how to do commentary in essay

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From Summary to Insight: A Guide to Writing Commentary Essays with Depth

Writing an essay can be daunting, let alone if you’re also providing commentary on it. But the reward of a job well done is worth the effort when you’re finished!

It has been noted that essays with thoughtful commentaries have a higher chance of being accepted for publication. So I’m here to help make it clear that essay writers need to understand the power of commentary and how to incorporate it into their work.

In this article, I’ll share my experience as a writer and provide insight on how to make your voice heard in an essay by using effective commentary. By following my advice, you’ll be able to craft a piece that stands out from the crowd and makes your thoughts shine through!

What Is Commentary In An Essay?

Over the course of your writing, you may have heard of the term ‘commentary’ in relation to essay writing. But what does it mean?

Simply put, commentary is analysis. It’s when you take a text and try to identify the deeper implications at play. In literary texts this could be symbolism, metaphors or dual meanings; with non-fiction texts it could include examining how an author makes use of evidence and arguments to support their position.

Writing a commentary essay requires close reading skills and the ability to interpret a wide range of information. It also requires you to think critically about how ideas are connected and draw conclusions about why certain elements are included in the text.

Commentary is an essential part of any essay because it allows your reader – who may not be as familiar with the text as you – to understand why you have drawn certain conclusions based on your interpretation.

It’s like giving them a guided tour through your thoughts and ideas so they can explore what makes your argument unique and interesting. Commentary also enables you to make connections between different aspects of the text that might not be obvious on first glance, helping bring out its significance even further.

By using commentary effectively, you can write an engaging essay that really gets your point across clearly.

The Significance Of Commentary In Essay Writing

Writing commentary in an essay can be a powerful tool for communicating ideas and arguments. It is essential to engage in critical thinking, interpretation, and analysis when writing commentary. Writing effective commentary requires the ability to construct a well-developed argument that supports the main point of the essay.

Here are 4 key elements of effective commentary:

A clear thesis statement
Relevant evidence that supports the argument
Interpretation and analysis of the evidence
A conclusion that summarizes the argument

Commentaries should be written with an engaging style that encourages readers to think critically about the topic at hand. Good literary commentary should be accessible, yet thought-provoking; it should both inform and entertain the audience. Additionally, it should challenge preconceived notions about a subject and provide an insightful perspective on why something matters or how it affects our lives.

In order to write effectively, one must first understand their audience and what they hope to communicate through their words. With this knowledge in mind, one can craft a compelling commentary that offers fresh insight into any given topic.

Transitioning seamlessly into the next section…

Key Elements Of Effective Commentary

Like the rising sun that signals a new day, effective commentary can offer a fresh perspective to an essay. With the right words and emphasis, it can engage readers in an entirely new way and bring them closer to understanding your argument.

Like a shimmering beacon of light, it has the power to grab their attention and draw them into your ideas.

Commentary does more than just summarize facts or provide background information – it also evaluates, interprets, and analyses information.

It’s an opportunity for you to delve into the heart of what you’re writing about, offering insight into its significance and exploring potential implications. By taking this approach, you can evaluate the importance of each point and develop your thesis with greater clarity.

Through thoughtful commentary, you can make connections between ideas that your readers may not have previously considered and help them reach their own conclusions about your argument.

Strategies For Writing Potent Commentary In Essays

Writing potent commentary in essays is essential to making a successful argument and gaining the reader’s interest. Here are four strategies that can help you write a good essay commentary:

Develop a strong thesis statement

A thesis statement serves as the core of your essay, and it should be explicit, engaging and supportable by evidence. It should also be concise so that readers can understand your main message immediately.

Understand the topic better

Spend some time researching the topic before you start writing to ensure you have a thorough understanding of it. This will give your commentary more depth and clarity.

Body And Paragraphs Organized

Make sure your body paragraphs are organized logically and clearly explain how your points relate to the overall theme or argument of your essay.

Each paragraph should have a single purpose, and make sure that all sentences within each paragraph work together to support that purpose.

Use literary analysis

When writing your commentary you can draw on elements like tone, imagery, diction, and syntax to make your argument more persuasive and compelling for readers. This will also help them better understand what you’re trying to communicate in your essay.

By incorporating these strategies into your essay writing process, you can create powerful commentary that effectively supports your argument and engages readers with meaningful insight into the text or topic at hand. With these tips in mind, let’s look at how to use quotations and examples in commentary to further enrich our arguments!

The Use Of Quotations And Examples In Commentary

Now that we’ve discussed strategies for writing powerful commentary in essays, let’s explore the use of quotations and examples when constructing these sentences.

Quotations and examples are essential for making strong commentary sentences that support an argument or analysis. When used correctly, they can be a great way to illustrate a point and add interest and texture to your argument.

When including a quotation in your commentary, it is important to make sure it is properly attributed. You should include both the author’s name and the source from which the quote was taken. This not only strengthens your argument by adding credibility, but it also shows you have done your research.

Examples are also effective for proving a point or introducing a new concept. They help to break up longer paragraphs, explain difficult concepts in more detail, and provide evidence or substantiation for an idea or opinion. When using examples in commentary sentences, it is important that they are relevant to the topic at hand and accurately represent what you are attempting to say in your essay.

With this information in mind, let’s move on to examining types of commentary in essays; comprehending the contrasts.

Types Of Commentary In Essays: Comprehending The Contrasts

As a student writing a commentary essay, it is important to understand the differences between analyzing, summarizing, and evaluating. To help comprehend these contrasts, let’s take a look at four main points:

1. Analyzing – Looking closely at something and breaking it down into smaller parts to better understand it.

2. Summarizing – Taking the information from a larger group of data and boiling it down into its key elements.

3. Relating – Exploring how two or more ideas are connected and how they affect each other.

4. Evaluating – Examining different aspects of an issue or argument and determining its worth or value by expressing an opinion about it.

Using these four points as a framework for writing your commentary essays can help you to be more effective in your analysis, summary and evaluation of any given topic.

Furthermore, this knowledge will also serve you well when crafting strategies for writing literary essays that contain thoughtful commentary elements.

With this in mind, let us now turn our attention to creating such strategies…

Strategies For Writing Commentary In Literary Essays

Having discussed the differences between types of commentary, let’s now turn to strategies for writing effective commentary in literary essays.

When it comes to providing commentary, it is important to understand that you are making a statement about something; whether it be an interpretation or opinion, you need to make a clear statement.

You should also comment on any phrases or passages that have stood out and explain why they are significant.

It is also important to identify the underlying message of the text. This means going beyond surface-level analysis and delving into the deeper meaning of the work.

To do this, think about what is not being said as much as what is being said.

Make sure your comments add depth to your analysis and provide new insights for your readers.

Finally, take care when constructing your sentences so that your points come across clearly and convincingly.

Writing Commentary For Convincing Essays

I’m sure you’re excited to finally get started on writing your commentary for a convincing essay! It can be intimidating to write about something without knowing what type of essay you’re working on. But if you take the time to read through the assignment and passage, you’ll have a much better idea of what you need to write.

When it comes to writing your commentary, try not to worry too much about “sounding smart” or “having all the right answers.” Instead, focus on writing like yourself—in your own voice, with your own ideas. The more authentic and engaging your writing is, the more persuasive it will be to readers.

So don’t be afraid to express yourself—you may just surprise yourself with how creative and interesting your thoughts can be! With that said, let’s move on to creating commentary that supports your thesis statement.

Creating Commentary That Supports Your Thesis Statement

As the saying goes, hindsight is 20/20. Looking back now, it’s clear that writing an effective commentary for a convincing essay requires some finesse and insight.

When starting to write, it’s important to have a good understanding of the topic you are discussing and to provide enough context for your audience to understand what you are discussing. Additionally, it helps to have an understanding of opposing viewpoints before you start writing so that you can avoid falling into common traps.

To create commentary that supports your thesis statement effectively, there are a few things you need to keep in mind:

1. Make sure your argument is sound and won’t be easily refuted by an opposing point of view.

2. Avoid introducing new evidence or topics in your commentary; instead focus on the evidence already presented in the essay body.

3. Take the time to help explain why certain evidence matters and why readers should care about it.

The goal of commentary is not just to express an opinion but also provide meaningful analysis that will help prove or disprove a point of view. By being mindful of these considerations when writing, it is possible to create effective commentary that will help readers better understand your argument and its implications.

Common Mistakes To Avoid In Commentary Writing

I think one of the biggest mistakes I can make when writing a commentary essay is to overgeneralize my points. It’s important to provide specific examples and evidence to back up my opinion and avoid making sweeping conclusions.

Additionally, when writing a commentary essay, it’s also easy to forget to include evidence to support my argument. Making sure to include evidence will make my piece of writing much more convincing and credible.

Avoiding Overgeneralization

When writing a commentary essay, it’s important to avoid overgeneralizing your topic.

Sure, it may be tempting to make sweeping statements about the issue at hand, but this won’t do justice to your argument.

Instead, try to focus on concrete evidence and facts that back up your opinion.

For example, include statistics or subjective accounts from experts in the field.

This will ensure that you don’t come off as too biased or uninformed in your commentary.

By avoiding overgeneralization and being specific in your evidence, you can present a much more convincing argument and captivate readers with innovation.

Remember: always strive for accuracy when building an argument!

Lack Of Evidence

When it comes to commentary writing, one of the biggest mistakes people make is not having enough evidence to back up their argument. Without any supporting evidence, your argument can easily be dismissed as biased and uninformed.

This is especially true when discussing contentious topics like politics or religion. It’s important to remember that you’re usually assigned a commentary essay for a reason—so make sure you have enough facts and figures to give your readers an informed opinion. Otherwise, you may struggle to convince them of your point of view.

To make sure your argument stands out from the crowd, research extensively and use concrete evidence whenever possible. This will show that you’ve put in the effort and will help ensure a more innovative outcome for your audience.

Tips For Revising And Editing Commentary

Revising and editing your commentary is an important step in writing an essay. It helps to ensure that you are conveying the most accurate and persuasive message.

To do this, it’s important to read through your writing again and summarize any points that you noticed while reading. This will allow you to make sure that each point is clear and concise. As students need to be able to write effectively, it is also important to pay close attention to the language used throughout the essay.

Looking for words that could be replaced with more precise ones or focusing on certain aspects of literature can help bring life to a paper.

It is also essential to check for grammar, spelling, punctuation, and other errors before submitting the essay. Making sure all of these elements are correct can help enhance the paper’s overall quality.

Additionally, as you review your work, look for any areas where clarification may be necessary. Taking a second look at what you wrote will help ensure that the reader fully understands all of your points and implications.

By following these tips when revising and editing commentary in an essay, readers can gain a clearer understanding of the author’s intended message.

Examples Of Strong And Poor Commentary In Essays

A necessary part of writing an essay is the commentary. It’s the all-important part that allows for a deeper understanding of what is being written and allows the reader to get a fuller picture of the writer’s thoughts.

Unfortunately, not everyone understands the need to understand commentary. Many writers think they can simply paraphrase their sources without paying attention to how they are using irony or antithesis, missing out on valuable opportunities to add depth and complexity to their work.

Commentary should be used to engage readers in a way that speaks directly to their subconscious desire for innovation. It should be written in a personal tone of voice with contractions and an engaging style that will grab readers’ attention and make them want more.

If done correctly, it can bring new life and insight into an essay, allowing it to stand out from the rest.

Paragraph Construction With Commentary

In this section, I’m going to be talking about paragraph construction with commentary. As part of writing an essay, it is important to think about how you are going to use literary elements and techniques to convey your main idea or argument. I was always taught by my instructor that the way you structure your paragraphs can really make a difference in how effective your message is.

So, let’s take a look at some tips for constructing well-crafted paragraphs that provide an engaging commentary.

First of all, try not to write too long of a sentence as this can lead to confusion for the reader.

Secondly, make sure that each paragraph has one clear point that ties back into the main argument or idea you are trying to convey in your essay.

Finally, use transition words and phrases as needed throughout the essay so that readers can easily follow along with your discussion.

All these steps help ensure that readers understand and appreciate what you have written in your essay. With these tips in mind, let’s move on to discussing transition words and phrases for commentary.

Transition Words And Phrases For Commentary

In the world of higher education, commentary is a powerful tool that can bring literature to life in a way that no other piece can. It’s almost magical how one can take an otherwise mundane poem and turn it into something extraordinary with just a few words. Commentary has the ability to transform isolation into coherence in ways that are simply astounding!

Here is a 4-point list for successful commentary:

1. Read the text multiple times before writing any comments.

2. Take notes on what stands out most to you.

3. Use concrete examples from the text to better illustrate your points.

4. Be sure to engage with your audience in a way that encourages them to think more deeply about the subject matter at hand.

Commentary is an invaluable skill for anyone looking to make their mark on a piece of literature, so use it wisely and always strive for excellence! With this knowledge, we can now move on to exploring how to write a conclusion with commentary – do’s and don’ts included!

Writing A Conclusion With Commentary: Do’s And Don’ts

Now that you know the transition words and phrases for commentary, it’s time to learn how to write a conclusion with commentary. It can seem complicated, but it doesn’t have to be.

One of the most important things to remember is not to rely too heavily on your homework. Spending too much time memorizing facts and figures won’t help you in the long run when it comes to showcasing your opinion. Therefore, try to focus on critical thinking skills instead of wasting time studying for hours on end.

While two sentences are usually enough for a conclusion, make sure that each one packs a punch and is full of insight and analysis. Hone your skills by getting feedback from others so you can refine your writing and develop a style that resonates with any reader.

This can help ensure that your concluding remarks leave an impactful impression on those who read them.

Overall, effective commentary is essential for producing a successful essay.

Writing commentary allows you to demonstrate your understanding and personal thoughts on the topic and can really amplify your argument.

By incorporating examples, quotations, and other evidence into your commentary, you are able to bring life to your writing in a manner that will make it stand out from the crowd.

As an age-old proverb says, “A picture paints a thousand words”; similarly, strong commentary paints an even grander picture of your argument.

With these tips in mind, I look forward to seeing you all write some truly standout essays!

Commentary Essay Example, Writing Guide, and Tips

Introduction

Welcome to The Knowledge Nest, your go-to resource for all things related to commentary essay writing. In this comprehensive guide, we will walk you through the process of crafting an impactful commentary essay, providing useful examples and valuable tips to help you enhance your writing skills.

What is a Commentary Essay?

A commentary essay is a type of academic writing that aims to analyze and provide an in-depth interpretation of a particular text or topic. It offers a critical examination and evaluation of the subject matter, exploring various perspectives and providing evidence-based arguments to support the author's viewpoint.

Why Write a Commentary Essay?

Writing a commentary essay allows you to develop critical thinking skills, enhance your analytical abilities, and strengthen your written communication. It provides a platform to express your ideas and opinions, engage with different viewpoints, and present a well-rounded analysis of the chosen subject matter.

Key Components of a Commentary Essay

1. Introduction: Begin your essay with a captivating introduction that presents the topic and provides context for the reader.

2. Thesis Statement: Craft a clear and concise thesis statement that outlines your main argument or perspective.

3. Body Paragraphs: Develop your analysis in well-structured body paragraphs, each focusing on a specific point or theme. Use relevant evidence, examples, and expert opinions to support your claims.

4. Counterarguments: Address potential counterarguments or alternative viewpoints and offer thoughtful rebuttals to strengthen your position.

5. Conclusion: Summarize the main points of your essay and reiterate your thesis statement, leaving the reader with a lasting impression.

Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Commentary Essay

Step 1: choose a relevant topic.

Select a topic that aligns with your interests and falls within the scope of your assignment or academic requirements. Consider the relevance and significance of the subject matter to engage your readers.

Step 2: Conduct Extensive Research

Gather information from credible sources such as academic journals, books, reputable websites, and scholarly articles. Engage with different perspectives and take diligent notes to support your analysis.

Step 3: Outline Your Essay

Create a clear and well-structured outline that outlines the main points, arguments, and supporting evidence you will present in your essay. A well-organized outline ensures a cohesive and logical flow of ideas.

Step 4: Craft an Engaging Introduction

In your introduction, provide a brief overview of the topic and its significance. Hook the reader's attention with an intriguing opening sentence or a thought-provoking question.

Step 5: Develop Your Arguments in the Body Paragraphs

Divide your essay into distinct body paragraphs, each focusing on a specific point or theme. Begin each paragraph with a topic sentence that establishes the main idea, and support it with relevant evidence, examples, and analysis.

Step 6: Address Counterarguments

Acknowledge alternative viewpoints and counterarguments to demonstrate your awareness of different perspectives. Articulate thoughtful rebuttals that strengthen your arguments and distinguish your viewpoint.

Step 7: Conclude with Impact

In your conclusion, summarize the main points of your essay and restate your thesis statement. Leave the reader with a compelling closing thought or call-to-action that invites further reflection or discussion on the topic.

Commentary Essay Example

To provide you with a better understanding, let's consider an example of a commentary essay on the topic of climate change:

Introduction:

Climate change has emerged as one of the most pressing global issues of our time. This commentary essay aims to analyze the causes, impacts, and potential solutions to address this environmental crisis.

Body Paragraph 1: The Causes of Climate Change

The first body paragraph delves into the primary causes of climate change, such as greenhouse gas emissions, deforestation, and industrialization. It explores how human activities have contributed to the accelerated pace of global warming.

Body Paragraph 2: The Impacts of Climate Change

In the second body paragraph, we examine the far-reaching impacts of climate change on ecosystems, weather patterns, and human livelihoods. We explore the devastating consequences of rising sea levels, extreme weather events, and the loss of biodiversity.

Body Paragraph 3: Potential Solutions to Climate Change

The third body paragraph focuses on potential solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change. It explores renewable energy sources, sustainable agricultural practices, and international collaboration as key strategies to combat this global crisis.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, the commentary essay emphasizes the urgent need for collective action to address climate change. By understanding its causes, impacts, and potential solutions, we can work towards a sustainable future for generations to come.

Writing a commentary essay enables you to dive deep into a specific topic, critically analyze it, and articulate your thoughts effectively. By following our comprehensive guide and utilizing the provided tips, you will be well-equipped to create impactful commentary essays and improve your writing skills.

Enhance Your Writing Skills with The Knowledge Nest

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What Is a Commentary in an Essay | Writing Guide & Examples

22 December 2023

last updated

When people need to express their thoughts or ideas about something, they need guidelines on how to write a commentary essay. This article begins by defining what is a commentary essay, its meaning, and outlining its basic structure. Some insights students can learn are that introductions should have hooks, background information, and thesis statements. Body paragraphs of a commentary essay should have topic sentences; evidence, mainly quotes; comments after the evidence; and transitions. The conclusion part should restate the thesis and summarize the main ideas. This guideline also gives a sample outline template, possible topics, and a practical example of a commentary essay. Lastly, the article teaches students 10 dos and 10 don’ts and 20 tips for writing a high-standard commentary essay.

How to Write an Outstanding Commentary Essay & Examples

Reading is an academic exercise that develops a person’s mental faculties of intellect, memory, reason, intuition, perception, and imagination. These faculties develop when people utilize what they have acquired through reading to write different types of papers , including essays, reports, and research papers. Therefore, reading and writing are related because they both induce intellectual development. This guideline on how to write a commentary in an essay teaches students and anyone passionate about writing how to create a good argumentative position that meets the quality standards for intellectual discourse and publication. The guideline also offers vital insights, including the definition of what is a commentary essay, its basic essay structure , different types, possible essay topics, 10 dos and 10 don’ts, and 20 tips for producing a high-standard essay. Therefore, reading this guideline is beneficial to students and others who may, from time to time, write a commentary in an essay to communicate ideas to specific audiences.

What Is a Commentary in an Essay | Writing Guide & Examples

Definition of What Is a Commentary in an Essay and Its Meaning

From a definition, a commentary is a descriptive account of an event, an expression of opinions about a political, economic, social, or cultural issue, or elucidating a point or topic of public interest. From this perspective, a commentary essay is a document that students write to express opinions about an issue or topic through a descriptive expression and explanation of ideas. In this respect, a commentary essay differs from other types of essays , including an argumentative essay , a personal narrative , a cause and effect essay , compare and contrast essay , or a problem and solution essay , as well as a report and a research paper , because it means expressing the writer’s perspective concerning an issue or topic. Commentaries are products of a critical analysis of societal problems across political, economic, social, and cultural dimensions. When writing a commentary essay, students should analyze and interpret the source under discussion, such as a text, film, article, video, advertisement, event, object, subject, book, poem, speech, presentation, literary work, novel, sculpture, or image, among others, using a basic sandwich rule: giving a commentary after each quote or citation.

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Basic Structure of a Commentary Essay

Like other texts, a commentary paper has a basic essay structure that dictates how writers should organize their content. This structure has three components: an introduction , a body , and a conclusion . The introduction is where writers introduce their assigned topics using a hook , context, and an argumentative thesis statement . Although this type of commentary essay is not an argumentative essay, an argumentative thesis indicates the writer’s perspective on the issue, which can be contentious in the eyes of readers. The body of a commentary essay is where authors construct a defense of their perspective through body paragraphs; each body paragraph should have a topic sentence that establishes a claim ; supporting evidence, like quotes, data, or examples; a commentary that analyzes and explains information cited in an essay; and a concluding sentence with a transition to create a logical connection to the next paragraph. In turn, the conclusion restates the thesis and makes a final remark.

5 Main Types of Commentary

Because a commentary in an essay expresses the writer’s perspective about an issue, idea, or topic, it is evident in the body section of a commentary essay, where people describe their perspectives every time they provide evidence. In this respect, there are different types of commentary. The first one is an opinion essay where writers analyze evidence, such as a quote, text, or image, and state their stands with their critics. The second type of a commentary essay is an interpretation, where authors explain a complex concept to enhance the reader’s understanding. The third type is character or subject’s feelings, where students depict the emotional state of the person they have described in a commentary sentence. The fourth type of commentary essay is a personal reaction, where people communicate their stances on an issue, while the fifth type is an evaluation, where writers evaluate a section and gives a critical judgment.

Alternative Commentary Types and Examples

Besides the types of commentary above, students may write alternative commentary types when their essay is part of a bigger writing project, such as a systematic exposition of an idea, theme, or topic. Students must know the unique features of each type, including when to use it, what to focus on, and how to organize a commentary essay’s content.

1️⃣ Close, Direct Analysis of Passages

An example of an alternative commentary is a close, direct analysis of robust passages from the source, such as an article, film, poem, literary work, book, or novel. In this respect, they are standard in bigger writing projects, like expositions or being part of a critic’s work. Students adopt this type of commentary when they have to read a passage in a text or pick a speech in a movie and write a film analysis essay that expresses the writer’s perspective on the central issues, ideas, or concepts. The following example of a commentary essay demonstrates a close, direct examination of the first stanza of the poem “Night Wind” by Christopher Dewdney:

Tonight the wind blows through

all the worlds I have known and

through all the lives I have led.

The wind blows in the trees,

deeper into each.

The wind blows forever,

strains like something

endlessly departing.

Restless, impatient,

it races without burden.

Example of a Commentary on Celebration of Nature in the First Stanza of Christopher Dewdney’s Poem “Night Wind”

Christopher Dewdney’s 1984 poem “Night Wind” celebrates nature by depicting the night wind as a permanent, free expression of nature. The poet describes the wind on a particular night in the first stanza. By using a first-person perspective in the first three lines, Dewdney depicts himself as an observer. This writing style expresses a personal dialogue in which the poet directly relates his senses, experiences, and impressions. Dewdney opens the poem with the words: “Tonight the wind blows through / all the worlds I have known and / through all the lives I have led.” In this passage, the author expresses to the reader how the unity of the wind in whatever time or place leaves a lasting impression on him. Ideally, he views the wind as an omnipresent force but also regards it as very transient and fleeting. The words “endlessly departing” indicate to the reader the sense that the wind encompasses the entire continuum of the poet’s existence. Nonetheless, it is always in a rush to be at another location. The reader gets the impression that wind is a celebration of nature when Dewdney mentions its interactions with nature: “The wind blows in the trees, deeper into each.” This statement induces an imagination of trees fighting against a pervasive wind. The poet ends the stanza by personifying the wind, and he assigns it human qualities of restlessness, impatience, and playfulness. In this respect, the first stanza uses the wind as a reason to celebrate nature.

2️⃣ Commentary Annotations

Annotations are another type of alternative commentary where writers use a short claim on a source, like a text, film, or image. This kind of commentary essay also looks like an annotated bibliography . Typically, writers adopt annotations when they need to explain complex words, phrases, or concepts to readers; give a historical or cultural context of the topic; support or challenge the author’s arguments in an essay; expose literary devices, like contrast, irony, or sarcasm, or rhetorical devices, like ethos, pathos, and logos; provide a personal interpretation of the text under analysis. Therefore, annotations aim to enhance the reader’s understanding of a short passage from a source. Below are three examples of annotations of complex content in writing a commentary essay for Christopher Dewdney’s Poem “Night Wind.”

3 Examples of a Commentary With Annotations

➖ “The night wind is an empire / in exodus, a deliverance / beside the dark shape of trees.”

This statement is in lines 13-15 of Dewdney’s poem, where the poet alludes to a biblical concept, exodus, to express the wind’s freedom. By stating that the wind is “… in exodus, a deliverance…,” Dewdney makes the reader compare the wind to the incident in the book of Exodus in the Bible where Moses leads the children of Israel, God’s chosen people, to Canaan, the promised land, after freeing a life of bondage in Egypt. In this respect, lines 13-15 confirm that the wind is free and expresses nature’s freedom.

➖ “The wind takes / me in its giddy rush and / gathers me into a storm of longing, / rising on wings of darkness.”

In this statement in lines 18-21, the phrase “wings of darkness” emphasizes the wind’s freedom and mystery. The poet contextualizes the wind as an unpredictable force that can take a person anywhere .

➖ “Along oceans and rivers, / the gale’s mysterious, unspoken imperative / is a joyous delirium with / nothing at its end.”

This passage in lines 36-39 expresses Dewdney’s excitement in not knowing where the wind may take him. It suggests that it does not matter where the wind takes him because he is truly free. In essence, the statement makes the reader imagine the wind as a mystery because it can take one anywhere, emphasizing the theme of freedom.

3️⃣ Data Commentary

Data commentary is another type of alternative essay commentary where writers summarize a study by analyzing critical information that helps readers have a sneak peek of the project. The features students should incorporate in a commentary essay include visual illustrations, like charts, diagrams, graphs, and tables, to capture statistical data, allowing readers to compare them easily. In this respect, data commentary reflects the results section of a research paper because that is where scholars use visual illustrations to report statistical data. Another feature is a conclusion summarizing a commentary essay by reiterating the key points and expressing the writer’s final remark, meaning the main perspective on the topic. Lastly, people must provide a reference page listing credible sources they consulted to write data commentaries, such as reports and research articles. Below is an example of data commentary.

Example of Data Commentary

Table 3 shows respondents’ responses to statements about the barriers to exercise prescription for people with mental illness. Those who agreed that patients’ mental health denies them the opportunity to exercise was 58%, while those who agreed that obtaining an injury during exercise is a concern was 45%. There was an overwhelming response by 87% of the respondents who agreed that exercise is beneficial and were interested in prescribing it for patients with mental health problems. However, only 13% agreed that prescribing exercise falls outside their job description. Nonetheless, 16% stated that they did not know how to prescribe exercise for the population. Overall, 71% approved that exercise professionals are best suited to prescribe exercise for people in the population.

Possible Uses of Block Quotations for Writing a Good Commentary Essay

When writing a commentary essay, students can use block quotations to organize comments. However, this feature is suitable mainly for extensive passages. In a simple definition, a block quote is a text that captures direct quotations longer than 40 words, which the writer offsets from the main text and does not include quotation marks. The text appears on a new line with a 0.5 inches indentation or five to seven spaces. Using single space for a block quote is standard, even in an essay requiring double spacing. Hence, students must know how to format block quotes in APA , MLA , Harvard , and Chicago/Turabian referencing styles when writing a commentary essay.

📕 APA Format

There are two ways in which students can write block quotes in the APA style when organizing their commentary essays.

I. The first block captures the author’s name before the quote:

In their tabulation of results, Vancampfort et al. (2019) showed:

Almost 75% of the respondents indicated that they would “definitely” attend further training for exercise prescription for people with mental illness, in particular related to how to assess patients and how to motivate them towards an active lifestyle. More than seventy percent of the participants also reported that exercise to people with mental illness is actually best delivered by an exercise professional, although only one respondent referred patients to such an exercise professional (p. 2178).

“[Your comments on a block quote starts here]”

II. Alternatively, a block quote can have the author’s surname at the end:

According to the findings:

📕 MLA Format

Similarly, the MLA style has two ways of formatting a block quote when organizing commentary essays.

I. Having the surname of the author preceding a block quote in an essay:

The results by Vancampfort et al. indicate:

II. Having the author’s surname at the end of the quote:

📕 Harvard Format

The Harvard style also has two ways of formatting a block quote when organizing commentary essays.

I. Indicating the author’s surname before a block quote in an essay:

In their findings, Vancampfort et al. (2019) established that:

II. Citing the author’s surname at the end of a block quote:

📕 Chicago/Turabian Format

The Chicago/Turabian style also has two ways of formatting a block quote when organizing commentary essays.

I. Mentioning the author’s surname before a block quote in an essay:

According to Vancampfort et al.:

II. Showing the author’s surname in a footnote:

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Key Features of Formatting Block Quotes When Writing a Commentary Essay

Looking at the examples of writing a commentary in an essay above, there are some similarities and differences in formatting block quotes. APA and Harvard are similar because they show the research article’s publication year and the page number of the information the writer cites in their commentary essay. The main difference is the arrangement of these details, including the place of putting comas. On the other hand, the MLA and Chicago/Turabian styles are similar in that they do not show the research article’s publication year. The main difference is that the Chicago/Turabian style uses footnotes to show the author(s) and all the bibliography details at the commentary essay’s end. The MLA style shows only the author’s surname and the page number in the text. In turn, people begin writing their commentaries in the following line after a block quote as a standard paragraph in all the formats.

Easy Sample Topics for Writing a Great Commentary Essay

Students should choose easy essay topics when writing a commentary essay to avoid complicating their tasks. Ideally, a specific topic should indicate a particular source document one is commenting on, such as a text, film, or image. The standard practice is that instructors define essay topics or commemorative speech topics students should write about. However, people can choose other themes they are comfortable with if such instructions do not exist for writing a commentary essay. The best approach to choosing an easy topic is to engage with course content and read widely to generate and incubate ideas. When the time for writing a commentary essay comes, one finds it easy to construct arguments fitting the task. The following are possible commentary essay topics because they suggest analyzing and examining a source from the writer’s perspective.

In Memory of Amelia Earhart: Sky’s Fearless Lady
The Central Themes in Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mockingbird”
“The Great Gatsby” Through Contemporary Lens
The Rhetorical Stance in Jessica Grose’s “Cleaning: The Final Feminist Frontier”
The Message in Robert Frost’s Poem “The Road Not Taken”
Maya Angelou’s Magic in “And Still I Rise”
Demystifying Mental Disorders Through the Film “Black Swan (2010)”
The Essence of Margaret Atwood’s “Negotiating With the Dead: A Writer on Writing”

Sample Outline Template for Writing a Commentary Essay

Title of a commentary essay must be precise to an assigned topic.
Title must be short, clear, and easily understandable.
Title must be interesting, catchy, and with relevant keywords.

I. Introduction Section of a Commentary Essay

College essay introduction must have a hook that interests readers enough to grab their attention and stirs a curiosity to continue reading.
Introduction must refer to a specific source (text, film, or image) and its author(s).
Introduction must summarize an assigned source that includes the main characters (if any), themes, or concepts.
Introduction must have a clear thesis statement that states the writer’s claim.

II. Body Section of a Commentary Essay

Body paragraphs (at least three):

Each body paragraph of a commentary essay must have a topic sentence that emphasizes a single idea central to the main claim in the thesis statement that the writer will defend in the paragraph.
Each body paragraph must include evidence from a source under analysis, such as a quote, indicating the character responsible and the context.
Each body paragraph must give a commentary about the evidence through relevant analysis, linking the information to the idea at the beginning of the paragraph and the claim in the thesis.
Each body paragraph must end with a closing statement and a bridge sentence to facilitate a logical flow to the next paragraph or section.

III. Conclusion Section of a Commentary Essay

Sum up a commentary essay by:

Restating the thesis.
Emphasizing the main ideas of a commentary essay.
Giving a final remark that confirms the importance of the essay topic.

Example of a Commentary Essay

Commentary Essay’s Title: The Rhetorical Stance in Jessica Grose’s “Cleaning: The Final Feminist Frontier”

I. Example of an Introduction of a Commentary Essay

A woman never rests, not with society constantly demanding her value at every turn. This idea is the message in Jessica Grose’s famous article, “Cleaning: The Final Feminist Frontier.” The author argues that cleaning remains a feature of women’s value in society, despite men’s growing involvement in childcare and cooking. The article also opens with personal accounts and convincing facts, suggesting its credibility as a source of information about the dynamics confronting American women. In her article, Grose communicates her message effectively by adopting a rhetorical stance characterized by emotional appeals.

II. Example of Body Paragraphs of a Commentary Essay

A. commentary on the main idea of the article.

Grose opens the article with a personal story of her and her husband cleaning their house after Hurricane Sandy forced them indoors. She uses the uneven distribution of the cleaning task in her marriage to point out the larger feminist issue of who between a husband and wife should do the job. The article gives three reasons why men shy away from the cleaning task, including the fact that it is women who receive praise for a clean house, the media focuses on men’s growing involvement in childcare and cooking, and it is not fun. According to Grose, even distribution of the cleaning task can happen by creating a task chart that shows who does what on the basis of skill and ability and adopting cleaning gadgets to make cleaning more fun.

Throughout the article, Grose uses sources to appeal to the readers’ ethos and build her argument. Some of the sources she uses to achieve these goals include a study by sociologists Judith Treas and Tsui-o Tai and an article by Matthew Krehbiel, North America Fabric Care Brand Manager for P&G. Citing these sources helps the author to build her credibility in the eyes of readers.

Regarding appeals to logos, Grose mentions statistics and interesting facts that help to enhance the logical progression of ideas central to her argument. To emphasize the uneven distribution of the cleaning task, she says, “My husband and I both work…I do the dishes nine times out of ten, and he barely knows how the washer and dryer work.” Such facts confirm and support the idea that women do more household chores than men. She also cites statistics, showing “55 percent of mothers working full-time in America do some housework daily compared to 18 percent of fathers.” In this respect, the article is factual about the uneven distribution of household chores that disadvantages women. As a result, the personal details and statistics from credible sources help Grose to impress upon the reader how society uses the domestic environment to subjugate women.

The article appeals to the readers’ pathos in the beginning and middle sections, where Grose uses emotionally-charged words and phrases to induce the audience’s sympathy. For example, Grose laments that, while she “was eight months pregnant,” her husband experienced the complexity of fighting “a massively pregnant person.” These words evoke an image in the readers’ mind that portrays women as vulnerable in the domestic space because of natural factors, like high emotions and pregnancy. Indeed, readers may feel sympathetic to Grose and the women who generally live in this social context. Moreover, using words and phrases, like ‘argued,’ ‘sucks,’ ‘be shunned,’ ‘be judged,’ and ‘headachey,’ evokes readers’ negative feelings about cleaning. As such, they are more drawn to sympathize with men and view men as selfish.

III. Example of a Conclusion of a Commentary Essay

Grose takes a rhetorical stand throughout the article to persuade her audience of the unfair distribution of cleaning labor in the domestic space. By referencing credible sources, citing statistics and interesting facts, and portraying women as adversely disadvantaged, Grose effectively appeals to the readers’ ethos, logos, and pathos. This rhetorical stand is critical in communicating how society remains unfair to women in the domestic space despite men’s growing involvement in some household chores like childcare and cooking.

4 Easy Steps for Writing a Commentary Essay

Writing a commentary essay is a technical process that requires students to grasp essential details. For example, these details reflect 4 writing steps: preparation, stage setup, writing a first draft, and wrap-up. Typically, each step’s details of writing a commentary essay reflect the wisdom writers should exhibit when creating any scholarly text.

Step 1: Preparation

Preparation is the first step of writing a commentary essay. As the name suggests, it is when writers take time to create a favorable environment to write their papers. The first task is identifying a single source, where students should select good sources they can analyze easily, including poems, novels, or films. The second task is to create a topic, where students must write short topics that communicate a precise message of a commentary essay.

Step 2: Stage Setup

Setting the stage is the second step of writing a commentary essay. The first task is to read, watch, or examine an assigned source to identify key themes and ideas. The second activity is to research reliable sources that help to generate ideas that align with these themes and concepts. The next task is to create a clear essay outline emphasizing the introduction, body, and conclusion with all the essential details.

Step 3: Writing a First Draft of a Commentary Essay

Writing a first draft is the third step in creating a commentary essay, and the focus is generating a paper that can be used for further editing and improvement. As such, students should organize their ideas into text, emphasizing the claim in the thesis statement, ideas in the topic sentences, evidence (quotes), and transitions in the body paragraphs. Students should also ensure the conclusion restates the thesis, summarizes the main ideas of a commentary essay, and gives a final remark about their commentaries, focusing on an assigned source and topic.

Step 4: Wrap-Up

The wrap-up is the last step in writing a commentary essay. The main focus is transforming a first draft into a final text by eliminating all mistakes and flaws. Typically, students should revise all sections that do not make sense to a central claim or those that affect the paper’s logical progression. They should also edit a commentary essay by adding or deleting words and phrases and eliminating grammatical mistakes, missing punctuation, formatting errors, and incorrect citations.

20 Tips for Writing a Commentary Essay

Looking at the information in the preceding sections, writing a great commentary essay is a complex task that requires students to demonstrate knowledge of what it takes to create a quality paper. Some of the tips for writing a commentary essay include identifying a single source, which can be a text, film, or image; noting the source’s basic information, like the author, title, and publication date; identifying the central themes in the source; writing an introduction that emphasizes the source’s basic information; creating a thesis that communicates a claim about the source; adopting the unique structure as above; beginning paragraphs with a topic sentence; incorporating quotes from the source into body paragraphs; commenting on the quotes and their significance; and concluding a commentary essay with a summary that makes a final remark about a single source and topic.

10 things to do when writing a commentary essay include:

identifying a source for writing a commentary essay;
reading, watching, or analyzing an assigned source carefully and closely;
outlining critical details, like themes, ideas, and literary devices;
writing an introduction with a hook and an argumentative thesis statement;
providing body paragraphs with topic sentences, concluding sentences, quotes, commentary, and transitions;
maintaining a formal tone in a commentary essay;
using the applicable format (APA, MLA, Harvard, or Chicago/Turabian) correctly;
presenting an introduction that summarizes a commentary essay;
avoiding grammatical mistakes;
proofreading a final version of a commentary essay.

10 things not to do include:

failing to document the source’s essential details, like the author’s name and surname;
concentrating on the introduction more than the body;
not incorporating quotes in body paragraphs;
focusing on too many ideas in a commentary essay;
not defending the claim in the thesis;
ignoring a unique outline of a commentary essay;
writing with too many grammatical mistakes;
using different formatting styles (APA, MLA, Harvard, and Chicago/Turabian);
not implementing transitions in body paragraphs;
creating a commentary essay without a logical flow of ideas and thoughts.

Summing Up on How to Write a Perfect Commentary Essay

Choose a single source that is simple to analyze.
Create a clear thesis that emphasizes the focus of a commentary essay, such as a claim.
Identify passages or themes in an assigned source that help to build an argumentative claim.
Use an introduction paragraph for its purpose: to introduce a specific topic. As such, it should be short and precise.
Use a body section for its purpose: to analyze a particular source and defend a central claim comprehensively. Therefore, it should be long and have quotes as evidence.
Use a conclusion part to summarize a commentary essay, and it should be concise. More importantly, it should leave readers with a lasting impression of a defined source and topic.

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Education and Communications
Studying Literature

How to Write a Literary Commentary

Last Updated: February 23, 2023 Fact Checked

This article was co-authored by Stephanie Wong Ken, MFA . Stephanie Wong Ken is a writer based in Canada. Stephanie's writing has appeared in Joyland, Catapult, Pithead Chapel, Cosmonaut's Avenue, and other publications. She holds an MFA in Fiction and Creative Writing from Portland State University. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 702,192 times.

A literary commentary is a detailed analysis of a passage of text, focusing specifically on the text itself. It should not be confused with a literary analysis essay, as it does not need a thesis statement or a general discussion of the book as a whole. Instead, the literary commentary should only analyze and reflect on a specific passage. To write a literary commentary, start by reading the text and creating an outline. Then, dive right into a detailed discussion of the text. Make sure you polish the literary commentary for style, grammar, and spelling before handing it in so it is at its best.

Literary Commentary Help

Starting the Literary Commentary

Make sure you have a hard copy of the passage so you can mark it up as you read it. Jot down any initial thoughts or questions you may have about the text as you read it several times.

You should also look for words that are repeated in the text, as this means they are likely important. Notice if the same word is used in a different context in the passage and highlight each mention of the word.

Introduction section: Identify the text
Body section: Discuss the main features of the text
Conclusion section: Summarize your thoughts on the text

Writing the Literary Commentary

Step 1 Identify the title, author, and genre in the introduction.

For example, you may note, “Published in 1966, Seamus Heaney’s ‘Blackberry-Picking’ is a poem that appears in his poetry collection, Death of a Naturalist .”
If the text is from a larger work, do not write about the overall plot of the larger work. You should also not include details from the author’s biography or the historical period when the text was written, unless it feels relevant to the passage.

Step 2 Discuss the text’s subject, themes, and audience.

For example, in Seamus Heaney's poem, "Blackberry-Picking,” the subject is two people picking a large quantity of blackberries. [2] X Research source
The themes of the poem could be nature, hunger, and decay or rot.
The poem begins with a dedication to “Philip Hobsbaum,” which means he could be the intended audience of the poem, the “you” addressed in the poem.

Step 3 Look at the genre, form, and structure of the text.

The genre and form of the text will also help you determine the structure of the text. For example, Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking” takes the form of a poem and fits in the genre of poetry. It uses a familiar poetic structure, such as short lines of text and is broken into two stanzas.

For example, in Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking,” the speaker uses the first person voice. The speaker then addresses a “you” in the text, indicating there are two characters in the poem.

For example, in Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking,” the tone in the first stanza is nostalgic and light. The tone then shifts in the second stanza to be more serious and dark.

Step 6 Identify the literary devices in the text.

For example, if you are discussing Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking,” you may look at a simile like “You ate that first one and its flesh was sweet/Like thickened wine: summer's blood was in it.” Or you may discuss imagery like “a rat-grey fungus” or “fruit fermented.”
You can find a complete list of literary devices in literature online. [5] X Research source

For example, if you are discussing themes of decay in Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking,” you may quote a line like “I always felt like crying./It wasn't fair/That all the lovely canfuls smelt of rot.”

Step 8 Wrap up the commentary with a summary of your thoughts.

For example, you may end your literary commentary on Seamus Heaney's "Blackberry-Picking” by noting how the poem fits into the poetry collection and reflects common themes in Heaney’s work.

Polishing the Literary Commentary

Step 1 Read the commentary aloud to yourself.

You can also read the commentary aloud to someone else to get their feedback. Ask a peer, a friend, or a family member to listen to you read the commentary and then ask for their feedback.

Step 2 Confirm the commentary follows a clear outline.

You can go through the commentary and write down “introduction” or “discussion of text” next to the relevant paragraphs in the commentary. Doing this will ensure you cover all the necessary information in the commentary.

Step 3 Review the commentary for spelling, grammar, and punctuation.

If you are using a computer to write the literary commentary, you can use the spellcheck option in the computer program. However, you should not rely on spellcheck only to go through your work. Make sure you also do a close review of the commentary for any errors before you hand it in.

Community Q&A

↑ https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/modernlanguages/intranet/undergraduate/skills/commesswriting/commentarywriting/
↑ https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/50981/blackberry-picking
↑ http://literary-devices.com/
↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/reading-aloud/
↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/editing-and-proofreading/

About This Article

To write a literary commentary, begin by closely reading the text at least twice while paying attention to the content and structure. While commentaries do not need a thesis statement, you should identify the title, author, and genre in your introduction. In your body paragraphs, discuss the text’s subject, themes, and audience while pointing out any literary devices, like metaphors or symbols, that you notice. Use quotes to illustrate your points and conclude with a summary of your thoughts on the text. For advice about how to read and annotate your text from our Writer reviewer, scroll down. Did this summary help you? Yes No

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Full How-to Guide for an Exceptional Commentary Essay

If you’ve arrived on this page, you probably have a commentary essay due. It can seem like a daunting task, but fear not, as it’s not as complicated as it might seem. We’re used to providing commentary in our day-to-day life, be it about a piece of news or gossip you’ve just heard, a sports event, or even an update from a family member, so your task is only to take that habit and put it into a more formal form of commentary in writing. So, whether you are struggling to pick the right topic or just need some tips on how to go about developing your writing skills, our informative guide will help you with any and all of the points!

What is a Commentary in Writing: Unlocking the Mystery

Let’s get the most important definition out of the way, that is what does commentary mean in writing.

It’s a genre of writing that analyzes and interprets ideas, trends, and events to find different meanings and patterns in them. When writing commentary, you shouldn’t simply do a general overview, but find a way for your reader to make sense of the topic you are covering. You should also try to find a unique viewpoint on things, so your reader can discover the causes and consequences of a specific issue you are covering and in turn make their own judgments about them.

What is a Commentary Essay in a Nutshell

A simple commentary essay definition is that it’s a paper where you provide your opinion on a specific subject. It can be done as a response to another piece of writing like a book, article, or blog post, or you can choose an issue you want to cover and do a commentary essay about it. It goes without saying that you will need to do your research, no matter the topic of your paper, and provide your own take on the situation, using solid evidence and example to support your point. That is exactly why professors love to assign this task to their students, as commentary writing is a great way to show your critical thinking skills, as well as your ability to analyze a subject and provide a unique take on it.

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Commentary Essay Format: Covering the Basics

The commentary essay structure follows the standard formula of the introduction that includes your thesis statement, main body paragraphs, and a conclusion paragraph. Depending on your word count, you might have more than one body paragraph, plus you’ll need to decide how big they are and how deep you can delve into the subject. Another pretty standard rule is that you need to have at least one respectable source for each page of your commentary essay. With the basics out of the way, here are some tips to get you started on your commentary in an essay writing:

Dedicate some time to come up with your thesis statement, so it’s catchy and clear at the same time, while also covering all of the arguments you’ll be making in the main body paragraphs.
Delve deep into your subject and offer your reader some food for thought, so that after reading your paper they still want to think about your points and maybe even act on some of them.
Try to engage your reader in a conversation and demonstrate your point of view in a way that they can be open to it, even if their opinion on the subject differs from yours.
Don’t be shy and state your opinion clearly without trying to be too neutral or objective about the subject.

Commentary Essay Outline and How to Fill it Out

Now that you have a general idea of what your commentary essay should be about and look like, let’s delve into more specific steps of filling out your commentary paper outline:

Title. It should be as short as possible, catchy, and relevant to your topic.
Introduction .
Hook sentence. Make sure to grab your reader’s attention right away.
Author, title, main characters, summary. That’s in case you are doing a commentary essay based on a text. If you are covering an issue, a brief summary of its history and significant points should be there as well.
Thesis statement. Help your reader to understand the direction of your essay.
Main body paragraph(s).
Topic sentence. It should illustrate how you are going to support your thesis.
A quote. Depending on the material you are covering it should be from the text you are covering or a reliable source related to the topic you will be discussing.
Analysis from the quote. Show how it supports your thesis.
Closing sentence. It should wrap up the paragraph nicely, and for the first and second body paragraphs, provide a transition to the next one.
Concluding paragraph. Here you should summarize your main paragraphs, tie that to your thesis statement, possibly extend your argument and reiterate why the topic of your essay is important.

How to Write a Commentary Essay: Tips for Perfection

We’ve covered what a standard commentary essay should look like, but what about how to write a good commentary? Well, we’ve got your back even there!

There is one piece of advice that merits be mentioned outside of the list below. It’s that the driving point of the commentary essay is your unique take on the text or the issue you are covering. Your ideas make the backbone of your paper, so take extra care to formulate them clearly. When conveying your ideas, concentrate on the main thing you want to get across to your reader. Don’t expect them to understand your take from hints, be clear and concise in what you want to say. Now let’s check those steps you’ll need to take for a perfect commentary essay!

Make sure that you understand the prompt. You have to thoroughly get the question or topic of your essay. If you are not sure what’s being asked of you, ask your professor.
Do some brainstorming. Try to come up with different topics for your essay and different angles you can explore in the main body paragraphs. Make sure to jot down any idea you have, no matter how small or fragmented it is. When you’ve picked the main topic or angle, start fleshing it out with examples.
Come up with a thesis statement. It will guide your essay from the introduction to the conclusion, so make sure it’s solid. A clear and specific thesis statement is especially important in a commentary essay, as it will tell your reader what kind of take to expect from your paper.
Get to the research. Even if you are familiar with your subject, you still need reliable sources to help you support the points you’ll argue in your essay. Plus, it’s always better to delve into the subject even deeper to better understand it, so you can produce a coherent and well-informed paper.
Flesh out your outline. Once you have a good idea of the direction you want your essay to go in, start adding to the outline template mentioned above.
Edit, proofread, and ask for feedback. When you finish your final draft, let it sit for a day, if possible, and then reread it to eliminate any mistakes you might have made. Alternatively, ask your friends to read the essay for you and give you feedback on it.

40 Engaging Commentary Topics to Choose From

Choosing the right topic is detrimental to the quality of your commentary essay. Not only it will influence how productive your research and writing process will be, but it will also provide a level of engagement your professor will definitely pick up on when reading your paper. Look through the list of commentary paper topics our writers have put together and see if you find the one you’ve been looking for!

Accuracy of understanding other people’s feelings.
Novel approaches to public administration in developing countries.
The role a leader exerts on a crowd.
Factors that contribute to interpersonal attraction.
The role of image in compensating for possible physical unattractiveness.
Factors that influence successful socialization.
Social stereotypes based on ethnicity or age.
The role of the modern family as an institution.
The concept of personal influence and its significance.
The main sources of social conflict in modern society.
The role of socialization in different genders.
The main factors of social inequality today.
The effectiveness of social conflict management and resolution.
How to organize social processes for optimal outcomes.
The role of moral and ethical standards in modern public office.
Sociology of modern youth.
The social role of college students in modern society.
Understanding suicide as a form of deviant behavior.
Subcultures as a means of interpersonal and intercultural communication.
The relationship and impact of TV in modern society.
The position of the US in the global community.
Major areas of innovation in real estate management and development.
Unemployment: causes, forms, and regulation methods.
Government role in supporting innovation.
Innovative governance: objectives, functions, and principles.
Perception of significance when selecting people who matter.
Competitiveness as a measure of business performance.
Classifying cryptocurrency enterprises in modern times.
Novel organizational models for innovative enterprises.
Methods for generating new business ideas.
Process of developing an effective business plan.
Methods for evaluating the efficiency of innovations.
Discounting as a method of evaluating business efficiency.
Financial support for cryptocurrency projects.
Creating an effective business plan structure.
The intellectual property market and its operation.
Comparing venture business in the USA and EU.
Innovation marketing: key considerations.
The significance of the intellectual property in modern entrepreneurship.
Managing the creation and utilization of new cryptocurrency.

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Read each essay through quickly, before making any marks, to identify major strengths and weaknesses.
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How to Write Commentary Essay – What is a Commentary in Essay Writing

how to write commentary essay

Ever find yourself grappling with thoughts that beg to be shared? Commentary essays, ever elusive yet magnetic, unlock the gateway to expression. Have you ever yearned to dissect an idea—dissect it with surgical precision?

In this narrative landscape, I guide you through the intricate threads of commentary—essays that serve as vessels for personal reflection and analysis.

With a mere glance, we will define the essence, unearth the profound purposes, and unveil the diverse forms of commentary essays.

Join me in cracking the art of commentary, where every word is a stroke of thoughtful reflection.

How to Choose a Topic for a Commentary Essay

Choosing a captivating topic for a commentary essay is akin to selecting the perfect melody. It begins with identifying engaging themes that resonate personally.

What ignites curiosity or sparks passion?

Delving into personal interests ensures a genuine connection, fostering authenticity in your commentary. However, it’s not a solo journey; research plays a crucial role.

Explore and narrow down ideas through in-depth investigations, seeking intersections between personal resonance and broader relevance.

The sweet spot lies where passion aligns with significance. This intricate dance between personal connection and broader appeal ensures a topic that not only captivates but also invites readers into the discourse.

How to Write a Commentary Essay

1. choose a good topic.

Selecting a captivating topic is the inaugural dance in the journey of crafting a commentary essay. The process of cherry-picking the right subject is akin to a curator choosing artwork for an exhibition.

In this journey, I explore my interests and passions, seeking resonance between the chosen theme and my personal experiences.

The topic becomes a canvas, inviting me to weave my narrative, thoughts, and insights into a tapestry of reflection.

It is not just about selecting a subject; it’s about finding a companion for a meaningful conversation.

Thus, the journey of a commentary essay begins with the profound act of choosing a topic that whispers to my curiosity and beckons exploration.

2. Conduct Thorough Research

My compass always directs me to reliable sources , be they scholarly articles, books, or credible websites.

Navigating through diverse perspectives, I become an explorer of ideas, understanding the nuances that shape the discourse.

Armed with a discerning eye, I gather a treasure trove of information, taking meticulous notes like a cartographer mapping uncharted territories.

This research journey is not just about accumulating data; it’s a quest for understanding, a preparatory expedition before I embark on crafting my commentary essay with depth and insight.

3. Craft a Compelling Introduction

I opt for the dramatic flair of anecdotes or stories, inviting readers into the narrative fold.

Within this theatrical framework, I introduce the chosen topic, carefully crafting the context in which it thrives.

As the spotlight intensifies, I unveil the essay’s purpose, signaling the thematic overture that will unfold.

Also, this introduction, akin to an opening act, aims to engage and captivate, preparing the audience for the insightful commentary that awaits in the ensuing scenes of my written performance.

4. Develop a Strong Thesis Statement

In a commentary essay, the thesis statement serves as the conductor, directing the harmonious interplay of ideas.

I compose a thesis that resonates with clarity, enunciating my argument or perspective with precision.

Each note within this statement focuses sharply on the specific points I intend to unfold, creating a nuanced melody of discussion.

I embrace controversy, infusing my thesis with a thought-provoking essence akin to a musical chord that resonates in the minds of my readers.

Generally, this orchestrated thesis becomes the guiding refrain, leading the essay forward with an assured and melodic cadence.

5. Create a Well-Structured Body Paragraphs

Within the tapestry of my commentary essay, I weave a structured narrative through well-crafted body paragraphs.

Each paragraph is a carefully orchestrated movement, organized with a logical flow that allows ideas to crescendo seamlessly.

Transitions act as musical notes, creating a harmonious journey between paragraphs. Evidence, like a powerful chord, resounds through relevant quotes and data.

My commentary interprets this evidence, breathing life into the composition. Every paragraph is a masterful stroke, connecting back to the thesis statement with the finesse of a skilled composer, ensuring the entire essay resonates with coherence and depth.

6. Write a Compelling Conclusion

In my commentary essay, the conclusion emerges as a resonant crescendo, summarizing the keynotes that echo through the preceding movements.

I deftly restate the thesis in varied tones, allowing its essence to linger in the minds of my readers.

With a final chord, I provide closure, leaving a lasting impact akin to the lingering resonance of a powerful musical finale.

Finally, this conclusion isn’t merely an end. It is a grand finale that ensures the composition of my commentary essay echoes in the minds of those who have been part of this literary performance.

7. Refine and polish your Commentary Essay

In the refining process, I revise and proofread my commentary essay, polishing each sentence to a gleaming sheen.

Seeking constructive feedback becomes my compass, guiding me through the intricate labyrinth of improvements.

With a discerning eye, I ensure clarity, coherence, and consistency throughout the essay.

Tips when Writing a Good Commentary Essay

Mastering the art of analysis.

When crafting a compelling commentary essay, mastering the art of analysis becomes my guiding light.

I cultivate critical thinking skills by delving into the intricate layers of interpretation. Rather than merely summarizing, I pivot towards emphasizing analysis, probing the profound “why” behind each elucidation.

I use this approach to transform my commentary essay into a thought-provoking exploration, inviting readers to journey beyond the surface.

After infusing depth and nuance into my analysis, I not only unravel the intricacies of the subject matter but also beckon readers into the realm of contemplation.

Effective Use of Evidence and Examples

The crux of crafting a compelling commentary essay lies in the effective use of evidence and examples.

I navigate the selection of appropriate evidence, ensuring its relevance and resonance with my thesis.

Distinguishing between various types of evidence, I strategically deploy statistics, anecdotes, or expert opinions to fortify my arguments.

Crucially, each piece of evidence serves as a beacon, guiding readers back to the luminous core of my thesis.

Such orchestration not only bolsters the credibility of my discourse but also weaves a seamless tapestry of persuasion, compelling readers to traverse the intellectual terrain I’ve artfully laid out.

Polishing Your Writing Style

With a discerning eye, I wield clear and concise language, ensuring each word contributes meaningfully to the narrative.

I harmonize sentence structures and lengths, orchestrating a symphony of eloquence. My pen becomes a precision tool, excising redundancy and wordiness, leaving a distilled essence that resonates with clarity.

Also, this stylistic finesse not only heightens the essay’s readability but also casts a spell, captivating readers through the sheer artistry of expression.

It is in these subtle nuances that the true mastery of a commentary essay emerges.

How to Structure a Commentary Essay

Structuring a commentary essay is an art that begins with a captivating opening, ensuring a clear and concise thesis statement. The body paragraphs organize ideas, employing topic sentences as guides and incorporating diverse evidence. Let me expound on this.

1. Introduction

I begin a commentary essay with an artful introduction. I invite readers into a captivating opening, setting the stage for a thoughtful exploration. This entry point beckons them to delve into the discourse, establishing the groundwork for an engaging and insightful journey.

2. Thesis Statement

Crafting a commentary essay hinges on a thesis statement that stands as a beacon of clarity and conciseness.

It is a pivotal sentence that outlines the primary argument, acting as the compass guiding readers through the intricate landscape of the discussion.

Its clarity serves as a roadmap, ensuring that the ensuing exploration remains focused and purposeful.

3. Body Paragraphs

Within the body paragraphs, my essay has a masterpiece of ideas, each movement meticulously crafted to contribute to the overall harmony.

Each paragraph opens with a topic sentence, a conductor setting the tone and direction for the ensuing discussion.

Supporting evidence, ranging from concrete facts to illustrative examples and authoritative quotes, fortifies these ideas.

The real magic, however, lies in the nuanced analysis and interpretation, where I dissect the significance, explaining the relevance of each piece in the grand tapestry of my commentary.

Mostly, this meticulous organization ensures a compelling and cohesive narrative.

4. Conclusion

As I draw the curtain on my commentary essay, I emphasize the significance of the main points. The journey through this analysis has illuminated diverse perspectives, making it evident that my thesis holds weight.

The interplay of evidence and interpretation underscores the relevance of the discussed topic.

In weaving together the fabric of my argument, I’ve reinforced the core ideas, leaving an indelible impression on the reader.

Generally, this process of exploration and articulation has not only broadened my understanding but also imparted a sense of conviction in the efficacy of my perspective.

As I bid farewell to this discourse, I carry forward the intellectual growth fostered by the analytical journey undertaken.

Josh Jasen or JJ as we fondly call him, is a senior academic editor at Grade Bees in charge of the writing department. When not managing complex essays and academic writing tasks, Josh is busy advising students on how to pass assignments. In his spare time, he loves playing football or walking with his dog around the park.

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Easy Steps To Write A Commentary Effectively

Easy steps to write a commentary in the english language , how to write a commentary.

The first time you have to write a commentary, you may ask questions such as what a commentary is. How can I write it? Asking these questions is very normal because commentary is not something we hear on a daily basis. It is an academic skill that you study at school. I will try to help throughout this article to answer these questions.

What is a commentary?

A commentary basically focuses on the analysis and detailed description of a specific text (chapter, movie, story). Commentaries can also be written on quotes, short texts, articles). Typically, it is used for the news and magazine publications where a publisher writes it for newly published articles. The major purpose of publishing a commentary is to primarily provide a forum where various perspectives and ideas on a certain topic in a journal can be talked over.

Writing commentaries means writing a well-detailed analysis of an article or a text. A commentary is different from an essay. The essay form and commentary may sometimes overlap and be used interchangeably, but it may be helpful to make some comparisons. A commentary is often very short (a few hundred words) and more journalistic (critical) in tone than a personal essay. It properly fits as a column in a newspaper or in a magazine. The writing can be more newsy than literary. On the other hand, the essay form is an extended piece of writing that presents and supports a certain proposition (topic). It can be descriptive, argumentative, narrative, or expository.

A commentary requires deep knowledge, analysis, and critical thinking

Writing a commentary requires you to have knowledge about the topic. You will have to present your unique perspective and discuss the essential concepts and the arguments in the text. Your commentary is somewhat an extension of the ideas and of the writer. It should bring more clarity to the arguments in the original text.

As a skill you are expected to master, a commentary is somewhat subjective. It should reflect your critical thinking skills, your way of seeing and perceiving life, how to defend yourself using arguments, how to link content to your reality. It is totally different from summarizing which should be objective and limited to the text.

Steps to prepare for a commentary

There are several steps you have to follow to write an effective and successful commentary.

What you should do before writing?

Just like any kind of writings, you have to prepare yourself. When writing a commentary, try to do the following things:

Read the text several times. Read each word carefully and try to understand what the writer is trying to say. Try to understand the meaning.
You may want to underline major concepts, ideas, arguments, quotes. Underline anything that you think will help you.
Underline keywords.
Outline the main points. You will have to study the text deeply and analyze the structure of the article and its content and prepare an outline accordingly.

Steps to write the commentary

Identifying the basic information (the title, the author name, publication date, if any, and the genre of the text. This type of information will be included in the introduction section of the commentary.
Try to mention the theme, subject, and audience. In the main part (the body of) the commentary, you have to describe the main text and its focus. Discuss the following questions:
Pay attention to the structure and genre of the content

Check the genre of the text. Is it narrative or descriptive? Is it fiction or non-fiction? Look at the types of sentences and words being used.

Try to understand the tone o the writer.

The definition of “ tone ” in literature is the way the author expresses his attitude through his writing. The tone can change very quickly or may remain the same throughout the story or the text. The tone is expressed by the use of syntax (grammar), the writer’s point of view, the writer’s diction (the choice and use of words and phrases in speech or writing), and the level of formality in the writing.

Although this is a part of literature and literary commentary, it is important for you to learn to understand the style of expression of the thoughts. The attitude and the mood of the author can be known by looking at the tone of the text. Depending on the need of the subject, the author may have used different tones in different situations. Observe how the tone changes to understand the fluctuations of the mood and changes in the situations or events.

Check the literary devices that deepen the meaning

The writer might use literary devices such as metaphor, imagery, alliteration, and simile to intensify the meaning. Identify them and mention them in your commentary whenever possible.

Take the quotes included in the text. To support your points and opinions, you can use the quotes from the text. You can directly take the quotes and use the quotation marks. Use only those quotes which are relevant and can support the discussion.
Ask for the feedback

To make your commentary better, you should read in front of a friend, a family member, a teacher or anybody and ask for their feedback.

Proofread and correct the text

Read your writing, identify grammatical and spelling mistakes. Also, check your punctuation and capitalization. The quality o

Remember, when we talk about writing a commentary, it can be on a video, a picture, a text, a statement, or a quote. They are all the same thing. It is very important for you to know the main idea. Then, give your opinion about the main idea (implicitly or explicitly), and then defend your opinion using your own arguments. You can relate the quote, the picture, the text being asked to comment on to your social or political life. You may want to relate it to your cultural or religious background. It all depends on the content.

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Department of History

Guide to writing a commentary on primary source(s).

This shorter assignment (1,500-words, worth 10%) takes the form of a commentary on a primary source or two conceptually linked sources or a comparison of two primary sources. You could take any of the documents set out for the classes on the module website (whether or not we have yet discussed them) or find the longer versions of them if they are extracts, or choose another document (please ask me about the latter).

Each week we discuss pieces of primary text, so essentially this exercise replicates on paper the type of analysis you routinely conduct in class. The assignment will also help prepare you for both a second or third year dissertation, or a third year module, where close engagement with primary material is a basic requirement.

Focus on text, context and significance .

You don't need a question heading unless you would find it useful to give you an angle on the source(s).

Some questions you might want to ask (not all will be applicable to all sources, but many will be):

Text. What are the essential or notable features of what is being said [this might have to do with the language/wording used as much as the content]? What keywords, phrases or concepts are involved? Why are they important?
Context. Who wrote this and what do we know about them – is it important? What do we know about the aims of the author(s)? When was it written and is this significant? In what ways is it significant to know the historical context in which it was written?
What is the significance of what is being said? Is this text part of a larger series of texts and if so, does this larger corpus have significance? How does the piece relate to other texts and to the period as a whole? Was it representative? innovative? aberrant? Influential? What is its broader historical significance? How did readers react? Does the piece raise historiographical questions or relate to a historiographical debate? What are the key debates to which this relates? How have historians interpreted it or documents like it?

The marking criteria are the same as for any other piece of work. Reference secondary material in the normal way. You can refer to the online versions of the sample documents (cite as 'Coursework document X, p.y) or go back to the originals.

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Int J Qual Stud Health Well-being

Guidelines for writing a commentary

A commentary is a comment on a newly published article. A commentary may be invited by the chief editor or spontaneously submitted. Commentaries in International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being are peer reviewed. We now welcome commentaries!

What is a commentary?

The goal of publishing commentaries is to advance the research field by providing a forum for varying perspectives on a certain topic under consideration in the journal. The author of a commentary probably has in-depth knowledge of the topic and is eager to present a new and/or unique viewpoint on existing problems, fundamental concepts, or prevalent notions, or wants to discuss the implications of a newly implemented innovation. A commentary may also draw attention to current advances and speculate on future directions of a certain topic, and may include original data as well as state a personal opinion. While a commentary may be critical of an article published in the journal, it is important to maintain a respectful tone that is critical of ideas or conclusions but not of authors.

In summary, a commentary may be:

A critical challenge to one or more aspects of the focal article, arguing for a position other than that taken in the focal article.
An elaboration or extension of the position taken in the focal article, basically sympathetic to the position taken in the focal article but pushing the argument further.
An application of a theoretical or methodological perspective that sheds light on the issues addressed in the focal article.
A reflection on the writer's experiences in applying the issues addressed in the focal article, in particular health and well-being settings.
A comment on the applicability of the issues raised in the focal article to other settings, or to other cultures.

How to write a commentary

Commentaries in International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being should not exceed 10 manuscript pages. A tightly argued four- to six-page commentary is likely to be better received than a meandering 10-page ditto. Use these simple guidelines:

Do not summarize the focal article; just give the reference. Assume the reader has just read it. Move directly to identifying the key issues you want to raise.
Do not include general praise for the focal article.
Use only essential citations. For commentary purposes, cite only works absolutely essential to support your point.
Use a short title that emphasizes your key message. (It should be clear in context that all commentaries are a reaction to a particular paper).
Do not include an abstract.
Make clear your take-home message.
Make sure there is full author information (name, affiliation, address, phone, email) for all authors. Authors must be individuals.

Review process

Commentaries will be peer reviewed and most likely accepted if they are in line with the definitions and guidelines outlined. A small set of reviewers will read and evaluate all commentaries as they need to compare commentaries for issues of redundancy and to make evaluations of relative merit.

Queries for the editor

Authors should feel free to correspond with the chief editor prior to submitting a commentary if there are questions about any aspect of the evaluation and publication process. Authors may prepare a brief outline of the key points they desire to present in the commentary and send it to the chief editor.

Does it cost anything to submit a commentary?

Spontaneously submitted commentaries incur a cost of €65 per typeset page. The author will be invoiced once the commentary has been accepted for publication.

We hope you will send us a commentary whenever you think there is a need to broaden the perspectives on health and well-being presented in our journal.

Find what you need to study

5.1 Developing commentary throughout paragraphs

2 min read • january 29, 2023

Hayley Potter

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Review all units live with expert teachers & students

What is commentary?

Commentary is your own interpretation of a passage. What ideas does this passage put in your mind? What does it remind you of? What did you find interesting? This is all commentary .

Commentary proves how the evidence in your essay proves your amazing thesis . Evidence is super duper important, but what is critical to your RA essay is commentary . Without commentary your essay lacks personality and lacks your line of reasoning (check out guide 5.0). Evidence answers the what? And commentary answers the how and why. All critical to your RA essay.

Commentary depends on the rhetorical situation . The rhetorical situation : the writer or speaker , the audience, the context, the exigence (unit 4), the purpose , and the argument . You need the rhetorical situation because this is what your commentary is on.

Awesome RA verbs for your essay:

Awesome commentary words:

Commentary is best when you know the right questions to ask. This is where those amazing analyzing skills come out to play. Use them well and be a detective to figure out what the questions are. This will help you create commentary about the rhetoric you are analyzing.

Some Commentary Starters!

Author The author reveals/shows/presents/emphasizes/suggests... The author wants the reader to understand...

Character/Conflict The character makes this decision/says this quote because... At this point in the story, the character is realizing... When the character makes this choice we see that... In making this choice the story changes in this way...

The point of this conversation is... This passage/quote is effective beause This event in the novel shows/proves/explains… Because of this… This quote/passage adds to the reader’s appreciation of the story/poem because...

Analysis This reveals... This shows... This demonstrates...

Key Terms to Review ( 8 )

Rhetorical Situation

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How to Write a Commentary Essay: Your Student’s Guide

A commentary essay is not the most popular type of academic assignment. Yet, you should know how to write this paper as it may also add up some points to your record book. This step-by-step article explains how to write a commentary essay. These pieces of advice provided by the professional online writers and editors from a custom writing service will help you reinforce your ability to write this type of assignment. It can be submitted as both homework or in-class assignment. Some tutors may assign a commentary as part of the examination. So, there is no way out but to learn how to write it.

What is a Commentary Essay?

To make it short, a literary commentary is a type of academic assignment aimed to reveal the results of analysis and detailed description of a particular piece of text. It can be a new or outdated article, but it is better to choose one that is not older than five years. There is no need to involve a general discussion on the topic/thesis statement. Still, it should have a strong thesis.

Except for academic purposes, commentaries are sporadically used for publishing purposes. That means that whenever a publisher needs a commentary for a recently published work, the editor should write one. The primary goal of such type of writing is to initiate a forum where people can voice and opine various perspectives on a given topic.

Commentary Essay Structure and Outline

You should clearly see the difference between commenting on a research paper and a commentary as a subgenre of academic writing. They differ in structure even though the purpose is the same.

In case you are writing a commentary essay as a separate assignment, you should pick a different structure that is reminiscent of the other academic genres. It should generate around 5 paragraphs in length with the proposed outline looking as follows:

Abstract (summarize the rest of the literary commentary in 250-300 words maximum — 1/3 of a page).
Introduction (introduce the analyzed piece and its author).
Several body paragraphs (include a topic sentence and transitions in each).
Conclusion (summarize everything said above, restate your thesis, and finish on a powerful accord).

You should not use any other references except for the one you analyze. It will be enough to cite the original source and use your own words to illustrate your points of view. As you see, there is no need to add a reference page in the end.

How about the process of writing itself? Take a look at the professional tips on writing a commentary essay below!

Commentary Essay Writing Guidelines

Involve broad thinking and analysis.

As an author, you must be well-versed in what you are writing in the commentary. Otherwise, you can neither judge the works of other authors objectively nor justify your own opinions. First off, cover the primary concepts and overall beliefs. It is also possible to include a cause-and-effect concept in such a situation. Except for the review of the analyzed content, it is crucial to extend the idea and add some personal touch to what you’re writing about.

Stick to the critical but respectful tone.

Portray a case in the present as well as share some forecast for the future, if possible. Play with the available data as well as with your own thoughts. If you feel like lacking competence in a particular field, it is recommended not to enforce your ideas as something may be wrong with your stance. Instead of focusing on the author of the text and criticizing them, your analysis can be restricted to the text alone. Make sure the tone of your discourse is constructive and sober.

Get ready before writing.

Before starting the first draft, read the analyzed piece several times to make sure you understand its central concept. Perhaps, you’ve missed some critical points between the lines while reading the message for the first time? Write out all the fundamental ideas on a separate sheet of paper to come back to them later in the writing process. Highlight the keywords, especially if you plan to submit this document online or publish it on a website. Check the meaning of the terminology you don’t know. Don't be afraid to use the dictionary!

Start with a hook.

How to start a commentary essay? That is a good question as you have to catch an eye of the audience and make them want to read your work to the end. The best way to grab the attention is to start with a bang: a shocking fact or a rhetorical question would do.

Why not sum up these tips along with some new recommendations? That’d be a ready-to-use checklist for you!

Tips on Writing a Commentary Essay

The basic tips that may help you on the way to outstanding commentary are:

Define the main problem.
Consider the theme and target audience.
Decide on the structure and genre of the paper.
Decide how to present the information.
Be clear about the language and style of your work.
Select the artistical devices to hone your supply.
Choose what to quote and what not to.
Turn the paper into a presentable speech.
Look for the feedback.
Proofread and edit the final draft.

If you still have some questions about writing a commentary essay, leave them to the bigs. We are ready to write your commentary essay for you anytime! Our customer-centric approach and student-friendly prices will give you the peace of mind that you need most. Place an order by one of the best paper writing services now!

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Ever been trapped in the reader’s equivalent of Groundhog Day , stuck reading the same paragraph over and over? Some research papers can tie up the reader for unnecessary periods of time. Synoptic sources, such as Evidence-Based Nursing , reduce the effort needed to be well-informed by selecting high quality studies from a wide range of journals, abstracting the studies, and adding value with an expert commentary. A commentary is an extended note that sets forth an expert’s take on the meaning of a study. At issue is whether the evidence from the study or review is sufficient to inform practice. Any study or review offers only a provisional truth, and a commentary is always based on imperfect knowledge. While caution may be justified, practitioners still need to integrate the new knowledge. An expert commentary is an opportunity to help readers with the integration process. This Notebook aims to provide some useful pointers on writing commentaries for Evidence-Based Nursing .

ON BEGINNING

Commenting on an abstracted study may appear, at first glance, to be a relatively simple task. Evidence-Based Nursing commentaries are short, and experienced nurses are likely to have views on many subjects within their fields. But talking among a group of colleagues and writing are quite different activities.

The role of an EBN commentator is to translate the findings into guidance for readers. To do this, the commentator needs to shift perspective from study content, as described in the abstract, to its clinical meaning. However, the clinical meaning may prove illusive and expressing an expert opinion, overwhelming. Margaret Atwood 1 writes of stories as being in the dark, and the writer having to go into a downward hole, needing that flash of light to bring stories in from the dark. Such a process reveals just how much thinking and reflection is involved in writing. Writing narrative for science may be a somewhat simpler process than writing fiction, but a blank page is no less daunting.

Weak approaches to writing involve waiting for inspiration or trying to write a perfect first draft. These strategies will create more pressure on the writer as the deadline for submission approaches. A more productive strategy involves breaking down the work into achievable steps, such as reading and generating ideas, organising ideas, preparing a first draft, revising drafts, and submitting a final draft. These steps can be taken one at a time, or several at a time, depending on the time available. The steps are not necessarily linear but may be cyclical as you become more involved in writing your commentary.

Reading always begins the process of writing a commentary, whether that means starting with the study itself or the background material provided with the study. A common example of background material is an editorial that may accompany the original study article and addresses the study and its implications. However, you might feel that such information could bias your first impressions of the study. If so, then your starting point will be the original article reporting on the study. Familiarity with the study is essential. A brief first read will help to identify the key message of the study. Reading the opening sentence of the discussion section in a paper can help by drawing your attention to the study’s meaning. For instance, regarding their study on the cost-effectiveness of 2 different pressure-relieving surfaces, Iglesias et al 2 stated the following in their discussion:

Alternating pressure mattresses to prevent pressure ulceration in patients admitted to hospital are associated with lower costs and greater benefits and are more likely to be cost-saving than alternating pressure overlays.

Such sentences are similar to the beginning of a newspaper lead. A lead answers the “ who, what, when, where, why, and how” in an article. This heuristic can provide the essence of a commentary. Sentences, such as the above example, provide the what, where, and some of the who , but the remaining elements must also be considered. A typical newspaper lead is not the only rule of thumb to follow when writing a commentary. An alternative heuristic might be “ what is already known , what is new, and what now .” This heuristic can also provide the structural beginnings of a commentary. Some general questions to consider when writing a commentary are listed in the box ⇓ .

Questions to consider when writing a commentary

What is the best way share this information with patients?

How would this evidence assist with integration of services?

What is the best way to embed this evidence in everyday practice so that it can be easily applied?

Who would benefit from knowing this evidence (consider both practitioners and patients)?

Where might this evidence be best applied (which practice settings, what type of country)?

Which subgroups of patients that might benefit most from knowing this evidence?

What impact does the evidence have on practitioners’ roles?

What impact does this information have on performance monitoring?

What are the specific barriers to implementing this evidence?

What other information needs to be known?

Whichever heuristic is followed, a commentator needs to focus on what he or she believes is essential before beginning writing. Ideas will come to you as you read, and it is worth noting these as you read, rather than waiting until you have finished reading. Don’t censor these thoughts, even if they appear irrelevant or inarticulate. They are an important first step in getting into the zone of writing. A second more detailed read of the study will generate more ideas and start to firm up your thoughts about the study. This process can be assisted by suggestions provided by the EBN Associate Editor. An Associate Editor is assigned to each study that is abstracted in Evidence-Based Nursing. The role of the Associate Editor is to provide clinical and methodological perspective and direction in the preparation of the abstract and commentary. The Associate Editor will have reviewed the original article and the structured abstract prepared by the journal staff. As such, he or she will have formed a view on the direction a commentator should pursue. Such views are not necessarily prescriptive but are often intended to provoke thoughtful responses. The Associate Editor’s views should be considered during second and third readings of the original article, as you move towards the specifics of your commentary.

The cycle of reading and thinking is only the first of 3 phases involved in completing a final draft. The remaining phases involve creating a first draft and then making revisions to a final draft.

ON FIRST DRAFTS

It is very rare to be inspired to write. Writing is quite simply the discipline of “getting on with it.” Awaiting inspiration will inevitably lead to blocking and avoidable stress. In a first draft, it matters little how you start. What matters is that you start and that you set aside regular sessions for writing until you have finished.

When you are getting ready to write a first draft, you may be full of inklings about what you might say, but you need to transform these unformed ideas into a more concrete view of the study. To focus in on your responses to a study, you can engage in some simple exercises such as the following:

Consider how you would describe the study in 1 sentence to your best friend.

Consider what would be the most convincing finding for a sceptical colleague.

Describe the findings to yourself in 5 words, then 3 words, then 1 word.

These exercises can also help you to formulate your conclusion.

A first draft is a fuller exposition of your ideas than simple notes. Generating a plan from the list of ideas you jotted down as you read the study is a good start. Such a plan can be a simple mind map of your notes rather than an outline of what you write. Such maps may also expose gaps in your thinking and lead to further notes. To move beyond notes, your ideas need to be translated into sentences. Your first sentences do not have to relate to the structure of your commentary. Begin at the beginning, the middle, or the conclusion of your commentary. Just start writing. Put sentences with meaningful links alongside each other. If you have an overall view of the study that you can describe in a single sentence, you may have the conclusion of your commentary at hand. Write on paper, or on computer, whichever is most familiar to you. Some may find it difficult to compose directly onto a computer screen and prefer to write it out on paper first. It matters not where the writing begins, so long as it begins.

Do not censor or revise during your first draft. This draft is the gravel, not the polished gem. A first draft is written only for yourself, and nobody else need see your first efforts. Stephen King believes that first drafts are best written behind closed doors. 3 Only later drafts escape for others’ purview. Do not revise even if you change you point of view during writing. Keep going until you reach your conclusion. It may take a couple of sessions to get to a completed first draft, but then stop writing. Rest and incubation are essential parts of writing. Sleep on it.

ON REVISION

Once you have a first draft, your work is 70% complete. In the light of a new day, your first draft may seem awful, but revision is not a new start. There will be phrases and sentences that you will keep in your second draft. If writing on paper, this is a good time to enter your writing into a computer. Such a process will promote revision. The best writers go through the same process. John Maxwell Coetzee, a Nobel Prize winner, has a character describe the process:

Surely you don’t scribble down the first thing that comes into your head and email it off to your publisher. Surely you wait for second thoughts. Surely you revise. Isn’t the whole of writing a matter of second thoughts—second thoughts and third thoughts and further thoughts? 4

Once you have a second draft that captures your thoughts about the study, some final polishing is necessary.

Your most important consideration should be to make every word meaningful. Search out and remove fluff. Be ruthless. Fluff does not contribute, it annoys. Meaningless words and phrases litter bad writing. Check the dictionary if unsure of a word’s meaning. No matter how proud you are of a word, if it is not accurately used, it is fluff. Delete it. Clichéd phrases are fluff: “Further research is needed,” “The reality of clinical practice is…” and “In actuality …” Adverbs are fluff. Adverbs often end in “…ly.” “Nurses care deeply…” is a bumper sticker, not part of a commentary. Hunt out jargon. Technical language is fine, but jargon will exclude the very readers you are trying to inform.

Commentaries are non-fiction and thus need complete sentences, not fragments. A complete sentence uses a noun and a verb. It need not be long. “Nurses care” is a complete sentence. Whether such sentiments are accurate is another question. Vary your sentence length to keep readers interested. By now you may be thoroughly sick of revising your draft. That’s a good sign. You now have a final draft.

ON STRUCTURE

Earlier, I mentioned that the heuristic “ what is already known , what is new , and what now” can provide a structural outline for commentaries. Such a structure is linear and not the only possible structure. It is relatively easy to experiment with form in a commentary. Cinematic film provides instruction on how to vary structure. Just as an opening shot might be a pan of the wider landscape that focuses in on a detail that opens the story, a commentary might move from context to specific details. For instance, Peter Griffiths introduces his commentary of a study investigating early discharge and home-based rehabilitation for stroke by stating:

Stroke is a major cause of long term disability. Much research has been done to determine the best way of delivering care after a stroke. 5

Thus, the context is set, with stroke being identified as a major health issue, and the organisation of care being a topic of considerable research. Griffiths then goes on to address what is new about the particular study he is considering.

Another approach to an opening is to move from specific to wider concerns, much like a very tight shot pulls back from the detail to pan the scene. David Thompson provides such an example by first describing the study and its key finding when commenting on a study of aspirin for primary prevention of cardiovascular disease:

The landmark 10 year study by Ridker et al of nearly 40 000 initially healthy women found that taking prophylactic low dose (100 mg) aspirin every other day did not confer the same benefits to women as it did to men. Few therapies have separately analysed effects by sex, and the findings lead us to ponder why many of the therapies used for women are not effective or are even harmful. 6

By first stating the study’s findings, Thompson can emphasise important details and then draw back to consider the wider implications of this study and others that have conducted sex-specific analyses.

While the opening needs to keep readers engaged and draw readers through the middle of your commentary, the ending is the most important part of a commentary. It is your final opportunity to make a lasting impact on readers. A good ending will reinforce your points and resonate in the minds of readers. Margaret Heaton, commenting on a review of pre-operative hair removal, wrote:

Practitioners should ask why evidence should not be applied, rather than why it should be applied. Policies can create room for such questioning by promoting the use of clipping or depilatory cream when individual practitioners believe it is appropriate. Shaving, whether wet or dry, should always be avoided. 7

Heaton’s concluding sentence is so forceful, it is difficult to see how she avoided using an exclamation mark. The “take home” message is very clear and will stay with readers.

The choice of whether to advise practitioners to use the evidence is at the centre of every commentary. We encourage commentators to make such choices. Many studies will merit a more diffident conclusion than that offered by Heaton, but that should not preclude clarity. In studies where there are gaps in the evidence, use of consensus statements and guidelines offer commentators a sensible conclusion. Julie Betts took just this approach to conclude her commentary on a review of dressings for venous leg ulcers:

Given the current absence of evidence, clinical choice of dressing should initially be that which is simple, inexpensive, and acceptable to patients. 8

An important element of any writing is its flow. Flow and structure are inseparable. The ideas a commentator wants to convey are crucial to the structure and flow of a commentary. Flow is built out of the linking and logic of your ideas. It is likely that you will use 2–4 paragraphs in your commentary. Each successive paragraph must build upon the preceding paragraph, and within each paragraph, each sentence must build upon the preceding sentence. Linda Patrick demonstrates superb linking between sentences following an opening about the burden of disease management:

Achieving optimal glycaemic control in type 2 diabetes can be complicated by the progressive nature of the disease, warranting more treatment over time to minimise complications. Patients are often reluctant to move to insulin injections, perceiving them as punitive for failed attempts at diabetes management. Alternatives such as inhaled insulin are seductive because of their potential to improve patient acceptance of treatment options, but the need for clinical trials to establish their safety and effectiveness cannot be understated. Studies such as the one by Rosenstock et al are necessary before we can promote widespread use of inhaled insulin. 9

The first sentence establishes the need for vigilant monitoring and increased treatment. The second sentence reveals why some patients are reluctant to change their regimen to injected insulin, setting the scene for the alternative regimen raised by the third sentence and the need for evidence before promoting such regimens in the fourth sentence. The variations in sentence length and internal structure also serve to produce a consistent flow in the commentary toward the concluding sentences.

Reading from hard copy rather than the computer screen and reading the commentary out loud are exercises that will help you to improve flow.

ON WRITING STYLE

Good science writing keeps the audience at the fore. Your readers will include other experienced clinicians, people new to the field, and curious generalists. A commentary must cater to all of these readers, and it is important to use language that promotes understanding. The commentary by Dawn Kingston on a smoking cessation intervention is a good example:

Tobacco smoking is a leading cause of death worldwide. Interventions to prevent the uptake of smoking are urgently needed. The study by Hollis et al is an important addition to the evidence. 10

The extent and urgency of the problem is outlined, and the importance of the study findings is asserted in brief, clear sentences. The style is akin to that of a newspaper editorial, and its staccato approach creates an urgency that reinforces Kingston’s points. This commentary reflects passionately held views.

A more academic style can also be used. Jane Joy, commenting on a review of therapies for constipation, employs technical terms, but without reducing clarity or excluding readers:

Constipation is defined by the passage of infrequent hard stool and is associated with bloating, flatulence, abdominal pain, and a feeling of incomplete evacuation. Specific patient groups, such as those with terminal illness, are at high risk of constipation, but the condition is also a common reason for consultation in general practice, especially for the young and old. 11

The term is defined, symptoms reviewed, and the patient populations identified, so that readers learn in the first sentence whether they need continue. The stylistic differences between Kingston and Joy also reflect the personal voice of the commentators. For instance, the tone in Joy’s passage is gentler as it courses towards a conclusion, perhaps reflecting a little more authorial distance from the topic.

Once you have submitted your commentary to the EBN editorial office, it will undergo several levels of editing. First, all commentaries are edited for journal style and format. Evidence-Based Nursing is publication of the BMJ Publishing Group and the Royal College of Nursing Publishing. It follows BMJ house style, which includes, for example, UK spelling. As well, because Evidence-Based Nursing is an abstract journal and each abstract and accompanying commentary must fit on a single printed page, there are several style conventions that are unique to Evidence-Based Nursing . For example, because of space restrictions, numbers within the narrative text of the abstract and commentary are almost always written out as numerals, even if they appear at the beginning of a sentence. Given the space limitations of the journal, commentaries that are too long must be edited for length. This is usually done within the context of the next level of editing described below.

Each commentary will also be reviewed and edited for content, structure, and writing. During this process, members of the editorial team (ie, the Research Associate, Associate Editor, and Co-Editor) act as representatives of the readers of the journal. 12 That is, they read the commentary from the perspective of a naïve reader and consider the various points that were raised throughout this Notebook. Look for more on editing of commentaries in future Notebooks. For now, the main point is to expect that your commentary will be edited—try not to be disheartened by these edits. All commentaries submitted to Evidence-Based Nursing , even in final draft, are still just that—drafts, which can be polished and crafted. The structured abstracts that are written by the journal staff also go through similar levels of editing. This doesn’t diminish the efforts of the commentator to put pen to paper—we respect those efforts and only want to help to make your message clearer.

Every commentary is ultimately about choice—it seeks to address the question “What is the value of this evidence?” Clinical practice will proceed without perfect knowledge, but we believe that expert commentaries are a useful opportunity to help clinicians synthesise evidence in the face of imperfect information. Commentaries that, in simple prose, lay out a few key ideas in clear sentences that flow from one to the next with a clear take-home message will be good commentaries. Commentaries require some effort to produce, but when approached by Evidence-Based Nursing , we hope that you will take the opportunity to help us and your colleagues.

↵ Atwood M. Negotiating with the dead: a writer on writing . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002 .
↵ Iglesias C, Nixon J, Cranny G, et al. Pressure relieving support surfaces (PRESSURE) trial: cost effectiveness analysis. BMJ 2006 ; 332 : 1416 –20. OpenUrl Abstract / FREE Full Text
↵ King S. On writing: a memoir of the craft . London: Hodder and Soughton, 2000 .
↵ Coetzee J M. Slow man . Sydney: Knopf, 2005 .
↵ Griffiths P. Commentary on: “Early discharge plus home based rehabilitation reduced length of initial hospital stay but did not improve health related quality of life in patients with acute stroke.” Evid Based Nurs 2000;3:127. Comment on: Anderson C, Rubenach S, Ni Nhurchu C, et al . Home or hospital for stroke rehabilitation? Results of a randomized controlled trial. I: health outcomes at 6 months. Stroke 2000 ; 31 : 1024 –31. OpenUrl Abstract / FREE Full Text
↵ Thompson D R. Commentary on: “Low dose aspirin lowered stroke risk but not risk of myocardial infarction or cardiovascular death in women. Evid Based Nurs . 2006;9:76. Comment on: Ridker PM, Cook NR, Lee I-M, et al, A randomized trial of low-dose aspirin in the primary prevention of cardiovascular disease in women. N Engl J Med 2005 ; 352 : 1293 –304. OpenUrl CrossRef PubMed Web of Science
↵ Heaton M. Commentary on “Review: evidence from ⩽2 low quality studies suggests no difference in surgical site infection with or without preoperative hair removal; depilatory cream and clipping are better than shaving. Evid Based Nurs . 2007;10:17. Comment on: Tanner J, Woodings D, Moncaster K, Preoperative hair removal to reduce surgical site infection. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2006 ; ( 3 ) : CD004122 . OpenUrl PubMed
↵ Betts J. Commentary on: “Review: insufficient evidence exists for any one dressing type (used beneath compression) for venous leg ulcer healing.” Evidence-Based Nursing 2007;10:21. Comment on: Palfreyman SJ, Nelson EA, Lochiel R, et al . Dressings for healing venous leg ulcers. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2006 ; ( 3 ) : CD001103 . OpenUrl PubMed
↵ Patrick L. Commentary on: “Inhaled insulin added to or replacing 2 oral agents reduced haemoglobin A 1c concentrations in type 2 diabetes.” Evid Based Nurs 2006;9:49. Comment on: Rosenstock J, Zinman B, Murphy LJ, et al . Inhaled insulin improves glycemic control when substituted for or added to oral combination therapy in type 2 diabetes: a randomized, controlled trial. Ann Intern Med 2005 ; 143 : 549 –58. OpenUrl PubMed Web of Science
↵ Kingston D. Commentary on: “Clinician advice, an interactive computer program, and motivational counselling during routine medical visits increased reported smoking abstinence among teens.” Evid Based Nurs 2005;8:105. Comment on: Hollis JF, Polen MR, Whitlock EP, et al . Teen reach: outcomes from a randomized controlled trial of a tobacco reduction program for teens seen in primary medical care. Pediatrics 2005 ; 115 : 981 –9. OpenUrl Abstract / FREE Full Text
↵ Joy J P. Commentary on: “Review: good evidence supports use of polyethylene glycol and tegaserod for constipation.” Evid Based Nurs 2005;8:109. Comment on: Ramkumar D, Rao SS. Efficacy and safety of traditional medical therapies for chronic constipation: systematic review. Am J Gastroenterol 2005 ; 100 : 936 –71. OpenUrl CrossRef PubMed Web of Science
↵ Kramer M, Call W, editors. Telling true stories: a non-fiction writer’s guide from the Nieman Foundation at Harvard University . USA: Plume, 2007 .

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New Migrants Get Work Permits. Other Undocumented Immigrants Want Them, Too.

Long-term undocumented immigrants — and their employers — are feeling left out by Biden administration policies allowing most who just crossed the border to work legally.

Restaurant owner Sam Sanchez, wearing a blue sport coat, sits on a black leather couch inside one of his eateries.

By Miriam Jordan and Lydia DePillis

Sam Sanchez, a Chicago restaurateur, was incensed when President Biden announced last September that his administration would extend work eligibility to nearly half a million Venezuelans, many of them migrants who had recently crossed the border illegally.

Listen to this article with reporter commentary

What about his undocumented employees like Ruben, a Mexican father of two U.S.-born children who has been in the United States since 1987, and Juan, another Mexican worker, who has trained dozens of new hires at Moe’s Cantina?

“It’s offensive that my employees and other immigrants are being leapfrogged by new arrivals,” said Mr. Sanchez, who is on the board of the National Restaurant Association.

Having built lives and families since entering the country unlawfully many years ago, they have been waiting for Congress to give them a path to work legally. “For those of us here a long time trying to do everything right, it’s just not fair that we are forgotten,” said Juan, 53, whose last name was withheld out of concern about his immigration status.

Confronted with an influx of migrants making their way to Chicago, New York and other big cities, Mr. Biden has used executive power to allow several hundred thousand of them to live and work temporarily in the United States in an effort to make them less reliant on shelters and other assistance.

Now groups representing undocumented immigrants and their U.S.-citizen children — as well as their employers — are urging the president to deploy the same broad power to open channels for the more than eight million living in the United States who are barred from legal employment.

“If President Biden can grant work permits to new arrivals, he can do it for people picking our crops, emptying bedpans and cleaning hotel rooms for more than 10 years,” said Rebecca Shi, executive director of the American Business Immigration Coalition, whose 1,400 members include business associations and company executives.

Business leaders have lobbied Republicans and Democrats on Capitol Hill for decades to overhaul the broken immigration system and address their labor needs. But the calls have gone nowhere in an increasingly polarized Congress.

At a rally in Chicago last month, demonstrators urged the Biden administration to allow undocumented immigrants to work legally. And in Las Vegas, Nevada’s governor, a Republican, and the state’s U.S. senators, both Democrats, joined employers, unions and immigrant advocates to send the same message.

The business coalition, in a letter to the president signed by more than 300 employers and trade associations, urged “immediate action” to extend work authorization to long-term undocumented people. In particular, Ms. Shi said, the president should prioritize work permits for those without legal status: more than one million undocumented spouses of U.S. citizens, 800,000 parents of U.S.-citizen children and 300,000 farm workers.

About three quarters of the 10.5 million undocumented people in the United States as of 2021 were in the labor force, according to the Pew Research Center , an independent think tank. Roughly two million people out of the overall undocumented population have a temporary legal status that makes them eligible to work.

But a sweeping action by the president to allow millions more to work legally could prompt court challenges and political attacks from critics, even as some of those same critics have stymied or undermined the administration’s efforts.

Mr. Biden’s latest proposal — a bill this year to curb unlawful migration — was backed by top Republicans in Congress. But it collapsed after Republican leaders withdrew support, bowing to pressure from former President Donald J. Trump, their party’s presumptive presidential nominee.

The surge in migration to the United States has left Mr. Biden with no easy options. The perception that he is favoring newcomers over longtime undocumented immigrants could hurt him among Latino voters, long a Democratic bloc that has begun to fragment, with an increasing number supporting Republican candidates.

Eduardo Gamarra, a professor at Florida International University who recently polled Latino voters , said that some of them who have settled in the United States may see themselves as having less in common with the new immigrants.

“When you try to say, ‘Why are you supporting these positions?’ they will tell you, one, ‘We don’t like illegals,’ even though they might have been illegal themselves,’” Dr. Gamarra said.

Channels exist for foreigners to immigrate legally to the United States, but they are available primarily to those who have specialized skills or family already in the country.

Meanwhile, international crises have pushed millions of people toward the U.S. border. Haiti, Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua have endured years of political and economic turbulence. Over the last year, President Biden has used humanitarian “parole” to allow about 390,000 people from those countries to come to the United States and receive work authorization, provided they have a financial sponsor.

Hundreds of thousands of other Venezuelans who have fled their country have received what is known as Temporary Protected Status, which has helped Venezuelans leave shelters as they receive work permits.

To better manage the flow of migrants, the Biden administration has promoted a smartphone app that since last year has granted parole to those who use it to schedule appointments at the border, creating another way for migrants to obtain work eligibility.

Margaret Stock, an immigration lawyer, said that the president has legal authority to authorize employment for others. “He may be reluctant, but Biden could grant parole and work permits to whoever he wanted,” she said.

A White House spokesman, Angelo Fernández Hernández, responded in general terms when asked about the push for work permits, saying that Congress had failed to consider the president’s 2021 proposal to reform immigration , and that, “the administration is constantly evaluating possible policy options.” Obtaining a work permit opens up a wider range of opportunities and raises immigrant wages by 10 percent on average, research shows .

Those who have lived unlawfully in the United States for decades typically work off the books, or present documents under a fake or stolen name to get hired, which is illegal. It has become more difficult to do that because about half of all states require employers to use an electronic system to detect irregularities.

Business owners like Mr. Sanchez who employ people without valid work documents have become increasingly vocal about the plight of their workers and their struggle filling jobs amid a labor shortage.

And although more seasonal guest worker visas have been issued in recent years for some sectors, like agriculture, employers say that granting work permits to longtime unauthorized immigrants would do more to address the problem.

“We have operations that want to grow,” said Matt Teagarden, chief executive of the Kansas Livestock Association. “Labor is a limiting factor.”

The billions of dollars that undocumented immigrants contribute to public coffers has heightened the sense that Mr. Biden’s recent efforts for newcomers are unfair. According to an analysis of 2021 census data by the American Immigration Council , undocumented workers paid $31 billion in federal, state and local taxes, including into the Social Security system from which they cannot draw retirement benefits.

Eréndira Rendón, whose parents are undocumented Mexicans in their late 60s, has watched mayors press the White House to issue work permits to recently arrived migrants straining municipal resources.

Her mother jarred pickles and her father worked in a slaughterhouse. They put two children through college and bought a home. Because they cannot receive retirement benefits, they depend on their children to help them.

“I wish the mayors were advocating as loudly for undocumented people who have been here all these years,” said Ms. Rendón, 38, who works for a nonprofit in Chicago called the Resurrection Project that helps new migrants complete work permit applications.

For some immigrants, new migrants also create competition for jobs. Although research generally shows that immigrants do not depress wages overall, there can be short-term effects on similar workers.

The dynamic is palpable in New York City at the corners where immigrants hustle for work. Lucia Goyen, director of day laborer programs at Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York, says newcomers will often accept just a few dollars an hour, lowering wages for everyone.

When new arrivals receive work permits, they are free to find a job in the formal economy that is still off limits to many who have been in the city far longer.

”There has been this frustration of, ‘I’ve been here 20-30 years, I have no access to a work permit, but this is a growing list of things that new migrants are getting handed to them,’” Ms. Goyen said.

Read by Miriam Jordan

Audio produced by Jack D’Isidoro .

Miriam Jordan reports from a grass roots perspective on immigrants and their impact on the demographics, society and economy of the United States. More about Miriam Jordan

Lydia DePillis reports on the American economy. She has been a journalist since 2009, and can be reached at [email protected]. More about Lydia DePillis

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Opinion | A columnist made a controversial introduction to Caitlin Clark

IndyStar sports columnist Gregg Doyel has been crushed online and accused of being creepy, sexist and worse. He’s since apologized multiple times

This did not go as expected. And it didn’t go how it should have gone.

Basketball star Caitlin Clark, fresh off leading the University of Iowa to a spot in the national championship game in women’s college basketball, was the first overall pick in the WNBA Draft by the Indiana Fever earlier this week. On Wednesday, she had her introductory news conference in Indianapolis with the local media. IndyStar sports columnist Gregg Doyel introduced himself in a way that has drawn massive criticism, and led to not one, but two apologies from Doyel.

Here’s what happened:

Doyel started his first question by saying, “Real quick, let me do this.” At that point, Doyel used his hands to form a heart sign — something that Clark often does on the court to her family.

Clark responded by saying, “You like that?”

Doyel said, “I like that you’re here. I like that you’re here.”

Then Clark responded by talking about the hand sign, saying, “I do that at my family after every game, so.”

Then it got creepier when Doyel said, “OK, well start doing that to me and we’ll get along just fine.”

Almost as soon as it happened, Doyel was crushed online. He was accused of being creepy, sexist and worse. He tweeted an apology , saying, “My comment afterward was clumsy and awkward. I sincerely apologize. Please know my heart (literally and figuratively) was well-intentioned. I will do better.”

Then he wrote a column , saying he was devastated to learn that he is “part of the problem” when it comes to covering women in sports. He wrote, “In my haste to be clever, to be familiar and welcoming (or so I thought), I offended Caitlin and her family. After going through denial, and then anger — I’m on the wrong side of this? Me??? — I now realize what I said and how I said it was wrong, wrong, wrong. I mean it was just wrong. Caitlin Clark, I’m so sorry.”

As a former sports columnist, I think I know what Doyel was trying to do. Local sports columnists try to have a somewhat familiar working relationship with the star athletes in town. Doyel was trying to rush the connection from introduction to familiarity.

But what do they say about the road to hell being paved with …?

Doyel badly bungled his introduction. He insulted Clark specifically and disrespected women in general. He has been publicly humiliated, and likely will have to wear this for a long time, if not the rest of his career. Some would say deservedly so. He did apologize — although some questioned that. Perhaps this can be a teaching moment for all who cover sports, particularly women in sports.

Veteran journalist Jemele Hill, who has spent much of her career covering sports, had a thoughtful response on X , writing, “This was a terrible moment for Gregg Doyel, a journalist I’ve known practically since I first started reporting professionally. Obviously something that never would have been said to a male athlete. I said this some time ago, but another upside of Caitlin Clark’s popularity is that it is going to finally force the sports media to grow up. Sports media has been extremely complicit in marginalizing and infantilizing women’s sports. A lot of the commentary and coverage is now coming from people who have little experience covering female athletes (not sure Doyel fits that category) — which is probably frustrating to the people who have been covering them for years.”

Media meddling

Jury selection Thursday in Donald Trump’s hush money trial in New York was a bit messy, partly because of the media’s role.

Before 12 jurors were ultimately selected, two jurors were dismissed, including one because she expressed concerns after family members, friends and colleagues asked if she was a juror in the case. She said those close to her warned she could be identified, leading to harassment down the road.

The judge in the case had warned the media about revealing too much information regarding those in the jury and jury pool.

According to NBC News’ Adam Reiss and Dareh Gregorian , Judge Juan Merchan ordered the press not to report on various descriptions of the prospective jurors, including physical descriptions and their employment history — both current and former.

Merchan said “we just lost” what “probably would have been a very good juror for this case” because media reports described just enough about her that she might be able to be identified. Merchan said he has the “legal authority” to stop news outlets from reporting jurors’ information.

Several news outlets have been reporting various details about the potential jurors. The judge especially zeroed in on two questions on the jury questionnaire: “Who is your current employer?” and “Who was your prior employer?”

The New York Times’ Jesse McKinley, Kate Christobek and Matthew Haag wrote , “The judge conceded that the information about employers was necessary for lawyers to know. But he directed that those two answers be redacted from the transcript.”

Meanwhile, The Washington Post’s Devlin Barrett, Josh Dawsey and Shayna Jacobs reported Trump’s team had been digging through old social media posts of potential jurors. They did so in search of any bias against the former president.

The Post wrote early Thursday (before the 12-person jury was selected), “Behind the scenes, Trump’s defense team is scrambling to find and review potential jurors’ social media accounts, and when they find ones critical of the former president and presumptive GOP presidential nominee, they are racing to show them to the judge to try to get those people dismissed. The turnaround time for such work is tight — lawyers on the case have been given lists of names of potential jurors, some of whom they have to start questioning in a matter of hours, according to a person familiar with the work, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe internal operations.”

Trump’s team has been trying to make a claim that they’re dealing with an unfair jury pool, and they believed it was a smart strategy to scour old social media writings. The Post wrote, “That is not a particularly novel strategy among wealthier defendants who can afford to pay for such work, but it is unique in that it is being applied in a case involving Trump, someone about whom millions of Americans have gossiped, joked, criticized and praised for years — meaning there is far more potential social media material for his lawyers to seize on.”

Here is more media news, tidbits and interesting links for your weekend review …

The Washington Post’s Philip Bump with “Being a juror on a high-profile case: Life inside a bubble.”
Speaking of that Clark press conference, Awful Announcing’s Andrew Bucholtz with “Gregg Doyel-Caitlin Clark situation shows wider issues with press conferences, especially for women’s sports.”
Fox News and host Bill Hemmer have a special on the Fox Nation streaming service now called “Battle for the Arctic.” It looks at the various geopolitical issues regarding the Arctic Circle — particularly when it comes to Russia and various NATO countries. Here’s a preview clip .
John Harwood, formerly of CNN and CNBC, writes on Subtack’s Zeteo: “How Cancer Changed My Perspective On The Threat to Democracy.”
The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Will Bunch with “Fear and loathing on America’s college campuses as free speech is disappearing.”
In the wake of the whole Uri Berliner-NPR flap, media columnist Margaret Sullivan writes for the Guardian US: “NPR needs a serious critique not a politically charged parting shot.”
Axios’ Sara Fischer with “California news nonprofit CalMatters acquires tech news nonprofit The Markup.”
And Fischer also with “Essence’s parent to buy Refinery29 from Vice Media.”
The New York Times’ Matthew Goldstein and David Yaffe-Bellany with “Legal Fight Over Trump Media’s Ownership Adds to Its Woes.”
The Los Angeles Times’ Angie Orellana Hernandez with “The Biden administration might ban TikTok. These Latinx small-business owners are worried.”
The Indiana Daily Student — an independent, student-run newspaper at Indiana University — will stage a 24-hour walkout next week. Here’s why , according to The Indiana Daily Student’s Nic Napier and Salomé Cloteaux.
Nicole Carr of ProPublica, and Mike Jordan of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution with “A Powerful Atlanta Movie Executive Praised for His Diversity Efforts Shared Racist, Antisemitic Sentiments in Texts.”
For McClatchy, Genevieve Belmaker and Rosemary Montalvo with “Indigenous leaders urge western WA nonprofit to address bullying harassment allegations.”
The Ringer’s Dan Moore writes about the sad situation of baseball’s Oakland A’s, which plan on moving to Las Vegas: “When fans fight back.”

More resources for journalists

Due today! Applications for Poynter Producer Project
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Delve more deeply into your editing skills with Poynter ACES Intermediate Certificate in Editing .

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected] .

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Topography of a news ecosystem: A first-of-its-kind study diagnoses the local news crisis in a single state

Media scholars at the University of Maryland documented the spread of local news dead spots — and unexpected vibrant areas — in that state.

$12 million Global Fact Check Fund opens applications for second year of grants

A partnership between Poynter’s International Fact-Checking Network and Google and YouTube continues to support fact-checking initiatives worldwide

‘Satanic rituals’ at Taylor Swift shows? That’s false. And experts say the attack isn’t new.

Experts say musicians have been accused of performing satanic rituals for decades

How a longtime film critic’s death represents the great dissolve of local film criticism

Bryan VanCampen of The Ithaca Times was an institution in the central New York college town of 32,000. He might have been the last of his kind.

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NPR defends its journalism after senior editor says it has lost the public's trust

David Folkenflik

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images hide caption

NPR is defending its journalism and integrity after a senior editor wrote an essay accusing it of losing the public's trust.

NPR's top news executive defended its journalism and its commitment to reflecting a diverse array of views on Tuesday after a senior NPR editor wrote a broad critique of how the network has covered some of the most important stories of the age.

"An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don't have an audience that reflects America," writes Uri Berliner.

A strategic emphasis on diversity and inclusion on the basis of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation, promoted by NPR's former CEO, John Lansing, has fed "the absence of viewpoint diversity," Berliner writes.

NPR's chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner's assessment.

"We're proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories," she wrote. "We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world."

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She added, "None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole."

A spokesperson for NPR said Chapin, who also serves as the network's chief content officer, would have no further comment.

Praised by NPR's critics

Berliner is a senior editor on NPR's Business Desk. (Disclosure: I, too, am part of the Business Desk, and Berliner has edited many of my past stories. He did not see any version of this article or participate in its preparation before it was posted publicly.)

Berliner's essay , titled "I've Been at NPR for 25 years. Here's How We Lost America's Trust," was published by The Free Press, a website that has welcomed journalists who have concluded that mainstream news outlets have become reflexively liberal.

Berliner writes that as a Subaru-driving, Sarah Lawrence College graduate who "was raised by a lesbian peace activist mother ," he fits the mold of a loyal NPR fan.

Yet Berliner says NPR's news coverage has fallen short on some of the most controversial stories of recent years, from the question of whether former President Donald Trump colluded with Russia in the 2016 election, to the origins of the virus that causes COVID-19, to the significance and provenance of emails leaked from a laptop owned by Hunter Biden weeks before the 2020 election. In addition, he blasted NPR's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

On each of these stories, Berliner asserts, NPR has suffered from groupthink due to too little diversity of viewpoints in the newsroom.

The essay ricocheted Tuesday around conservative media , with some labeling Berliner a whistleblower . Others picked it up on social media, including Elon Musk, who has lambasted NPR for leaving his social media site, X. (Musk emailed another NPR reporter a link to Berliner's article with a gibe that the reporter was a "quisling" — a World War II reference to someone who collaborates with the enemy.)

When asked for further comment late Tuesday, Berliner declined, saying the essay spoke for itself.

The arguments he raises — and counters — have percolated across U.S. newsrooms in recent years. The #MeToo sexual harassment scandals of 2016 and 2017 forced newsrooms to listen to and heed more junior colleagues. The social justice movement prompted by the killing of George Floyd in 2020 inspired a reckoning in many places. Newsroom leaders often appeared to stand on shaky ground.

Leaders at many newsrooms, including top editors at The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times , lost their jobs. Legendary Washington Post Executive Editor Martin Baron wrote in his memoir that he feared his bonds with the staff were "frayed beyond repair," especially over the degree of self-expression his journalists expected to exert on social media, before he decided to step down in early 2021.

Since then, Baron and others — including leaders of some of these newsrooms — have suggested that the pendulum has swung too far.

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New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger warned last year against journalists embracing a stance of what he calls "one-side-ism": "where journalists are demonstrating that they're on the side of the righteous."

"I really think that that can create blind spots and echo chambers," he said.

Internal arguments at The Times over the strength of its reporting on accusations that Hamas engaged in sexual assaults as part of a strategy for its Oct. 7 attack on Israel erupted publicly . The paper conducted an investigation to determine the source of a leak over a planned episode of the paper's podcast The Daily on the subject, which months later has not been released. The newsroom guild accused the paper of "targeted interrogation" of journalists of Middle Eastern descent.

Heated pushback in NPR's newsroom

Given Berliner's account of private conversations, several NPR journalists question whether they can now trust him with unguarded assessments about stories in real time. Others express frustration that he had not sought out comment in advance of publication. Berliner acknowledged to me that for this story, he did not seek NPR's approval to publish the piece, nor did he give the network advance notice.

Some of Berliner's NPR colleagues are responding heatedly. Fernando Alfonso, a senior supervising editor for digital news, wrote that he wholeheartedly rejected Berliner's critique of the coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict, for which NPR's journalists, like their peers, periodically put themselves at risk.

Alfonso also took issue with Berliner's concern over the focus on diversity at NPR.

"As a person of color who has often worked in newsrooms with little to no people who look like me, the efforts NPR has made to diversify its workforce and its sources are unique and appropriate given the news industry's long-standing lack of diversity," Alfonso says. "These efforts should be celebrated and not denigrated as Uri has done."

After this story was first published, Berliner contested Alfonso's characterization, saying his criticism of NPR is about the lack of diversity of viewpoints, not its diversity itself.

"I never criticized NPR's priority of achieving a more diverse workforce in terms of race, ethnicity and sexual orientation. I have not 'denigrated' NPR's newsroom diversity goals," Berliner said. "That's wrong."

Questions of diversity

Under former CEO John Lansing, NPR made increasing diversity, both of its staff and its audience, its "North Star" mission. Berliner says in the essay that NPR failed to consider broader diversity of viewpoint, noting, "In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans."

Berliner cited audience estimates that suggested a concurrent falloff in listening by Republicans. (The number of people listening to NPR broadcasts and terrestrial radio broadly has declined since the start of the pandemic.)

Former NPR vice president for news and ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin tweeted , "I know Uri. He's not wrong."

Others questioned Berliner's logic. "This probably gets causality somewhat backward," tweeted Semafor Washington editor Jordan Weissmann . "I'd guess that a lot of NPR listeners who voted for [Mitt] Romney have changed how they identify politically."

Similarly, Nieman Lab founder Joshua Benton suggested the rise of Trump alienated many NPR-appreciating Republicans from the GOP.

In recent years, NPR has greatly enhanced the percentage of people of color in its workforce and its executive ranks. Four out of 10 staffers are people of color; nearly half of NPR's leadership team identifies as Black, Asian or Latino.

"The philosophy is: Do you want to serve all of America and make sure it sounds like all of America, or not?" Lansing, who stepped down last month, says in response to Berliner's piece. "I'd welcome the argument against that."

"On radio, we were really lagging in our representation of an audience that makes us look like what America looks like today," Lansing says. The U.S. looks and sounds a lot different than it did in 1971, when NPR's first show was broadcast, Lansing says.

A network spokesperson says new NPR CEO Katherine Maher supports Chapin and her response to Berliner's critique.

The spokesperson says that Maher "believes that it's a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better."

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Media Correspondent David Folkenflik and edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editor Gerry Holmes. Under NPR's protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.

COMMENTS

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From Summary to Insight: A Guide to Writing Commentary Essays with Depth

What Is Commentary In An Essay?

The Significance Of Commentary In Essay Writing

Key Elements Of Effective Commentary

Strategies For Writing Potent Commentary In Essays

Develop a strong thesis statement

Understand the topic better

Body And Paragraphs Organized

Use literary analysis

The Use Of Quotations And Examples In Commentary

Types Of Commentary In Essays: Comprehending The Contrasts

Strategies For Writing Commentary In Literary Essays

Writing Commentary For Convincing Essays

Creating Commentary That Supports Your Thesis Statement

Common Mistakes To Avoid In Commentary Writing

Avoiding Overgeneralization

Lack Of Evidence

Tips For Revising And Editing Commentary

Examples Of Strong And Poor Commentary In Essays

Paragraph Construction With Commentary

Transition Words And Phrases For Commentary

Writing A Conclusion With Commentary: Do’s And Don’ts

Recommended Reading...

Commentary Essay Example, Writing Guide, and Tips

Introduction

What is a Commentary Essay?

Why Write a Commentary Essay?

Key Components of a Commentary Essay

Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Commentary Essay

Step 2: Conduct Extensive Research

Step 3: Outline Your Essay

Step 4: Craft an Engaging Introduction

Step 5: Develop Your Arguments in the Body Paragraphs

Step 6: Address Counterarguments

Step 7: Conclude with Impact

Commentary Essay Example

Introduction:

Body Paragraph 1: The Causes of Climate Change

Body Paragraph 2: The Impacts of Climate Change

Body Paragraph 3: Potential Solutions to Climate Change

Conclusion:

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How to Write a Perspective Essay?

What Is a Commentary in an Essay | Writing Guide & Examples

How to Write an Outstanding Commentary Essay & Examples

Definition of What Is a Commentary in an Essay and Its Meaning

Basic Structure of a Commentary Essay

5 Main Types of Commentary

Alternative Commentary Types and Examples

1️⃣ Close, Direct Analysis of Passages

Example of a Commentary on Celebration of Nature in the First Stanza of Christopher Dewdney’s Poem “Night Wind”

2️⃣ Commentary Annotations

3 Examples of a Commentary With Annotations

3️⃣ Data Commentary

Example of Data Commentary

Possible Uses of Block Quotations for Writing a Good Commentary Essay

📕 APA Format

📕 MLA Format

📕 Harvard Format

📕 Chicago/Turabian Format

Key Features of Formatting Block Quotes When Writing a Commentary Essay

Easy Sample Topics for Writing a Great Commentary Essay

Sample Outline Template for Writing a Commentary Essay

Example of a Commentary Essay

I. Example of an Introduction of a Commentary Essay

II. Example of Body Paragraphs of a Commentary Essay

III. Example of a Conclusion of a Commentary Essay

4 Easy Steps for Writing a Commentary Essay

Step 1: Preparation

Step 2: Stage Setup

Step 3: Writing a First Draft of a Commentary Essay