texts. REVISED! Research develops into a paper, an oral report, a photo essay, a web page: In Chapters 4 through 9, as part of the expansion of sample student writing, students can see how one student carries out research (including developing an annotated bibliography) and then uses that research to develop a draft and a final revision of a written research paper, an oral report with supporting slides, an argumentative photo essay, and a web page. NEW! Analyzing video: A new chapter (Chapter 15) demonstrates how to analyze and write about videos.

Compose, Design, Advocate , 3rd is also available via Revel (tm), an interactive learning environment that enables students to read, practice, and study in one continuous experience. Learn more.