A Rhetorical Essay will involve Stanford University’s Political Communication Lab
A Rhetorical Essay will involve Stanford University’s Political Communication Lab (Links to an external site.) (https://pcl.stanford.edu/ (Links to an external site.)). Once on the website, scrolling to the left you’ll see a link for “Campaigns”. On that page are a list of political campaign ads between Democratic and Republican opponents. You’re assignment is to choose one particular campaign, view the advertisements that represent each opponent, and write an essay that examines the rhetorical nature of each candidate. Aspects to consider are: Logos, pathos, and ethos approach The issues at large within the campaign How does each candidate present their stance What, or who, is the primary audience How persuasive are the advertisements What do the images convey and reveal about the topic at hand You are not writing a comparison essay, nor are you taking sides. Who was successful or voted into office is not the focus either. The primary goal is to examine the rhetorical strategies utilized by each opponent to reach their constituents. Criteria: First person narrative is NOT allowed for this essay (any instance of “I”, “my”, “me”, etc…) MUST be four to five pages in length NOT including your Works Cited page One resource MUST be from the textbook (I recommend taking a look at the works of Aristotle, Tocqueville, or any of the authors within the section on Government) I recommend viewing at least four to five videos from each opponent Your Works Cited page should include proper citation (alphabetically) for EACH video viewed. In-text quotations would end with (n.p.) since these are videos. No author required for in-text citation. Remember, you are not writing a comparison essay, nor are you taking sides. Who was successful or voted into office is not the focus either. The primary goal is to examine the rhetorical strategies utilized by each opponent to reach their constituents. Criteria: First person narrative is NOT allowed for this essay (any instance of “I”, “my”, “me”, etc…) MUST be four to five pages in length NOT including your Works Cited page One resource MUST be from the textbook (I recommend taking a look at the works of Aristotle, Tocqueville, or any of the authors within the section on Government) I recommend viewing at least four to five videos from each opponent Your Works Cited page should include proper citation (alphabetically) for EACH video viewed. In-text quotations would end with (n.p.) since these are videos. No author required for in-text citation. This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Development Evidence is key to persuading a reader of your thesis. A successful essay will present enough evidence related to the topic or thesis to support the claims the writer is making. An essay without enough evidence to support claims will seem un-grounded and unconvincing. Do you have evidence and support for each of your claims? Is the evidence related to the claims that are made? Are the details specific or abstract? Is the evidence from relevant and reliable sources? A second—and very critical—evaluative criteria for academic writing is the complexity of the content. This means that the writer moves beyond a surface discussion of a topic or problem to relate a sophisticated perspective, one that will engage the reader in critical thought. This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Focus Focus: A successful essay will stay focused on the controlling idea, message, or thesis it is trying to convey. Without focus, an essay seems disjointed, un-centered, and lacking clarity. Here your instructor will assess how closely your essay focuses on a complex idea or thesis throughout. Do you wander from topic to topic? Is it clear what you are arguing? Do you attend to your central thesis/message throughout the essay? This criterion is linked to a Learning Outcome Rhetorical Rhetorical awareness means a careful consideration of audience, purpose, genre, and context. The ability of the essay to persuade the reader′s general alignment toward the writer′s thesis or point of view. Conventions “Conventions” is used broadly here to encompass everything from word choice, sentence variety, and grammatical correctness to documentation and formatting.