Purpose is the goal of your work—your aim or objective. Your purpose will inform many of the decisions you make as a composer. Your audience is made up of the people who will read, view, or listen to your work. When you’re composing in college, it’s easy to think that your audience is limited to “the teacher.” Yes, your instructor is part of your audience, but usually your instructor is not your primary audience or the only audience you are writing to.
Often, the assignment will suggest or require both a purpose and an audience.
In a composition course, an instructor might ask each student to use photos and written words to argue a position in a current campus debate.
In a marketing course, the assignment might call for a slide show presentation that analyzes consumer trends over time.
In a natural sciences class, the assignment might ask students to write and direct a public service announcement that informs viewers about hurricane preparedness.
These are all examples of academic projects, but the purposes are different for each. In these examples, the composition student’s purpose is to argue, the marketing student’s purpose is to analyze, and the natural sciences student’s purpose is to inform. If, for example, the natural sciences student produced a short digital movie in which he made an argument that state agencies need more funding for hurricane preparedness, he would probably not be satisfying the assignment.
Audience considerations also influence the content and presentation of your project. Sometimes your instructor will give you guidance about who your audience is—other students on your campus, for example, or state legislators. Sometimes the assignment will direct you to address a particular audience, such as student athletes or readers of your campus newspaper.
If your purpose is to persuade, your main audience will probably be those who disagree with you or are undecided. If your purpose is to instruct, your audience will probably be nonexperts, those who need basic or step-by-step information.
Related topics:
Prewriting with your purpose in mind
Identifying your audience’s needs and perspectives
Connecting with your audience
Recognizing an unintended audience