Rhetorical Analysis Essay
Rhetoric is traditionally defined as “the art of persuasion through written or spoken means.” Analysis can be defined as the ability to explain “how” and “why” something works. Analysis is not a summary, description, criticism, or praise.In analyzing a rhetorical situation, you need to determine the author’s purpose, the anticipated audience, and the rhetorical appeals that the author uses in order to convey meaning to his/her audience and persuade them. In other words, you will be examining the following: Who is doing What to Whom, How and Why are they doing It?
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Prompt: Choose one of the texts provided below. You will analyze the rhetorical situation of your text in order to gain a fuller understanding about how and why arguments are being made in which contexts and for which audiences.
Choose ONE of these texts: “Masked Racism: Reflections on the Prison Industrial Complex” by Angela Davis “My Life as an Undocumented Immigrant” by Jose Vargas “The Ghetto Made Me Do it” by Francis Flaherty
Assessment: You will be graded primarily on your ability to 1) summarize a text thoroughly, yet concisely in one paragraph 2) discuss specific rhetorical strategies (give examples) and explain how the author uses them to advance his/her argument 3) analyze the rhetorical features of the text and use this analysis to assess the effectiveness of the text.
Rhetoric