HOW TO WRITE A PRÉCIS

This quarter, you will write four précis (pronounced "pray-see" in both its singular and plural forms).

The goal of a précis is to faithfully reproduce the arguments of an original document while reducing its length to about 1/6 the length of the original.

For each assignment, you'll be producing précis of about two pages (approximately 450-600 words).

Prepare to write your précis:

1. Read the selection carefully.

2. While reading, note the main argument and any supporting material you come across. It can be helpful to underline or highlight important points, or to make notes in a separate notebook.

3. You will need to read the selection multiple times. Try to see new things in every reading.

Write the précis:

1. Begin to work through the text, condensing the material you have read without leaving out any part of the argument. A helpful approach is to start by organizing and underlining the topic sentences in each paragraph throughout the document.

Depending on the theorist, it can also be helpful to check the introduction and conclusion to each section or each long paragraph. These will often provide most of your précis's skeleton.

2. If there are any key terms used by the author of the text, make sure that they are mentioned and indirectly definedwithin your précis.

3. Write as if you were the author. Do not write, "In this piece, Marx says ____." In a précis, you actually trying to be Marx, except that you are translating him in such a way that even your non-Sociology friends can understand the text.

A précis, strictly speaking, does not include your own opinions about the work. Instead, it succinctly encapsulates (a) the theoretical content of the work, (b) the research that went into the work (if applicable), (c) the conclusions of the work, and (d) what about the work is important.

Remember:

• This is not a reflection paper or book report - it's an exact replica of the original, but shorter, and in different words. Think of it as a translation from "more complicated" to "more basic."

• Try not to quote the text, and limit paraphrasing unless absolutely necessary (that is, unless there's no other way to say it).

• Don't add any opinion or new examples.

• Don't use expressions like, "This passage says..." You don't want to "stand apart" from the document, but rather, to reproduce its intent, tone, style and mood in different words.

• DO NOT move past the sentence you are working with until you fully understand it, no matter how much background research you have to do in order to understand it.

• Don't be attached to a sentence once you have written it. Going back to change, re-edit, adjust, add, remove, etc. is part of writing a good précis.

• Practice to simply ignoring/tossing out any text that doesn't add to your point.

• All work must be edited for grammar, punctuation, spelling, etc., just as you would a formal paper.