How to Write a Rhetorical Analysis

Last Updated: April 5, 2021 References Approved

A rhetorical analysis can be written about other texts, television shows, films, collections of artwork, or a variety of other communicative mediums that attempt to make a statement to an intended audience. In order to write a rhetorical analysis, you need to be able to determine how the creator of the original work attempts to make his or her argument. You can also include information about whether or not that argument is successful. To learn more about the right way to write a rhetorical analysis, continue reading.

Part 1

Part 1 of 4:

Gathering Information

1
Identify the SOAPSTone. The SOAPSTone of a text include its Speaker, Occasion, Audience, Purpose, Subject and Tone.^{[1]
X
Research source}
- The speaker refers to the first and last name of the writer. If the writer has any credentials that lend to his or her authority on the matter at hand, you should also briefly consider those. Note that if the narrator is different from the writer, though, it could also refer to the narrator.
- The occasion mostly refers to the type of text and the context under which the text was written. For instance, there is a big difference between an essay written for a scholarly conference and a letter written to an associate in the field.
- The audience is who the text was written for. This is related to the occasion, since the occasion can include details about the audience. In the example above, the audience would be a conference of scholars versus an associate in the field.
- The purpose refers to what the writer wants to accomplish in the text. It usually includes selling a product or point of view.
- The subject is simply the topic the writer discusses in the text.
2
Examine the appeals. Appeals are the first classification of rhetorical strategy and involve the ethos, logos, and pathos.^{[2]
X
Trustworthy Source
Purdue Online Writing Lab
Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines
Go to source}
- Ethos, or ethical appeals, rely on the writer's credibility and character in the garnering of approval. Mentions of a writer's character or qualifications usually qualify as ethos. For instance, if a family therapist with 20 years of practice writes an article on improving familial relations, mention of that experience would be using ethos. Despite their name, these appeals don't have anything to do with "ethics" as we usually think of them.
- Logos, or logical appeals, use reason to make an argument. Most academic discourse should make heavy use of logos. A writer who supports an argument with evidence, data, and undeniable facts uses logos.
- Pathos, or pathetic appeals, seek to evoke emotion in order to gain approval. These emotions can include anything from sympathy and anger to the desire for love. If an article about violent crime provides personal, human details about victims of violent crime, the writer is likely using pathos.
Advertisement
3
Note style details. Style details are the second rhetorical strategy and include a wide variety of elements, such as imagery, tone, syntax, and diction.
- Analogies and figurative language, including metaphors and similes, demonstrate an idea through comparison.
- Repetition of a certain point or idea is used to make that point seem more memorable.
- Imagery often affects pathos. The image of a starving child in a third-world country can be a powerful way of evoking compassion or anger.
- Diction refers to word choice. Emotionally-charged words have greater impact, and rhythmic word patterns can establish a theme more effectively.
- Tone essentially means mood or attitude. A sarcastic essay is vastly different from a scientific one, but depending on the situation, either tone could be effective.
- Addressing the opposition demonstrates that the writer is not afraid of the opposing viewpoint. It also allows the writer to strengthen his or her own argument by cutting down the opposing one. This is especially powerful when the author contrasts a strong viewpoint he or she holds with a weak viewpoint on the opposing side.
4
Form an analysis. Before you begin writing your analysis, determine what the information you gathered suggests to you.^{[3]
X
Research source}
- Ask yourself how the rhetorical strategies of appeals and style help the author achieve his or her purpose. Determine if any of these strategies fail and hurt the author instead of helping.
- Speculate on why the author may have chosen those rhetorical strategies for that audience and that occasion. Determine if the choice of strategies may have differed for a different audience or occasion.
- Remember that in a rhetorical analysis, you do not need to agree with the argument being presented. Your task is to analyze how well the author uses the appeals to present her or his argument.

Part 2

Part 2 of 4:

Writing the Introduction

1
Identify your own purpose. You should, in some way, let the reader know that your paper is a rhetorical analysis.^{[4]
X
Research source}
- By letting the reader know that your paper is a rhetorical analysis, you let him or her know exactly what to expect. If you do not let the reader know this information beforehand, he or she may expect to read an evaluative argument instead.
- Do not simply state, "This paper is a rhetorical analysis." Weave the information into the introduction as naturally as possible.
- Note that this may not be necessary if you are writing a rhetorical analysis for an assignment that specifically calls for a rhetorical analysis.
2
State the text being analyzed. Clearly identify the text or document you plan to analyze in your paper.
- The introduction is a good place to give a quick summary of the document. Keep it quick, though. Save the majority of the details for your body paragraphs, since most of the details will be used in defending your analysis.
3
Briefly mention the SOAPS. Mention the speaker, occasion, audience, purpose, and subject of the text.
- You do not necessarily need to mention these details in this order. Include the details in a matter that makes sense and flows naturally within your introductory paragraph.
4
Specify a thesis statement. The thesis statement is the key to a successful introduction and provides a sense of focus for the rest of the essay. There are several ways to state your intentions for the essay.
- Try stating which rhetorical techniques the writer uses in order to move people toward his or her desired purpose. Analyze how well these techniques accomplish this goal.
- Consider narrowing the focus of your essay. Choose one or two design aspects that are complex enough to spend an entire essay analyzing.
- Think about making an original argument. If your analysis leads you to make a certain argument about the text, focus your thesis and essay around that argument and provide support for it throughout the body of your paper.
- Try to focus on using words such as "effective" or "ineffective" when composing your thesis, rather than "good" or "bad." You want to avoid seeming like you are passing value judgments.

Part 3

Part 3 of 4:

Writing the Body

1
Organize your body paragraphs by rhetorical appeals. The most standard way to organize your body paragraphs is to do so by separating them into sections that identify the logos, ethos, and pathos.^{[5]
X
Trustworthy Source
Purdue Online Writing Lab
Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines
Go to source}
- The order of logos, ethos, and pathos is not necessarily set in stone. If you intend to focus on one more than the other two, you could briefly cover the two lesser appeals in the first two sections before elaborating on the third in greater detail toward the middle and end of the paper.
- For logos, identify at least one major claim and evaluate the document's use of objective evidence.
- For ethos, analyze how the writer or speaker uses his or her status as an "expert" to enhance credibility.
- For pathos, analyze any details that alter the way that the viewer or reader may feel about the subject at hand. Also analyze any imagery used to appeal to aesthetic senses, and determine how effective these elements are.
- Wrap things up by discussing the consequences and overall impact of these three appeals.
2
Write your analysis in chronological order, instead. This method is just about as common as organizing your paper by rhetorical appeal, and it is actually more straight-forward.
- Start from the beginning of the document and work your way through to the end. Present details about the document and your analysis of those details in the order the original document presents them in.
- The writer of the original document likely organized the information carefully and purposefully. By addressing the document in this order, your analysis is more likely to make more coherent sense by the end of your paper.
3
Provide plenty of evidence and support. Rely on hard evidence rather than opinion or emotion for your analysis.
- Evidence often include a great deal of direct quotation and paraphrasing.
- Point to spots in which the author mentioned his or her credentials to explain ethos. Identify emotional images or words with strong emotional connotations as ways of supporting claims to pathos. Mention specific data and facts used in analysis involving logos.
4
Maintain an objective tone. A rhetorical analysis can make an argument, but you need to be scholarly and reasonable in your analysis of the document.
- Avoid use of the first-person words "I" and "we." Stick to the more objective third-person.

Part 4

Part 4 of 4:

Writing the Conclusion

1
Restate your thesis. Do not simply repeat the thesis in your introduction word-for-word. Instead, rephrase it using new terminology while essentially sharing the same information.
- When restating your thesis, you should be able to quickly analyze how the original author's purpose comes together.
- When restating your thesis, try to bring more sophistication or depth to it than you had in the beginning. What can the audience now understand about your thesis that they would not have without reading your analysis?
2
Restate your main ideas. In restating your main ideas, you should also explain why they are important and how they support your thesis.
- Keep this information brief. You spent an entire essay supporting your thesis, so these restatements of your main ideas should only serve as summaries of your support.
3
Specify if further research needs to be done. If more information should be done to further your efforts, say so.
- Indicate what that research must entail and how it would help.
- Also state why the subject matter is important enough to continue researching and how it has significance to the real world.

Writing Help

What to Include in a Rhetorical Analysis

Things to Avoid in a Rhetorical Analysis

Annotated Rhetorical Analysis

Community Q&A

Question

How can I analyze an ad using logos, pathos, and ethos?

Community Answer

Look carefully at the words used in the ad, the image, and the feelings that the ad gives off. First analyze the words for any presence of an appeal to reason (logos), pathos (feelings), or ethos (ethics). Then look at the image and explain how the consumer is supposed to receive it. Again, does it appeal to your reason, feelings, or moral compass?
Question

How can I know if my writing will make sense to others?

Community Answer

You can try giving your writing to others, so they can give notes on things that weren't so clear and suggest improvements.
Question

What if the author only uses pathos and not the other two?

Community Answer

Your goal should be to determine whether or not the author is successful in making their argument. A good rhetorical analysis essay takes both sides of the argument, so you should analyze how the author was ineffective with the lack of logos and ethos.