In This Chapter
In academic research and writing, synthesizing of the information from the obtained available resources results in the creation of new knowledge. Writers might come up with new ideas, discover connections that were previously unrecognized, reach agreement about a debatable issue, clarify a confusing subject, or making the point on a controversial topic.
Most college-level academic essays require synthesis. Your professors will expect you to show how your sources are part of a larger conversation. Your goal will be to avoid a source-by-source explanation of your research and instead craft argumentative essays focused around specific themes in the conversation. Strong academic writing shows connections between sources.
Informative (or Explanatory) Synthesis
In informative writing, you are explaining the discussion points and topics to your readers without taking a position of one side or another, without showing your opinion. Even if the topic is debatable and highly controversial, instead of promoting your personal opinion, you have to objectively introduce the ideas of others, explain and show how their information is related to each other’s, how the information may connect and diverge. You are not showing your agreement with some authors and disagreement with the others. You should stay neutral both in your comments on the found information and in your conclusions reached at the end of the discussion.
Writers often use informative synthesis to provide context or background information before they introduce their own argument. In the Social Sciences and Sciences, writers may be asked to write a literature review that provides a complete overview of all major research or data about a topic. In general, informative synthesis is essential when providing your reader with a clear understanding of your argument’s importance or exigency.
In the following example of informative synthesis, notice that the writer does more than simply present competing viewpoints. They also include a statement at the beginning of the paragraph that explains the relationship between the sources and the general context of the discussion.
Notice in the above example that the writer does not insert their own opinion about the topic or the sources.
What is an Argumentative Synthesis?
While informative synthesis is essential for giving the context or background of a topic under discussion, the majority of writing students will do in college courses falls under the category of argumentative synthesis. Unlike informative synthesis, which doesn’t present the writer’s opinions, argumentative synthesis allows writers to evaluate, critique, and position sources effectively.
Argumentative synthesis is one of the major differences between the writing done in most high school classes and the writing that will be expected in your college courses. The five-paragraph essay requires three points, but it does not necessarily require that those points are in conversation with one another. It doesn’t necessarily require that a writer represents all sides of an issue.
Most writing that you will do in academic essays at the college level require argumentative synthesis. Students are expected to do more than summarize the various sources they found, or even to compare sources. Instead, your college professors will expect you to synthesize the sources you find in order to craft your own ideas and arguments. They will expect that you analyze and evaluate the sources carefully, and that you recognizes the differences between sources as you use them in your essays.
How to Plan Argumentative Synthesis
Take a moment and think about the writing you’ve done in previous classes, whether you used the five-paragraph essay or other forms. How often did you make sure that you understood all sides of a topic before deciding on your thesis? How often did you make sure to represent voices and arguments that didn’t match your own opinion?
Achieving synthesis is a little like bringing people together for a discussion and then leading them in that discussion. It requires that the writer draws connections between various viewpoints and sources, but for argumentative synthesis, the writer will also be evaluating and positioning the various sources in order to make their own argument.
Step 1: Identify a Topic with a Controversy or Disagreement
Because academic writing is argumentative, the first step toward synthesizing for an academic essay is to identify a topic or question about which there is disagreement. If all of the voices in your conversation are saying the same thing and in agreement with one another, you likely don’t have a topic complex enough for college-level academic writing.
Example: The real effects of speech are a large part in the debate of free speech and its limitations. There is disagreement about whether offensive speech should be punished when it is said with the intent to psychologically harm a group or person, or if immoral or scandalous speech should be protected under the First Amendment without exception.
Step 2: Identify Authoritative Sources
Because academic writing is well sourced, it is essential that you search for sources that are authoritative, relevant, and appropriate to your writing situation. The more expert the writer or voice, the better the source. Sources can also show their authority by being neutral or objective and by including clear and persuasive evidence from reliable sources.
In high school, you may have simply picked three sources or three points from a few sources that agreed with the position you were taking. Unlike the writing you may have done in high school, college professors will require more than three points about a topic. Instead, they will expect that the writer has done enough research and work to understand the conversation in its entirety.
Be sure to take the time to evaluate your sources. Which are most recent and relevant? Which authors maintain a balanced and objective voice and stance? How will your own audience react to the sources?
Check for bias in your sources as well. A biased source might still be useful in your own argument, but you should be sure to acknowledge that bias.
Step 3: Identify the Emergent Themes
As you read and learn about the various viewpoints about the topic at hand, you should start to notice that certain issues or ideas come up in multiple texts. (If you don’t see this yet, keep reading!) These common ideas or arguments are called themes or emergent themes.
Think back to our earlier example of the parlor where people are discussing the greatest musical artist of all time. In that larger conversation, there would likely be voices interested in the commercial aspects of music (sales, popularity, etc.) while others were interested in the artistic aspects. Recognizing these themes is an essential step toward synthesis.
Step 4: Put Voices into Conversation
As you consider the various themes or categories of discussion, start to find places where authors or voices agree or disagree.
Remember: synthesis is not compare/contrast. It isn’t enough to show that various sources or authors have similar or different ideas. Instead, think about how their viewpoints or arguments are similar.
You should also try to analyze how and why they are different. For example, multiple people may believe that album sales should determine a musical artist’s greatness, but each voice or author may have different reasons for that opinion. One may see commercial success as a marker of fame, while another might see commercial success as evidence of the artist’s importance to the public. They may have similar ideas but for different reasons.
Use signal phrases to show the relationships between texts, authors, or sources.
Example of Putting Sources into Conversation:
- Professor of Law E disagrees…
- His thought is echoed by Professor R from the University of …
- Authors F and S also discuss and assess…
- Following in their steps, Authors D and T express…
- Unfortunately, in opposition to their respect, Author X asserts that…
- This brings us back to the view point of Authors F and S, who argue that…
Step 5: Finalize Your Position
Most students learn to write arguments and essays by picking an opinion and then searching for sources to support their ideas. While this is one way to begin your own process of invention, it can often cause a writer to miss important issues, beliefs, or ideas in the larger conversation.
As you put your sources into conversation, you will need to signal to your reader how and why certain sources are authoritative, relevant, and appropriate.
Remember, synthesis means creating something new, and an argumentative synthesis entails inserting your own voice into the writing as well.
Reflect on Your Reading
- How does synthesis seem different from how you might have used sources in essays in previous classes?
- How is synthesis different from summary? How is it different from comparing/contrasting sources?