Hedges and Boosters
MAY 2015
Hedging and boosting is probably the last thought when someone types any type of digital post, however, that is because it comes naturally to many in informal writing. No matter what style of writing, hedging and boosting serve the purpose to enhance or lessen the stance and power of a writer’s argument. This may seem juvenile when thinking in terms of Twitter or Facebook, but how often are their examples of people tweeting bold opinions and losing credibility for their writing ignorance. When one uses a hedge, we allow ourselves to open discursive space (Hyland 179). In contrast to this, when a writer needs to close this space they use a booster and present their argument with assurance and solidarity (Hyland 179). These two tools enhance even an informal writer’s ability to make cohesive and confident statements even if the prescriptive, or the formal norm, technique is not present. You may still be wondering how this can even be exemplified within social media or online informal writing, so here are some examples:
Instagram: On the Humane Society of Utah’s account they write under a picture of a lab mix:
“Don’t call me Russo an old man yet, this 7 year old #lab mix is really just a big puppy at heart! This fun loving jokester will surely make you laugh. Come #adopt him at the #humanesocietyofutah today!”
iMessage:
Texter A: Sends a picture of herself in a tight black dress with the text,” Hey Han do you like this one?”
Myself: Its alright, maybe you should go a flare in a brighter color, it may go better with your shoes…I definitely don’t love the black”
Texter A: “You are high key right”
The Onion: An excert from the satirical article titled, “No One Sure If The Academy Awards After-Party Will Have Food.”
Saying they’d be a bit surprised if there wasn’t at least something to nibble on, the 1,500 invitees to the official after-party of the 87th Academy Awards admitted Sunday that they were not sure if the gala event would have food. “Richard [Linklater] guessed they’d have trays of stuff going around, but even if that’s true, it might be gone if we don’t get there really early…”
Above highlighted are three ways hedges and boosters are already being used in digital media. If you look back on your own posts you may notice you have already incorporated these within your writing. However, now that you notice these things you can be aware of how you use them and avoid being the ignorant poster that we all dislike so much (e.g., the person who claims to know how to run the government via tweet). Just because it is social media, does not mean we have to bring our credibility down. Remember these steps:
Reread your post.
Think, “Where do I sound like I am overbearing, assuming, or making a possible generalization?”
Think, “Where do I sound like I am questionable and uniformed?”
Decide you don’t want to sound like this text I recieved, “She spends every waking hour with her bf, and honestly everyone knows it and she acts like no one is noticing it, but it’s the only thing being discussed lately.”
This text is example A of a generalization and a text in desperate need of hedging to make it more realistic, don’t be like this person.
Proceed to add a hedge or booster as you see fit.
Watch as everyone favorites, retweets, shares, likes, and responds to your writing.