"GUIDE to writing a rhetorical analysis

Finding a Topic
A rhetorical analysis is usually assigned: you’re asked to show how an argument works and to
assess its effectiveness. When you can choose your own subject for analysis, look for one or
more of the following qualities:

a complex verbal or visual argument that challenges you — or disturbs or pleases you
a text that raises current or enduring issues of substance
a text that you believe should be taken more seriously

Look for arguments to analyze in the editorial and op-ed pages of any newspaper, political
magazines such as the Nation or National Review, Web sites of organizations and interest
groups, political blogs such as Huffington Post or Power Line, corporate Web sites that post
their TV ad spots, videos and statements posted to YouTube, and so on.

Researching Your Topic

Once you’ve got a text to analyze, find out all you can about it. Use library or Web resources to
explore:

who the author is and what his or her credentials are

if the author is an institution, what it does, what its sources of funding are, who its members
are, and so on
who is publishing or sponsoring the piece and what the organization typically publishes
what the leanings or biases of the author and publisher might be, where they are coming from
in the argument, and what influences may have led them to make the argument
what the context of the argument is — what preceded or provoked it and how others have
responded to it

Formulating a Claim
Begin with a hypothesis. A full thesis might not become evident until you’re well into your
analysis, but your final thesis should reflect the complexity of the piece that you’re studying. In
developing a thesis, consider questions such as the following:

What is the major claim of the argument? What evidence is presented in support of it?
How can I describe what this argument achieves?
What is the purpose, and is it accomplished?
What audiences does the argument address and what audiences does it ignore, and why?
Which rhetorical appeals does the argument make use of and which will likely influence readers
most: ethos of the author? emotional appeals? logical progression? style, use of images or
other illustrations? What aspects of the argument work better than others?
How do the rhetorical elements of ethos, pathos, and logos interact?

Here’s the hardest part for most writers of rhetorical analyses: whether you agree or disagree
with an argument should not keep you from careful, meticulous analysis: you need to stay out
of the fray and pay attention only to how — and to how well — the argument works.

Examples of Possible Claims for a Rhetorical Analysis

Some people admire the directness and plain talking of Donald Trump; others are put off by his
lack of information, his tendency to stretch or ignore the truth, and his noisy bluster. A close
look at several of his tweets and public appearances will illuminate both sides of this debate.
Today’s editorial in the Daily Collegian about campus crimes may scare first-year students, but
its anecdotal reporting doesn’t get down to hard numbers — and for a good reason. Those
statistics don’t back the position taken by the editors.
The imageboard 4chan has been called an “Internet hate machine,” yet others claim it as a
great boon to creativity. A close analysis of its home-page can help to settle this debate.
The original design of New York’s Freedom Tower, with its torqued surfaces and evocative
spire, made a stronger argument about American values than its replacement, a fortress-like
skyscraper stripped of imagination and unable to make any statement except “I’m 1,776 feet
tall.”
The controversy over speech on campuses has reached a fever pitch, with some arguing that
those who spout hate and bigotry and prejudice should be barred from speaking.

Preparing a Proposal
If your instructor asks you to prepare a proposal for your rhetorical analysis, here’s a format
you might use:

Provide a copy of the work you’re analyzing, whether it’s a print text, a photograph, a digital
image, or a URL, for instance.
Offer a working hypothesis or tentative thesis.
Indicate which rhetorical components seem especially compelling and worthy of detailed study
and any connections between elements. For example, does the piece seem to emphasize facts
and logic so much that it becomes disconnected from potential audiences? If so, hint at that
possibility in your proposal.
Indicate background information you intend to research about the author, institution, and
contexts (political, economic, social, and religious) of the argument.
Define the audience you’d like to reach. If you’re responding to an assignment, you may be
writing primarily for a teacher and classmates. But they make up a complex audience in
themselves. If you can do so within the spirit of the assignment, imagine that your analysis will
be published in a local newspaper, Web site, or blog.
Conclude by briefly discussing the key challenges you anticipate in preparing a rhetorical
analysis.

Considering Genre and Media

Your instructor may specify that you use a particular genre and/or medium. If not, ask yourself
these questions to help you make a good choice:

What genre is most appropriate for your rhetorical analysis? Does it call for an academic essay,
a report, an infographic, a poster, brochure, or something else?
What medium is most appropriate for your analysis? Would it be best delivered orally to a live
audience? Presented as an audio essay or podcast? Presented in print only or in print with
illustrations?
Will you need visuals, such as moving or still images, maps, graphs, charts — and what function
will they play in your analysis? Make sure they are not just “added on” but are necessary
components of the analysis.

Thinking about Organization

Your rhetorical analysis is likely to include the following:

Facts about the text you’re analyzing: provide the author’s name; the title or name of the work;
its place of publication or its location; the date it was published or viewed.
Evidence that you have read the argument carefully and critically, that you have listened closely
to and understand the points it is making, and that you have been open and fair in your
assessment.
Contexts for the argument: readers need to know where the text is coming from, to what it
may be responding, in what controversies it might be embroiled, and so on. Don’t assume that
they can infer the important contextual elements.
A synopsis of the text that you’re analyzing: if you can’t attach the original argument, you must
summarize it in enough detail so that a reader can imagine it. Even if you attach a copy of the
piece, the analysis should include a summary.
Some claim about the work’s rhetorical effectiveness: it might be a simple evaluative claim or
something more complex. The claim can come early in the paper, or you might build up to it,
providing the evidence that leads toward the conclusion you’ve reached.
A detailed analysis of how the argument works: although you’ll probably analyze rhetorical
components separately, don’t let your analysis become a dull roster of emotional, ethical, and
logical appeals. Your rhetorical analysis should be an argument itself that supports a claim; a
simple list of rhetorical appeals won’t make much of a point.
Evidence for every point made in your analysis.
An assessment of alternative views and counterarguments to your own analysis.
Getting and Giving Response: Questions for Peer Response
If you have access to a writing center, discuss the text that you intend to analyze with a writing
consultant before you write the analysis. Try to find people who agree with the argument and
others who disagree, and take notes on their observations. Your instructor may assign you to a
peer group for the purpose of reading and responding to one another’s drafts; if not, share your
draft with someone on your own. You can use the following questions to evaluate a draft. If
you’re evaluating someone else’s draft, be sure to illustrate your points with examples. Specific
comments are always more helpful than general observations.

The Claim

Does the claim address the rhetorical effectiveness of the argument itself rather than the
opinion or position that it takes?
Is the claim significant enough to interest readers?
Does the claim indicate important relationships between various rhetorical components?
Would the claim be one that the creator of the piece would regard as serious criticism?

Evidence for the Claim

Is enough evidence given to support all your claims? What evidence do you still need?
Is the evidence in support of the claim simply announced, or are its significance and
appropriateness analyzed? Is a more detailed discussion needed?
Do you use appropriate evidence, drawn from the argument itself or from other materials?
Do you address objections readers might have to the claim, criteria, or evidence?
What kinds of sources might you use to explain the context of the argument? Do you need to
use sources to check factual claims made in the argument?
Are all quotations introduced with appropriate signal phrases (for instance, “As Áida Álvarez
points out”), and do they merge smoothly into your sentences?

Organization and Style

How are the parts of the argument organized? How effective is this organization? Would some
other structure work better?
Will readers understand the relationships among the original text, your claims, your supporting
reasons, and the evidence you’ve gathered (from the original text and any other sources you’ve
used)? If not, what could be done to make those connections clearer? Are more transitional
words and phrases needed? Would headings or graphic devices help?
Are the transitions or links from point to point, sentence to sentence, and paragraph to
paragraph clear and effective? If not, how could they be improved?
Is the style suited to the subject and appropriate to your audience? Is it too formal? Too casual?
Too technical? Too bland or boring?
Which sentences seem particularly effective? Which ones seem weakest, and how could they
be improved? Should some short sentences be combined, or should any long ones be separated
into two or more sentences?
How effective are the paragraphs? Do any seem too skimpy or too long? Do they break the
analysis at strategic points?
Which words or phrases seem particularly effective, accurate, and powerful? Do any seem dull,
vague, unclear, or inappropriate for the audience or your purpose? Are definitions provided for
technical or other terms that readers might not know?

Spelling, Punctuation, Mechanics, Documentation, and Format

Check the spelling of the author’s name, and make sure that the name of any institution
involved with the work is correct. Note that the names of many corporations and institutions
use distinctive spelling and punctuation.
Check the title of the text you’re analyzing so you’re sure to get it right.
Look for any errors in spelling, punctuation, capitalization, and the like.
Check the format of your assignment and make sure it matches instructions given on your
original assignment."