RWS 100 9117 Testa Rhetorical Appeals Homework Anyone

RWS 100 – 9/1/17 – Testa Rhetorical Appeals

Homework Anyone want to share what they wrote? Pretty please

More on the Rhetorical Situation • AUDIENCE is everything! • When writing, it is always important to keep your audience in mind! • You are not writing to yourself here. • Also remember that sometimes the audience knows you are trying to speak to them (i. e. , your boss, your professor).

Tesla Commercial revisited Who is the audience of the Tesla commercial?

Tesla Commercial Potential car buyers, yes, but also: • • • Wealthy people (Teslas cost mad cash yo) Environmentally Aware people (save trees!) Car enthusiasts (Tesla is sporty, right? ) Gas conscious people People who care about the future Older people? ? ? revisited

The WPA (sucks) • The WPA (Writing Placement Assessment) is a timed write you take after RWS 200 but before/during the 60 unit mark. • The test determines how many more RWS classes you need to take. • If you score high, you don’t have to take any more RWS courses after 200! • If you score low, you have to take two more RWS classes. *sadface*

Definition of Rhetoric refers to the study and uses of written, spoken, and visual language. It investigates how language is used to organize and maintain social groups, construct meanings and identities, coordinate behavior, mediate power, produce change, and create knowledge. Rhetoricians often assume that language is constitutive (we shape and are shaped by language), dialogic (it exists in the shared territory between self and other), closely connected to thought (mental activity as "inner speech") and integrated with social, cultural and economic practices. Rhetorical study and written literacy are understood to be essential to civic, professional and academic life.

Definition of Rhetoric Aristotle: Let rhetoric be [defined as] an ability, in each [particular] case, to see the available means of persuasion. De. Luca: Rhetoric is the mobilization of signs for the articulation of identities, ideologies, consciousnesses, communities, publics, and cultures. Ratcliffe: But as Kenneth Burke has taught us, rhetoric may be defined very broadly (e. g. , I tell the students in my undergraduate rhetorical theory class that the study of rhetoric is the study of how we use language and how language uses us). Bizzell/Herzberg: Rhetoric has a number of overlapping meanings: the practice of oratory; the study of the strategies of effective oratory; the use of language, written or spoken, to inform or persuade; the study of the persuasive effects of language; the study of the relation between language and knowledge; the classification and use of tropes and figures; and, of course, the use of empty promises and half-truths as a form of propaganda.

Rhetorical Appeals • In a rhetorical analysis, you are often asked to analyze writing in terms of its ability to use the available means of persuasion--ethos, pathos, and logos. • You will use ethos, pathos, and logos in your homework, in your essays, and in your life, so it's best to get acquainted with them!

Ethos • Think ETHICAL appeal of the writer. • This appeal involves convincing your audience that you are intelligent and can be trusted. In other words, this appeal shows that you are trustworthy, credible, and a reliable source of information. • Doctors are an example of people who have built their careers on credibility and trustworthiness.

Examples of Appeals to Ethos Perform extensive, up-to-date research. This shows that you have spent the time thoroughly researching the topic. Pave common ground and establish shared values. Examples of shared values can be saving the environment, human rights, and child safety. Use recognized authorities in the field. Quoting Dr. Phil, a prominent psychology, reinforces your credibility.

Pathos Think PASSIONATE or emotional appeal. This kind of appeal can be very effective if it’s not over-done, especially if your topic is an emotional one. Because an audience has emotions as well as intellect, an argument should seek to engage the audience emotionally. The singer Adele touches an emotional chord in all of her songs.

Examples of Appeals to Pathos Evoke sympathy and empathy. This person helps children and in this way evokes a sense of empathy in the audience. Induce fear and anger. President Trump often instills fear into his audience, and he is really angry on Twitter. He appeals to these emotions to persuade his audience. Inspire hope and optimism. Former president Obama campaigned on a platform of hope and optimism. He evokes these emotions in his audience.

Logos Think LOGICAL appeal. You appeal to logic when you rely on your audience’s intelligence and when you offer credible evidence to support your argument. That evidence can include facts, examples, precedents, authority, and reasoning. Einstein is the poster boy of logic--his theories form the basis of modern physics.

Examples of Appeals to Logos Cite facts. Use facts to support your position--they are a cannon in your arsenal. Show examples. You should show examples directly from the text to strengthen the credibility of your stances. Demonstrate logical reasoning. Show why your argument is logical and how you arrived at your conclusions.

A Rhetorical Analysis using the Appeals "Maman died today. Or yesterday maybe, I don't know. I got a telegram from the home: 'Mother deceased. Funeral tomorrow. Faithfully yours. ' That doesn't mean anything. Maybe it was yesterday. " The Stranger by Albert Camus

Rhetorical Analysis Ethos: the narrator has a damaged ethos because he lacks ethics and credibility. He doesn't even know the day his mother died and states that it "doesn't mean anything. " Pathos: a mother's death is almost always the saddest day of a person's life. Thus, the passage evokes a sense of sadness by simply opening with "Maman died today. " Logos: notice how the narrator directly cites the telegram? That's logos. He provides credible evidence for the event.

So… Remember, Aristotle didn't develop the concept of the appeals to annoy college students! The appeals are important both in communication and in the real world. When you communicate, you are constantly using the appeals: • Ethos: the words that you choose and the clothes that you wear all affect your ethos and the way that people see you. • Pathos: when you play on the emotions of people, you can accomplish just about anything. • Logos: you are more persuasive to people when you make rational, reasoned, logical decisions.

SPCA Video • Look for ALL THREE APPEALS! • Ethos is ethical/credibility. • Pathos is passionate/emotional. • Logos is logical/statistics/facts.

Video

Email Exercise • Imagine that you are in the final month of the fall 2017 semester and you have missed the last two weeks of your RWS 100 class. • Your instructor will not pass a student who has missed excessive days; however, you really cannot afford to fail this class. • Write an email to your instructor and try to convince him/her to make an exception for you. Use ETHOS, PATHOS, & LOGOS. • Feel free to invent whatever reasons you want for why you were absent and why it is necessary that you pass. • Please be creative but also write a response that you would actually send to a professor.

Email Exercise Hi, its Arian. I was unable to attend class today and I am wondering what my grade for the essay was. And also, what did I miss today – was there anything important?

Email Exercise Dear Prof. , I had misunderstood my teacher's schedule and didn't find out till now that i have a test today. I would like to take mine remaining time to study, leaving me to miss my 2: 40 appointment. I will come to class on Thursday with my rough draft. Sorry for the inconvenience. Andre

Email Exercise Mr. X, I just wanted to let you know that I will not be able to make it to class tomorrow so I was wondering if I will be able to give you the homework monday or email it to you? Jacob

Email Exercise Hi Professor X, My name is Clark Kent, and I am in your RWS 100 class. I will not be able to make it to class tomorrow because I sprained my leg covering the Aztec news. My leg really hurts, and I need to have a doctor to look at it. Unfortunately, the appointment with the doctor is at the same time as your class, and he’s booked the rest of the month. I will ask Bruce Wayne for the notes and homework, and I can turn in the homework in your inbox in the RWS department. I am very sorry! Thank you for your time! Best, Clark