rhetorical analysis music video assignment

• Title Index
• Practicing Rhetorical Analysis with Music Videos

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Deb Streusand

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Screenshot by Deb Streusand from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-ORhEE9VVg, Taylor Swift's video for "Blank Space"

            In my Rhetoric of Performance class, we begin each class day by watching and discussing a brief performance a student has brought in to share with the class. Since these performances are supposed to be 3-5 minutes, students frequently bring in music videos. With each performance, we do an informal rhetorical analysis.

             First I ask the students what they noticed about the performance while they were watching. They frequently make note of things like symbolism and imagery – in other words, they tend to close read the videos. The goal of my line of questioning after that, however, is to bring them away from that tendency and into the world of rhetorical analysis.

            I ask the students what they think the argument of the performance is. The argument of a performance is not like the argument of a written piece. With a good piece of persuasive writing, as a rule, everyone should come away from it with the same general idea of what the argument was. With a performance, it’s not a bad thing if we come away with some disagreement as to what the argument might be. The students often debate what the argument is, or bring in a multiplicity of answers, but they never have trouble finding some argument in the piece, even though music videos aren’t necessarily designed to make and defend a claim. One of the principles I put forth in teaching this class is that every performance has an argument. I believe this is true, but making the claim makes me a little nervous, because defending it is inevitably inductive – I will never conclusively prove that every single performance has an argument. However, each class day, my students add credence to my gradual inductive proof of this claim, because they have never failed to find an argument in any performance we’ve watched.

            After we’ve wrangled over the argument for a while, we start talking rhetorical appeals. They don’t know that’s what we’re doing yet, though. We haven’t actually entered the rhetorical analysis unit. But we’ve been doing this all semester, from the second class day. By the time they get to rhetorical analysis, they’re already going to be pros at doing it – all that will be new to them is the terminology.

            Every day, I ask them: what kind of persona does the performer present in making this argument? What is the intended audience, and how are they supposed to feel? How is the argument supported? What are the current social conversations to which this argument is contributing? Ethos, pathos, logos, kairos – all in a 4 minute video. My students practice rhetorical analysis 10-15 minutes per class day, all semester long. And because music videos are fun to watch and take apart, they have a great time while they’re doing it.

             We don’t always watch music videos. Some students bring in short dance pieces, or political rants, or slam poetry. I mention music videos because they would be easy to incorporate into a non-performance rhetoric class as a warmup for rhetorical analysis. To make it simpler, the professor might choose them instead of having students bring them in, to make sure there’s lots to talk about – I always start the semester with Beyonc é’s video for “Flawless,” which has never failed to spark dialogue. The main point is to get the students used to doing rhetorical analysis while talking about something that’s fun.

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• How to write a rhetorical analysis | Key concepts & examples

How to Write a Rhetorical Analysis | Key Concepts & Examples

Published on August 28, 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on July 23, 2023.

A rhetorical analysis is a type of essay  that looks at a text in terms of rhetoric. This means it is less concerned with what the author is saying than with how they say it: their goals, techniques, and appeals to the audience.

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Table of contents

Key concepts in rhetoric, analyzing the text, introducing your rhetorical analysis, the body: doing the analysis, concluding a rhetorical analysis, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about rhetorical analysis.

Rhetoric, the art of effective speaking and writing, is a subject that trains you to look at texts, arguments and speeches in terms of how they are designed to persuade the audience. This section introduces a few of the key concepts of this field.

Appeals: Logos, ethos, pathos

Appeals are how the author convinces their audience. Three central appeals are discussed in rhetoric, established by the philosopher Aristotle and sometimes called the rhetorical triangle: logos, ethos, and pathos.

Logos , or the logical appeal, refers to the use of reasoned argument to persuade. This is the dominant approach in academic writing , where arguments are built up using reasoning and evidence.

Ethos , or the ethical appeal, involves the author presenting themselves as an authority on their subject. For example, someone making a moral argument might highlight their own morally admirable behavior; someone speaking about a technical subject might present themselves as an expert by mentioning their qualifications.

Pathos , or the pathetic appeal, evokes the audience’s emotions. This might involve speaking in a passionate way, employing vivid imagery, or trying to provoke anger, sympathy, or any other emotional response in the audience.

These three appeals are all treated as integral parts of rhetoric, and a given author may combine all three of them to convince their audience.

Text and context

In rhetoric, a text is not necessarily a piece of writing (though it may be this). A text is whatever piece of communication you are analyzing. This could be, for example, a speech, an advertisement, or a satirical image.

In these cases, your analysis would focus on more than just language—you might look at visual or sonic elements of the text too.

The context is everything surrounding the text: Who is the author (or speaker, designer, etc.)? Who is their (intended or actual) audience? When and where was the text produced, and for what purpose?

Looking at the context can help to inform your rhetorical analysis. For example, Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech has universal power, but the context of the civil rights movement is an important part of understanding why.

Claims, supports, and warrants

A piece of rhetoric is always making some sort of argument, whether it’s a very clearly defined and logical one (e.g. in a philosophy essay) or one that the reader has to infer (e.g. in a satirical article). These arguments are built up with claims, supports, and warrants.

A claim is the fact or idea the author wants to convince the reader of. An argument might center on a single claim, or be built up out of many. Claims are usually explicitly stated, but they may also just be implied in some kinds of text.

The author uses supports to back up each claim they make. These might range from hard evidence to emotional appeals—anything that is used to convince the reader to accept a claim.

The warrant is the logic or assumption that connects a support with a claim. Outside of quite formal argumentation, the warrant is often unstated—the author assumes their audience will understand the connection without it. But that doesn’t mean you can’t still explore the implicit warrant in these cases.

For example, look at the following statement:

We can see a claim and a support here, but the warrant is implicit. Here, the warrant is the assumption that more likeable candidates would have inspired greater turnout. We might be more or less convinced by the argument depending on whether we think this is a fair assumption.

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Rhetorical analysis isn’t a matter of choosing concepts in advance and applying them to a text. Instead, it starts with looking at the text in detail and asking the appropriate questions about how it works:

• What is the author’s purpose?
• Do they focus closely on their key claims, or do they discuss various topics?
• What tone do they take—angry or sympathetic? Personal or authoritative? Formal or informal?
• Who seems to be the intended audience? Is this audience likely to be successfully reached and convinced?
• What kinds of evidence are presented?

By asking these questions, you’ll discover the various rhetorical devices the text uses. Don’t feel that you have to cram in every rhetorical term you know—focus on those that are most important to the text.

The following sections show how to write the different parts of a rhetorical analysis.

Like all essays, a rhetorical analysis begins with an introduction . The introduction tells readers what text you’ll be discussing, provides relevant background information, and presents your thesis statement .

Hover over different parts of the example below to see how an introduction works.

Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech is widely regarded as one of the most important pieces of oratory in American history. Delivered in 1963 to thousands of civil rights activists outside the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., the speech has come to symbolize the spirit of the civil rights movement and even to function as a major part of the American national myth. This rhetorical analysis argues that King’s assumption of the prophetic voice, amplified by the historic size of his audience, creates a powerful sense of ethos that has retained its inspirational power over the years.

The body of your rhetorical analysis is where you’ll tackle the text directly. It’s often divided into three paragraphs, although it may be more in a longer essay.

Each paragraph should focus on a different element of the text, and they should all contribute to your overall argument for your thesis statement.

Hover over the example to explore how a typical body paragraph is constructed.

King’s speech is infused with prophetic language throughout. Even before the famous “dream” part of the speech, King’s language consistently strikes a prophetic tone. He refers to the Lincoln Memorial as a “hallowed spot” and speaks of rising “from the dark and desolate valley of segregation” to “make justice a reality for all of God’s children.” The assumption of this prophetic voice constitutes the text’s strongest ethical appeal; after linking himself with political figures like Lincoln and the Founding Fathers, King’s ethos adopts a distinctly religious tone, recalling Biblical prophets and preachers of change from across history. This adds significant force to his words; standing before an audience of hundreds of thousands, he states not just what the future should be, but what it will be: “The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.” This warning is almost apocalyptic in tone, though it concludes with the positive image of the “bright day of justice.” The power of King’s rhetoric thus stems not only from the pathos of his vision of a brighter future, but from the ethos of the prophetic voice he adopts in expressing this vision.

The conclusion of a rhetorical analysis wraps up the essay by restating the main argument and showing how it has been developed by your analysis. It may also try to link the text, and your analysis of it, with broader concerns.

Explore the example below to get a sense of the conclusion.

It is clear from this analysis that the effectiveness of King’s rhetoric stems less from the pathetic appeal of his utopian “dream” than it does from the ethos he carefully constructs to give force to his statements. By framing contemporary upheavals as part of a prophecy whose fulfillment will result in the better future he imagines, King ensures not only the effectiveness of his words in the moment but their continuing resonance today. Even if we have not yet achieved King’s dream, we cannot deny the role his words played in setting us on the path toward it.

If you want to know more about AI tools , college essays , or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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The goal of a rhetorical analysis is to explain the effect a piece of writing or oratory has on its audience, how successful it is, and the devices and appeals it uses to achieve its goals.

Unlike a standard argumentative essay , it’s less about taking a position on the arguments presented, and more about exploring how they are constructed.

The term “text” in a rhetorical analysis essay refers to whatever object you’re analyzing. It’s frequently a piece of writing or a speech, but it doesn’t have to be. For example, you could also treat an advertisement or political cartoon as a text.

Logos appeals to the audience’s reason, building up logical arguments . Ethos appeals to the speaker’s status or authority, making the audience more likely to trust them. Pathos appeals to the emotions, trying to make the audience feel angry or sympathetic, for example.

Collectively, these three appeals are sometimes called the rhetorical triangle . They are central to rhetorical analysis , though a piece of rhetoric might not necessarily use all of them.

In rhetorical analysis , a claim is something the author wants the audience to believe. A support is the evidence or appeal they use to convince the reader to believe the claim. A warrant is the (often implicit) assumption that links the support with the claim.

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Rhetorical Analysis Essays in Music Appreciation: A Sample Assignment

Many of us college music professors have struggled to create writing assignments that meet our pedagogical goals and engage students. As music teachers, we need to create equitable assignments that meet our students where they are, help them gain the skills that will be necessary for their success, and meet our course general objectives for thinking and writing about music. In this post, I discuss the rhetorical analysis assignment I use in my music appreciation sections and how I scaffold the informal low-stakes writing and research skills necessary for students to be successful.

• Post date 7 August 2022
• Post categories In Pedagogy Study Group , Resources , Teaching Tips

Many of us college music professors have struggled to create writing assignments that meet our pedagogical goals AND engage students. Additionally, many college professors have found that students are unequipped to engage in college-level writing activities, which may become even more widespread as we deal with first-time college students in the COVID era. As music teachers, we need to create equitable assignments that meet our students where they are, help them gain the skills that will be necessary for their success, and meet our course general objectives for thinking and writing about music. In this post, I discuss the rhetorical analysis assignment I use in my music appreciation sections and how I scaffold the informal low-stakes writing and research skills necessary for students to be successful. The structure of this assignment reinforces what students learn in their writing courses, helping them become more proficient in the skills they will need to be successful in college. This assignment could be adapted to other music courses, especially those for non-majors, and to other forms that are becoming popular in college classes including the long blog post, the podcast, or the album review.

Rhetorical analyses are common assignments in first-year college courses because they allow students to work on building the skills of analyzing information and creating an argument about that information. I chose a rhetorical analysis because I wanted to align the curriculum goals in my class with other core classes at the university level. Studies have shown that aligning curriculum across courses improves student learning and outcomes (Grubb & Cox, 2005; Fink, 2013). For many of my college students, especially those who have not had the advantage of advanced placement courses in high school, this is the first time they are exposed to academic writing, and they benefit by a wider exposure.

I teach Music Appreciation at two Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) in Texas that enroll many first-generation and underserved students. To supplement my in-class teaching, I use Kevin Salfen’s Pathways to Music as the textbook. Pathways to Music models a variety of ways of analyzing and writing about music through its five sections or “pathways”: Ritual, Emotion, Work, Art, and Politics. For each of these pathways, students see different models of discussing music from across the world and make connections to their own musical experiences. They get to learn about musical rituals, musical expression of emotions, the work involved in creating music, musical art (aesthetics), and musical politics (messages) not only from the textbook, but from each other. Furthermore, musical rhetoric is discussed during the second pathway. Students learn that rhetoric is communication, and the six major components of rhetoric can be applied to music analysis: topic, audience, persona, context, purpose, and genre.

To plan this assignment, I began with my expectations for what I want students to do in the final paper. Students are to choose a piece of music and analyze it for what it says and how it musically conveys this message. Considering this goal, I reverse-engineered the course to cover the skills they would need to achieve that goal and build them throughout the semester. The final project prompt, given below, is similar to other rhetorical paper prompts used in college courses. The prompt addresses all six elements of a rhetorical situation. It asks students to think about the topic of the music, who listens to the music, how the performer(s) want(s) to be perceived by the audience, and the context, purpose, and genre of the piece of music.

The skills required to perform this rhetorical analysis are then broken down into “write to learn” activities in the form of weekly blog posts. Music, as an aural art, can be very difficult to write about, even for trained professionals, so blogs provide regular opportunities to build such skills. Weekly blogs require students to continually practice communicating about music, and ideas seen in the blogs can be discussed during class time. About half of the blog posts in my class directly engage students in the process of writing their final paper.

One of the first blog posts I have students tackle during the semester is to listen to and reflect on the “How to Listen to Music in 4 Easy Steps” from the Switched on Pop podcast . Hosts Nate Sloan and Charlie Harding walk listeners through their four steps of how to listen to and interpret music through the example of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” I let the students know that while this is not the only way of listening to music, it provides a good model for those unfamiliar with actively listening to music. The first step is the “liner notes,” where the listener learns the contextual information of the song: who made it, when, where, and how. Next, they model the “needle drop,” which is simply listening to the song all the way through. The third step is the “scratch,” where the listener goes back to the recording and focuses on short sections that draw them in. For this step, listeners need to listen multiple times and consider what it is that is drawing them into the piece. Finally, the fourth step is “remixing” a song. “Remixing” in the Switched on Pop method is not a re-creation of the song, but encourages the students to make connections and interpret what they hear. The “remix” asks them to consider what they think the song means and why, which is primarily what I want students to be able to do by the end of the semester. In their blog post, students summarize the four steps from Switched on Pop and compare that method of listening to their own style of listening to music.

The second pathway from the textbook introduces the idea of musical rhetoric for conveying musical emotion. For an in-class activity, I have the students look at an example mentioned in the textbook to see how the musical choices made impact the message of the music. In class, we listen to “Hurt,” first by Nine Inch Nails and then Johnny Cash’s cover.  Through this activity, students can hear and compare how the different choices of instrumentation, singing style, slight lyrical changes, and the context in which the musicians made their music can affect how the music makes them feel different emotions.

After we have learned about rhetorical analysis, I have the students listen to another music podcast and analyze how the hosts discuss the music. I provide a list of suggested podcasts that cover a variety of musical styles for students to choose from. Students are able to bring podcast episodes to me for approval. In order for the podcast to be approved, it has to discuss the music (or musician) in some informative way and not be just a radio show. Students listen to the episode and write about the context of the podcast episode. This information includes who the hosts are, when the hosts made it, and the purpose the hosts made the episode—what did the hosts want the listeners to do with the information they provided? Students then share their insights during class. Because of the diversity of student interests, we get to hear about many musical styles and ways of discussing music. This assignment is useful because it provides another model of discussing music and has students practice their rhetorical analysis skills.

Suggested list of podcasts:

• Brown, Angela & Joshua Thompson.  Melanated Moments in Classical Music.  https://www.classicalmusicindy.org/podcasts/melanated-moments/ .
• Coe, Tyler. Cocaine & Rhinestones: The History of Country Music Podcast. https://cocaineandrhinestones.com/episodes/season-one .
• Conger, Cristen and Caroline Ervin. Stuff Mom Never Told You from How Stuff Works. https://www.stuffmomnevertoldyou.com/podcasts . (Students must find an episode on a musical topic).
• Contreras, Felix.  Alt Latino from NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/altlatino/192684845/our-show .
• Giddens, Rhiannon.  Aria Code Podcast . https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/aria-code .
• Golan, Ross.  And the Writer Is… Podcast. http://www.andthewriteris.com/band/ .
• Hamilton, Kirk. Strong Songs. https://strongsongspodcast.com/ .
• Ronson, Mark.  Fader Uncovered. https://www.thefader.com/podcasts/uncovered .
• Sloan, Nate and Charlie Harding. Switched on Pop. https://www.switchedonpop.com .
• Weilerstein, Joshua. Sticky Notes: The Classical Music Podcast . https://stickynotespodcast.libsyn.com
• Wilson, Tracy and Holly Frey. Stuff You Missed in History Class. https://www.missedinhistory.com . (Students must find an episode on a musical topic).

To promote good writing habits, I have the students submit a “Topic Proposal” blog in the first half of the semester. This assignment ensures that they are already thinking about their music example and can collect resources and practice their analyses throughout the semester. In the topic proposal, students indicate what piece they want to analyze for their final project and why they chose this piece. Students are not allowed to choose the same piece as another student. Additionally, allowing students to choose what piece they want to analyze increases student excitement in the project and allows them to explore and reflect on their own musical values.

Information literacy is another important skill for student success in their academic careers. To help with information literacy, I introduce students to the library, teach them how to find sources, and then discuss how to evaluate those sources. I prefer to do this by taking the students to the library and meeting with a librarian, but that is not always possible. Many of our academic librarians have created short library introduction videos that could be helpful as well. During these tutorials, I introduce the students to databases that would be particularly helpful to them in this class, like Credo Reference or Oxford Music Online. Students learn the acronym CRAAP (Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose) and practice evaluating sources in order to find reliable sources. On the reflection post for this assignment, many students have divulged that this is the first time these topics have been taught to them. Once we have covered the CRAAP test and library sources, students then do a “source report” blog. Students have to find a source related to their topic, summarize it, and evaluate it with the CRAAP test. While there are not many articles on the specific songs, works, and artists in which the students are interested, I encourage them to look up sources on related genres and styles to contextualize their piece. Practicing evaluating sources helps build their critical thinking skills.

At this point in the semester, I have students do a Rhetorical Situation Chart for their chosen example. I adapted this rhetorical situation chart, linked below, from an Advanced Placement Summer Institute English Language and Composition workshop led by Teri Marshall. By this time in class, students are used to rhetorical analysis because they have encountered it in other course activities. They research the context, the audience, the persona, the purpose, and the style of their example and begin figuring out what they want to say about the piece. The synthesis statement at the bottom of the worksheet can then be revised into a thesis statement for their papers.

Now that students have some sources and ideas regarding what they want to discuss, I have them submit a “half-draft” of their paper where they begin translating all of the information they have into a prose paper. The half-draft is also a low-stakes assignment where students get credit for turning in two to three paragraphs and an outline of further points. This shows that they are thinking about the music and what it conveys, and we can focus on higher-order issues with the writing. At this point, I also look at the sources students are using and let them know if they need to find more and point them in the right direction. I do not evaluate the drafts for grammar, but I do provide feedback on common errors. The goal is to encourage early writing and continuing the “write to learn” process.

The final paper is due a few weeks after students have received feedback on the half draft and is evaluated for thesis, structure, effectiveness of analysis, and use of sources. Since implementing this assignment in the fall of 2020, the papers I have received are much improved from previous semesters. While the writing still is not perfect, these papers make for a much more enjoyable read and demonstrate that students are able to communicate about music. For those in my classes who have had effective writing pedagogy before, this provides another opportunity for them to practice and apply their skills to writing about music they love.

There are a few things I particularly love about this assignment and the thought processes students go through in creating their analyses. The assignment uses low-stakes writing for students to practice their musical analyses without fear of failure. Students also become better informed consumers of music who can contextualize and discuss musical performances. Finally, this assignment provides a tangible way for students to explain to me why they love the music they love. Students reflect at the end of the semester about what they have learned and their relationship to music. For some final thoughts about the paper, this is what the students themselves say they learned in their final blog post of the semester:

I was very hesitant that I wouldn’t enjoy this class when I was signed up for it and saw it on my schedule, but I was very pleasantly surprised! I really did enjoy this class and I think I’ve learned so many new ways that I can listen to music. As a musician, it was really nice and interesting to get to see where some of the pieces that I’ve played or even just listened to came from. I also really liked comparing the music we listen to now to music that was popular in different time periods, and how music from so many years ago is still influencing music today ! I really enjoyed the “Music as Art” section, because it goes to show how much work goes into some of the songs we listen to, as well as how often times, many musicians don’t intend for their pieces to be formal art, but the connections we make to the piece give it meaning and a whole different purpose. I really enjoyed this class! I think I have a bigger appreciation for all the work and talent and craft that goes into making all the pieces I know and love today. 🙂

I didn’t have any expectations for this class due to never taking any sort of music class before. I thought it was going to focus more on instruments and reading music. Learning about how to analyze music and music history was eye-opening. As odd as it sounds, I actually learned how to listen to music and how aspects of music created and used many years ago are still used today. Before this class, I just thought lyrics were the only meaningful part of a song and everything else was just put in to make the song sound better. Now I know that every part of the song holds meaning and nothing is added or done unintentionally, everything has a purpose. Now when I listen to music I can feel the emotion beyond the lyrics and have a better understanding of the message the artist is trying to send. This class definitely gave me a new perspective on music. When I listen to music now I can identify the type of message the artist is sending, the emotion they were trying to provoke, and who their intended audience is. When we first analyzed music I thought it was going to be such a long process and would turn into me disliking music, but it is the complete opposite. I am able to analyze the song after listening to it a few times and after each analysis, I am amazed by what I discover. After taking this course I have a deeper appreciation for music. 

I never gave much thought to the way I listened to music before this class or even thought about the evaluation of music at all. My favorite part of this class was learning about all of the different eras of music and how they impacted each generation. When I listen to music now I find myself trying to hear the different instruments being played along with trying to figure out the style and patterns throughout the song. Doing this has made me find new meaning in songs that I’ve listened to forever. I also like that I can hear certain music and relate it back or hear similarities from music that was made long ago. Learning how present day artist implement parts of music from a different age and era is really cool. This class has definitely changed the way I listen to music and without even thinking about it I find myself hearing part of a song or hearing the instruments being played and I think about where that came from and why the artist chose that instrument for the specific piece being played. It’s interesting how much goes into making music that I never even knew. I have a new found appreciation for music and the artist who make it. 

Sources and Further Reading

Burkholder, J. Peter. “Decode the Discipline of Music History for Our Students.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 1, no. 2 (2011): 93–111.

Crain, Timothy. “Beyond Coverage: Teaching for Understanding in the Music History Survey Classroom.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 4, no. 2 (2014): 301–318.

Deadman, Alison. “Sonata, What Do You Want of Me?”: Teaching Rhetorical Strategies for Writing About Music.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 6, no. 1 (2013): 23–40.

Epstein, Louis, Taylor Okonek, and Anna Perkins. “Mind the Gap: Inclusive Pedagogies for Diverse Classrooms.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 9, no. 2 (2019): 119–172.

Fink, L. Dee. Creating Significant Learning Experiences: An Integrated Approach to Designing College Courses . Somerset: John Wiley & Sons, 2013.

Grubb, W. Norton and Rebecca Cox. “Pedagogical Alignment and Curricular Consistency: The Challenges for Developmental Education.” New Directions for Community Colleges 129 (2005): 93–103.

Haefeli, Sara. “Using Blogs for Better Student Writing Outcomes.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 4, no. 1 (2013): 39–70.

hooks, bell. Teaching to Transgress: Education as the Practice of Freedom. New York: Routledge, 1994.

Hund, Jennifer L. “What Is the Discipline of Music Appreciation? Reconsidering the Concert Report.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 4, no. 2 (2014): 255–72.

_____. “Writing About Music in Large Music Appreciation Classrooms Using Active Learning, Discipline-Specific Skills, and Peer Review.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 2, no. 2 (2012): 117–32.

Kiefer, Kate, Mike Palmquist, Nick Carbone, Michelle Cox, and Dan Melzer. “Introduction to Writing Across the Curriculum.” The WAC Clearinghouse. https://wac.colostate.edu/resources/wac/intro .

Knyt, Errin. “Rethinking the Music History Research Paper Assignment.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 4, no. 1 (2013): 23–37.

Marshall, Teri “Analyzing the Rhetorical Situation.” Advanced Placement Summer Institute: English Language and Composition. St. Mary’s Hall, San Antonio, Texas, June 2018.

Sloan, Nate and Charlie Harding. Switched on Pop. https://switchedonpop.com/ .

Talbert, Robert. Flipped Learning: A Guide for Higher Education Faculty. Bloomfield: Stylus Publishing, 2017.

Wells, Elizabeth Anne. “Foundation Courses in Music History: A Case Study.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 6, no. 1 (2016): 41–56.

Wright, Jeffrey. “Teaching Research and Writing Across the Music History Curriculum.” Journal of Music History Pedagogy 7, no. 1 (2016): 35–42.

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Composition & Rhetoric II Spring 2022

Dr. Andersen’s WRI1002 Class at Centenary University

Guidelines: Visual & Audio Rhetorical Analysis

First Draft Due: Tuesday, February 1st

Peer Review:   Tuesday, February 1st – Thursday February 3rd

Second Draft Due: Tuesday, February 8th

Conferences: Tuesday, February 8th and Wednesday, February 9th

Final Draft Due: Tuesday, February 15th

Find a video walkthrough of these guidelines here.

How does a song get categorized in a particular genre of music? What characteristics attract us to our favorite artists and styles? And how do artists make use of genre characteristics to convey meaning in their songs? For this essay, you’ll need to use rhetorical analysis as you look at a song addressing an event (or series of events) covered in a media outlet. Cite (a) news article(s) that discuss(es) the event as evidence, and offer background information from reliable sources about the artist you are discussing, providing overall context for your audience. Clearly identify the genre of the song you are focusing on, and define that category using research in order to provide context for your readers. Explain your reasons for choosing to place the song you’ve chosen as partaking in that genre. What characteristics does the song display that clearly makes it part of the genre? How does genre play a part in the meaning of the song? How does the artist use elements of that genre in order to talk about a significant event in a way that the news outlets were unable to approach? In your essay, use rhetorical analysis to back up your points. Provide examples from the lyrics and point to specific moments in the music. If you can find a music video for the song, include a discussion of the rhetorical choices in the video as they connect to the music and lyrics. Provide links to YouTube videos or MP3 files of the songs on GrooveShark, Spotify, SoundCloud, or other websites, and feel free to use images (album covers, news photos, etc.) to supplement your text.

In your essay:

• Clearly identify the genre of the song.
• Think about the context for the song, and its purpose. Research will help you begin to determine this.
• What are the typical characteristics exhibited by songs in the genre you’re discussing? Research will help you back up your points here, as well.
• What genre characteristics does the song display?
• *^ This is perhaps the most important concept for you to reflect on in this project.*
• What larger issues are being addressed in the artist’s purpose in this song?
• How does the artist attempt to affect audience perceptions of the event in ways that the news source does not?
• Remember that a good rhetorical analysis keeps in mind the purpose, audience, tone/stance, and media/design as well as the genre.
• Also, remember that the artist is most certainly relying on some or all of the rhetorical appeals – ethos, pathos, logos.
• Arrangement (what instruments, how many singers, etc.)
• Song Structure
• Mood & Tone
• Melody & Rhythm

Please provide links to YouTube videos or MP3 files of the songs on GrooveShark or other websites as well. (Including any images you feel help your points along is also a plus!)

You might want to review the Dirk chapter for this assignment.

Make sure you include a reference list and in-text citations for any outside sources (MLA or APA format) as well as the full title and artist name of each song you use.

If you’re looking for an example, take a look at  this one  on Beyonce’s “Formation” or  this one on a Rammstein song. There’s also this one of Fall Out Boy’s song, “Novocaine.”

As always, if you have any questions – ask away!

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AP Language and Composition Music Video Rhetorical Analysis and Rubric UPDATED

• Word Document File

Description

This assignment has students research a music video of their choice and present an analysis of the effective rhetorical choices that are made by the director to create an implied argument. It is important to note that this is not necessarily an analysis of the song lyrics, rather it is an analysis of the video itself.

To introduce this idea I lead an analysis of J.Cole's music video "Crooked Smile," which is a dramatic recreation of the Aiyana Stanley Jones shooting during a police raid. That lesson appears first on the word doc. There is a link to the lyrics, but you can also find those online if you prefer. PLEASE KNOW THAT THERE ARE A FEW SWEARS IN THE LYRICS. I teacher AP to 12th grade students, so the content is not inappropriate. Please preview the music video before you purchase!

The assignment includes both the project guidelines and an assignment to introduce with the J. Cole music video.

Please know that I have my students use the precis format for writing rhetorical introductions. If you do not use that, you can easily edit the document in order to take out the precis and only include thesis. If you would like to use a precis format and you have not before, you can google "how to construct a precis" and find an awesome resource from Oregon State.

ADDITIONAL EDIT/INFORMATION: because my students are currently remote, I am having them record their presentations on zoom. If your students are also remote, zoom will not allow them to screen share a YouTube video. I have the capacity to screen record, which is why that note is in the assignment. Please edit the assignment as you see fit for your needs.

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LETTERS AND LEAVES

The craft, and occasional mess, of teaching passionately, creatively, and sustainably.

INSTRUCTION , LESSON PLANNING · February, 17

Song Battle Project: Teaching Songs with Rhetorical Analysis

In this blog post, I share a unique project to engage students. Read on to learn about the song battle project and how to use songs with rhetorical analysis.

This year, I’m teaching a junior and senior English course, and I’m lucky enough to have extreme curricular freedom. In fact, I’m revamping a course that I created a few years ago: Poetry & Fiction. While this is many teachers’ dream, and even my dream, to teach a class they completely designed… I don’t always enjoy teaching these grade levels. 

In the spring, juniors and seniors become more moody and less interested in the classroom. In general, I’ve found it helpful to combine grade levels; at a small school, it creates greater scheduling flexibility, and it also helps create a greater sense of maturity. However, with these combined classes, spring semester arrives, and it seems like senioritis takes over for the juniors too. This is especially frustrating when I feel so invested in the content, skills, and ideas because I belabored over crafting and organizing them. 

In planning the spring semester, I did my best to consider the students in my classroom, their backgrounds and funds of knowledge, their interests and passions, and their histories and goals. I was feeling incredibly inspired after attending NCTE 2022 and after reading Gholdy Muhammad’s Cultivating Genius . With considering my students’ backgrounds and interests, I planned out the semester. 

I would teach about rhetoric through relevant and engaging media; there would be opportunities for choice and investigation into their own interests. Although this all sounds exciting, I also was realistic. I have an interesting dynamic of students in my class–don’t we all?–and while some might buy into my hopes and plans, others would still be reluctant. 

With this in mind, I knew I needed to protect pockets of time for joy and relevancy where, even with senioritis going strong, students would still want to come to class and engage. One caveat, though, it needed to tie into our goals and content–it should detract from these. After thinking about my students, I realized I could revamp a pre-existing project into something more game-like. They could use something they love with something they need: songs with rhetorical analysis. Hence, the birth of the Song Battle Project.

Song Battle Project: Overview

Ultimately, the Song Battle Project is a structured discussion in which: (1) students choose a song that fits a specified theme, (2) students prepare a rhetorical argument for why this song is the best fitting for the given theme, (3) students present their arguments, (4) students evaluate each other’s arguments, and (4) students vote on the “best” argument and the winners advance to further rounds of discussion/argument. 

For my class, these battles happen once a month. In January, the theme was “new year, new me,” and my students and I discussed the possible subthemes of this topic. The song could be new to them; a new artist or new-to-them artist; a newly released song; a song about change or transformation; or a song about goals. In the end, this was their directive: find a song that you think fits the theme in any way, and craft and present an argument to prove your song choice is the best. 

By the sound of talking and music playing throughout the room, they seemed very excited about this project. Some students already knew their song, others were creating playlists with possibilities and then choosing later. The room was buzzing. 

Fast forward to a week before the battle. I reviewed the planning document with students–the goal was not only to choose a song but to practice the rhetorical strategies and Aristotelian appeals (ethos, pathos, logos, kairos) we’d been studying. Of course, this went over less enthusiastically, but most of the class went to work brainstorming their strategies and then outlining their argument. The document asked them to consider their audience, purpose, and goals. In other words, students had the opportunity to integrate their love of music and songs with rhetorical analysis.

Song Battle Preparation

During these planning sessions throughout the week leading up to the battle, I answered questions. How do I use ethos in this type of argument? Who decides the winner? Is everyone going to have to listen to our song? How long do we have? What does the winner get? 

These were my answers:

• Ethos can come from you if you feel especially passionate or knowledgeable about music, this song, this artist, or this topic. It can come from the artist themself; who are they? What are their accomplishments? Ethos can come from the song–is it popular or famous? 
• In the first and second round of the battle, the group will vote on the “best argument,” and that person will move to the next round. Everyone who does not progress to the next round becomes an audience member and voters. 
• During this battle, we would not have enough time to listen to everyone’s songs… think about the math of that! So, as part of your argument, consider if you need to play a small clip of the song, 15-30 seconds or so. 
• Please read the directions. (Yes, I’m mean and make them read the directions rather than answer their questions.)
• The winner gets the joy of victory… isn’t that enough? (they booed at this and wanted candy.) 

I also gave them a rough example of how they could brainstorm and present their argument. 

I told them, for this theme, I would choose “About Damn Time” by Lizzo, which, to my surprise, somehow generate a collective “ahhh,” and “oh my god.” And not in a good way, as in a “of course you would” and “we’re disappointed way.” I expressed my shock and dismay–Lizzo is awesome, and this is the perfect song for the theme!

I walked them through the brainstorming process and gave a preview of what my argument would be. Essentially, I showed them how to integrate songs with rhetorical analysis.

This definitely helped them see what their own brainstorms and arguments could look like. 

The Day of the Battle: Battle Structure

On the day of the battle, the students sat in groups of four. They gathered their materials: the song if they were playing a clip, their argument outline, and a writing utensil to take notes on each others’ arguments. 

As a class, we reviewed the expectations and structure. 

In your small groups, each person takes a turn presenting their argument. Each speaker has 3-4 minutes. After each speaker presents, take 1-2 minutes to reflect on their argument and consider their rhetorical strategies. When everyone has presented, your group votes on the best argument based on your analysis of their rhetoric. In total, these small group rounds would take no more than 24 minutes. 

In the semi-final rounds, the rhetorical wizards (students who were voted on) moved seats. In total, there were 8 students who were moving on. The students who did not advance became audience members. This round was a bit tricky to organize physically with the desks. We tried to set up two groupings of speakers, and therefore two groupings of audience members. In these two groups, the semi-finalists presented their arguments in 3-4 minutes, all students kept track of the rhetorical strategies used and quality of the speakers’ arguments. Then, students voted on the best arguments. 

The final round. We moved the finalists to the center of the room–there were four finalists. Just like before, we repeated the same procedures: they presented their arguments within the time limit while the other students listened and took notes on their arguments. We then voted all together for the victor. 

After the whole process, I asked students to reflect on the songs with rhetorical analysis; on the process and how this battle went: did they like it? Did they want to do it again? What would make it better? 

They had some thoughts !

• We mostly liked it.
• Yes, let’s do it again!
• Find a better way to listen to the songs–it was hard to hear with everyone playing their songs at the same time.
• Not take notes–it was difficult to listen and take notes at the same time, so it felt like they were missing the argument or not really listening. 
• Move the seats around better for the semi-final and final rounds–it was too hard to hear this time around. 
• Make this more like a debate–people should be able to respond or ask questions or challenge the person’s argument. 

I was delighted by their suggestions. They were right, and their willingness to share how to make it better showed their investment. 

As of now, we are in the brainstorming and argument-outlining process for Battle #2. We reviewed our learnings from last time, and I told them how I plan to change the structure based on their advice. 

I revamped the note taking doc to be less detailed, but it still has some directives for reflecting on the main claim and rhetorical strategies–but they could take time after the speaker presents to consider these aspects. 

We will move the desks better for the second and third round. 

There will be time built in to challenge or question the speaker after their 3-4 minutes. Interrupting is rude and stressful–we don’t need that in a civil debate or discussion. 

They were excited by these changes; I was honoring their voices and choices. When I released them to begin working on their arguments, the room began buzzing.

One change I did not tell them, winners will be presented with a trophy to the theme song from Rocky .

I found these gems in the kids’ party favor section from Target. They are perfect for this occasion!

I hope you feel encouraged to try your own brave project! If you’re interested in the materials from this Song Battle Project, please visit my TPT store . 

Happy teaching! 🙂

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How to Write a Rhetorical Analysis Essay–Examples & Template

What is a Rhetorical Analysis Essay?

A rhetorical analysis essay is, as the name suggests, an analysis of someone else’s writing (or speech, or advert, or even cartoon) and how they use not only words but also rhetorical techniques to influence their audience in a certain way. A rhetorical analysis is less interested in what the author is saying and more in how they present it, what effect this has on their readers, whether they achieve their goals, and what approach they use to get there. 

Its structure is similar to that of most essays: An Introduction presents your thesis, a Body analyzes the text you have chosen, breaks it down into sections and explains how arguments have been constructed and how each part persuades, informs, or entertains the reader, and a Conclusion section sums up your evaluation. 

Note that your personal opinion on the matter is not relevant for your analysis and that you don’t state anywhere in your essay whether you agree or disagree with the stance the author takes.

In the following, we will define the key rhetorical concepts you need to write a good rhetorical analysis and give you some practical tips on where to start.

Key Rhetorical Concepts

Your goal when writing a rhetorical analysis is to think about and then carefully describe how the author has designed their text so that it has the intended effect on their audience. To do that, you need to consider a number of key rhetorical strategies: Rhetorical appeals (“Ethos”, “Logos”, and “Pathos”), context, as well as claims, supports, and warrants.

Ethos, Logos, and Pathos were introduced by Aristotle, way back in the 4th century BC, as the main ways in which language can be used to persuade an audience. They still represent the basis of any rhetorical analysis and are often referred to as the “rhetorical triangle”. 

These and other rhetorical techniques can all be combined to create the intended effect, and your job as the one analyzing a text is to break the writer’s arguments down and identify the concepts they are based on.

Rhetorical Appeals

Rhetorical appeal #1: ethos.

Ethos refers to the reputation or authority of the writer regarding the topic of their essay or speech and to how they use this to appeal to their audience. Just like we are more likely to buy a product from a brand or vendor we have confidence in than one we don’t know or have reason to distrust, Ethos-driven texts or speeches rely on the reputation of the author to persuade the reader or listener. When you analyze an essay, you should therefore look at how the writer establishes Ethos through rhetorical devices.

Does the author present themselves as an authority on their subject? If so, how? 

Do they highlight how impeccable their own behavior is to make a moral argument? 

Do they present themselves as an expert by listing their qualifications or experience to convince the reader of their opinion on something?

Rhetorical appeal #2: Pathos

The purpose of Pathos-driven rhetoric is to appeal to the reader’s emotions. A common example of pathos as a rhetorical means is adverts by charities that try to make you donate money to a “good cause”. To evoke the intended emotions in the reader, an author may use passionate language, tell personal stories, and employ vivid imagery so that the reader can imagine themselves in a certain situation and feel empathy with or anger towards others.

Rhetorical appeal #3: Logos

Logos, the “logical” appeal, uses reason to persuade. Reason and logic, supported by data, evidence, clearly defined methodology, and well-constructed arguments, are what most academic writing is based on. Emotions, those of the researcher/writer as well as those of the reader, should stay out of such academic texts, as should anyone’s reputation, beliefs, or personal opinions. 

Text and Context

To analyze a piece of writing, a speech, an advertisement, or even a satirical drawing, you need to look beyond the piece of communication and take the context in which it was created and/or published into account. 

Who is the person who wrote the text/drew the cartoon/designed the ad..? What audience are they trying to reach? Where was the piece published and what was happening there around that time? 

A political speech, for example, can be powerful even when read decades later, but the historical context surrounding it is an important aspect of the effect it was intended to have. 

Claims, Supports, and Warrants

To make any kind of argument, a writer needs to put forward specific claims, support them with data or evidence or even a moral or emotional appeal, and connect the dots logically so that the reader can follow along and agree with the points made.

The connections between statements, so-called “warrants”, follow logical reasoning but are not always clearly stated—the author simply assumes the reader understands the underlying logic, whether they present it “explicitly” or “implicitly”. Implicit warrants are commonly used in advertisements where seemingly happy people use certain products, wear certain clothes, accessories, or perfumes, or live certain lifestyles – with the connotation that, first, the product/perfume/lifestyle is what makes that person happy and, second, the reader wants to be as happy as the person in the ad. Some warrants are never clearly stated, and your job when writing a rhetorical analysis essay is therefore to identify them and bring them to light, to evaluate their validity, their effect on the reader, and the use of such means by the writer/creator. 

What are the Five Rhetorical Situations?

A “rhetorical situation” refers to the circumstance behind a text or other piece of communication that arises from a given context. It explains why a rhetorical piece was created, what its purpose is, and how it was constructed to achieve its aims.

Rhetorical situations can be classified into the following five categories:

Asking such questions when you analyze a text will help you identify all the aspects that play a role in the effect it has on its audience, and will allow you to evaluate whether it achieved its aims or where it may have failed to do so.

Rhetorical Analysis Essay Outline

Analyzing someone else’s work can seem like a big task, but as with every assignment or writing endeavor, you can break it down into smaller, well-defined steps that give you a practical structure to follow. 

To give you an example of how the different parts of your text may look when it’s finished, we will provide you with some excerpts from this rhetorical analysis essay example (which even includes helpful comments) published on the Online Writing Lab website of Excelsior University in Albany, NY. The text that this essay analyzes is this article on why one should or shouldn’t buy an Ipad. If you want more examples so that you can build your own rhetorical analysis template, have a look at this essay on Nabokov’s Lolita and the one provided here about the “Shitty First Drafts” chapter of Anne Lamott’s writing instruction book “Bird by Bird”.

Analyzing the Text

When writing a rhetorical analysis, you don’t choose the concepts or key points you think are relevant or want to address. Rather, you carefully read the text several times asking yourself questions like those listed in the last section on rhetorical situations to identify how the text “works” and how it was written to achieve that effect.

Start with focusing on the author : What do you think was their purpose for writing the text? Do they make one principal claim and then elaborate on that? Or do they discuss different topics? 

Then look at what audience they are talking to: Do they want to make a group of people take some action? Vote for someone? Donate money to a good cause? Who are these people? Is the text reaching this specific audience? Why or why not?

What tone is the author using to address their audience? Are they trying to evoke sympathy? Stir up anger? Are they writing from a personal perspective? Are they painting themselves as an authority on the topic? Are they using academic or informal language?

How does the author support their claims ? What kind of evidence are they presenting? Are they providing explicit or implicit warrants? Are these warrants valid or problematic? Is the provided evidence convincing?  

Asking yourself such questions will help you identify what rhetorical devices a text uses and how well they are put together to achieve a certain aim. Remember, your own opinion and whether you agree with the author are not the point of a rhetorical analysis essay – your task is simply to take the text apart and evaluate it.

If you are still confused about how to write a rhetorical analysis essay, just follow the steps outlined below to write the different parts of your rhetorical analysis: As every other essay, it consists of an Introduction , a Body (the actual analysis), and a Conclusion .

Rhetorical Analysis Introduction

The Introduction section briefly presents the topic of the essay you are analyzing, the author, their main claims, a short summary of the work by you, and your thesis statement . 

Tell the reader what the text you are going to analyze represents (e.g., historically) or why it is relevant (e.g., because it has become some kind of reference for how something is done). Describe what the author claims, asserts, or implies and what techniques they use to make their argument and persuade their audience. Finish off with your thesis statement that prepares the reader for what you are going to present in the next section – do you think that the author’s assumptions/claims/arguments were presented in a logical/appealing/powerful way and reached their audience as intended?

Have a look at an excerpt from the sample essay linked above to see what a rhetorical analysis introduction can look like. See how it introduces the author and article , the context in which it originally appeared , the main claims the author makes , and how this first paragraph ends in a clear thesis statement that the essay will then elaborate on in the following Body section:

Cory Doctorow ’s article on BoingBoing is an older review of the iPad , one of Apple’s most famous products. At the time of this article, however, the iPad was simply the latest Apple product to hit the market and was not yet so popular. Doctorow’s entire career has been entrenched in and around technology. He got his start as a CD-ROM programmer and is now a successful blogger and author. He is currently the co-editor of the BoingBoing blog on which this article was posted. One of his main points in this article comes from Doctorow’s passionate advocacy of free digital media sharing. He argues that the iPad is just another way for established technology companies to control our technological freedom and creativity . In “ Why I Won’t Buy an iPad (and Think You Shouldn’t, Either) ” published on Boing Boing in April of 2010, Cory Doctorow successfully uses his experience with technology, facts about the company Apple, and appeals to consumer needs to convince potential iPad buyers that Apple and its products, specifically the iPad, limit the digital rights of those who use them by controlling and mainstreaming the content that can be used and created on the device . 

Doing the Rhetorical Analysis

The main part of your analysis is the Body , where you dissect the text in detail. Explain what methods the author uses to inform, entertain, and/or persuade the audience. Use Aristotle’s rhetorical triangle and the other key concepts we introduced above. Use quotations from the essay to demonstrate what you mean. Work out why the writer used a certain approach and evaluate (and again, demonstrate using the text itself) how successful they were. Evaluate the effect of each rhetorical technique you identify on the audience and judge whether the effect is in line with the author’s intentions.

To make it easy for the reader to follow your thought process, divide this part of your essay into paragraphs that each focus on one strategy or one concept , and make sure they are all necessary and contribute to the development of your argument(s).

One paragraph of this section of your essay could, for example, look like this:

One example of Doctorow’s position is his comparison of Apple’s iStore to Wal-Mart. This is an appeal to the consumer’s logic—or an appeal to logos. Doctorow wants the reader to take his comparison and consider how an all-powerful corporation like the iStore will affect them. An iPad will only allow for apps and programs purchased through the iStore to be run on it; therefore, a customer must not only purchase an iPad but also any programs he or she wishes to use. Customers cannot create their own programs or modify the hardware in any way. 

As you can see, the author of this sample essay identifies and then explains to the reader how Doctorow uses the concept of Logos to appeal to his readers – not just by pointing out that he does it but by dissecting how it is done.

Rhetorical Analysis Conclusion

The conclusion section of your analysis should restate your main arguments and emphasize once more whether you think the author achieved their goal. Note that this is not the place to introduce new information—only rely on the points you have discussed in the body of your essay. End with a statement that sums up the impact the text has on its audience and maybe society as a whole:

Overall, Doctorow makes a good argument about why there are potentially many better things to drop a great deal of money on instead of the iPad. He gives some valuable information and facts that consumers should take into consideration before going out to purchase the new device. He clearly uses rhetorical tools to help make his case, and, overall, he is effective as a writer, even if, ultimately, he was ineffective in convincing the world not to buy an iPad . 

Frequently Asked Questions about Rhetorical Analysis Essays 

What is a rhetorical analysis essay.

A rhetorical analysis dissects a text or another piece of communication to work out and explain how it impacts its audience, how successfully it achieves its aims, and what rhetorical devices it uses to do that. 

While argumentative essays usually take a stance on a certain topic and argue for it, a rhetorical analysis identifies how someone else constructs their arguments and supports their claims.

What is the correct rhetorical analysis essay format?

Like most other essays, a rhetorical analysis contains an Introduction that presents the thesis statement, a Body that analyzes the piece of communication, explains how arguments have been constructed, and illustrates how each part persuades, informs, or entertains the reader, and a Conclusion section that summarizes the results of the analysis. 

What is the “rhetorical triangle”?

The rhetorical triangle was introduced by Aristotle as the main ways in which language can be used to persuade an audience: Logos appeals to the audience’s reason, Ethos to the writer’s status or authority, and Pathos to the reader’s emotions. Logos, Ethos, and Pathos can all be combined to create the intended effect, and your job as the one analyzing a text is to break the writer’s arguments down and identify what specific concepts each is based on.

Let Wordvice help you write a flawless rhetorical analysis essay! 

Whether you have to write a rhetorical analysis essay as an assignment or whether it is part of an application, our professional proofreading services feature professional editors are trained subject experts that make sure your text is in line with the required format, as well as help you improve the flow and expression of your writing. Let them be your second pair of eyes so that after receiving paper editing services or essay editing services from Wordvice, you can submit your manuscript or apply to the school of your dreams with confidence.

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Teaching Rhetorical Analysis

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As the first assignment in our common curriculum, the rhetorical analysis provides students with not only an entryway into the class, but an introduction to foundational concepts of rhetoric, reading, and writing that will inform their work during the quarter. Below are some considerations to keep in mind as you design the assignment.

Designing the Assignment

Some of the first questions you need to answer for yourself as you start to design the assignment have to do with how to create an assignment consistent with the  learning objectives for the Rhetorical Analysis,  and what texts -- and what types of texts -- students will analyze.  For the rhetorical analysis, it's best to have students focus on a single text rather than write a comparative analysis. Consider the following questions:

• choose texts that you know will yield interest discussion concerning rhetoric 
• limit the array of choices so that you and the students can read multiple essays on the same texts (which helps with peer review and students working through their ideas together)
• avoid having to arrive at a rhetorical understanding of 15 unique objects. 

The disadvantage of you choosing is that you limit student choice. Many instructors opt for a hybrid model: they provide a short menu of possible texts the students could write on, but also allow student choice (with instructor approval)

• Think about relationship to other assignments - how much time do you want to devote to the RA assignment? Most lecturers have a draft due at the end of week two or beginning of week three.  In this case, the goal would be for students to start working on their second assignment (the Texts in Conversation) by week 4.
• What texts/objects will you select or can a student choose among for their analysis?  What will guide your choice or should guide their choice?  A PWR Rhetorical analysis may focus on a written, visual, audio, or multimedia text.  See  samples of Rhetorical analysis assignment sheets , grouped by genre.

Presenting the Assignment to Students

Since the rhetorical analysis essay is a specific academic genre, it might be helpful to indicate some of the typical features of the genre and the role it plays in the broader field of rhetoric.

Think about how to help students see that it’s different from just writing on a short story or novel as they’ve done in English class, focused more on the “how” and “why” of what a text says than on the “what.”  They might assume that it's just like an analysis of a literary text; we need to help them see how it's different.

Think about how to help students see how rhetorical analysis informs their own drafting and revision process, particular as they develop more awareness of the interaction between audience and purpose shaping their composing process

Think about the fact that some students (but only some) have taken APLang, a class in which they are introduced to rhetorical analysis, often through an emphasis on the classical rhetorical appeals.  

Scaffolding the Assignment with Class Activities and Prewriting

You should carefully scaffold the rhetorical analysis assignment through a range of low-stakes, ungraded activities designed to help students practice and develop some of the strategies they'll use in writing their essays.  These activities should also help them understand that the writing the do for the assignment begins even before they start their first draft.

What kinds of guiding questions can students analyze their texts? If there is pre-writing, will you look at it, or will they share it with classmates? 

How will you talk about the relationship between brainstorming and prewriting exercises and planning the essay itself?

Will you give them samples of past rhetorical analyses? Will you want to discuss them in class or just make them available to students as a reference?

See some  scaffolding activities for the Rhetorical Analysis  through our class activity archive

Designing Peer Review for the Rhetorical Analysis

This is likely to be one of their first experiences with peer review at Stanford, so you may want to think about how you want them to understand and value the process. Often, students come in the door with negative or mixed experiences of peer review, so it may be a good idea to start with their experience of peer review: what worked, what didn’t, to establish group expectations.

Some students are uncertain of their ability to give helpful feedback. How can you define the reviewer role in a way that helps students see the value of their responses as readers?

How structured do you want to make their peer review (very structured with assigned roles and specific questions provided by you or less structured based on the interests of the writers and reviewers)?

Will the students read the essays outside of class or during class?  Keep in mind that many students prefer advanced preparation, since reading on the spot may disadvantage students who read more slowly and/or have learning or cognitive differences that may make reading and then responding immediately difficult.

 Do you expect them to provide written comments or oral feedback or both? 

Do you want to see any of their written comments? 

Do you want students to reflect on and report back about the feedback they received and their developing plans for revision?  

How can you signal the connection between peer review and the evaluation criteria that you’ll use for providing your own feedback on their draft? 

See further advice and activities about  designing effective peer feedback sessions  

There is no requirement in PWR 1 to have a reflection component attached to any of the assignments; however, since we recognize the value of metacognition for student growth as writers, almost all instructors have students perform a self-assessment, write a cover memo for their essay, or otherwise write a reflection as a culminating moment in completing the essay.

Reflection on their writing process may be new for students, and it may be important to make explicit to them what the value of reflection is for their growth as writers, and the role it plays (or doesn’t play) in your assessment of their work.

Given the role the rhetorical analysis plays in their development as writers, what aspects of the drafting and revising process do you want them to focus on in their reflections? 

You might consider using the RA reflection to encourage students to look forward as well as back, or to connect to their broader experience of writers in other ways.

Assessing the Assignment

The evaluation criteria that you develop for your rhetorical analysis assignment should be clear, available to the students during their drafting phase (although drafts themselves should not be graded), and should retain a focus on formative feedback as much as summative assessment.  Always make sure the evaluation criteria you develop links directly to your learning objectives for the assignment.

Think about how to create a rubric that will be in dialogue with the other assignment rubrics. Many instructors have a single rubric that they use across the different assignments that they simple gently customize with language to fit the particulars of each assignment.

Consider using the rubric to organize your feedback on drafts so that students understand the relationship between your suggestions and the evaluation criteria for the assignment.

Use caution if adopting a numerical scale which might lead you to arbitrary quantification of elements of the essay.

Will students use the rubric in peer review? How will you teach them to use the rubric to inform the feedback they give?

Look at Bean's " Using Rubrics " chapter from  Engaging Ideas  to help you design your own effective grading rubric

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Good youtube videos for analysis.

I teach college rhet comp and I want to do an in class activity where students analyze a YouTube video but I’m having trouble finding a good one to look at. I was wondering if someone on here could give me some suggestions. TIA!

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