Your essay should introduce reliable secondary sources to define and discuss the

Your essay should introduce reliable secondary sources to define and
discuss the topic and how it is depicted in your text(s). These sources
should provide the relevant context for your analysis. Your essay should
introduce and discuss several specific examples from the text(s). These
examples should provide the necessary content to support your analysis.
You may find the following questions helpful as a starting point:
● Which specific features of the text (dialogue, visuals, music,
text, design, etc.) contribute to your understanding of the text?
● What is the text saying about a specific topic or issue? Is it
commenting on a social issue, explicitly or implicitly?
● How does the audience’s understanding of the context inform
their ability to interpret the text? How does it impact different
audiences?
● What can we learn about the world we live in by studying this
particular text? What does it reflect about our culture and
society?
***
This essay should be 4-5 pages, double-spaced, Times New Roman size 12
font and in MLA format. Like the last essay, you will need to cite outside
sources used both in the text and the Works Cited page.
***
WRITING & RESEARCH PROCESS
Start by selecting one or more media texts, then analyze them closely. You
should choose specific pieces of media so that you can discuss precise
examples throughout your essay. As you watch, play, read, listen, etc., take
notes about the major ideas and elements that you notice.
Look for ways that your text relates to a particular issue or topic in
society. Begin your research by collecting sources that provide information
about this topic.
Next, continue your research by learning about the relevant aspects
of the rhetorical situation. Collect sources that help you understand the
creators, the audiences, the text itself, and any relevant contexts or
purposes involved. Your goal is to understand how the text was produced,
how it was received, and what it “says” about the topic you’ve identified.
As you acquire sources through the library, make sure to save the
permalinks not the URL. If you plan to use a source in your paper, you can
also copy the auto-generated citation provided by most academic databases
(for for a link icon).
Now, review your notes on the text and your notes from your
research. This is your content and context. Try to draw connections
between specific elements of the text and the relevant elements of this
context. These connections represent the evidence you’ll use to support
your claims in the essay.
As you progress through this process, you should develop a
perspective or argument about how the text engages in a discourse on a
particular topic.
The topic or thesis of your essay should explain A) how a text
represents a particular topic, B) how this representation impacts the social
context and/or C) what this representation reflects about the social context.
Our study of media, genres, discourse, ideology, rhetoric, and the
rhetorical situation should inform your analysis.
.
THE ESSAY
What follows is general advice for how you can lay out the ideas and
information generated during your analysis and research. Adopt this advice
as you see fit and reach out to your instructor for guidance when you have
questions.
● Open your essay by clearly introducing the text(s) you will analyze. A
thesis or topic sentence should indicate the angle of your analysis by
drawing a connection between the text and a real-world topic.
● Next, introduce secondary sources to provide more information about
your topic and your text(s). Throughout your essay, attribute
information to your sources using signal phrases and citations. Use
your sources to clearly define the topic and discuss how it appears in
the text. Explain why this topic is relevant to the creator, the
audience, and the text itself.
● After this, introduce specific examples from the text for closer
analysis. Your analysis of these examples should make up the bulk of
your essay. Discuss the specific rhetorical choices reflected in the
examples you present. Explain how these choices impact the depiction
of your topic in the text. Discuss how these rhetorical strategies might
impact different audiences based on their assumptions, beliefs, or
values. Consider how these choices might reflect contemporary ideas
in culture and society.
● Finally, synthesize the various points you’ve made so far to draw a
broader conclusion about the text. Explain the meaning or
significance of your text in relation to its social context. Consider
answering the following questions: How does this media reflect the
culture that produced it? How might this media impact society going
forward?
Reflective cover letter
On a single page preceding your rhetorical analysis, include a letter that
describes how you conducted this research and analysis. Discuss how you
incorporated your peers’ feedback to complete the assignment.
Please do not include your name or your instructor’s name in this
letter. After the semester, the Department of Writing and Linguistics will
use a sample of student essays and reflection letters to assess and improve
this course.
Here are a few questions to help you develop your reflection:
● How and why did you choose your media text(s)?
● How did your analysis change as you reviewed the text(s) and
collected sources?
● What challenges did you face during the research and analysis
process?
● What peer feedback was most helpful? What feedback was least
helpful? Why?
● How did your ideas change as you drafted the essay?
● What challenges did you face during the writing process and
how did you overcome them?