After previewing, begin reading carefully for meaning, trying especially to identify the writer’s main point and the support for that point.

MAIN POINT, PURPOSE, AND AUDIENCE

The main point of a reading is the central idea the author wants to communicate. The main point is related to the writer’s purpose, which can be to explain, to demonstrate, to persuade, to entertain, and to inform his or her intended audience, which can range from specific (say a particular person) to general (any reader of a periodical). Writers often introduce their main point early, so read the first few paragraphs with special care. If the writer has stated the main point in a single sentence, double-underline it.

SUPPORT

Support is the evidence that shows, explains, or proves the main point. The author might use statistics, facts, definitions, and scientific results for support. Or he or she might use memories, stories, comparisons, quotations from experts, and personal observations.

Not all support is good support. When you are reading, ask yourself: What information is the author including to help me understand or agree with the main point? Is the support (evidence) valid and convincing? If not, why not?

In the paragraph below, the main point has been double-underlined and the support has been underlined.

Neighbors who are too friendly can be seen just about anywhere. I mean that both ways. They exist in every neighborhood I have ever lived in and seem to appear everywhere I go. For some strange reason these people become extremely attached to my family and stop in as many as eight to ten times a day. No matter how tired I appear to be, nothing short of opening the door and suggesting they leave will make them go home at night. (I once told an unusually friendly neighbor that his house was on fire, in an attempt to make him leave, and he still took ten minutes to say goodbye.) What is truly interesting about these people is their strong desire to cook for us even though they have developed no culinary skill whatsoever. (This has always proved particularly disconcerting since they stay to watch us eat every bite as they continually ask if the food “tastes good.”)

— From Jonathan R. Gould Jr., “The People Next Door”