Rhetorical analysis essay example pdf

R H E T O R I C A L A N A LY S I S E S S AY

W R I T I N G T H E

• Rhetoric - the art of using language to persuade and influence people’s beliefs or behaviors

• Analysis - taking an object (in our case linguistic text) and breaking it down to explain each part

Rhetorical Analysis - identifying and breaking down the persuasive strategies used by a speaker or writer about a specific topic

W H Y R H E T O R I C ?

Understanding rhetoric helps us know when people 
 are trying to persuade or even manipulate us through 
 language.

Using rhetorical strategies helps us become more 
 persuasive speakers and writers

I N T R O O F R H E T O R I C A L A N A LY S I S E S S AY

• Present the title of the article/speech, the author’s credentials/ reputation, and his/her name.

• Next present the author’s purpose or thesis and the intended audience. If there’s an argument, it’s usually for people who need convincing or for people who have some kind of influence in making something happen.

• For example: 
 In his proposal to the Committee on Labor, Health & Human Services, comedian and actor, Seth Rogen, argues there needs to be more research and funding for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.

I N T R O D U C T I O N C O N T I N U E D …

• In his proposal to the Committee on Labor, Health & Human Services, comedian and actor, Seth Rogen, argues there needs to be more research and funding for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia.

• Next, summarize the entire article in less than 250 words:

• Rogen begins the proposal with a story about his mother-in law who suffers from the disease in order to paint a picture of how bad the disease can really get. He mentions that he and general public assumed the disease was only something the really old get and manifested itself in forgotten keys and misplaced socks. He then proceeds to bring up shocking facts and statistics about Alzheimer's, which the general public is not aware of. He mentions that there is really no funding and no intensive research about the disease, which is why it’s one of the most costly and incurable diseases in America. In an effort to raise awareness and help struggling families who are affected by the disease, Seth Rogen tells his audience about the charity and college programs that he has has established.

B E F O R E Y O U W R I T E T H E B O D Y:

• You must first make an outline of the rhetorical strategies your author uses in his/her text:

• One effective way to do this is by identifying the strategies your author uses to persuade his audience emotionally, logically, and ethically.

• You should re-read the text to highlight all examples of the strategies used to appeal to logos, pathos, and ethos.

• Pathos - an appeal to an audience’s emotions

• Some strategies include anecdotal intro/examples, tone, word choice, figures of speech, and any other strategy that solicits an emotional response from the audience).

• For example: “I looked at my hands, coarse from labor, and my ring finger was tattooed with ‘hers’ written in cursive - all meaningless without her.”

• The strategies in the above example include a narrative approach with various sensory details.

• Logos - an appeal to logic (facts, statistics, and reasoning)

• Remember that logos is not merely just presenting facts. Writers and speakers often have to reason out or explain how those facts are relevant to the overall argument or topic.

• For example: The author argues that the government has been investing more on prisons than on education: “Since 1984 over twenty new prisons have opened in California, while only one new campus was added to the CSU system and none to the UC system (Davis 95).

• The strategy in the example above is a statistic that Davis uses to help support her argument of where money is being invested in California.

• Ethos - an appeal to the rhetor’s credibility, reputation, ethics, and trustworthiness

• All speakers and writers have a reputation they bring with them (Seth Rogen, for example, is known for dirty comedy and the advocation of marijuana). Some writers and speakers may already be more “credible” than others. For example, an established surgeon has more credibility than an inexperienced resident when it comes to making decisions during an operation.

• However, when speakers or writers present a topic, they often have to prove they’re credible by making it evident they’ve done extensive research or have had related experiences. (Seth Rogen, builds his credibility for his audience through his research and experiences with Alzheimers disease).

• Typically, when a rhetor cites facts and statistics and is able to reason those out, he or she is building ethos. This means the act of presenting logic and an appealing to emotions is a strategy in building trust.

Y O U R T H E S I S :

• Once you outline the rhetorical appeals and strategies your author uses, go back to your introduction.

• After the article summary, you will present your thesis on how your author appeals to his/ her audience through those strategies he/she uses

• Do not write a vague thesis like this one: 
 Weak Thesis: Seth Rogen uses pathos, ethos, and logos to convince an audience of the committee members that more funding and research is needed for Alzheimer’s disease.

• ALL authors and speaker use ethos, pathos, and logos. You need to be more specific:

• Strong Thesis: By sharing his mother in-law’s experiences and presenting shocking facts about Alzheimer’s disease, Seth Rogen attempts to convince his audience how serious the lack of funding and research on the disease is when a “man-child” has to create a charity to raise awareness and funding on the disease because the government will not.

• Finished Introduction:
 
 In his proposal to the Committee on Labor, Health & Human Services, comedian and actor, Seth Rogen, argues there needs to be more research and funding for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementia. Rogen begins the proposal with a story about his mother-in law who suffers from the disease in order to paint a picture of how bad the disease can really get. He mentions that he and general public assumed the disease was only something the really old get and manifested itself in forgotten keys and misplaced socks. He then proceeds to bring up shocking facts and statistics about Alzheimer's, which the general public is not aware of. He mentions that there is really no funding and no intensive research about the disease, which is why it’s one of the most costly and incurable diseases in America. In an effort to raise awareness and help struggling families who are affected by the disease, Seth Rogen tells his audience about the charity and college programs that he has established. By sharing his mother in-law’s experiences and presenting shocking facts about Alzheimer’s disease, Seth Rogen attempts to convince his audience how serious the lack of funding and research on the disease is when a “man-child” has to create a charity to raise awareness and funding on the disease because the government will not.

B O D Y PA R A G R A P H S :

• Read this thesis again: 
 By sharing his mother in-law’s experiences and presenting shocking facts about Alzheimer’s disease, Seth Rogen attempts to convince his audience how serious the lack of funding and research on the disease is when a “man-child” has to create a charity to raise awareness and funding on the disease because the government will not.

• In it, we can point out the main topics the writer will be discussing in his/her rhetorical analysis essay:

• 1. Rogen’s mother in-law’s experiences with Alzheimer’s disease 
 2. Shocking statistics about the disease 
 3. The reputation Rogen has as a “man-child”

• These topic sentences will form the body paragraphs of the rhetorical analysis essay.

• The writer will now have to analyze and explain HOW each strategy builds Rogen’s rhetorical effectiveness or persuasiveness. In each paragraph the writer has to explain if the strategy appeals to emotions, logic, ethics or a combination of those appeals.

B O D Y PA R A G R A P H O U T L I N E • Topic Sentence: Identify a strategy

• Context: Brief summary of when and where in the article the quote you’re about to cite is used

• Quote: Cite to illustrate strategy in use

• Analysis / Explanation: Relate the strategy to the purpose or thesis of the text, and explain the impact it should have on the audience. Be sure explain how this strategy appeals to emotions, logic, ethics OR a combination of two or three.

• *See Outline on Module 7

F I N A L A D V I C E :