In the following essay we will be attempting to examine a particular text according to

various writing characteristics. The characteristics with which we‟ll be analysing the
text are its structure, audience, tone, and style. The text in question contains an
excerpt from a newspaper article regarding the seizure of illegal drugs.

The structure of the text contains an introduction which begins by setting the stage of
the article and giving the audience a glimpse into what the article is about:

“A three-month police operation has finally busted a sophisticated dagga plantation

in the Western Cape. Another police chase also finds hundreds of kilograms of
dagga in KwaZulu-Natal at the weekend.” (Kgosana, 2022).

The introduction tells the reader where the narrative takes place and what events the
rest of the article will chronicle. The introduction also sets the stage for another
similar event that occurred in another location but is linked in the article‟s theme of
illegal drugs and police action.

The body of the text relays additional information about the event and answers all
the questions relevant to the narrative event. The body of the text includes
answering all the Who? What? Where and Why? As is the case with a newspaper
article it includes quotes from individuals that are experts or sources of information.

One particular structural feature of the text is that includes more than one narrative;
rather than chronicling one event it covers two separate yet similar events into one
story. This is an unusual structural feature as a newspaper article will normally focus
on a single. One could argue that the aim of the article would be to highlight the
rampant nature of the illegal drug trade but also the efficacy of the South African
police service.

The audience of the text is arguably a multitude of people because of the nature of
the article as a source of information. The people who would be interested in this
particular article are numerous. From a demographic point of view the article could
be aimed at anyone of the age of 18 years and older. The formal register used in the
text is also accessible and easily understood, making the intended target scope of
the article very wide.

The tone of the article is informative, as it seeks to relay information in a simple

manner. Once could argue that the general attitude of the article is triumphant and
boastful. It conveys the successful efforts of the South African Police service as
competent and efficient against the lucrative scourge of drugs within the country. As
stated by the text “Over R1 million worth of dagga uncovered” (Kgosana, 2022)
belies the successful attitude of the narrative. As stated previously, the register of the
text is formal, yet accessible. The Standardised English also enables the wide
dissemination of the article by various people, and there is only a few instances of
colloquial language in the use of the word: dagga and “street value” (Kgosana,
2022).

The style of the text, the manner in which it is written, is largely formal and in a linear
narrative format. The text narrates events in a chronological manner and does so
with a police procedural fashion, such as how the text details the sequence of
events:

“The police concluded a three-month investigation on a dagga plantation on Friday.

This probe started in June after a tip-off on illicit activities at a house in George. In an
effort to eradicate the selling and distribution of drugs, the police finally pounced on
the premises on Friday, 2 September.” (Kgosana,2022)

The chronology of the narrative is written in the third person and is relayed in the
past tense. The text also utilises connecting discourse markers that signal time and
event such as:

“But on Saturday, police traced a vehicle which was transporting dagga in KwaZulu-
Natal. At around 15h30, members of the Eshowe Task team were patrolling around
the R66 near Siza garage.” (kgosana, 2022)

The diction of the text is suited for the nature of the article as a retelling of the police
narrative, with words such as „probe‟, „tip-off‟, „pounced‟ and „back-up‟ used within
the text.

As such the essay has attempted to analyse the text in regards to its structure, intended
audience, tone and style. We have engaged the text listing many of its features and
characteristics and provided referential, analytical evidence where applicable.

References

Kgosana, R. 2022. Up in smoke! Police bust dagga worth millions this weekend. The South
African. https://www.thesouthafrican.com/news/police-bust-dagga-worth-millions-this-
weekend-latest-04-september-2022/ [accessed 11/09/2023]