T EN S TEPS TO A DVANCING C OLLEGE R EADING S KILLS Ch 10a: Fact v Opinion John Langan © 2010 Townsend Press

Chapter Ten: Critical Reading Skilled readers are those who can recognize an author’s point and the support for that point. Critical readers are those who can evaluate an author’s support for a point and determine whether that support is solid or not.

Separating facts from opinion Detecting propaganda Recognizing errors in reasoning Reading critically includes these skills: CRITICAL READING

Facts are solidly grounded and can be checked for accuracy. SEPARATING FACT FROM OPINION Opinions are afloat and open to question.

Which of the statements in the ad are facts? FOXY LADY. Blue-haired beauty, 80s, slim 5'4" (used to be 5'6"). Widow who has just buried fourth husband. Has original teeth and new parts including hip, knee, cornea, and valves. A groovy chick who is still the life of the party. Here is a personals ad that appeared in a retirement community newspaper in Florida: SEPARATING FACT FROM OPINION Which of the statements in the ad are opinions?

FOXY LADY. Blue-haired beauty, 80s, slim 5'4" (used to be 5'6"). Widow who has just buried fourth husband. Has original teeth and new parts including hip, knee, cornea, and valves. A groovy chick who is still the life of the party. Facts in the ad: the woman’s hair color, age, and height; her marital status; her physical condition SEPARATING FACT FROM OPINION Opinions in the ad: She is a “foxy lady,” a “beauty,” and “slim”; she is “a groovy chick who is still the life of the party.”

A fact is information that can be proved through objective evidence. This evidence may be physical proof or the spoken or written testimony of witnesses. FACT

Fact: My grandfather has eleven toes. (Someone can count them.) Fact: In 1841, William Henry Harrison served as president of the United States for only thirty-one days; he died of pneumonia. (We can check history records to confirm that this is true.) Fact: Tarantulas are hairy spiders capable of inflicting on humans a painful but not deadly bite. (We can check biology reports to confirm that this statement is true.) Three Examples of Facts

OPINION An opinion is a belief, judgment, or conclusion that cannot be objectively proved true. As a result, it is open to question.

Opinion: My grandfather’s feet are ugly. (Two people can look at the same thing and come to different conclusions about its beauty. For instance, the speaker’s grandmother may have found those feet attractive. Ugly is a value word, a word we use to express a value judgment. It signals an opinion.) Opinion: Harrison should never have been elected president in the first place. (Those who voted for him would not have agreed.) Opinion: Tarantulas are disgusting. (Who says? Not the people who keep them as pets.) Three Examples of Opinions OPINION

FACT AND OPINION Five Points about Fact and Opinion 1 Statements of fact may be found to be untrue. It was once considered to be a fact that the world was flat, but that “fact” turned out to be an error. Example

2 Value (or judgment) words often represent opinions. Examples of value words bestgreatbeautiful worstterriblebad betterlovelygood worsedisgustingwonderful bestgreatbeautiful worstterriblebad betterlovelygood worsedisgustingwonderful FACT AND OPINION Five Points about Fact and Opinion The observation that it is raining is an objective fact. The statement that the weather is bad is a subjective opinion. Some people (such as farmers whose crops need water) would consider rain to be good weather.

3 The words should and ought to often signal opinions. Example Couples with young children should not be allowed to divorce. This statement represents what the speaker thinks should not be allowed. Others might disagree. FACT AND OPINION Five Points about Fact and Opinion

4 Much information that sounds factual is really opinion. The truth of the matter is that olive oil tastes much better than butter. This statement is an opinion, in spite of the words the truth of the matter. Some people prefer the taste of butter. Example FACT AND OPINION Five Points about Fact and Opinion

5Much of what we read and hear is a mixture of fact and opinion. Example Each year, over 1,600 American teenagers kill themselves, and many of these deaths could be easily prevented. The first part of the sentence is a fact that can be confirmed by checking statistics on teen suicides. The second part is an opinion. The word easily is a judgment word — people may differ on how easy or difficult they consider something to be. FACT AND OPINION Five Points about Fact and Opinion

FACT AND OPINION in Reading Both facts and opinions can be valuable to readers. However, it is important to recognize the difference between the two.

Which statement below is fact? Which is opinion? A.No flower is more beautiful than a simple daisy. B.In Egypt, 96 percent of the land is desert. FACT AND OPINION in Reading

A.No flower is more beautiful than a simple daisy. B.In Egypt, 96 percent of the land is desert. Item A is an opinion. Many people consider other flowers more beautiful than the daisy. The word beautiful is a value word. Item B is a fact, agreed upon and written down by experts who study geography. Explanation FACT AND OPINION in Reading

Which statement below is fact? Which is opinion? Which is fact and opinion? A.It is riskier for a woman to have a first child after age 40 than before. B.It is stupid for women over 40 to get pregnant. C.It is sometimes risky and always foolish for a woman to have a first child after age 40. FACT AND OPINION in Reading

A.It is riskier for a woman to have a first child after age 40 than before. B.It is stupid for women over 40 to get pregnant. C.It is sometimes risky and always foolish for a woman to have a first child after age 40. Item A is a fact. It can be verified by checking medical statistics. Item B is an opinion. Some people might admire the woman who has children in her 40s. Item C is fact and opinion. Although it may be risky, not everyone would say it is foolish. FACT AND OPINION in Reading