What is rhetorical analysis?O deconstructing nonfiction texts –speeches,

essays, editorials, etc.— and evaluating how the author creates meaning, establishes and proves his/her claim

O making judgments about whether or not an author has succeeded in his or her purpose

O Rhetoric—Analyzing techniques that make persuasion possible

Audience/Readers(Pathos)

Subject/Topic/Message (Logos)

Purpose

Context Context

Context

Speaker/Writer(Ethos)

Ethos- credibility of the speaker

O Writers/speakers ask the audience to -trust them (intelligence, goodwill and virtue)-believe them-to bear with them-to listen to them

O Readers/Audiences must questionthe speaker’s authority, trustworthiness, motives.

--You must consider the writer’s integrity and attitude towards his/her audience.

Ethos—establishing authority/credibility by

1.Demonstrating knowledge about the topic (position, job title, experience, etc.)

2.Establishing common ground with the audience through respect and concern

3.Demonstrating fairness and evenhandedness

4.Displaying confidence

Establishing Confidence and Credibility

5.Presenting yourself in a suitable manner— physical appearance 6.Connecting your beliefs to core principles that are widely respected7.Using appropriate language for the audience, neither speaking above nor below their capabilities. 8.Citing credible, reliable sources9.Admitting limitations, exceptions, or weaknesses of your argument. Making these concessions (anticipating the potential rebuttals of your audience) makes the audience belief that you have respect for them and that you have carefully considered your position.

Logos—logic

O “word” or “reason”O Rational argumentO Logic behind the argumentsExamples:-factual evidence for support“Nine out of ten doctors agree…”

Examples:statistics, charts, graphs, definitions,

surveys,. polls, examples, narratives, personal testimonies etc.

Evaluating PollsThere are three important considerations to consider when evaluating polls: 1.The source —who commissioned the poll, who published it, and any associated bias.2.The statistical methodology --who was interviewed, how they were interviewed.3.The questions —how were they asked, in what order, with what language?

Pathos-emotional appealsOPATHOS—the quality or power of

evoking the audience’s emotionsOPrimarily achieved through the use of

strong emotional diction (evocative words)

OPowerful images that evoke emotionsOAnecdotes —stories OImmediacy contributes to the

effectiveness of emotional appealsOPathos appeals to the heart and to one’s

emotions.

Pathos—ExamplesO Stories or testimonialsO Personal anecdotes or storiesO Personal connectionsO Imagery and figurative language that provokes

an emotional responseO Visual images or words that inspire you to

empathize or have compassion towards the idea/topic

O Powerful words, phrases, or images that stir up emotion

ethos

pathos logos

1

2

3

StyleO refers to the choices one makes that involve

words, phrases, and sentences.O should appropriate for author’s purpose and

affects the way that a reader reacts to a piece.

O Four aspects of Style areO DictionO ImageryO SyntaxO Figures of speech

DictionOThis is word choice. --General vs. Specific words. --Formal versus Informal--Denotation and connotation.--Monosyllabic words and polysyllabic

words.

Diction—Charged Words

Charged words are words with strong connotations beyond their literal meaning that are likely to produce an emotional response.– Tyranny (evokes a feeling of fear, suggests

living in a state of terror)– Liberty (suggests an ideal life

characterized by freedom)– Justice (can be associated with freedom

and equality)– Honor (evokes a sense of morality and

dignity)

“He [King George] is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.”

Charged Words

He is at this time transporting large armies of foreign mercenaries to complete the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of cruelty and perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the head of a civilized nation.

Contrast

The Effect of Charged Words

• “Grandmother Arrested in Pot Sting”

The fact that the person is a grandmother has no relevance to the fact that she was arrested on a drug charge.  It may not even reflect the fact that she is old, since I’ve known grandmothers as young as 32.  But the use of the term conjures up an image of a sweet, gentle person, and juxtaposed against the crime, elicits far more outrage than if the headline was …

“Local Woman Arrested in Pot Sting”

ImageryImagery is words that appeal to the senses.

– Visual - “There are black clouds of God’s wrath now hanging directly over your head” (Edwards)

– Auditory – the wind whistling through the trees, the rumbling waves rushing past

– Tactile/Emotional – “How awful it is to be left behind at such a day! To see so many others feasting….” (Edwards)

– Oral – the puckering twang of lemon juice– Olfactory – wet dog after a morning

rainshower

SyntaxO Syntax—construction of sentences.O Syntax discusses:--Sentence Type: complex or simple?--Sentence length: short or long?--Active vs. Passive Sentences--Pacing. Sentence construction can

speed up the reading of a passage or slow it down.

RestatementO Repeating an idea in a variety of

ways, using different words to reinforce a point.

AnaphoraO Repetition of the same word or group of

words at the beginning of successive clauses, sentences, or lines.

“This royal throne of kings, this sceptred isle, This earth of majesty, this seat of Mars, This other Eden, demi-paradise, This fortress built by Nature for herself Against infection and the hand of war, This happy breed of men, this little world, This precious stone set in the silver sea…”

-John of Gaunt in Shakespeare's Richard II (2.1.40-51; 57-60)

Rhetorical Devices: Chiasmus &

Antimetabole O arrangement of ideas in the second clause is a

reversal of the first. 1.Chiasmus is, specifically, the reversal of

grammatical structures in successive phrases or clauses: It is hard to make money, but to spend it is easy.

2.Antimetabole is, specifically, the repetition of words, in successive clauses, in reverse grammatical order: “Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.” JFK

When the going gets tough, the tough get going.

Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! -Isaiah 5:20

Rhetorical QuestionO A question posed by the speaker or

writer not to seek an answer but instead to affirm or deny a point by simply asking the question

O Ex. Do I really need to ask you to clean your room again?

ParallelismO Similarity of structure in a pair or series

of related words, phrases, or clauses.parallelism of words:She tried to make

her pastry fluffy, sweet, and delicate.parallelism of phrases:Singing a song or

writing a poem is joyous.parallelism of clauses:Perch are

inexpensive; cod are cheap; trout are abundant; but salmon are best.

JuxtapositionO is a poetic and rhetorical device in which

normally unassociated ideas, words, or phrases are placed next to one another.

O Light and dark images O Life and deathO Cold and hotO Etc.

Speaker

MessageAudience

Rhetorical Triangle SOAPS Method

Subject—the general idea, content and ideasOccasion—time, place, context, or current situation for the writing. Consider what events prompted the writing.

Audience—the target audience (try to be specific—education level, beliefs and values, predisposition towards the speaker)

Purpose—what the author hopes the reader will take from the piece.

Speaker—evaluate the ethos of the speaker