writing

WR121 - Wells  Unit 1 

RHETORICAL ANALYSIS: ACADEMIC TEXT GENRE INFO A rhetorical analysis is the process of identifying a writer’s choices, considering their purpose, and  evaluating their effectiveness. In this instance, it is not about whether you agree or disagree with the  writer’s claims; your focus is on their rhetoric.    At the beginning of the semester, we defined both “genre” and “rhetoric” to determine how they are  related. Genres are socially constructed categories (in this case, of writing) that carry specific  conventions. Based on the rhetorical situation (their “call to write”), a writer first makes a choice about  which genre is most appropriate. Subsequently, they determine what conventions they must adhere to--or  possibly push against--in order to produce their intended effect that fulfills their purpose and reaches their  audience.      PURPOSE Because this is a genre-based course, our purpose for a rhetorical analysis in this unit is to figure out how  scholars write academic research essays, particularly in the field you’re exploring. For example, if the  issue/inquiry you chose is related to film, you want to be able to write the way film scholars/researchers  do. Although you will only rhetorically analyze one text, going through this process can inform the way  you read other texts on your issue so that you may pick up strategies for how to incorporate research and  talk about your issue in an academic way.      REQUIREMENTS

❏ 2-4 pages  ❏ Heading: your name, instructor name, course name, due date  ❏ Title  ❏ Times New Roman, size 12, double-spaced, 1” margins (MLA format)  ❏ MLA Works Cited page (citation for the text analyzed) 

   

INTRODUCTION & CONCLUSION You should begin the rhetorical analysis essay with ​an introduction paragraph​ that introduces the text  (title, author, when and where it was published) and a brief summary (3-4 sentences) of the text’s main  arguments, questions, contributions to the larger discussion.    End the essay with a ​conclusion paragraph​ that reflects on what you learned from this rhetorical  analysis. What have you learned about the genre of academic writing? What makes it effective? How  might you incorporate certain strategies or skills into your own writing or research in this unit?  

WR121 - Wells  Unit 1 

ANALYSIS The rhetorical analysis essay should address each of the major sections below. Support all of your claims  with ​specific details​ from the text (​quotations​ will likely be used). For example, if you characterize the  language of the writer as “laidback,” then you need to support that with specific moments that exemplify  that claim. Additionally, you must consider the ​purpose and effect​ of each observation. In that same  example, you’d need to explain ​why​ you think the writer chose that language style.    

A. Rhetorical Situation  ○ Identify the author’s “call to write”.   ○ What are the events, experiences, texts, and/or conversations that they are responding to? 

B. Genre  ○ Identify the genre of the text.  ○ How can you tell what it is? What conventions seem immediately present?  ○ Is this genre appropriate for the rhetorical situation? Why or why not? 

C. Purpose & Audience  ○ Who is the intended or likely audience of this text? How can you tell?  ○ Why is the author writing this text? What is their aim(s)?  ○ Hint: Purpose and audience inform one another. 

D. Rhetorical Stance  ○ Ethos​: Describe the persona of the writer based on the text, and evaluate their credibility.  ○ Pathos​: How does the writer establish a relationship with the reader? What do they do to 

engage the reader emotionally and intellectually?   ○ Logos​: How is the text organized or structured? (Think of this like creating an outline.) 

How would you characterize the language and style of this writer? Consider their use of  research, quotations, dialogue, storytelling, experience, etc. (methods) to convey their  perspective on the issue. Is there a notable layout/visual design to the text? Is this text  multimodal? 

E. Effectiveness (Overall)  ○ Based on the analysis, determine the overall effectiveness of the text, considering it’s 

rhetorical situation, genre, and purpose/audience.     The ​structure of this essay​ will include an introduction paragraph; body paragraph 1 will likely combine  A, B, and C from above; body paragraphs 2-4 will discuss D; body paragraph 5 will be E; conclusion  paragraph. Note that you need to ​only include/answer what is most relevant ​to the text. For example, if  a text isn’t multimodal, then you don’t need to say, “No, this text is not multimodal.”     Tip/Hint/Useful Thing​: You should absolutely use the writing you have already done this week to put  this together, like the Source Evaluation Activity and Journal #3. I’ve done my best to help prepare you  for this assignment, to ease the amount of new work you’ll need to do.