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Sarah Freeze
Zack De Piero
Writing 2
March 16, 2015
The Importance of Scholarly and Non-Academic Sources
When one wants to be enlightened about a particular subject, what type of source does
one turn to? A mainstream media text might be the first type, but what about a scholarly
academic piece? Both texts come from different genres, but their rhetorical features, conventions,
and the authors moves can easily be compared to identify resemblances and differences. When
researching a specific subject, readers should not favor one source over the other because both
types present information differently through their style, tone, and
conventional moves. It is valuable for readers to see different approaches of the
same information because it enhances their understanding.
Modern Cat, a magazine that is accessible both on the Internet and through a paid mailing
subscription, publishes various articles related to felines, such as The All-Important Play
Sequence. It is a seasonal magazine that is created for the enjoyment and amusement of readers.
The stereotypical audience can be thought to be old single women, or the crazy cat ladies, but
articles are written for all feline owners and anyone who wants to know more about domesticated
cats. It can be used for educational purposes to learn how to be a better pet owner or to simply
cause the reader to smile as he or she browses the pages filled with many feline photos. This
magazine educates people about their kitten friends, and this specific article focuses on cats
playtime. It lays out an explanation regarding why cats stalk, chase, bite, and release scenario
over and over again and let the prey slowly die (Nagelschneider) and offers a suggestion for

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the best way to play with them. The author of this article is Mieshelle Nagelschneider who
claims to be the Cat Whisperer. Given the title that she calls herself, she probably is very
knowledgeable about cats and their behaviors, which gives her article credibility. Although select
articles are free for viewing online, the authors and publishers produce the magazine in order to
make a profit.
An example of a scholarly academic text is Object play in adult domestic cats: the roles
of habituation and disinhibition from Applied Animal Behavior Science. Applied Animal
Behavior Science is a peer-reviewed journal containing many articles, which are written by
various researchers. According to Karen Rosenberg, an accomplished published writer,
Academics write to join scholarly conversations (93), therefore, the authors consist of a
multitude of researchers and the expected audience includes other scientific scholars.
Additionally, readers include students who are doing research on this topic; for example, a
freshman in college who needs to write a research paper on cats playing behaviors may read this
article to use as a source of credible information. The overall purpose of this article is to
conclude that object play by adult cats is usually terminated by habituation Motivation to
play can remain high, however, since if a new object is encountered within a few minutes of play
having been terminated by habituation, it resumes at high intensity (Hall, et al.). This very
specific topic can be helpful for the audience of both students and science researchers.
Style and tone are other rhetorical features that appear throughout both texts. The tone
and style of the magazine article is causal and includes simple yet descriptive vocabulary, such as
in the phrase your cats menacing stare (Nagelschneider). The article is not written by a group
of individuals who are trying to impress higher scholastic figures, such as in academic texts, so
the terminology is simple; it is designed to be an easy read for the pleasure of the readers.

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Various terms and phrases are set in quotation marks in order to emphasize commonly technical
language related to cats, such as finish the kill or the chase. The article is also written in first
person, which includes the words I and you, because the author wants the audience to feel
included in a conversational way. Because this is a magazine article written by a specific
individual, it is acceptable for the author to insert her opinion. An example of this is My
favourite is the new Playful Panther, a wand toy designed to simulate erratic prey-like movement
like no other toy Ive seen (Nagelschneider). Another stylistic technique for the article is
breaking it up into small paragraphs that vary in length.
In comparison, the scholarly source has a sophisticated and professional style and tone. It
uses dry and formal terms such as in the statement Analysis was confined to two patterns,
which had been shown to indicate intermediate and high play motivation respectively in previous
studies (Hall, et al.). The authors wish to be informative and want their work to appeal to other
scholars. The author of Finding Evidence, Andrea Lunsford, also agrees by commenting, For
most academic arguments, fairly formal language is appropriate (138). This is evident in the
article because the term we is used sparingly to avoid sounding too personal and informal,
unlike the article in the magazine. The scientific community expects professional work and,
therefore, it needs to be presented in a formal manner. Another observation is that the paragraph
lengths tend to be longer in the journal article because they contain a lot more detailed
information than the magazine article.
Besides identifying and comparing rhetorical features, there are also conventions, which
are expected elements that appear throughout particular genres and are general patterns and
assumed rules that traditionally are followed. To sum this up, author of How to Read Like a
Writer, Mike Bunn, determines that Because the conventions for each genre can be very

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different techniques that are effective for one genre may not work well in another (126). For
magazine articles, the conventions include catchy titles and pictures. In this article, there is a
large picture of a cat at the top of the page that looks like he or she is about to pounce. With the
expression, wide eyes, and crouched position, the cat is intended to look adorable and, therefore,
capture the readers attention. Underneath this picture and the article title, there is a catchy
summary that says Your cat wont play? Think youve tried everything? Maybe youre doing it
wrong! (Nagelschneider). Using an appealing brief summary is a common pattern in magazine
articles because the authors try to draw and hook the readers into reading their work. Throughout
the text, there are a couple of subtitles in bold font that divide the article. Because this is
arguably a really important convention, if this writing consisted of one long paragraph it might
be considered part of a different genre.
In comparison, the scholarly text has different conventions. There are specific subtitles,
which include the abstract, introduction, methods, results, discussion, and acknowledgments.
Rosenberg adds to this example by noting, that the convention within some academic
disciplines to have a pretty long title separated by a colon usually follows a predictable pattern
(89). The title Object play in adult domestic cats: the roles of habituation and disinhibition is
indeed lengthy and follows with what Rosenberg describes. This pattern, therefore, is a
convention that scholarly academic texts follow. Other conventions are tables and diagrams
being placed under the Results section because they help the author relay their findings and
information in a visual way.
Additionally, numerous moves that these writers make can be recognized for
discussion. Both writers have a unique variety of moves that they use in their writings. These
moves help emulate the writers voice and assist the readers in better understanding the

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authors main points. For example, Nagelschneider comments And yet many people are unable
to get their cats to play at all In short, theyre doing it wrong. She uses the pronoun they so
she does not directly offend a reader if they are also playing with their cat in a wrong way. Later
on, she switches to using our and you when she comments Instinctively, our domestic cats
do not hunt togetherits important to avoid creating group playtime with your cats. The use of
these words causes the reader to feel like he or she is engaging in an instructive conversation.
Contractions are used throughout her article because the author wants her writing to be informal
and relaxed. Another move is inserting a few sentences from a book she previously wrote. She
probably includes this move because she wants the readers to perhaps be interested in reading
it and to add emphasis to the points she tries to make. The italics she uses for this excerpt helps
draw the readers attention as well.
Likewise, the scholarly authors have unique moves including numbering the subtitles
and inserting relevant precise measurements throughout the paragraphs. For example, the authors
state When the delay was long (2545 min) play did not regain its initial intensity (Hall et al.).
Putting measurements in parentheses draws the readers attention to them because they are more
isolated, as compared to incorporating the numbers in the sentence. Also, writing the numbers in
words is traditionally formal. Hyperlinks are also used when referencing tables, figures, and
other previous experiments. Unlike the magazine article, the words you or our do not appear
in it because that would be an inappropriate or seen as an unconventional move for scholarly
writers to make.
Non-academic pieces can give the reader a general idea and impression of the subject
without going into great specific scientific detail. Lunsford agrees by commenting Chances are
your first instinct when you need to find information is to do a quick keyword search on the

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Web (78). Browsing non-academic sources tend to be easier and quicker to read and can appeal
to a broader audience. For example, someone who is interested in learning about cat behavior,
but does not have time to read a scholarly journal article, is more likely to read a short magazine
article. If someone stumbles across this article when browsing the magazine for pleasurable
reading, he or she may only skim it or read it without giving it much analysis.
Contrastingly, scholarly academic texts are useful because they provide detailed insight
about a particular topic. They can answer a specific research question and also be appropriate to
cite in research papers. Other scholars can read these in order to come up with similar ideas for
their own fieldwork. Rosenberg mentions that Often, academics write primarily for other
academics. But just because its people with PhDs writing for other people with PhDs doesnt
mean that you should throw in the towel (87). She means that these writings can be useful and
valuable to everyone.
Reading both scholarly texts and non-academic media texts on the same subject are
useful to anyone who is seeking information and gives the reader a broad well-versed
understanding of the subject. Non-academic sources are important because they offer a general
idea of the topic and tend to be quicker to read. Contrastingly, academic texts are significant
because they provide detailed information and have an expected formal style. The genres are
written with different audiences in mind along with a unique combination of conventions. Even
within the same genre, authors have the liberty to use a variety of moves. Because of these
reasons, those who are interested in learning about a specific topic should strongly consider
evaluating both media and scholarly texts.

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Works Cited
Bunn, Mike. "How to Read Like a Writer." Writing Spaces: Readings on Writing. Vol. 2. Parlor,
2011. Print
Hall, Sarah L., John W. S. Bradshaw, and Ian H. Robinson. "Object Play in Adult Domestic Cats:
The Roles of Habituation and Disinhibition." Applied Article Behavior Science 79.3
(2002): 253-71. Science Direct. Elsevier. Web. 10 Feb. 2015.
<http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168159102001533#>.
Lunsford, Andrea. "Finding Evidence. Everythings an Argument. Bedford/St. Martins, 2013.
Print.
Nagelschneider, Mieshelle. "The All-Important Play Sequence." Modern Cat (2014). Modern Cat
Inc. Print.
Rosenberg, Karen. "Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources." Writing Spaces:
Readings on Writing. Vol. 2. Parlor, 2011. Print.