"Though this be madness, yet there is method in 't."                  --From Hamlet (II, ii, 206) In the process of truth-telling, a writer must select one or more methods of organizing. That method is usually determined by the kind of truth you want to tell and it works simultaneously with it. Let's say that you are asked about a friend of yours. "Tell me about Ruth!" If you want to convey scientific truth, there are four distinct ways you can organize the information. You can tell what she looks like:       She has green eyes, auburn hair, and an aquiline nose. She is five feet five and one half inches tall and weighs one hundred and seven pounds. [Description] You can put her into a category:       She's a Methodist. [Classification] You can tell a story about her:       "She came down the stairs late, her hair uncombed and her shirttail hanging out. Her hands were shaking and her voice was quivering. "I can't go out with you anymore," she said. Then she turned and ran away.       I didn't know what to do. I couldn't believe what I just heard. She never gave me a clue. And to this day I don't know why she did it. [Narration] Or you might simply make a judgmental statement about her:       She was never really very reliable. You couldn't depend on her for anything. [Evaluation] Any method you consider falls into one of these four categories. Combining these methods with the four kinds of truth results in a simple matrix of sixteen possible combinations: Truthtelling Methods K i n d s   o f   T r u t h   PERSONAL TRUTH INFLUENTIAL TRUTH LITERARY TRUTH SCIENTIFIC TRUTH DESCRIPTION How You Feel About it How You want someone else to feel about it An Entertaining Reaction Factual Information about it CLASSIFICATION How You Organize it An Organization System that "sells" An Entertaining Categorization An Objective System NARRATION Your Own Story A Story that Motivates A Story that Entertains A Factual Story EVALUATION Your Likes & Dislikes Judgements that Influence Others Entertaining Judgements Judgements Using Objective Criteria In this part of our study of composition we'll look at each of these methods and see how they can be used to accomplish the goals of truth-telling. Questions? For answers, send an e-mail to Dr. Write.