Conducting a Rhetorical

Analysis
AP Language & Composition Grade 11

Goal of Rhetorical Analysis

Break down the text as a whole into the sum

of its parts
What is the writer trying to achieve?
What strategies is he using to meet this goal?
Are these strategies effective?

Questions to Ask While Reading

Critically

What is the general subject of the text?

Does it have meaning to you?

Is it controversial?
Does it bring up other associations in your mind?

Questions to Ask While Reading

Critically

What is the thesis?

What is the purpose of the argument? What is

the author hoping to achieve?
What is the tone of the text?

How does the thesis comment on the subject?

How is that tone developed throughout the piece?

Is the tone effective in achieving the purpose?

Who is the audience for this argument?

Three Appeals

Does the author consider the Rhetorical

Triangle?

If not, where does the author fail in this regard

If so, what are the strongest appeals and how do
they affect the success of the piece?

Three Appeals

Appeals to Ethos

Does the author establish credibility?

Does the author seem trustworthy?
How does the author handle the subject and/or the
audience

Three Appeals

Appeals to Pathos

Does the author make and emotional appeal?

What techniques does he use to reach the
audience emotionally?
Is the appeal to emotion primary or secondary to
the authors purpose?

Three Appeals

Appeals to Logos

What facts (if any) are used in the argument?

What facts are left out of the argument that might
affect the piece?
Does the argument rely on logic?

Claims

What claims are made in the argument?

What techniques or devices does the author
use to establish these claims?
What issues are raised in the piece?

Considering the Context

What are the contexts considered in the piece:
Social
Political
Historical
Cultural
Whose interests do these contexts serve?
Who gains or loses as a result of the argument?

Shape of the Argument

How does the shape or arrangement of the

piece affect the argument?

Does the argument go from specific to general

Does the argument go from general to specific

Inductive reasoning makes a claim based on looking

at a number of specific examples. Small to big.
Deductive reasoning makes a claim based on a
general principal then applying to a specific case.

Are there headings or divisions in the writing

How does the Style of the Argument

Work to Persuade an Audience?

How would you characterize the overall style

of the piece?

Formal / informal
Serious / light-hearted
Slanted / objective ect.
Is there anything unique or interesting about the
style that is worth discussing?

How does the Language of the

Argument Work to Persuade an

Audience?
Consider the diction

How does the word choice relate to the purpose?

How does the sentence structure or syntax affect
the piece? Do sentences stand out that might be
significant?

Making Connections

No matter what items you choose to comment

on during a rhetorical analysis, you must
make connections to your thesis or to the
authors purpose.
Dont just make observations about a text,
you must tie it to something important
about the bigger picture of the piece as a
whole!