Rhetorical Analysis Lecture/Discussion Outline

“My Life as a Badger” by Charles Foster

Summary

Rhetorical Ecology

What are the influences on the text? Which texts does the text influence?

Influences on Foster’s essay

Authors and texts mentioned in the text (sources)

Ex:

Hyperlinks (showing the context/evidence—could be exigence!—for the text)

Ex:

Evidence for other texts influenced by Foster’s essay

Comments on the online website (how many?)

Ex:

Links to interviews of Foster (mentioned along with the essay) on the website

Ex:

The annotations, summaries, etc. generated by our class can also be evidence
Rhetorical Situation

Exigence, Audience, and Constraints are the three elements of a rhetorical situation.

Exigence

What is the imperfection/gap/problem that Foster’s essay is reacting to?

What evidence you can provide from the essay to show that this is the exigence?

Audience

What is the audience that will have the power to affect the above exigence? Or care?

Why do you think they have that power/interest in the exigence?

Constraints

What constraints does the nature of the publication put on Foster?

(Note: The Guardian as a global, online, well-known British newspaper)

Length

Style/language

Kind/quantity of evidence

Conventions

What constraints does the nature of the genre (ie essay) put on Foster?

Length

Style

Kind/quality of evidence

Conventions
Rhetorical Appeals

Ethos (values, credibility) Logos (logic, data) Pathos (emotion, imagination)

Thesis:

Although Foster uses all three rhetorical appeals in his essay, I find Foster’s use of _______________,
the rhetorical appeal to ______________, to be most striking/powerful/persuasive.

Foster uses all three rhetorical appeals

Foster uses ehtos.

Evidence:

Foster uses logos.

Evidence:

Foster uses pathos.

Evidence:

According to you, which appeal is most striking/powerful/persuasive? Why?