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Little, Brown Compact Handbook, The, 10th edition

  • Jane E. Aaron
  • , Michael Greer

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The Little, Brown Compact Handbook will serve you well as the platinum standard of handbooks, unmatched in accuracy, currency and reliability. It maintains the authority of its best-selling parent (The Little, Brown Handbook) in a briefer book with spiral binding, tabbed dividers and plentiful exercise sets. This essential reference tool is designed to help you find the answers you need quickly and easily. While keeping pace with rapid changes in writing and its teaching, this meticulous compact handbook combines comprehensive research and documentation with practical grammar coverage that is second to none.

The 10th Edition includes timely new student samples, new learning objectives, updates to MLA and Chicago style, a new chapter on writing about literature, and more. It incorporates detailed discussions of critical reading, media literacy, academic writing and argument. This text is an accurate, reliable and accessible resource for writers of varying experience levels and in a variety of fields.

Published by Pearson (July 14th 2021) - Copyright © 2019

ISBN-13: 9780137541478

Subject: Composition

Category: Handbooks

  • Preface

I: THE WRITING PROCESS

  1. The Writing Situation
    • 1.1 Writing situation
    • 1.2 Audience
    • 1.3 Purpose
    • 1.4 Subject
    • 1.5 Genre and medium
  2. Invention
    • 2.1 Journals
    • 2.2 Freewriting
    • 2.3 Brainstorming
    • 2.4 Mind mapping
    • 2.5 Questions
  3. Thesis and Organization
    • 3.1 Thesis
    • 3.2 Organization
      • Sample informative essay
  4. Drafting
    • 4.1 First draft
    • 4.2 Sample draft
      • Sample first draft
  5. Revising
    • 5.1 Revision plans
    • 5.2 Peer review
    • 5.3 Sample revision
      • Sample revised draft
  6. Editing, Formatting, and Proofreading
    • 6.1 Editing
      • Sample edited paragraph
    • 6.2 Final draft
      • Sample final draft
  7. Paragraphs
    • 7.1 Flow
    • 7.2 Unity
    • 7.3 Coherence
    • 7.4 Development
    • 7.5 Introductions and conclusions
  8. Presenting Writing
    • 8.1 Academic writing
      • Sample paper in MLA format
    • 8.2 Visuals and media
    • 8.3 Writing online
      • Sample literacy narrative blog post
    • 8.4 Portfolios

II: WRITING IN AND OUT OF COLLEGE

  1. Academic Writing
    • 9.1 Purpose and audience
    • 9.2 Genre
    • 9.3 Writing with sources
    • 9.4 Academic language
    • 9.5 Communication in academic settings
  2. Critical Reading and Writing
    • 10.1 Techniques of critical reading
    • 10.2 Summarizing
    • 10.3 Critical response
    • 10.4 Visual analysis
    • 10.5 Writing a critical analysis
    • 10.6 Sample critical analysis
      • Sample critical analysis of a text
  3. Argument
    • 11.1 Elements of argument
    • 11.2 Engaging readers
    • 11.3 Organization
    • 11.4 Visual arguments
    • 11.5 Sample argument
      • Sample proposal argument
  4. Essay Exams
    • 12.1 Preparing
    • 12.2 Planning
    • 12.3 Writing
      • Sample essay exam response
  5. Oral Presentations
    • 13.1 Organization
    • 13.2 Delivery
      • Sample presentation slides
  6. Public Writing
    • 14.1 Social media
    • 14.2 Business letters
      • Sample business letter
    • 14.3 Job applications
      • Sample résumés
    • 14.4 Memos, reports, and proposals
      • Sample memo and report
    • 14.5 Community service
      • Sample social-media post and newsletter

III: CLARITY AND STYLE

  1. Emphasis
    • 15.1 Subjects and verbs
    • 15.2 Sentence beginnings and endings
    • 15.3 Coordination
    • 15.4 Subordination
  2. Parallelism
    • 16.1 Understanding parallelism
    • 16.2 Equal elements
  3. Variety and Details
    • 17.1 Sentence length and structure
    • 17.2 Details
  4. Appropriate and Exact Language
    • 18.1 Standard English
    • 18.2 Sexist and biased language
    • 18.3 Exact language
  5. Completeness
    • 19.1 Compounds
    • 19.2 Adding needed words
  6. Conciseness
    • 20.1 Subjects and verbs
    • 20.2 Empty words
    • 20.3 Unnecessary repetition
    • 20.4 Other strategies

IV: SENTENCE PARTS AND PATTERNS

  • Basic Grammar
  1. Parts of Speech
    • 21.1 Nouns, pronouns, and verbs
    • 21.2 Adjectives and adverbs
    • 21.3 Prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections
  2. The Sentence
    • 22.1 Subjects and predicates
    • 22.2 Sentence patterns
  3. Phrases and Subordinate Clauses
    • 23.1 Phrases
    • 23.2 Subordinate clauses
  4. Sentence Types
    • 24.1 Types of sentences
      • Verbs
  5. Verb Forms
    • 25.1 Verb forms
    • 25.2 Easily confused verb forms
    • 25.3 Verb endings
    • 25.4 Helping verbs
    • 25.5 Verb + gerund or infinitive
    • 25.6 Verb + particle
  6. Verb Tenses
    • 26.1 Verb tenses
    • 26.2 Sequence of tenses
  7. Verb Mood
    • 27.1 Subjunctive mood
    • 27.2 Consistency
  8. Verb Voice
    • 28.1 Active and passive voice
    • 28.2 Consistency
  9. Agreement of Subject and Verb
    • 29.1 Subject-verb agreement
    • 29.2 Unusual word order
    • 29.3 Subjects joined by conjunctions
    • 29.4 Indefinite and relative pronouns
    • 29.5 Collective and plural nouns
      • Pronouns
  10. Pronoun Case
    • 30.1 Subjective, objective, and possessive cases
    • 30.2 Compound subjects and objects
    • 30.3 Who or whom
    • 30.4 Common questions
  11. Agreement of Pronoun and Antecedent
    • 31.1 Person, number, and gender
    • 31.2 Antecedents with and, or, or nor
    • 31.3 Indefinite pronouns
    • 31.4 Collective nouns
  12. Reference of Pronoun to Antecedent
    • 32.1 Clear reference
    • 32.2 Specific reference
    • 32.3 Appropriate you
      • Modifiers
  13. Adjectives and Adverbs
    • 33.1 Adjective vs. adverb
    • 33.2 Comparatives and superlatives
    • 33.3 Double negatives
    • 33.4 Participles as adjectives
    • 33.5 Determiners
  14. Misplaced and Dangling Modifiers
    • 34.1 Misplaced modifiers
    • 34.2 Dangling modifiers
      • Sentence Faults
  15. Sentence Fragments
    • 35.1 Identifying fragments
    • 35.2 Correcting fragments
    • 35.3 Acceptable fragments
  16. Comma Splices and Fused Sentences
    • 36.1 Identify comma splices
    • 36.2 Correcting comma splices
  17. Mixed Sentences
    • 37.1 Mixed meaning
    • 37.2 Mixed grammar
    • 37.3 Repeated elements

V: PUNCTUATION

  1. End Punctuation
    • 38.1 Period
    • 38.2 Question mark
    • 38.3 Exclamation point
  2. Comma
    • 39.1 Uses of the comma
    • 39.2 Main clauses with conjunctions
    • 39.3 Introductory elements
    • 39.4 Nonessential elements
    • 39.5 Series and coordinate adjectives
    • 39.6 Quotations
    • 39.7 Unnecessary commas
  3. Semicolon
    • 40.1 Main clauses without conjunctions
    • 40.2 Main clauses with transitional words
    • 40.3 Main clauses with commas
    • 40.4 Unnecessary semicolons
  4. Colon
    • 41.1 Uses of the colon
  5. Apostrophe
    • 42.1 Possession
    • 42.2 Contractions and abbreviations
  6. Quotation Marks
    • 43.1 Direct quotations
    • 43.2 Titles of works
    • 43.3 Words used in a special sense
    • 43.4 With other punctuation
  7. Other Marks
    • 44.1 Dash
    • 44.2 Parentheses
    • 44.3 Ellipsis mark
    • 44.4 Brackets
    • 44.5 Slash

VI. SPELLING AND MECHANICS

  1. Spelling and the Hyphen
    • 45.1 Common spelling problems
    • 45.2 Spelling rules
    • 45.3 Hyphenating
  2. Capital Letters
    • 46.1 Conventions
    • 46.2 First word of sentence
    • 46.3 Titles and subtitles
    • 46.4 Proper nouns and adjectives
  3. Italics or Underlining
    • 47.1 Titles of works
    • 47.2 Foreign words and emphasis
  4. Abbreviations
    • 48.1 Uses of abbreviations
    • 48.2 Misuses of abbreviations
  5. Numbers
    • 49.1 Numerals and words
    • 49.2 Dates and addresses

VII. RESEARCH WRITING

  1. Research Strategy
    • 50.1 Planning
    • 50.2 Research questions
    • 50.3 Search strategies
    • 50.4 Working bibliographies
      • Sample annotated bibliography entry
  2. Finding Sources
    • 51.1 Search strategies
    • 51.2 Reference works
    • 51.3 Books and periodicals
    • 51.4 Web search strategies
    • 51.5 Social media
    • 51.6 Government publications
    • 51.7 Visuals and media
    • 51.8 Primary research
  3. Working with Sources
    • 52.1 Gathering information
    • 52.2 Evaluating sources
    • 52.3 Synthesizing sources
    • 52.4 Summary, paraphrase, and quotation
    • 52.5 Integrating sources
  4. Avoiding Plagiarism
    • 53.1 Defining plagiarism
    • 53.2 Information you do not need to cite
    • 53.3 Information you must cite
    • 53.4 Documenting sources
    • 53.5 Copyright and permissions
  5. Writing the Paper
    • 54.1 Thesis and organization
    • 54.2 Drafting, revising, editing, formatting

VIII. WRITING IN THE DISCIPLINES

  1. Literature
    • 55.1 Literary analysis
    • 55.2 Writing assignments
    • 55.3 Tools and language
    • 55.4 Citing sources
    • 55.5 Sample literary analysis “The Healing Power of Mrs. Todd”
  2. Writing in Other Disciplines
    • 56.1 Humanities
    • 56.2 Social sciences
    • 56.3 Natural and applied sciences
  3. MLA Documentation and Format
    • Indexes to models
    • 57.1 In-text citations
    • 57.2 Works cited
    • 57.3 Paper format
    • 57.4 Sample MLA paper “The Dream of Sustainable Agriculture”
  4. APA Documentation and Format
    • Indexes to models
    • 58.1 In-text citations
    • 58.2 Reference list
    • 58.3 Paper format
    • 58.4 Sample research report “Perceptions of Mental Illness”
  5. Chicago Documentation
    • Indexes to models
    • 59.1 Notes and bibliography
    • 59.2 Models
  6. CSE Documentation
    • Indexes to models
    • 60.1 Name-year citations
    • 60.2 Numbered text citations
    • 60.3 Reference list

Glossary of Usage

Glossary of Terms

Index

Culture and Language Guide