How To Write A Precis

H O W TO W R I T E
A P R E C I S
Sewar Mubaslat
F I V E S T E P S A P P R O A C H : -
1. Reading and Understanding the Text:- no deleting or omitting or distorting ideas
Reading the text carefully for comprehension. You must not only understand all details, allusions,
and terms; you must also have a clear view of the text as a whole. An overall grasp can be attained
by asking questions such as: What is the purpose of this text—is the author trying to inform,
describe, persuade, explain, narrate, entertain, or amuse? What is the author's attitude? Does the
author express a personal point of view, or is the text purely objective? Is there a distinctive style or
tone to the text?
Tone and style:

Style is defined as the characteristic manner in which ideas are expressed, reflecting the author's individuality.
It can be categorized into literary, journalistic, or scientific styles, and further classified as abstract or concrete,
formal or informal, original or imitative.
Elements such as diction (word choice), sentence structure and variety, imagery, rhythm, coherence, and
emphasis contribute to an author's style.
Tone refers to the attitude conveyed by the writer through their writing.
Examples of tone include friendly, sarcastic, sincere, or artificial.
The tone of a work can significantly affect how the reader interprets the text.
2- Analyzing the Content:
The author discusses the process of analyzing the structure of a text. He emphasizes the importance of
studying how ideas are presented and understanding the underlying organization of the text. The author
suggests creating an outline to represent the development of ideas, using a paragraph-by-paragraph
approach. They highlight the significance of considering the theme and purpose of the entire text, and
how each part contributes to the overall message. He also mentions that texts can have various
structures, such as chronological sequences, descriptions, comparisons, or combinations of these. Then
recommends reconstructing the text's structure in outline form based on this analysis, to gain a deeper
understanding of the text's organization and message.
• 3- Selecting and Compressing Important Material :
During this process, you will identify ideas of primary and secondary importance. Differentiating
between essential and nonessential material is a crucial exercise in judgment, logic, and common
sense. Selecting important ideas is inseparable from compressing content. While some ideas can be
directly transplanted into the precis with little alteration, most require deeper comprehension and
compression. In some cases, a primary idea is explicitly stated, surrounded by supporting details,
making it easy to extract the basic information.
Summarizing often requires using terms different from those in the original text. For instance, a
region described with oil refineries, automobile plants, and other factories could be summarized as
"industrialized." Similarly, a person fluent in several languages could be termed "multilingual."
This type of reduction involves creating new terms that convey the original meaning. Underlining
key words or phrases is a technique recommended in some manuals for selecting key ideas in
precis-writing, but it has limitations as it may not capture the full meaning. Summarizing involves
looking at the text as a whole, focusing on the overall message rather than individual words or
sentences. Each idea is weighed in comparison to those around it, considering the context and
relative importance.
4- Preparing the Draft Precis:
Once you've extracted and compressed the essential material, it's time to draft the precis. The text
generally follows the original pattern of ideas, but you may occasionally rearrange ideas to clarify
and condense the material, as long as it doesn't distort the message. Your draft should faithfully
convey the original meaning while creating a new passage; it should be an original composition,
not a copy-paste of the source text. Strive for brevity, avoiding wordy expressions, repetition, and
unnecessary words. Choose your vocabulary carefully, as a few well-chosen words can convey
more than excessive jargon. Each word must contribute to the message due to the strict word count.
If the draft is too long, reduce it by substituting shorter expressions and rephrasing more succinctly.
Ensure a clear understanding of the original thought pattern to effectively condense the text.
5- Revising the Precis:
When revising your precis, check for omissions and inaccuracies by comparing it to the original
text sentence by sentence. Ensure that all important information is included without distortion.
Verify if the precis reflects the content, purpose, and tone of the original. Review your composition
for clarity and correct any errors in grammar, usage, spelling, or punctuation.
It's beneficial to complete assignments, such as compositions or precis, well in advance. This
allows you to set your work aside for a few hours or days and then revisit it with a fresh
perspective. Approaching your writing after a break can help you see it more objectively and may
lead to improvements. Reading your precis as a standalone unit, separate from the original, can
reveal unclear or incomplete sections that are difficult to notice when deeply immersed in the
original text.
THE END, THANK YOU 

How To Write A Precis

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H O W TO W R I T E

1. Reading and Understanding the Text:- no deleting or omitting or distorting ideas

Tone and style:

Examples of tone include friendly, sarcastic, sincere, or artificial.

2- Analyzing the Content:

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