A normative statement contains evaluative information about a particular object of conversation. It means that a statement indicates how the speaker thinks it should be. Normative statements are made to evaluate an event or phenomenon, to express approval or disapproval. For example, the claim “every individual should have inalienable freedom of speech” is normative. First, it contains a word that indicates the speaker’s personal opinion and expresses their perception of freedom of speech. Secondly, the statement is constructed along the lines of equality; that is, the phenomenon is equated with its evaluation – freedom of speech should be obligatory; and it cannot be taken away. Third, the speaker expresses his approval of freedom of speech because he emphasizes its necessity and indicates that it is important for every person. Consequently, the statement is subjective and refers to the evaluative opinion of the speaker – it is normative.
In contrast to normative statements, descriptive statements only contain information about an object/appearance, without evaluation. It means that a person provides some information that includes facts or details. They may or may not be accurate, but in any case, they only describe the phenomenon in terms of objective reality. For example, the statement “my papers got wet from this morning’s downpour” is descriptive. First, it indicates that the event happened: past tense and real natural phenomenon. Second, it contains information about what happened and whom: the documents became wet because of the rain. Third, it is a fact that relates to objective reality – there is no estimate or degree of wetness of the papers, the force of the downpour. The statement contains no probability or personal opinion – it is descriptive.