WHAT IS A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS?

To "analyze" something means to examine it, paying special attention to the smallest of details. Analyzing rhetoric requires us to look closely at the writer's choices and figure out why the text's creator put the text together in that particular way.  

HOW WILL THE ESSAY BE SCORED?

HOW SHOULD I CONSTRUCT THE ESSAY?

WHAT SHOULD MY ESSAY FOCUS ON?

Your rhetorical analysis can focus on any rhetorical choice that you believe is important. You can analyze what the speaker says (i.e. the ideas and details that make up the text) as well as how the speaker says it (i.e. their diction, figurative language, and syntax). Keep reading to learn what each type of analysis is all about.

STARTING WITH ETHOS, PATHOS, & LOGOS

Before thinking about how a speaker makes their point through stylistic choices related to diction, figurative language, and syntax, you should start every rhetorical analysis by simply analyzing what the speaker's point is in the first place. In other words, you should analyze the broad ideas and details that make up the text. Analyzing ideas and details requires us to ask questions like, "Why did the speaker say that?" "What impact is that point supposed to have on the audience?" and "How does saying X help the speaker to accomplish their purpose?"

The answers to those questions will always come back to the three rhetorical appeals: ethos, pathos, logos.  Thus, that's where your rhetorical analysis should begin: with a basic analysis of how the speaker's choices appeal to ethos, pathos, logos. However, you can't stop there. To make sure that your analysis is specific and sophisticated, you should use one of the strategies described below to supplement your analysis of the rhetorical appeals...

ANALYZING STYLE

At least one of the paragraphs you write in your rhetorical analysis essay should discuss the speaker's writing style. When we talk about analyzing a speaker's "writing style," we're talking about analyzing not just what the writer says but how they say it. For example, if we were to analyze why Queen Elizabeth says that she is “a weak and feeble woman,” we would be analyzing what she says--or, in other words, an idea/detail. But if we were to dig deeper and analyze the specific way she expresses this idea—with, for example, the words “weak" and "feeble” instead of “frail” or “delicate” or “small” or any other word that could express the same idea but in a slightly different way—then we would be analyzing her writing style, or how she's choosing to express her ideas.

When it comes to analyzing a speaker's "style," there are three main things you can focus on: diction, figurative language, and syntax. Keep reading for advice about analyzing each element of style...