Analysis

The text we are looking at is a text taken from wheretostay.com. It is an overview of a touristic place. This is explicitly said in the text: "overview:" "why (to choose) Antigua and Barbuda". This shows us it is trying to convince the audience to go to this place, by giving information about the place.

Which is the audience that is trying to convince? The same as any other reference webpage: just any person who is looking for a place to go on vacation. This is shown in the links it shows, showing things to do and photos of the place. This elements are meant to give all the information possible about the place to convince this people.

This is, obviously, a non-fiction text, as it gives real information about a real place at a real time; this needs no longer explanation.

The piece shows good aspects of Antigua and highlights the bad things of Barbuda. This content is meant to make Antigua look better in contrast. "[Antigua] fascinating, must-see historical site called..." "[Barbuda] is wild, wooly and barely inhabited [...] (a little airstrip) consists of one tiny cement block structure". The reason for giving contrast is that after looking at a little thing, middle things look big.

The use of specific language is an example of the formality added to the text. We see this in phrases like "visitors of many stripes [...] choices are varied [...] undulating fields [...] winding roads...". The effect of this words in the text is that it makes it look more professional and serious. More than just a referential text, a real information article.

The lack of informal features is something to be expected, as any informal phrases could make possible consumers think that this article has poor seriousness and could be written by anybody.

The rethorical devices used also help to archieve this objective of giving seriousness to the text. Hyperboles like "nation's better known hotels, the largest and most developed tourist destination, etc" gives the author the idea of something huge and amazing; what the author is trying to get into the reader's mind.

The author uses separated information in each paragraph. We can see this just at seeing how do they start: "Islanders claim their home has... The long reach of the british empire... Barbuda, the smaller island... The most popular attraction.... Among but a handful of hotels....". Easy understanding is the effect that this causes. In fact, he points out ideas of interest and makes the article entertaining, avoiding at all costs being monotone and boring, keeping the eyes of the reader in the piece.

The author describes each place exposing all the good and positive things and hides negative ones. There isn's evidence in the text of insects that are there, criminality, political or economic present problems, prices.... Through language, the author creates the image of the perfect location for a vacation. After doing this, he shows the reality of the twin island, and after this he returns to the main island. This deviation is meant to take the mind of the author to another place showing a different reality. The bad things of a place where the reader isn't going, adding another good aspect to Antigua: it isn't barbuda.

In conclusion, the piece of text tries to add all the formal, artistic and contrasting effects to make the text more convincing. People reading this article are convinced that this is a formal, realistic and confident source of information to follow, but the lack of negative aspects and the absence of a "pros and cons" paragraph is really suspicious. Personally, I think this kind of text should be found in the webpage of a local hotel and wouldn't be weird as they need to bring people to themselves, but that its location is in an "objective" webpage that is informing about different places to go, is not correct at all.