Name of the Reviewer: Meera Patel
Author’s Name: Sydney Dunn
Title of the Definition: Definitions
Purpose:
I’ve read and reviewed your three definitions of the word Contrapposto created for Assignment 3 of Unit 1 for English 301, and agree that you have done the word justice. You have presented a brilliant overall understanding of the word and then clearly convey it for the audience identified via each of the definition styles. Below, I highlight a few points of minor revisions that may improve the understanding of your definition.
Audience:
Being unfamiliar with this term, I think you have successfully accounted for the appropriate context needed for the reader to be educated on the topic. In particular, paragraph 3 sentence 1 of the expanded definition helped me relate the word to a context I was more familiar with (Ancient Greek culture) which helped my overall understanding of the term. You’ve made word choices that are easy to comprehend. Descriptive words like “static,” “stiff,” and “illusion of movement” help the audience understand the term’s meaning in this context, although they aren’t of specific jargon.
Organization:
In your expanded definition, you have used etymology, compare and contrast, and a visual which I feel are appropriate methods. The expanded definition captures the simplicity of the term, but perhaps it could be elaborated to include the elements of an introduction, body, and conclusion to be a more cohesive definition. The first sentence is repetitive of the previous parenthetical and sentence definition. I suggest removing that sentence to avoid redundancy. The purpose and audience sections are clearly addressed in the expanded definition, with the “Art History” connection made.
The picture is the perfect visual to establish a concrete understanding of the chosen term, rather than it being just an abstract concept in the reader’s mind. It is also accurately sourced.
Final Impressions:
The most effective element of this document is the compare and contrast method of expansion because it establishes the difference of contrapposto stance, relative to other statue statures that could easily have been mistaken for contrapposto if the example hadn’t been provided.
Although paragraph 1 of the expanded definition says, “contrapposto describes the stance of a figure in sculpture,” the parenthetical definition fails to say whether this term applies only to inanimate figures. This leads me as a reader to question if a person were to stand in a similar stance for a period of time, would they too be described as standing in a contrapposto pose. Suggesting whether the term can be applied to living figures may help a reader achieve a stronger understanding of the word and its applications.
You have excellent use of grammar throughout the definition, contributing to its clarity. I enjoyed learning about an unfamiliar word, and admire your expertise in the field. I hope the few revisions I suggested will help you improve your first draft. Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions or would like me to elaborate on any of the comments.
Original post: https://blogs.ubc.ca/engl301-98a-2020sa/2020/06/05/definitions-3/
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