1500-1700 word count essay

ENC 1102 Rhetorical Analysis

The purpose of this essay is to give you the opportunity to demonstrate your understanding of the basic components of argument: claim/thesis, evidence/support, structure, rhetorical strategies, appeals, and situation. First, you study and critically read a textual argument--written or visual. Second, you will evaluate how effective the argument is. Third, you will present your critical analysis of how the author conveys and develops his or her argument.

Characteristics of a Rhetorical Analysis

A successful rhetorical analysis will do the following:

· Accurately describe the text’s argument and main claim to provide context (i.e. determine rhetorical situation).

· Assert a clear and specific claim (one’s evaluation of the text’s effectiveness) early in the essay—usually the last sentence of the introduction.

· Consider both the text’s strengths and its weaknesses.

· Effectively deploy rhetorical vocabulary (ethos, pathos, logos) and knowledge into the analysis.

· Provide specific examples of rhetorical strategies and explanation of HOW they work, giving careful consideration to the intended audience.

· Effectively integrate quotations and concrete evidence from the text to support claims.

· Reinforce the claim and assert the significance of the analysis in the conclusion.

Essay Requirements

· The paper must be 1000-1500 words in length; information on the Works Cited page does not count toward this total.

· The final draft of this paper must be submitted to Turnitin.

· MLA format for presentation and for source documentation (in-text citations and Works Cited Page)

Ways of Organizing a Rhetorical Analysis

A possible outline:

Introduction (at least one paragraph)

· Create a lead-in “hook” to engage your readers’ interest (e.g., a striking quotation or statistic, an anecdote or scenario, a related current event).

· Introduce and describe the text and its rhetorical context.

· Present your thesis statement—your evaluative claim about the text’s effectiveness and use of rhetorical strategies.

Body (at least three paragraphs)

· Support your thesis by providing interpretation, analysis, and evaluation of the rhetorical strategies, making sure to support your analysis with concrete evidence from the text (i.e. paraphrase and quotations)

· Use an effective structure that guides the reader from one idea to the next (paying attention to transitions both between paragraphs and within)

Conclusion (at least one paragraph)

· Restate your position/thesis - use different words.

· Explain what your analysis reveals about the text (i.e. why your analysis is important; what it teaches us about the text’s rhetoric)

Revised 8/2016