Unit 3: Examining Rhetorical Strategies in Depth - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Unit 3: Examining Rhetorical Strategies in Depth

Thursday, 10/22Slide2

Thursday, 10/22

Place your final copy of Essay #2 on the front table (with Works Cited Page and Peer Review Worksheet attached—

use the stapler at the front of class if you need to

).

Review of Rhetorical Strategies with Examples (and expectations for analysis entering Unit 3).

Homework.Slide3

What are Rhetorical Strategies?

Tools that help writers and other communicators craft language (textual) or images (visual) so as to have an effect on the audience/reader.

Strategies are means of persuasion, a way to get the reader’s/audience’s attention.Slide4

How do we analyze

strategies for Unit 3?

Identify the rhetorical strategy in the text/film and give an

example. (What?)

Describe how they work

. (How?)

Describe why they are used – what purpose do they accomplish

? (Why?)

Always include a discussion of

SPECIFICALLY how

the strategy helps the author/film maker develop and support the

argument

.

Let’s look

more in depth at

different types of strategies…Slide5

Authorities or “Big Names”

Commonly referred to as “appeals to authority,” using “Big Names” makes a statement/claim/ argument seem authoritative, well researched, believable.

In analysis, answer the following question:

How does this appeal to authority build trust in the author’s argument?Slide6

Commonplaces

Also known as “hidden assumptions,” “hidden beliefs,” and “ideologies”

They include assumptions, many of them unconscious, that groups of people hold in common.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

Who is the intended audience of the piece?

What are some of the assumptions of this intended audience? What hidden assumptions or beliefs does the speaker have about the topic?

How is the speaker or author appealing to the hidden assumptions of the audience?

How does the use of commonplaces further the argument?

Slide7

Comparison & Contrast

Discussion of similarities and differences.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

Which two or more related subjects are discussed?

How are the subjects alike or different?

How does the comparison further the argument of the piece?Slide8
Slide9

Definition

When authors define certain words, these definitions are specifically formulated for the specific purpose he/she has in mind.

These definitions are crafted uniquely for the intended audience.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

Who is the intended audience?

Does the text focus on any abstract, specialized, or new terms that need further explanation so that the readers/viewers understand the point?

How has the speaker or author chosen to define terms for the audience?

What effect does the definition have on the audience, or how does this definition help further the argument?Slide10

Definitions and division invite particular perspectives on the worldSlide11

The politics of definitions

Gay psychologist wears a mask at the American Psychological Association

conference in 1972. He is on a panel arguing that APA definitions of

homosexuality as a mental illness should be abolishedSlide12

The Politics of Definition

Consider how the following definitions and terms involve questions of power, value and ideology

Mr

,

Mrs

, Miss (Ms.) defines women in terms of their marital status, but not men (hence Ms.) The convention of women being identified by the last name of their father or husband.

“Far East, Middle East, Near East” (defining regions based on proximity to Britain)

MEDICINE: The re/definition and medicalization of illness: “male pattern baldness” (going bald) “social anxiety disorder” (shyness) “ED, or erectile dysfunction” (formerly impotence) “halitosis (bad breath)

PSYCHOLOGY: APA redefines homosexuality in 1972 (before 1972 it is listed as a mental illness); the many shifting re/definitions of conditions, from hysteria to depression to sexual identity (trans-gender,

transexual

, bisexual, etc.)Slide13

The Politics of Definition

RACE: the one drop rule; Negro, Black, African American; miscegenation laws. In South Africa the Japanese are defined as white, as Japan = key trading partner. Others are black or colored (Asian). In Brazil, definitions of race are particularly varied. In the U.S., “Caucasian” has been redefined many times – sometimes includes people from India, Afghanistan, Turkey, and the Mediterranean countries, and at other

times

not. Consider Germany – citizenship is largely defined in terms of racial/ethnic and national “descent” rather than place (unlike in the U.S., the children of foreigners assume their parents' nationality.) In most countries, racial definitions shift frequently, shaped by ideology, power, economics and history. Consider - the terms Maori and

Pakeha

in NZ.

SOCIAL ISSUES: drugs and alcoholism as moral failings vs. addictions.

LEGAL DEFINITIONS: the recent supreme court case ruling on the free speech rights of corporations; defining rape within marriage as a crime (for a long time it wasn’t in many countries

)Slide14

Definitions are important in law..

In the United States, the term ‘Caucasian’ has been mainly used to describe a group commonly called White Americans, as defined by the government and Census Bureau.[22] Between 1917 and 1965, immigration to the US was restricted by a national origins quota. The Supreme Court in United States v. Bhagat Singh Thind (1923) decided that Asian Indians – unlike Europeans and Middle Easterners – were Caucasian, but were not white, because most laypeople did not consider them to be white people. This was important for determining whether they could become naturalized citizens, then limited to free whites. The court and government changed its opinion in 1946. In 1965 major changes were made to immigration law, lifting earlier restrictions on immigrants from Asia.[23] (Wikipedia)Slide15

Five Major

Human “Races

” (

Oram

et al. 1976, p. 614)Slide16

The social construction of race

“There is no more biological reason to speak of the Indians, Whites, and Blacks as distinct races than there is to speak of red-haired, brown-haired, and gray-haired people as distinct races. This is not to say that races are not “real.” They are all too real, but understanding how races are formed and perpetuated in societies is a matter of looking into social history, not biology.”

“

Two Anthropologists Reflect on Race & Racism:

What is Race? An Anthropological View.” By Thomas Bilosi and Marc Feldesman, DIVERSITY Vol.2 1992.Slide17

MarriageSlide18

MarriageSlide19

History

From the 5th to the 14th centuries, the Roman Catholic Church conducted special ceremonies to bless same-sex unions which were almost identical for those to bless heterosexual unions. At the very least, these were spiritual, if not sexual, unions.

In 1076, Pope Alexander II issued a decree prohibiting marriages between couples who were more closely related than 6th cousins.

In the 16th century, servants and day laborers were not allowed to marry in Bavaria and Austria unless they had the permission of local political authorities. This law was not finally abolished in Austria until 1921.

From the 1690s to the 1870s, "wife sale" was common in rural and small-town England. To divorce his wife, a husband could present her with a rope around her neck in a public sale to another man. Slide20

Description

Details sensory perceptions of a person, place or thing.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

Does a person, place or thing play a prominent role in the text or film?

Does the tone, pacing or overall purpose of the

text

benefit from the sensory details?

What emotions might these details evoke in the audience (see Pathos)?

How does the description help the author further the argument

?

P.S.A. on Smoking

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dn50mTEGnrUSlide21

Division & Classification

Divides a whole into parts or sorts related items into categories.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

If the author/film maker trying to explain a broad or complicated subject?

Does it benefit the text/film to reduce the subject to more manageable parts to focus the discussion?

How does the division and classification help further the overall argument?

How does the division and classification of injuries to various body systems/organs in the Quit Smoking ad shown before help its argument?Slide22

Exemplification

Provides examples or cases in point.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

What examples, facts, statistics, cases in point, personal experiences, or interview questions does the author/film maker add to illustrate claims or illuminate the argument?

What effect do these have on the reader/audience?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9WB_PXjTBoSlide23

Ethos

Aristotle’s term ethos refers to the credibility, character or personality of the speaker or author or someone else connected to the argument.

Ethos brings up questions of ethics and trust between the speaker or author and the audience.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

How and why is the speaker / author trying to get the audience to trust her or him?

What specifically does the author do to obtain the audience’s trust?

How does the author/speaker show fairness? Understanding of the topic?

Trusworthy-ness

? Consideration of the audience’s needs?

How does the author/speaker construct credibility for his/her argument?Slide24

Evidence of an author’s ethos:

References to the author

’

s background, profession, previous work, guiding philosophy, etc.

Comments that indicate sincerity, fair-mindedness, expertise, likeability, moral vision, etc.

Concessions to the opposing arguments. (Or, for signs of lacking ethos, places the author fails to acknowledge such arguments or evidence.)

Use of appropriate evidence, language and style in light of the targeted audience.Slide25

Logos

Refers to the use of logic , reason, facts, statistics, data and numbers.

Logos often seems tangible and touchable, so much more real than other rhetorical strategies.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

How and why does the other chose logos?

How does the author show there are good reasons to support his or her argument?

What kind of evidence does the author use to construct logos, and how does this further the argument?Slide26

Pathos

Refers to feelings.

The author/speaker wants the audience to feel the same emotion that he/she is feeling, whether or not they actually agree with the topic.

In this way, the audience is more likely to eventually agree with the author/speaker later on.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

What specific emotion does the author invoke? How?

How does he/she use emotion as a tool to persuade the audience?

How does the use of emotion help further the argument?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpTb2RjbMn4Slide27

Pathos: Appealing to Emotions

Words or passages that activate emotions, usually because they relate to readers

’

or hearers' deeply held values or beliefs.

Pathos is not necessarily a strategy of writing about emotional subjects or of describing strong emotions. It is a strategy of using language in ways that evoke emotions in audiences. Slide28

The rhetorical effect of the appeals results from RHETORICAL STRATEGIES.

For example: When an author chooses to support a claim with a touching personal story, the strategy of choosing that type of evidence results in a pathos appeal to the reader

’

s emotions, an ethos appeal by showing the writer to be a caring person, and a logos appeal by showing the reasonable conclusion arrived at when connecting the story to the claim.

*Be careful to fully explore the nuanced effects of each rhetorical strategy and don’t simply lump it under one term and call it a day.Slide29

Identification

This is rhetorician Kenneth Burke’s term for the act of “identifying” with another person who shares your values or beliefs.

Many speakers or authors try to identify with an audience or convince an audience to identify with them and their argument.

In analysis, answer the following question:

How does the author build a connection between him/herself and the audience?

How does this connection further the argument?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9xCCaseop4Slide30

Meta-discourse

Language about language.

Announces to the reader what the writer is doing, helping the reader to recognize the author’s plan.

Can be used to both announce the overall project or purpose of the paper and to announce its argument.

Can provide “Signposts” along the way, guiding the reader to what will come next and showing how it is connected to what has come before.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

What is the author’s voice in this text/film? How does it enter and guide the audience through the text/film?

How does the author’s use of

metadiscourse

further the argument?Slide31

Below are some examples of metadiscourse in writing, denoting

:

the

writer's intentions:

"to sum up," "candidly," "I believe"

the writer's confidence:

"may," "perhaps," "certainly," "must"

directions to the reader:

"note that," "finally," "therefore," "however"

the structure of the text:

"first," "second," "finally," "therefore," "however"

Most writing needs

meta-discourse

, but too much buries ideas. Technical, academic, and other non-fiction writers should use

meta-discourse

sparingly.

[Slide32

Metaphors, Similes, Analogies

Commonly referred to as “figurative language”

Comparison of two parallel terms or situations in which the traits of one are similar to another – often one relatively firm and concrete, and the other less familiar and concrete.

Simile is an analogy that use “like” or “as”

These allow the author / film maker to use concrete, easily understood ideas to clarify a less obvious point.

In analysis, answer the following question:

What two things are being compared?

How does the author’s / film maker’s use of figurative language help further the argument? Help the audience view the argument in a new way?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pk7yqlTMvp8Slide33

Shakespearefrom the play

As You Like

It

“All

the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players;

They have their exits and their

entrances

…”Slide34

Examples of antimetabole

"I meant what I said, and I said what I meant. An elephant's faithful, one hundred percent!" Dr. Seuss,

Horton Hatches an Egg.

“Ask not what your country can do for you - ask what you can do for your country.” JFK’s

"The absence of evidence is not the evidence of absence."

Carl Sagan

"Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to our enemies, justice will be done."-- George W. Bush, 9-20-01.

"Who sheds the blood of a man, by a man shall his blood be shed" (

Genesis

9:6)Slide35

Recent speeches: top trope = antimetabole, top theme = change

"In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change." Slide36

"We were elected to change Washington, and we let Washington change us." Slide37

"People the world over have always been more impressed by the power of our example than by the example of our power." Slide38

"In the end the true test is not the speeches a president delivers, it's whether the president delivers on the speeches." Slide39

Tricolon

One ring to rule them all….

Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness….

Sex, drugs, and rock and roll…

Red, white and blue,

I came, I saw, I conquered

VS – it was the best of times, it was the worst of timesSlide40

Drink “provokes the desire but takes away the performance.” William ShakespeareSlide41

AnalogySlide42

Prolepsis

Anticipating the opposition’s best argument and addressing it in advance.

Also known as “Counterargument and Rebuttal.”

Uses the reality that readers often interact with the text and ask questions of it – disagreeing and pointing out where there are differing opinions or weaknesses in argument – as a tool to help the reader believe the argument.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

How does the author present any counterarguments or rebuttals?

What effect do the counterarguments or rebuttals have on the power of the author’s argument?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4r7JH17IC4Slide43

Questioning

Rhetorical Questions: a question designed to have one correct answer. The author leads the reader into a position rather than stating it explicitly.

In analysis, answer the following questions:

Why does the author ask a question with an obvious answer?

How does the use of the rhetorical question strengthen the author’s argument?

Transitional Questions: Leads the reader into a new subject area or area of the argument.

How does the transitional question help guide the reader?

How does the use of the transitional question help the author organize his argument?Slide44

The Daily Show & the rhetorical question.

Explores

leading question, the issue of framing, agency, responsibility, etc

.

http

://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/wed-september-13-2006/the-question-markSlide45

Organization & Structure

Problem-Solution

: argument presents a problem and a potential solution.

Description of the need to make coffee at home to save money.

Cause and Effect

: argument describes the relationship between the cause or catalyst of an event and the effect.

Description of identifying the over-consumption of candy as the cause of tooth decay.Slide46

Organization and Complexity: Language of health insurance policies – and politics of “plain language” movement.

“The plan covering the patient as a dependent child of a person whose date of birth occurs earlier in the calendar year shall be primary over the plan covering the patient as a dependent of a person whose date of birth occurs later in the calendar year provided. However, in the case of a dependent child of legally separated or divorced parents, the plan covering the patient as a dependent of the parent with legal custody, or as a dependent of the custodial parents spouse shall be primary over the plan covering the patient as a dependent of the parent without legal custody.”

According to the Flesch-Kincaid measure of readability, this passage is written at graduate-school level. It’s also highly hypotactic, consisting of 2 long, deeply subordinated sentences.Slide47

Revised for 8

th

grade readability (paratactic not hypotactic – written more like spoken conversation)

What happens if my spouse and I both have health coverage for our child?

The parent whose birthday is earlier in the year pays the claim first. For example: Your birthday is in March; your spouse’s birthday is in May. March comes earlier in the year than May, so your policy will pay for your child’s claim first.

What happens if I am separated or divorced?

If your child is covered by your policy and also by the policy of your separated or divorced spouse, the policy of the parent with legal custody pays first – i.e. if you have legal custody, your plan pays first. The same rule applies even if your child is covered by a health insurance policy of a stepparent. For example: Your former spouse has legal custody, and his/her new spouse’s policy covers your child. The new spouse’s policy will pay your child’s claim first. Slide48

What can be inferred from the design of the following spaces/objects? Slide49

Why design walls & curbs this way?Slide50

Architects explain how they design spaces to discourage skateboarders (& other undesirables):

“Because I was curious about how the designers of some of these details felt about them, I took a trip to the San Francisco Department of Public Works where I introduced myself as an editor of Urban Action. I spoke to two landscape architects both of whom were very solicitous. One was acutely aware that "San Francisco is the most famous

skatespot

in the world"—this was the architect in charge of everything-proofing the city:

skateproofing

,

bumproofing

,

graffitiproofing

, and so on. (She is also the architect who told me that the anti-skate metal clips are called “pig ears.”)…

you try to predict the behavior of undesirables and obviate those behaviors with subtle design techniques: bright lights in corners, narrow benches, rigid circulation patterns, and so on

.”