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English 11

Unit 7

Rhetorical Analysis

6 topics · 24 practice questions · Free responseNot yet reviewed

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Notes

The rhetorical situation

  • Identify the speaker, audience, purpose, occasion/context and the exigence that prompted the text.

Appeals and devices

  • Ethos (credibility), pathos (emotion), logos (logic), kairos (timing).
  • Devices: anaphora, parallelism, antithesis, rhetorical question, analogy, allusion, repetition, imagery, juxtaposition.
  • Diction (word choice and connotation) and syntax (sentence structure) shape tone.

Writing about a speech

  • Explain how choices accomplish the speaker's purpose; do not just summarize.
  • A strong thesis names purpose and strategies; each body paragraph pairs evidence with commentary.

Topics in this unit

Each topic has its own short notes and practice.

Practice

A senator opens a speech by listing her years of work on flood prevention, then argues for a new levee. The opening is mainly:
"Elizabeth Cady Stanton wrote that 'all men and women are created equal,' adapting the Declaration of Independence." This adaptation is an example of:
"It was the best news we had heard in months; it was the worst news we could have imagined." The structure contrasts two ideas and is best called:
Which statement is the best example of analysis?
A speaker's diction includes words like "tragedy," "sacrifice" and "mourn." The tone is most likely:
Why is timing (kairos) important in a speech urging voters to act the day before an election?

Free response

Write your answer first, then open the scoring guide.

Free-response question

Read this original passage from a student council speech: "Our school library closes at three. Three o'clock. When the final bell rings, thousands of books go dark. Last year, 412 students signed a petition for evening hours. Who among us believes that curiosity keeps a schedule? I have worked in that library for two years, and I tell you: open the doors."

(a) Identify the speaker, audience and purpose.

Show the answer and scoring guide

Speaker: a student who works in the library. Audience: the student council or school community. Purpose: persuade them to extend library hours.

Check off the points you earned:

(b) Identify two rhetorical appeals or devices and explain the effect of each.

Show the answer and scoring guide

Examples: the statistic "412 students signed a petition" is logos that shows demand; the rhetorical question "Who among us believes that curiosity keeps a schedule?" urges agreement; "I have worked in that library for two years" is ethos that builds credibility; repeating "three o'clock" creates emphasis.

Check off the points you earned:

(c) Write a thesis statement for a rhetorical analysis of this passage.

Show the answer and scoring guide

Example: By combining personal experience, a petition statistic and a pointed rhetorical question, the speaker persuades the council that extending library hours serves students' needs.

Check off the points you earned:

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