For this assignment, you will write a rough draft of a rhetorical analysis essay and post it to the Discussion Area where we will discuss each student’s submission. You can find the necessary information for writing your essay in this week’s online lectures and the overview of writing a rhetorical analysis essay located in chapter 8 of your text, Writing Arguments. On pages 171—174 you can see an example of a rhetorical analysis essay. 

The Essay:

Using the South University Online Library, locate an article that presents an argument about a controversial topic. The SIRS researcher, mentioned in the lecture page,
“Researching in the Online Library,” is a good resource for current, controversial topics. After you have located your article, examine its rhetorical effectiveness. Your essay should not reflect your opinion about the topic. You are to focus on how effective the author of the article is in presenting the argument.

• What strategies does the author use to persuade the target audience? 
• How does the author appeal to logos and pathos? 
• How would you characterize the author’s ethos?

Assignment Guidelines:

The rough draft of your essay should contain an introduction, a brief summary of the article you are analyzing, a detailed rhetorical analysis of the article’s argument, and a well-developed conclusion. 

• In your introduction, define the context of the argument and explain why the topic is controversial. Be sure to include a thesis statement at the end of your introduction. Your thesis should highlight two or more rhetorical features in the article that are central to the argument’s overall effectiveness or ineffectiveness. 

• Next, provide a short summary of the article’s argument to prepare readers for your analysis. 

• Your rhetorical analysis of the argument should support the claims you make in your thesis statement. You should present and evaluate the rhetorical strategies used by the author to appeal to his or her target audience.

• Your conclusion should summarize the main points of your analysis and bring the essay to an effective close.

Assignment Requirements:

Your rough draft should be at least 500 words and posted as a file attachment to the Discussion Area at the bottom of this page. Remember, your essay is about the effectiveness of the article’s author, not your opinion about the controversial topic.