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Unit 22 :
Critiquing Someone's Work
Pre-advanced
Vocabulary
Repeat these word/ phrases after your teacher.
1. look over (phr. v)
to quickly examine something
2. envisioned (v)
to imagine or expect that something is likely or desirable possibility in the future
3. come up with (phr. v)
to suggest or think of an idea or plan
4. improvement (n)
an occasion when something gets better or when you make it better
5. feedback (n)
information or statements of opinion about something, such as a new product, that can tell you if it is successful or liked
6. hold off (phr. v)
to not do something immediately
7. critique (v)
to give an opinion or judgement about a piece of work, book, film, etc.
8. crash (v)
to hit something
Dialogue
Read the dialogue aloud with your teacher.
Noriko
Walt
Have you had a chance to look over Russ’s project?
Yeah, I took a look at it yesterday. If you have a couple of minutes, I can give you my two cents.
Sure. Shoot.
Well, it’s not what I envisioned when we gave him the charge to come up with a new design for the brochure. The cover isn’t bad, but I’m not crazy about the rest of it.
Why? What don’t you like?
Well, I think Russ is off the mark to feature our older products, rather than our new ones.
When I saw what he had come up with, I thought he was out in left field. We told him to focus on the latest products, didn’t we?
Yes, we did tell him that. I haven’t had a chance to look at the brochure closely myself, but I plan to this afternoon. So you think it needs work, huh? A lot of work?
Let’s just say that there’s a lot of room for improvement. I’d be happy to meet with him to give him my comments, if you think that would help.
Why don’t you hold off until I’ve had a chance to go over the brochure this afternoon.
I’ll set up a meeting for tomorrow and we can both give him some feedback on how to proceed.
That’s okay with me. Thanks for taking the reins on this.
It’s no big deal. I’ll let you know later today about that meeting.
Article
Read the article with your teacher.
How to Critique Other Writers’ Work
1.Don’t Crash the Party
Generally, it’s bad form to sound off on a writer’s work unless you are invited to do so. There are a few writers who can’t handle feedback, and often these are the ones who won’t ask for it. Chances are, they’re just going to defend their work to the bitter end, so your feedback will be little more than a waste of time.
2. R.S.V.P. with Care
Some writers ask for feedback, but what they really want to hear is how great they are. These are the narcissistic types who write more for their own egos than for the sake of the craft itself.
3. Bring Something to the Party
Read every line carefully and make notes, mark it up as you go, and then jot down your thoughts when you’ve finished reading. If time and the length of the piece allow, give it a second reading, because that’s often where things really click or stick out.
4. Devour the Food, Not the Hostess
Don’t start your comments with the word you — ever. Always refer to the piece, the sentence, the paragraph, the prose, or the narrative. You are judging the work, not the individual who produced it, and though compliments aimed at the writer might be well received, there’s a subtle but significant difference between pointing out flaws in the piece versus the person who created it.
5. Let the Good Times Roll
This is the cardinal rule of effective critiquing, and I cannot emphasize this enough: always start by telling the writer what works and where the strengths lie.
6. Try to Have Fun Even if it’s Not Your Scene
Some people hate stories written in first person, but that doesn’t make a piece written in first person bad; it just makes it less appealing to the person who is turned off by it. Know the difference between your own personal preferences in terms of writing styles and try to separate these from your critiques.
7. Help Clean up the Mess
Eventually, you’ll have to tell the writer where the piece falls short. Do this with grace. Avoid using strong negative language. Don’t repeatedly say things like “this is weak,” “you’re using the wrong words,” or “it’s boring.” Instead, use positive language and phrase your comments as suggestions for making improvements.
8. Nurse the Hangover
There’s a good chance that no matter how gentle you are, your writer friend will feel a bit downtrodden after hearing that their piece still needs a lot of work. Many writers are tempted at this point to give up on a piece, while others will be motivated and inspired by the feedback.
Source: https://www.writingforward.com
Discussion：
Answer the following questions to your teacher.
1. Have you tried criticizing someone? How did you do it? How did the person react?
2. Would you accept the criticism of someone? Why or why not?
3. In your opinion, is it good to be criticized? Justify it.
Let’s practice
Choose the correct answer.
1. She can ____ through practicing.
a. improvement
b. improve
c. disapprove
2. _______ is an opinion about someone’s work.
a. Critic
b. Critiques
c. Critique
3. The teacher ________ the test papers before starting the examination.
a. come up with
b. hold off
c. look over
