Assignment: Write a 2-3 page essay that provides a rhetorical analysis of a published argument. The first step toward completing this essay will be to find a written argument to analyze—not an informative article, not a visual argument, not something from a textbook. You can find such arguments in the editorial pages of a newspaper, on sports or entertainment websites, in professional journals or blogs, etc. Your paper should be in MLA format and should include a Works Cited page.
Process: You should assume that your audience has not read the argument you are analyzing. That means you’ll need to begin your essay by describing where the argument appeared, when it was published, who wrote it, and what it is called. After that, you will need to summarize the issue it is responding to, then accurately summarize author’s central claims. The rest of the essay should be devoted to analyzing how the author makes his or her argument and whether or not he or she is successful. Don’t just describe the author’s techniques—evaluate them. Your job is to show how certain elements make the argument succeed or fail.
Some elements you should examine are:
• Who is the author and what important affiliations does she or he have?
• Logos: What evidence and reasoning does the author offer?
• Ethos: How does the author attempt to establish credibility and build authority?
• Pathos: How does the author evoke emotion?
• What objections does the author foresee from the audience, and how does he or she answer them?
• What aspects of the issue does the author ignore?
Each of these questions should be followed by another question—and how does it affect the argument’s success? The first and last questions on this list will require you to do some light research. Make sure you enhance your credibility by using good sources, and make sure to cite those sources in both the text and the works cited page.
Your analysis will be an argument itself—you are arguing whether or not the author’s rhetoric is successful. To make your own arguments successful, show the evidence and reasoning that support your claims. That means quoting specific passages (evidence) and explaining why those passages deserve your evaluation (reasoning).
Finally, make sure to attach a copy of the argument to your essay.
