Misconceptions about SOAPStones

SOAPStones S - O - A - P - tones -

SOAPStones S - Subject (what’s it about?) O - A - P - S - tones -

SOAPStones S - Subject (what’s it about?) O - Occasion (why was the author motivated to write about this?) A - P - S - tones -

SOAPStones S - Subject (what’s it about?) O - Occasion (why was the author motivated to write about this?) A - Audience (who is the author writing to?) P - S - tones -

SOAPStones S - Subject (what’s it about?) O - Occasion (why was the author motivated to write about this?) A - Audience (who is the author writing to?) P - Purpose (what does the author want the reader to do?) S - tones -

SOAPStones S - Subject (what’s it about?) O - Occasion (why was the author motivated to write about this?) A - Audience (who is the author writing to?) P - Purpose (what does the author want the reader to do?) S - Speaker (what have we learned about the author?) tones -

SOAPStones S - Subject (what’s it about?) O - Occasion (why was the author motivated to write about this?) A - Audience (who is the author writing to?) P - Purpose (what does the author want the reader to do?) S - Speaker (what have we learned about the author?) tones - (how did the diction manipulate the tone—and therefore the mood?)

First and foremost… Nearly every part of SOAPStones deals with the study of the author and the author’s choices, not the “story” within the text. These may overlap a bit if the text is autobiographical, but we must keep these two ideas separate.

Subject: “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid Most people did this fine, if only a little under-analyzed. For example: Saying, “The essay is about a girl growing up” is technically correct, but the weakest level of analysis. It is also very close to missing the point of the essay. A better analysis would be, “The essay is about a girl dealing with the harsh expectations of her culture.” Of course you can go deeper or take a different angle. But it’s time we moved on from overly simple analyses.

Occasion: “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid Many people did not do okay with this. Occasion asks: What motivated the author to write? Occasion and purpose are related, but they are usually not the same. Incorrect: Women worked hard in the story / to show the life of women… Better: Kincaid must have felt a desire to rid herself of these bad memories.

Audience: “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid Many people did not do okay with this. Audience does not require that the author specify his/her audience. Authors don’t need to write a letter so that you know who it is intended for. If the author does not specify, the analysis is not automatically everyone.

Purpose: “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid Most people did okay here. Purpose asks: What does the author want his/her audience to do with this information? “To show people outside this culture what is expected of girls” “To help young girls understand that they are not alone in their struggles”

Speaker: “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid Most people did okay here, but the ones who missed it got it wrong big time. The speaker is the author. The speaker is the author. The speaker is the author. What do we know about the author based on the information we have? Incorrect: The mother is speaking. Correct: The author is from a non-American culture, endured a strict upbringing, etc…

Tone: “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid Most people did great here, which was fantastic to see! However, be careful: you are describing the tone of the text and the author, not necessarily the content of the text. Adjectives are good for tone. Refer to your “Tone and Mood” handout if you need more.