ENGL 1302 RHETORICAL ANALYSIS ESSAY ASSIGNMENT

FALL 2016

The goal of a rhetorical analysis is not to analyze what a writer is arguing about concerning an issue, but to
analyze how the writer is presenting the argument. For this assignment, you will identify, analyze, and evaluate
the use of rhetorical strategies in a persuasive text and discuss how it is that a writer advances a positionhow
that writer assembles an argument. This essay is not a summary of the argument, nor is it your personal reaction
to the subject of the authors argument, but rather it is an analysis that should reflect a close reading of a text to
find how and whether it persuades. Make sure your claims are stated explicitly and supported with evidence from
the text.
ASSIGNMENT
This assignment will help you improve your skills at recognizing rhetorical strategies so that you can begin to use
them in your own arguments. Use Lunsford Chapters 13 and 17 as your guide. Your essay will need to be
between 900-1,300 words and must address the following aspects of the chosen argument:

purpose of the argument

issue of audience
rhetorical appeals: ethos, pathos, and logos
creator of the argument
arrangement of the argument
style of the argument

Begin your discussion with a brief descriptive summary (150 words or less) of the authors argument. After your
summary, introduce your thesis. (You can use this summary to introduce your thesis or to begin your discussion
once you have presented your thesis.) This will be a value claim that explains how well you think the author has
crafted his/her argument.
Your essay must be formatted according to MLA style, contain in-text citations, and a works cited page. You do
not need secondary sources; however, if you choose to include additional sources that provide necessary context
for the text being analyzed, no more than two secondary sources may be used.
TOPICS
Read all of the arguments posted in the Texts for Analysis folder in Blackboard, and choose one argument as the
basis for this assignment.
AUDIENCE
Your audience will consist of your scholarly peers whom you may assume have only a casual familiarity with the
text that you are analyzing and may not have noticed or attached the same significance to the rhetorical strategies
you discuss.
DEADLINES AND SUBMISSIONS
Follow the deadlines for each part of this assignment as listed on your course calendar and schedule. Be sure to
complete each upload to Blackboard as scheduled on the calendar.
GRADING CRITERIA
In addition to the general information provided in the syllabus, the following grading policies apply to this essay:

Essays that are outside the assigned word range will receive a 0 regardless of the quality of the work.
When you check the word count of your essay, remember that headings, titles, and works cited pages do
not count.

Essays that are so riddled with grammatical and mechanical errors that a reader must struggle to
understand the basic meaning of sentences will receive a failing grade regardless of the quality of the
ideas.

Essays that contain unsupported claims or that rely on disreputable research sources will be penalized by
at least one letter grade. If you have questions about the credibility of a source, seek the instructors
approval well before the essay deadline.

Completed rough drafts must be within 90% of the minimum final word-count requirement to receive
credit. Each draft deadline missed will lower the final essay grade by five points. Each peer review
missed will lower the final essay grade by ten points. A lack of adequate performance in the peer review
process or the drafting process will lower the final essay grade by up to ten points.

Rhetorical analysis arguments that pass the basic checks listed above will be graded using the following criteria:
Analysis
(30 points)

An effective rhetorical analysis will contain:

a claim about the texts rhetorical effectiveness (your thesis)
a discussion of the authors audience (intended and/or invoked)
a detailed analysis of how the rhetorical choices in the authors argument work
Effective rhetorical analysis arguments will demonstrate
awareness of the authors use of ethos, logos, and pathos
awareness of your audience in analyzing the authors argument
awareness of potential fallacies in the authors argument
awareness of alternative views and counterarguments to your own analysis
Avoid merely summarizing the authors points, and avoid agreeing/disagreeing with the
author. Your purpose is to analyze, not to advance or attack the authors point.
Include appropriate signal phrases and citations for your sources so that readers feel
they can trust your information.

Organization
(25 points)

The essay must include a thesis statement, and the thesis should be placed near the end
of the introduction.
All body paragraphs should support the main idea expressed in the thesis, and each
body paragraph should begin with a topic sentence that expresses the main idea of that
paragraph.
Body paragraphs should be arranged logically with transitional devices to assist readers
in following the chosen organizational pattern.

Mechanics & Style

(20 points)

Effective essays will be nearly free of mistakes in grammar and punctuation.

Documentation
(15 points)

Essays should be documented using the MLA style manual for both in-text parenthetical
citations and the Works Cited page.

Format
(10 points)

Essays should be formatted using MLA style guidelines. See the sample essay that
begins on page 574.

Style should be appropriate to audience and purpose.