Eng. 609 - Week 5 Blog 1

Wow! Unless one is in the TESL track, this weeks readings consisted of some dense stuff... That being said, I'm going to do a rhetorical precis and apply Aristotle's topoi within the precis--

Heidi Byrnes, in her essay "Language Acquisition and Language Learning" (2005), articulates a general overview of modern linguistics. Byrnes accomplishes this by showing examples of the general theoretical and applicational laws (topoi) of linguistics that have molded the field into its current formation. Her purpose is to make her readers aware of the current state of linguistics and its underpinnings so they will be better prepared as scholars and teachers to engage linguistics in work environments, “knowledge is presented in the fields of linguistics, psychology, sociology and education would enable scholars to understand better something they also do, namely, teach a language” (48). Byrnes establishes a formal relationship with her audience of university students and scholars searching for a deeper understanding of lingustical laws that they can translate and apply in scholarly and intsructive pursuits.