The author's exigence in a passage is best described as the specific issue, problem, or situation that motivates the author to write or speak about the topic. It is the "ignition" or reason that sparks the creation of the text, often addressing an urgent problem or responding to a particular event or need. In multiple examples from web sources, the exigence has been described as:
- A growing public interest in questions of diversity and representation.
- The pressure on the author to engage with big ideas of the time.
- An event or issue that prompts the author to respond or communicate a message.
Thus, the exigence is what compels the author to write, underlying the purpose of the passage.