For example, Jonathan Edwards assumes that members of his congregation believe in Heaven and Hell, when he presents the sermon now known as “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” Another example would be an author writing about the women’s suffrage movement who assumes that the welfare of women would improve if they were allowed to vote.

Some authors will explicitly state their beliefs, while others will simply imply them. That’s where inferences come into play. When reading unfamiliar or possibly confusing material, you often have to draw conclusions based on the information you are given. In other words, an inference involves reading between the lines, or making an educated guess based on available evidence or your own background knowledge.

When reading, you should look for the following types of clues to help you make inferences:

• descriptive details
• actions
• dialogue
• author’s tone and style
• background knowledge about the author or subject

Readers are constantly making inferences, particularly when reading short stories because the genre’s brevity requires more from the reader. For example, in Edgar Allan Poe’s short story “The Cask of Amontillado,” the opening paragraph calls for the reader to make an inference about the narrator.

A number of inferences can be made based on these few sentences.

• The narrator is unreliable, since he exaggerates about being injured one thousand times.
• The narrator wants revenge for an insult, so he is probably not mentally stable.
• Having the background knowledge that Poe writes gruesome tales, the reader can infer that something unpleasant will happen to Fortunato.

Another element of critical evaluation is determining an author’s perspective or point of view. Point of view refers to the author’s feelings and attitudes about the topics being discussed. Understanding an author’s point of view leads to a better comprehension of the writer’s purpose.

Ask the following questions in order to determine an author’s point of view or attitude about a topic.

• Do the words chosen by the author have positive or negative connotations?
• What assumptions does the author make?
• What information is included, and what information is omitted?
• Does the author interpret the material in a specific way for the reader or let the evidence speak for itself? Could the evidence be interpreted differently?
• Does the author appeal to the reader’s intelligence or emotions?
• Is there any detectable bias?