5.5: Commentary

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A commentary\(^{107}\) is similar to a review in that it verbally or textually criticizes something. In this case, commentaries might criticize: a piece of writing, a data set, or a situation.

Literary Commentary

Yes, whether you’re a teacher, editor, student, or amateur critic, knowing how to constructively analyze someone’s work is a useful skill. There isn’t a magical formula for writing a commentary. The commentary you write depends upon what you’re reviewing, why you’re giving feedback, and what you think about the work. No matter what you’re working on, having a clear goal and strong writing will help make your commentary successful.

When composing a literary commentary, use specific examples to support your thesis. State an issue or theme you’ve identified, show where you’ve found it in the work, then explain what effect the issue or theme has on the work.

Lastly, make sure to connect your examples back to the theme. When you use specific examples, make sure that you clearly illustrate how it connects back to the larger theme.

Data Commentary

A data commentary\(^{108}\) is similar to other types of commentaries in that it requires you to analyze an existing set of information. But instead of commenting on a book, you are analyzing set of data.

One of the key components of a data commentary is synopsis of the research. You need to concisely write about the results of the study and why it is important. Make sure to analyze and summarize the data. For example, if the research is about the graduation rate in the Chicago Public Schools, you need to explain the numbers and illustrate why the results are important.

In a data commentary, you will likely want to use charts or graphs to help illustrate the results. You will then want to comment on and analyze those visuals.

Social Commentary

When we use anecdotal evidence to hypothesize our lives (ex: “If I was a male teacher, my students would treat me better”), we are verbally giving a social commentary on the situations around us. Sometimes, commentaries like this don’t provide scholarly evidence which makes them less serious and less “academic,” but they still provide worthy trains of thought.

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Example: Me as a Future Parent by Makai B\(^{109}\)

Life is never easy. But our parents make it seem as easy. And that’s why most of us look up to them because they make a big impact on her life. So when you grow up are you gonna be like your parent? I’ll tell you what I think about this question.

Growing up we are told to look up to our parents. They are role models so the question was asked “ Will I become one of my parents in the future?’’ and I answered yes. The reason why I will turn it to one of my parents because my parents are kind of loving people. They are always wanted your time to volunteer their time. They’re always there to listen to you. My parent’s career is different from mine because I’m going to the medical field. Where my dad does odds and ends jobs, Whereas my mom does have a degree in nursing so I guess it’s kind of the same. I will raise my family differently because I want to go on more family trips whereas my family didn’t due to personal issues. In psychology, children develop learned behavior and it starts from childhood so I believe I will follow the same path but a little bit more curves, but not so many detours

In conclusion, Most people don’t want to end up following their parents and some do, but I believe every individual has their own path. It doesn’t matter how you were raised it only matters how you finish your life and are you proud of what you doing. Parents are there to set us an example of what life is capable of. No matter the bends or the detours. What matters is family and if you stayed together you can go through anything.

\(^{107}\)“How to Write a Commentary.” Co-authored by Alexander Peterman, MA, Education. Updated: April 23, 2019 https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Commentary. Under an CC-BY-NC-SA License, wikiHow's text content is free to modify, republish and share.

\(^{108}\)“How to Write a Commentary.” Co-authored by Alexander Peterman, MA, Education. Updated: April 23, 2019 https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Commentary. Under an CC-BY-NC-SA License, wikiHow's text content is free to modify, republish and share.

\(^{109}\)Thank you Makai, a student from the Spring 2020 semester. This is licensed CC-BY-NC-SA.