Why rhetorical analysis

It is important to recognize that this then needs to be transformed in a second stage into something that is much more like a "performance"—something carefully calculated to persuade a particular audience of the position we have developed. Make sure you submit for scrutiny this second stage. We have done a bit of this kind of analysis in class, so the activity of thinking about the texts should feel familiar.

When we write essays that try to perform a clear but sophisticated analysis, it is sometimes helpful to approach the task in discrete steps. When producing a rhetorical analysis, you might try the following. Take notes at each stage of these stages and write out full sentences as often as possible so that you begin to make your formulations early-on. Do the same for more specific, particular effects. Begin with what the works do for you—that is, start with your experience.

This isn't a license to say anything you like, or, for example, to speak simply about what the works remind you of, since you will have to account for the effects you describe and how they are produced. Use terms and concepts we have discussed in class—the Aristotelian forms of appeal, metaphor, metonymy, analogy, common ground, etc—and any others that seem useful.

Look in particular for any patterns that are developed by the work. This will help you hone in on a thesis. Third, craft a few sentences that explain why, in your view, the piece works the way it does. Then isolate the textual evidence you will use—probably only a portion of what you have noted. In other words, how does the author evoke emotions of pity, sympathy, anger, courage, happiness, sorrow, etc. How does the author establish a bond with the audience?

What kinds of images, colors, words, sounds does the author use to evoke these feelings? How effectively does the author use the logos appeal to accomplish their intended purpose? What evidence and types of reasoning does the author use? How does the author arrange their ideas or order their main points? Does the author use repetition, inductive logic, or deductive logic? Does the author refer to precedents? Address alternative arguments or viewpoints? Use the following questions to help you to take the text apart—dissecting it to see how it works:.

It is also a good idea to revisit Section 2. Once you have done this basic, rhetorical, critical reading of your text , you are ready to think about how the rhetorical situation Section 6. Skip to content Increase Font Size. Chapter 6: Thinking and Analyzing Rhetorically.