Please write an analysis of ONE of the following:
Go Ahead, Speak for Yourself by Kwame Anthony Appiah (pgs. 114-115)
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/10/opinion/sunday/speak-for-yourself.html
How Do You Explain the ‘Obvious’ by Nausicaa Renner (pgs. 117-119)
https://www.nytimes.com/2018/08/21/magazine/how-do-you-explain-the-obvious.html
The Checklist for Analyzing a Text will be extremely helpful to you as you develop your analysis. You are welcome to do outside research, whether for context or other responses to the text; however, this is neither required nor necessary to complete this task effectively.
Essentially, you are writing a rhetorical analysis, which should include:
A solid summary of the text: what it is saying, what it is arguing, and why that is important
Identification of the authors thesis, intended audience, message, purpose, and rhetorical methods used
A clear thesis: Your judgment regarding the effectiveness of the text or argument that it makes
Reasonable support for your conclusions: analysis of the text should be supported by evidence from the text itself.
Requirements and Assessment Criteria:
MLA format (including works cited and in-text citations for your chosen article, along with any optional outside research utilized).
1200-1500 words (not including works cited).
Clarity of thought: Your ideas should flow logically from one to the next
Spelling and grammar: Your essay should be proofread and free of sentence level errors
In addition to the basic requirements listed above, when I read your argument analyses, I will be looking for evidence of the criteria listed in the Checklist for Writing an Analysis of an Argument
A Checklist for analyzing a text:
Have I considered all the following matters?
– Does the author have a self-interest in writing this piece?
– Is there evidence in the author’s tone and style that enables me to identify anything about the intended audience? Is the tone appropriate?
– Given the publication venue (or any other contexts), can I tell if the audience is likely to be neutral, sympathetic, or hostile to the argument?
– Does the author have a thesis? Does the argument ask the audience to accept or to do anything?
– Does the author make assumptions? Does the audience share those assumptions? Do I?
– Is there a clear line between what is factual information and what is interpretation, belief, or opinion?
– Does the author appeal to reason (logos), to the emotions (pathos), or to our sense that the speaker is trustworthy (ethos)?
– Is there evidence provided convincing? If visual materials such as graphs, pie charts, or pictures are used, are they persuasive?
– Are significant objections and counterevidence adequately discussed?
– Is the organization of the text effective? Are the title, the opening paragraphs, and the concluding paragraphs effective?
– Is the overall argument correct in its conclusions? Or is there anything missing that I could use to add to or challenge the argument?
– Has the author convinced me?
