Learning Goal: I'm working on a writing project and need an explanation and answer to help me learn.

Introduction:

For this paper, you will select one of multiple texts—listed on Canvas in the class text page under the Module 1 section—that develops a position on the issue of how movies persuade and shape how people understand the world. Rather than determining “Is Writer X right?” or “What is my own perspective on this issue?” this first assignment expects you to examine several features of the text you have selected. Specifically, you are tasked with developing an understanding of the Rhetorical Situation of the text, emphasizing the rhetorical strategies used by the arguer in order to ascertain the effectiveness or failure of the arguer’s argument for their intended audience. 5 pages total

Text:

Investigating the rhetorical choices made by a specific arguer who seeks to accomplish his goal with his target audience.

1. Colin Stokes “How Movies Teach Manhood” TED talk https://www.ted.com/talks/colin_stokes_how_movies_…

Prompt:

This assignment asks students to explore several components of one argument made about the movies informing and shaping how people understand the world. Begin your essay with an introductory section (1-2 paragraphs) that establishes the importance of this topic in present-day American society. This introductory section should also introduce which text you will examine, supply a clear statement of purpose for your essay, offer a roadmap for how your essay will unfold, and give a thesis that expresses whether the arguer is successful or not in crafting an argument for their target audience.

In the Body section (4-6 paragraphs), first turn your critical attention to the argument made by the arguer whose text you have selected. Briefly articulate the arguer’s argument, emphasizing their central claim and most significant supporting claims; help your reader understand why these supporting claims (reasons) are important to the arguer’s argument. Now, when you discuss your claims, here would be where you discuss if the claim has an assumption or not.

In addition to covering claims and assumptions, identify and analyze multiple rhetorical strategies the arguer uses. Locate specific strategies—remember, ethos, pathos, and logos are not strategies; they are general, broad appeals—and prove, through textual evidence, that the arguer has deployed them and explain how these strategies might strengthen the arguer’s argument.

Throughout the Body section, consistently use textual evidence—either direct quotations or paraphrased information—from the argument you have selected to validate your analysis of the arguer’s argument.

As a means of concluding your essay (1-2 paragraphs), help your own readers understand why this issue should matter in present-day American society. There are several ways to approach this. You can explore questions one might have about the text, use a personal anecdote of how this topic has affected you, ect. As you conclude, though, please use specific rhetorical strategies of your own choosing to develop your ideas here.

Criteria for Evaluation:

Satisfactory responses to this prompt will meet the following criteria:

1. Be composed according to MLA guidelines for format and style
2. Include a Works Cited section for all sources cited in the essay;
3. Meet an academic audience’s expectations for grammar, punctuation, spelling, tone, and diction
4. Commence with an appropriate introductory section (as described above)
5. Provide an essential understanding of the arguer’s claims
6. Analyze rhetorical strategies the arguer uses to develop their argument, emphasizing the effectiveness (or unsuccessfulness) of these strategies
7. Conclude appropriately for an academic audience.