Rhetoric is the study of how writers and speakers use words to influence an audience. A rhetorical analysis is an essay that breaks a work of non-fiction into parts and then explains how the parts work together to create a certain effect—whether to persuade, entertain or inform. A rhetorical analysis should explore the author’s goals, the techniques used, examples of those techniques, and the effectiveness of those techniques. When writing a rhetorical analysis, you are discussing how the author makes an argument and whether or not the approach used is successful. For this assignment, you will be discussing the essays found in Modules:
- “Shooting an Elephant”
- “The Myth of the Latin Woman”
- “Just Walk on By: A Black Man Ponders his Power to Alter Public Space”
- “Why Looks are the Last Bastion of Discrimination”
You will select ONE of the essays above and fully introduce the text you are analyzing and provide a brief summary of the author’s intent. Then identify and describe how well the author achieves his or her objective. In our weekly Discussion Board quizzes, we have explored the topics of identity, self-identity, and stereotypes. You may bring elements of those discussions into your analysis of your chosen essay. Make sure that your argument includes all of the Aristotelian appeals: Ethos, Logos, and Pathos. Please review the two lecture documents found in Modules: “Logos, Ethos, and Pathos” and “Power-point Lecture on Aristotelian Appeals.”
You must provide examples (specific textual references, paraphrases, and direct quotes) from the essay to support your claims.
Please note you are NOT agreeing or disagreeing with the author’s argument– ONLY
analyzing it.