You can write a rhetorical analysis could of various subjects and mediums. It could be of an academic article, literature, movie, or a TV program. Primarily, you seek to identify how the author of the work you are analyzing developed his/her arguments and whether they achieved or are achieving their intended purpose. The good thing is if you are already competent in writing a conversational or critical analysis essay, writing a rhetorical analysis may come in handy. But new writers should brief a sigh of relief since this article aims at explaining rhetorical essay with examples.
What is a rhetorical essay
A rhetorical essay primarily seeks to appraise a piece of work by an author, is it art or literature based on the author’s views and ideas been sent out. You basically dissert the work into parts and analyze how each piece relates to the other. Afterward, you decide on whether the writer has achieved that purpose. In simple terms, you are writing about writing. To achieve this, research into the subject to be analyzed using
- The internet
- Documentaries
- Magazines
- Newspapers
- Books
- Interviews
- You can also rely on many other primary and secondary sources to get this done.
Preparing to write a rhetorical essay
To write a good piece of work, you may need to follow some critical steps. This makes the writing process easier since you may have a limited time to get this done at the exams hall. You first need to read the work to be analyzed slowly and thoroughly, keeping into account critical points. Highlight the main points you want to analyze and the claims you would want to prove or rebut.
You have to note the author’s name, his/her target audience, and the reason behind the work. Those aside, identify the mechanism the author devised to convince the audience, and whether it worked out. Also, demonstrate how the author’s used the elements of ethos, pathos, and logos in the writing or art.
- All rhetorical essays should include the use of elements,
- Ethos relates to the ethics/morals of the author
- Pathos refers to emotions, being it the passion, which the author seeks to convince the audience
- Logos stands for rational thinking
Rhetorical Analysis Topics List
- Now that you know what rhetorical essay entails, let’s look at some examples;
- Now, let’s consider some good rhetorical analysis essay topics:
- An evaluation “Yes Please” by Amy Poehler’s
- An in-depth analysis of “Life in the Iron Mill.”
- Why do you think the movie “The Great Gatsby” was successful
- What makes “Pride and Prejudice” still relevant?
- How similar and different are “Beowulf” and “The Odyssey”?
- Analyzing the character of Hamlet
- Analyze the significance of the Bible from the literary point of view
- Analyze a play by Shakespeare
- The main themes covered in “The Troy.”
- An evaluation “Traveling Mercies” by Anne Lamott
- Your views on “A Nation among Nations.”
- The use of different animals in “Easy on Man.”
- “Essay on Man”: The way the author shows different animals.
- A plot analysis of ‘Harry Potter.”