Essay 1 Prompt:Taking our assigned readings by Kellner and Share, Scholes, Maasik and Solomon, and Bunn into consideration, perform a detailed rhetorical analysis on a video text. You are not required to cite our readings in your writing; you are required to apply the methods the readings demonstrate. The purpose of a rhetorical analysis is to examine, explain, and evaluate how a text works: the persuasive moves it makes; how it responds to the rhetorical situation; the ways it positions its author/creator, the ways it positions its audience, how it accounts for or doesnt account for other perspectives, etc. The rhetorical analysis moves beyond description; it also makes an argument about the texts effectiveness as a result of its workings. This project will require several steps:Choose a video text. Youll want to select a video text that a) interests you, b) is complex enough rhetorically to repay careful analysis, and c) isnt too long or complex that you cant examine how it works in a fairly short analytical essay. You may choose any video text (commercial, TV show episode, campaign ad, music video, etc.) in any medium (broadcast, online, social media). You may expand upon the writing you did for IWA #3.
Who is the intended audience? What is the text asking of its audience? Note: these questions are not merely asking what the commercial showed (the visual details or plot that can be observed by any viewer).
Use the examples from Kellner and Share, Bunn, and Scholes to examine, explain, and evaluate how your text works rhetorically. This will comprise your invention work for the essay. You may find that some of Bunn and Scholes approaches work better than others for analyzing your video text, so you will likely have to try out several of them as you draft. Here are some questions to get started: What explicit argument(s) does the video make and how? What implicit argument(s) does the video make and how?
Draft and revise a 5-7 page rhetorical analysis essay. Youll need to craft a coherent, sensibly organized essay that guides your readers through your analysis. Provide evidence and explanation of your interpretation of the video text and its argument(s). Use specific aspects (like dialogue, images, narrative, etc.) as support for your interpretation. Be thorough in connecting the dots of how you came to understand the video as making a particular argument (because not every audience receives a text the same). Your essay should be thoughtful and well developed, carefully organized, and mechanically sound, with proper citation of your video text using MLA guidelines. **Dont forget to include an Authors Note when submitting your final version; see the syllabus for further information on Authors Notes.
Considerations for evaluation of final version:1) Does the writing discuss the rhetorical basics of the video?2) To what extent does the writing go beyond description to analysis of the video text? Does the writing make an argument (implicit or explicit) about the pieces effectiveness?3) Does the writing use specific examples and evidence to support the writers interpretation of the video?4) Is the writing appropriately focused, so that it achieves depth and clarity?5) Is the writing organized in a meaningful way?6) Does the writing reference the video text and cite properly?7) Does the writing show development from draft to revision? Is this discussed in the authors note?8) Was the writer actively engaged in online peer review?
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