Global Perspective Meaning & Role in Composing

Global Perspective – Rhetorical Perspective

Composing processes, particularly prewriting and drafting, involves simultaneously flipping from a global perspective to a local perspective. Learn to critique your work and the work of others from a global perspective.

Table of Contents

What is a Global Perspective?

Global perspective is term used to discuss some overall attribute of a text.

For instance,

when critiquing your work, a teacher or editor might comment that a text lacks a consistent point of view, perspective on the topic, or rhetorical stance
when engaged in rhetorical analysis about a text such as a recent movie, you might talk about the lack of character development throughout a movie
when arguing with someone about something, you might critique their use of evidence throughout a text.

Synonyms

Rhetorical Perspective
Macrostructural Perspective

Global Level
Rhetorical Level

Antonyms

The antithesis to a global perspective is the local perspective, which concerns diction, syntactical matters, sentence variety and rhythm. A

Key Concepts: Rhetorical Analysis; Rhetorical Reasoning

Why Does a Global Perspective Matter?

Global perspective–this is a major preoccupation of writers, particularly early during composing, during the drafting stage. Writers, speakers, knowledge workers need to balance their attention on global and local concerns.

When editors, writers, and critics employ a global perspective, they are not concerned with individual elements of discourse–e.g.,. diction, usage, mechanics, grammar, phrases, sentences. Rather, when reading globally, readers are concerned with the overall effectiveness of a document:

Rhetoric
- Is the text responsive to its rhetorical situation?
  - Has the student organized the text around the needs of the audience, the instructor giving the assignment, the client needing work done?
  - Is the text unified around a consistent purpose, thesis, research question?
  - Is the author’s rhetorical stance, voice, tone, persona clear and consistent throughout the text?
Substance
- Does the text have substance, a firm foundation in textual or empirical research?
Organization
- Is the document organized well? Does it consistently follow a deductive or inductive order? Should sections of the text be moved in order?

In Writing Studies,

the practice of editing is synonymous with engaging in a local perspective.
the practice of revision is closely associated with engaging in a Global Perspective.
faculty encourage students to engage in revision long before they even consider editing.