Genre/Rhetorical/COLFV Analysis

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LING 305W Kori Ryerson February 14, 2013

MILLER: The Assault Weapon Myth Analysis

PRECIS: MILLER: The Assault Weapon Myth by Emily Miller appeared in the Washington Times on January 25, 2013. The genre of the article is a commentary. The target audience is American society in general, but emphasized to gun owners, sellers, people who use guns for recreational purposes, and politicians. Miller’s purpose is to express her discomfort and inform readers the irregularities used to pass the “assault weapon” ban by Senate Feinstein. CLAIM: MILLER: The Assault Weapon Myth article is effective because Miller uses correctly all COLFV elements, and because of the credibility she possess based on her background.

COLFV ANALYSIS

CONTENT

o What the writing is about? Does it have relevant details? Assumptions? ! Feature 1 – Relevant Details

" Miller adapts correctly Senate Feinstein proposals conditions of banning the production and sale of more than 150 gun models that considered “ assault weapon” that according to her will increase crime in the next years. She also marks her point about how democrats are appealing to citizens emotions, by using past crime incidents.

! Feature 2 – Assumptions

" While the “assault weapons” proposal is broadly explained, Miller assumes readers know about Sandy Hook Elementary School tragedy, and understand ban is due because of this. It was an effective assumption, because this shooting happened a couple of months ago, and the event is still fresh in everyone memory, so there is no need to explain it all again.

ORGANIZATION

o What type of method the writer is using? ! Feature 1 – Explanation

" Information is organized in an explanation about the Sen. Feinstein proposal. She explains on what it consists, the consequences that it may have. It is effective because although text is concise due to the lack of space, her argument is clear. She first her words to the space she has, and does not leave statements unclear.

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! Feature 2 – Definition

" Since article is about guns, she mentions several types of guns that one might not understand because we are not familiar with the language, but she explains them very well. Example, Armalite M15 22LR Carbine gun.

LANGUAGE

o What is the tone? Are there any metaphors? Jargon? Passive voice? ! Feature 1 – Quotations

" Miller effectively uses quotations from Senate Feinstein to enforce her credibility by giving the reader the possibility to double check her information with the primary source.

! Feature 2 – Tone

" Miller’s tone throughout the article has discomfort against the proposal. She effectively uses irony when mentioning Sen. Feinstein contradiction about not wanting weapons, but being surrounded of them.

FORMAT

o What is the macrostructure of the writing? Are there any visual elements? ! Feature 1 – Macrostructure

" The overall structure of the article if effective. The article is in paragraph form, headings are a little bit small, but effective because of the tittle, it is easy to follow the reading because of the small paragraph structure.

! Feature 2 – Visual Elements

" Article contains minimal visual elements, such as only one picture of Sen. Feinstein in top left of page. Picture gives effectiveness to article because it is from when Sen. Feinstein announced her proposal.

VALUES

o Is there a shared life experience? Cultural values? ! Feature 1 – Cultural Understanding

" Both author and reader possess a shared cultural understanding for weapons in their lives in a direct or indirect way making this effective.

! Feature 2 – Disciplinary Understanding

" Due to her past jobs in government she shares a disciplinary understanding with former militaries that will be affected. This makes it effective because it makes people feel her support and understanding.

Reference

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Miller, E.. (2013, Jan. 25). MILLER: The Assault Weapon Myth. The Washington Times Retrieved Feb. 3, 2013, from http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jan/25/the-assault-weapon-myth/.