Writers can draw on a wide range of documents to share their judgments. Their evaluations might appear in print, as is often the case with articles and editorials, or on the Web, which is increasingly home to reviews, many of them posted to discussion boards and electronic mailing lists. In writing and writing-intensive courses, the most frequently assigned evaluative projects include essays, reports, blog entries, and source evaluations.

Evaluative documents make important contributions to conversations that focus on the relative merits of products, media, policies, proposals, and artistic works, and they often stand on their own as assessments, opinions, or advice that readers seek out as they try to form their own judgments. Evaluations can also contribute to broader conversations that focus less on judgment alone and more on problem solving or argument. For example, an evaluative report on a U.S. government program might help a writer support a proposal to change foreign policy. The following sections offer discussions and examples of three of the most common evaluative genres: evaluative essays, product reviews, and food reviews. In the e-Pages for this chapter, you’ll find discussions and examples of progress reports, ratings Web sites, and comparison tools.