Your First Writing Assignment: A Rhetorical Analysis

Due: Sunday, 7 September by midnight.

1. If you haven't set up your google email account and been subscribed to the class email discussion list, you will need to complete these steps before you do this assignment. You know you have been added to the class email list, because you should have received a welcome message from it. If you haven't received a welcome message at your gmail account, please get in touch with me ASAP. Remember: my email is prof.brandon@gmail.com and my phone is 804-885-3727.

2. Write a short introduction of yourself and send it to the class email list. In your introduction, give some details about yourself, your plans, and your life. You send a post to the class discussion list by sending an email from your gmail account to:

eng112Fall2008reynolds@googlegroups.com

2. Read the introductions posted by your classmates. Find places where you "connect" to another student author, and send a follow up email--again to the list--in which you briefly explain your connection. What you are doing is attempting to build connection or to get the sender to identify with you. In terms of rhetoric, you are building ethos. Southerners play this game of connection whenever they get together. Little do they know, they are practicing a simple form of building ethos.

• While I would like you to read the introductions from all your classmates, please *don't* write a response to every classmate, pick and choose those to whom you have some connection on which to build.

3. Do an analysis of three rhetorical situations. To do this analysis, begin by identifying three simple, separate rhetorical situations and write about them. As you write about each rhetorical situation, analyze them by using the terms from the reading this week. [Note: You can find the reading for this first week in the posts below this one.] [Hint: keep the messages you analyze relatively short and simple. For instance: you might analyze an advertisement from a magazine or new paper.]

Begin each analysis by recording the message being sent, and then answer the following magic questions:

• Who was the author?
• Who was the audience?
• What did the author hope to accomplish? (That is, "What was the author's rhetorical purpose?")
• What appeals did the author use in crafting her message?
• Did the author use logos? If so, how?
• Did the author use pathos? If so, how?
• Did the author use ethos? If so, how?
• Was the author's message successful? In other words, "Did the author's message do everything they hoped it would do?
• What were the sources of noise? That is, "What prevented the audience from understanding and acting/believing/knowing in the way he author intended?

What you are doing here is learning to break down and understand some of the nuances of the rhetoric which surrounds you. As you develop and practice this skill, you will learn how others succeed (and don't succeed) in their efforts to communicate. Each time you observe and analyze, you are learning new techniques, recognizing new sources of noise, what what works in what rhetorical situation, and what to avoid in your own communication.

Post your rhetorical analysis to the class email list. If you create these in a word processor, copy and paste your analysis into the body of an email you send to the list. Don't forget to sign your work with your name. [One of the skills you are picking up is getting used to taking public "ownership" of your opinions and ideas.

• For each of the three rhetorical situations you analyze, record the message or exchange and then answer each of the questions above. This combination of message and your answers to the question constitutes your Rhetorical Analysis of the message/rhetorical situation.

Before someone panics with the number of emails bombarding their new inbox, let me clarify my expectations of what you should read. 1) Read all the introductions looking for connections (and potential group members). 2) Look for folks who are turning in their work early and not at the last minute. This is usually a decent index to how reliable they will be in turning in their part of the group work on time. 3) Read the rhetorical analysis of folks who you think might make good potential group members and with whom you've made a connection. 4) I will post commentary on a few of the rhetorical analysis, read this, as it will help you revise your own and write better ones in the future. Stay tuned to the blog. I will post a couple of examples of rhetorical analysis I consider good and solid work.

A Note for Those Joining 112 from One of My Previous Classes: No, you can't use a rhetorical analysis you produced for a previous class with me. The idea is to practice learning how to do better analysis. The only way you can do this is to, well, practice. Take this chance to show the new folks how it's done. By the way, welcome back. I appreciate the confidence you've shown in my teaching by taking a second class. As you can see, there will be some repeated material, but--believe me--there will be new skills and knowledge to learn.

As always, please write the class discussion list or me with questions, etc.

Steve

The Second Part of the First Week's Reading: The Three Appeals Logos, Ethos, and Pathos

The article I asked you to read in the last post mentions how Aristotle divided how author/speaker/writer can make appeals to their readers/listener/audience. Aristotle called these ways of affecting one's audience: logos, pathos, and ethos. Here are some working definitions to which you can add as your conception of the appeals becomes deeper and more nuanced:

Logos deals with appeals to the head of one's audience through the use of facts, logic and ideas. If an author is trying to appeal objective, informed, and knowledgeable, chances are, she is using logos appeals.

Pathos deals with appeals to the heart or emotions of an audience. Here, think of how the media or a politician will simplify a difficult, complex problem by using a single person or family to represent it. Appeals through pathos have become so common, they've entered popular culture through such phrases as, "He's the poster boy for...."

Ethos deals with how authors get their audience to identify with them, that is, feel a sense of trust of connection. Another way to think about ethos is how an author will work to establish credibility with an audience. In many ways, ethos is the most difficult but effective of the three kinds of appeals. Ethos is the root word for ethics, the study of how individuals in groups behave in an acceptable manner, and the notion of "ethnic group," literally a group of people who identify with one another and share an ethical system or ethos. How people identify you as part of a group includes everything from word choice to clothing to body posture; so, ethos deals with how you use the various channels of information to send the signal, I am one of you (or not).

Most of you are into gaming. I know next to nothing about digital games. Most of the games I play involve me in setting up a backgammon, go, or chess board, or they are traditional Cherokee or Navajo games. However, I have learned to look at the games I play in terms of rhetoric, and I try to figure out why they are so popular using the tools rhetoric give me.

It's a good technique for understanding games and how they work in terms of doing cultural work (more on this last concept later). The classic games, like go, chess or Monopoly, reproduce in simplified form the social structures and conventions of their culture. The upshot is folks will identify with a game, play it, and make it popular, because the game appeals to many in the culture through a kind of unconscious ethos.

For an example, think about musical chairs. Musical chairs keeps getting played, not just because it is fun, but because it reproduces much of the ethos of modern western culture. There is competition for resources. The resources are becoming more and more scarce. Those willing to compete have a better chance of securing access to the desired resources. Sometimes you are unlucky and cannot, no matter how competitive you are, secure access to the desired resources; so, most folks learn to be "good sports" about loosing. There is only one winner. In short, musical chairs is a perfect capitalist game. It reproduces in simplified form the basic "need" to compete to secure scare resources and gain status through securing them.

Monopoly is in essence the same game played through a real estate metaphor.

One way to analyze an author's message is to try to figure out how they are trying to manipulate their audience. Do they make appeals to the head (logos)? Do they try to manipulate emotions (pathos)? Do they try to gain identification with their audience through a reputation or an act which establishes some sort of kinship (ethos)? Of, most likely, is the message crafted in such a way as to combine two or more of the appeals?

Now, think about a message you've seen an author send to an audience. How did the author use the appeals in crafting their message?

Your First Reading Assignment

After you have filled out the form in the first writing assignment (see the blog post below this one), do this reading.

1) Read the overview of Rhetoric from Wikipedia. When you read this article, you are not looking to get every nuance, every name, or even what happened in every period rhetoric has been studied. You are looking for a grasp of what Rhetoric studies, why it might be valuable to you, and a very loose, very general overview of the history of rhetoric.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhetoric

Since we have not yet spoken about different kinds of sources, I should tell you that Wikipedia is a tertiary source, that is, a source, like a textbook, which provides an overview of what has been discussed and is being decided in secondary sources. Ask me next week what a secondary source is. [By the way, your should keep an ongoing notebook or file of terms which are new to you. This way, you can go back to one source and review the terms which are being introduced in class.]

2) Read the syllabus for ENG 112. It's posted on this blog. One of your writing assignment for this coming week is to write the class with questions you have about the syllabus, course, etc.

3) The last part of the reading for your first reading assignment consists of the rest of this post and a short article found here:

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/43674/rhetorical_triangle.html

The article consists of 's a short overview of topics which will come up again and again in this class, topics like: rhetoric, rhetorical triangle, author, message, audience. As you read the posts on the blog and the articles, read actively, that is, take short notes--we call these annotations--on terms which are new to you. That notebook I mentioned is a a good place to take these notes. After you've read an article and taken notes, if the reading doesn't make sense, go back and review your notes and then reread, this time, not taking notes. Once you are fairly sure you've "gotten" the reading, take a few minutes to think about how it applies in your life and in the class.

One way to make sure you've "gotten" a piece of reading is to write something called a "minute paper." This means you take from one to three minutes and summarize the major point(s) of the reading. If after all of this you have questions, write the class discussion list: eng112fall2008reynolds@googlegroups.com. A topic always open for discussion on the class list is the reading you do each week. Write with questions. If you have them, I do want to hear them and, if I or the class can, answer them.

OK, now onto the reading:

Motley, the author of the article in part three of the reading, uses the terms, writer, subject, and reader, but the terms author, message, and audience are interchangeable with Motley's terms. The main point is this triangle gives those who think about rhetoric(read: you, now you're in this class) a convenient way to break down and analyze any situation where people are using language or language like behavior to try and do things. [To analyze means to break something down into parts so as to better understand or discuss the whole.]

The basic rhetorical situation is this:

author<========message=========>audience

Authors create messages or texts because they want to have an effect in the world by getting their audiences to know, believe, or act in ways they probably wouldn't have prior to reading/listening to the author's message. When you analyze a rhetorical situation, you begin by identifying the message or what is being said. You then go on to identify who the audience is and who the author is.

Author & the author's rhetorical purpose--Every text has an author. Every author has intentions, an agenda, or a set of goals for her text. This set of goals is called a rhetorical purpose. Another way to think about rhetorical purpose is to think about it as what the author wants to accomplish through crafting and sending her message.

Message/Text/Document--Every text is crafted or encoded by the author in such a way that they believe they will achieve their intentions. This encoded text is the message or document. How the message gets encoded involves what the author knows about their audience's expectations, language, culture, etc. The message might be as simple as the nod of a head or as complex as a series of books. Often by looking at how an author encodes or crafts their message, you can tell a lot about what they think about their audience.

Audience/reader/listener--If communication is to happen, texts also have audiences, and not always the ones the author intents. Sometimes an audience is a single person; sometimes an audience is a group. Sometimes the audience agrees with the author and is receptive; and, sometimes an audience is hostile. Sometimes an audience is far removed from an author in terms of experience, culture, gender, knowledge, and perspective; sometimes an audience shares almost everything with their author.

What we'll be talking about in this class is how to encode messages in such a way you, the author, have the effects on your audiences which you intent.

This way of breaking down communication is not limited to just writing. Rhetoric applies every time you use a system of communication and address someone else to achieve some end. For instance, our knowledge of rhetoric tells us why not to wear bathing suits to most job interviews. The way people dress, the gadgets they own, the places they live, their body language, almost everything which reflects a person's intentions involves rhetoric, because each of these involves an author crafting a message to have an effect.

For example, the way people dress involves them in a rich language of nuance and suggestion. Suits mean. Tee shirts mean. The difference between a rhetor, that is, a user of rhetoric, and everyone else is the rhetor is aware he or she is going through life sending out messages, being read, and interpreted by most everyone he or she meets. The rhetor tries to take command of the various messages s/he sends and encodes them in ways the audiences s/he wants to affect will be affected.

One last term, and I'll end this post. Noise. Modern communication theory evolved out of the traditions of rhetoric. One way to think of the rhetorical triangle is as follows:


sender> =======>signal=============> receiver

In between the sender and receiver is a signal which contains information. The sender needs to encode the message in such a way the receiver can decode it. In between the sender and the receiver is both the message and noise.

If you've ever driven a long distance with an FM radio station on and heard it slowly fade into static, then you've experienced noise getting in the way of the signal. Noise is entropy and/or Murphey at work in the world. Noise is all the stuff which gets in the way of the receiver getting the message the sender encodes in the signal. There are ways to work around noise, but there is no way to get rid of it entirely. This is one reason why folks don't understand you completely when you write. Writing is a good technology, but it has severe limitations and inherent noise. Noise in writing can come from such factors as a person's culture, background, politics, gender, ...well, you get the idea. Noise is why when you say a word, the receiver will not understand 100% of what you mean. Noise is always there. One of the things we'll speak about in the class is how to overcome noise.

Here's one of the things you need to know: noise is always there, but we usually manage to make spoken and written communication do what we want anyway.

Your first class activity: Fill Out a Form

[Note: This is one of the activities we'll do in orientation. If you have filled out the form once, there's no need to do so again.]

When you have set up your gmail account, follow the link below and fill out the form you find:

http://spreadsheets.google.com/viewform?key=pD6Fc2cRTpdCZmyyIc6k7XQ

In order to facilitate communication among the class, the information you share may be made available to those enrolled in the course. Sharing some information, like your telephone number and best contact times is strictly voluntary.

Steve

English 112, Syllabus

Rhetoric and Composition II

Fall 2008

Reynolds Community College

Professor Steve Brandon, PhD

26 August 2008

Contact Information:

Name: Please just call me Steve.

email: Prof.Brandon@gmail.com

phone: (804) 885-3727

Class Email Discussion List: Eng112Fall2008Reynolds@googlegroups.com*

[*Note: You must be registered by me to send and receive email from this list.]

Class Blog/Web Address: Eng112Fall2008Reynolds.blogspot.com

Course Overview:

This course is the second in a two course freshman writing sequence which will present you with the opportunity to learn how to become a better writer, speaker, and researcher. It will focus on research and public writing, especially academic writing. In this process, you will learn methods and terminology to help you analyze and think critically about the situations in which you communicate and those with whom you communicate. You will learn that whenever you write, you do so with a purpose, for an audience. You will learn how to craft messages which make sure--at least most of the time--that your audience understands and agrees with you; and, you will learn some of the tricks involved in the craft of communication. We call all this rhetoric. Rhetoric is the study of how to effectively accomplish your ends using communication as your means.

If you've never learned to think about writing as something which is logical and straightforward, you will this semester. You will be introduced to how to write more effectively, that is, how to make writing easier and still accomplish your ends. Get over the idea writing is difficult, requires talent, or isn't something you do well. While good writing requires systematic work, once you learn to think about writing correctly, learn the terminology to do so, learn the processes involved, and practice enough, writing becomes easier and easier, fairly straightforward, and logical. You don't have to be Hemingway, and you don't have to be an English major to write well and write with relative ease. You do have to practice. This is why you will write a *lot* in this class and why you won't become a polished, accomplished writer in a single semester or year. What you will do is will learn to recognize and develop the strengths and knowledge you already have as a writer, and you will learn how to make yourself into a better writer on a more-or-less regular basis.

Nota Bene:

This isn't a high school English course. This course isn't about me assigning a paper, your writing it, your turning it in, and my returning it to you marked in red (or not). This class isn't about me teaching something and your regurgitating it. It isn't about your trying to figure out what I want to hear and saying it. This class is about one thing, namely, your unlearning ways of looking at writing which have prevented you from being the writer you want to be and learning new habits which will allow you to grow into this writer. That's it.

If you have it, the first habit you need to break is that of thinking about writing and reading as just something you only do in school. It isn't. Most of the writing you will do is for yourself, as a citizen, and as a professional. Almost every one of these last three kinds of writing--what you will learn to call, "genres" or "major kinds" of writing--don't involve a teacher as your primary audience. Think about it. To get you used to writing for a real audience, most of your work will be read by others in the class, and a major portion of your grade will come from interacting with your classmates.

If you have it, the second habit you need to break is that of thinking, "I will never write well." Just as with the rest of life, every writer starts from where ever they happen to be and tries to make improvements which will get them to where ever they hope to go. The trick is figuring out where you are, where you want to go, and what's the next step. This class is all about figuring out where you are as a writer, where you want your writing to take you, and taking the next step toward your goals. If you can show me you understand these three steps (and take them), I will give you an "A."

Is there a text in this class?

You do not need to buy a text for this class. If you have bought one, return it for a refund. All reading will be posted to the class blog, sent to you via email, or made available online. Having said this, you should plan on checking the class blog several times a week for assignments, class announcements, links to resources, and reading. My best advice: DO THE OUTSIDE READING, and take notes. If you have questions, write the list or write to me. To succeed in the class, I expect you to read everything specifically assigned and/or posted to the class blog. To succeed in an online class, you need to be proactive and able to discipline yourself to pace your own work.

How this course will work:

This is an online class, so we won't have formal class meetings. This means each week you'll decide when to do the work for the class. In general, once a week, usually by Thursday or Friday, I will post the assignments for the coming week on the class blog. Each Sunday by midnight, you will turn in your assignments from the previous week. Weeks run Sunday to Sunday. This should give you over a week to complete most assignments. I design many assignments to build on one another in stages, just like most writing does; so, don't think you can blow off one week's work and just start fresh. Remember, part of what you are learning is how to work and write systematically, so writing, thinking, and reading won't be the chore it has proven in the past. Most assignments will be individual assignments; however, for many assignments, you'll work with a peer or a group of other students, and you will need to schedule your work with your peer or group. Again, be proactive and stay in communication, and you should be fine. Call and check up on group members and make sure they are scheduling and completing their work in time for you to complete your own. [By the way, if you work with your group correctly, they'll help you succeed in class. Blow them off or let members of your group slide, and your grade will probably suffer.]

As questions arise--and they will--the class blog (Eng112Fall2008Reynolds.blogspot.com ) is the first source you should check. Plan to check the blog several times a week. Write down the address now; store in in two places; bookmark it in your browser; you're going to be seeing it a lot, because it will function as the primary way I communicate with you, get you reading, etc. Again, the class blog is where you'll find weekly assignments, updates and clarifications, announcements, class reading, links to resources, and instructions on how to complete and turn in an assignment; so, if not everyday, you should plan on accessing the class blog several times a week. Often, if more than one student has a question, or I think a comment to one student will help a number of students, I will post my response to the class blog; so, you should regard reading the blog as your most essential learning resource. [By the way, I often give extra credit to students who ask questions which help other students learn or understand an assignment; so, don't be shy.]

At any point, if you have questions, you should feel free to get in touch with me. I want to hear from you. I want to help in anyway I can. It's my job, and I enjoy doing my job, and I enjoy teaching. Meet me halfway, and I'll go out of my way to make sure you learn and do well in the course, but you have to meet me halfway. This means reading the assignments and reading more than once. My email address is prof.brandon@gmail.com. Except on the weekends, I check this email address at least once a day, and I've set up office hours to make sure I have a chance to check it and respond almost every week day. Having said this, even on the weekends, if I'm in a position to check email and respond, I will.

At any point, I will also be happy to set up a face-to-face conference with you or your group in person, via the phone (more on this option later), or you can set up a time to stop by my office. My office hours this semester are most MW 9:00-11:00 and 12:00-1:00 and most TTHs 8:00-11:00. Do realize, even though this is an online class, there may be times when a face-to-face conference will clear things up faster and/or provide more help to you than any other option. When you find yourself getting frustrated, confused, or feeling lost, stop by early rather than late. You need to stay on top of things to succeed in this class and in life. Please don't be afraid of looking dumb or, worst, of me, not only do I not bite, I want to help you succeed; but again, you have to be the one to take the initiative and responsibility for getting in touch. Unless I see evidence otherwise, my assumption is you are going great, the material is making sense, and there are no problems.

Remember, this is a course in making yourself a better communicator; a good place to start is by taking the time and initiative to communicate well with your professors, including me. I teach English because I believe your life and society will improve if you know how to communicate better and read more critically.&nbsp; I will do everything in my power to help you succeed; but, you'll need to keep in touch and keep up with the work.

Due dates for assignments:

In general, you should plan to turn in your work from the previous week each Sunday by mid-night. Having Sunday due dates will allow students who cannot do class work during the week to still have a chance to get their work done on Saturday and Sunday. Having said this, sometimes your work needs to be done earlier than Sunday, so other students can use your work to complete their own. When this happens, you need to be careful to get your own work done

How much time will the work take?

For many of you, 112 will be among your first college classes. Succeeding in college level courses requires a substantial investment of time and effort, and success in college requires a more substantial investment in time, money, and effort. In general, for every hour of course credit, you should plan to spend an additional two to three hours outside of class doing work associated with the class. Some courses are more time intensive, some less. It depends on your background, how quickly you write or read, etc. In this course, you will invest your time doing reading for the course, taking notes on the reading, reviewing your notes, writing papers, doing group work, participating in online discussions, interacting me me, etc.

What does this mean for this section of 112?

As you get started, you should over-schedule your time and set aside eight to twelve hours per week for doing work related to the course. In all likelihood, you will find you are getting the work done in six hours of less per week. If you find yourself routinely spending nine to twelve hours per week, get in touch with me, and let's talk about ways to study and learn smarter.

How will I be graded?

Your grade will be based on your class participation and a final portfolio. Class participation will count 40% of your final grade, and your final portfolio will count 60%.

To receive full credit for class participation, you need to stay up with the reading and the work, turn your work in on time, and make yourself available for any needed conferences and peer and group work. I'll also be looking at your communication with the class, me, and your group and peers. I will try to set up any needed conferences, Monday-Friday at your convenience. Most conferences can take place over the phone or via VoIP. Don't worry if you don't know what VoIP is; usually a phone call is enough. If you need to understand terms and technology like VoIP, I will step you through the process. It is particularly important that you complete the work needed by your peers on a timely basis. If you cost others an opportunity to learn, for obvious reasons, your class participation grade will be severely impacted.

To get full credit for the portfolio, you will need to save all the work you do this semester. Let me repeat this: save every scrap of paper you write, every draft of every paper, and every email; make backups. Let me repeat this again: Save every note you take, every prewriting assignment you do, every email you send, and every draft of every paper you write. Keep them in a file. You should even make a note every time you help a peer edit a paper or revise a draft. All of this will provide material you might include in your final portfolio. When the time comes, all this saved work will you prove you've learned from your time in the course. At the least, your portfolio will include a cover letter (in which you will argue for a grade and explain what you have learned), written responses to each learning outcome (more on this later), and three of the major written assignments from the semester.

What kind of grader am I?

I am what is known in the trade as an easy grader. Most students who do the work for the course, ask questions, and stay up with the reading and the writing earn "B"s or "A"s. After all, with portfolio grading, the student can revise--in fact, I expect you to revise--every major piece of writing. You choose when to stop revising and when you feel your work is polished and finished. However, every semester, students earn a handful of "C"s and "F"s. How? "C"s happen when students get behind, will not put in the effort, or just don't "get it." "C"s usually happen when a student never quite understands that what I want is for them to come to the point where they can and do judge their own work, learn how to incorporate appropriate outside help, and know their work will be successful, all without needing a professor to say, "kudos." This last is one reason I will comment on your work (when asked), I will encourage you and teach you how to give and get useful comments from others (whether you want to or not), but I will not give you a grade on anything but your portfolio. "F"s happen when students don't see the writing on the wall by the withdrawal date (30 Oct.), are already behind, and don't drop the course in time. 10 Sept. is the last day to withdraw from the course with a refund of the money you paid to take the course. 30 Oct. is the last day to Withdraw from this course and receive a "W." Unless there is a very unusual set of circumstances, if you stop attending or doing the work after 30 Oct., you will receive an "F" for the course; so, schedule some time to review your progress in the course and withdraw if necessary. A "W" looks much, much better on a transcript than an "F." If you are in doubt, ask me. Remember, I *want* you to succeed, and I will help you, that is, if you give me the chance and meet me halfway. [One last note, I am required to take attendance in all courses: if you drop out of communication with me or your group or you stop turning in course work prior to 30 Oct., I will unofficially withdraw you from the course. You'll still need to follow through and officially withdraw, but those who aren't doing the work will be dropped. This lets those students who are doing the work get on with the semester with as little interruption as possible. As always, when in doubt, get in touch and ask. This is what I am here for, but please don't drop out of communication and weeks later ask what you can do to get caught up.]

Important Dates to Remember:

• 26 August Orientation/Class Begins
• 28 August First Assignment Posted
• 29 August Last day to add a course
• 1 September Labor Day (Take the day off.]
• 10 September Last day to drop a course with a refund
• 30 October Last day to withdraw from a course with a grade of "W"
  
• 26-30 November Fall Break [Take all these days off.]
  
• 12 December Last day of new class work/reading.
• 17 December Portfolio is Due.