Based on Eric Hill's WR 327 Class

Based on Eric Hill's WR 327 class.

Guidelines for Critical Analyses

Critical Analysis #1: The Persuasive Document

Rhetorical Strategy

PURPOSE: Please be specific about the purpose of the document. For example, rather than merely tell me that the Nike ad you have chosen to critically analyze is trying to sell shoes, go into some details about the product (or service or point of view) and why you think the writer thought it necessary to expend the time, space, money, etc. to produce the document. What type of persuasive document is it?

AUDIENCES: Whom is the document specifically targeting? Go into some details regarding the primary and secondary audiences for the document. You should be able to determine much about the audiences by analyzing the technique and purpose of the document. What are the audiences' biases? What is the age range of the audience? [Educational background, economic level, gender, professions, etc] What is the cultural context in which this is being presented? Go into length here; audience analysis is one of the most important components to consider when analyzing or writing a document.

TECHNIQUE: The persuasive document must keep in mind the Aristotelian appeals (pathos, logos, ethos). Each appeal can inform the other. For example, if the document engages in logical fallacy (consequently damaging the logos) then the ethos is affected as well. How are the sources or references used? How effectively are they employed? You will also want to consider the literary style of writing – vocabulary, diction, syntax, tone, voice.

Examine the document using the Toulmin model:

Claim : What is the point of the document? (There could be more than one claim)

Support: What types and how much evidence is given to support the point or points?

How credible are these sources?

Warrant: What is assumed in this case? Is anything implicit?

What common ground does the writer build on?

Example: Claim – We should abolish corporal punishment in schools

Support (sort of second claim)

– because corporal punishment is an inhumane and ineffective way to teach (with statistics and quotes to back this up)

Warrant – Don't we all want to be humane and effective?

Critical Analysis #2: The Informative Document

Rhetorical Strategy

PURPOSE: Since the informative document does not ask the reader to perform a task (as in the case of an instructive document) or attempt to sway the reader into a particular mindset (as in the case of the persuasive document), the purpose should relay information that is relatively neutral (no action or change of position is required from the primary audience). The information here is FYI (for your information). What is the point, then, of importing this information? Why does the document provide the information to the reader? If the reader is not necessarily asked to do anything or to believe anything, then why does the document exist? These are questions that will help you analyze the document in terms of a rhetorical strategy.

AUDIENCES: In the case of an informative document, it might be helpful to consider where and how the document is distributed or accessed. This might give you some idea of both primary and secondary audiences. For example, if it is a brochure detailing the symptoms of a particular disease, then the secondary audience might be doctors or workers in a health clinic; the primary audience, then, might be patients (particularly if the jargon is kept to a minimum or carefully defined.) If you put yourself in the place of the primary audience, you can begin to entertain some of the questions about needs and levels of understanding surrounding the document's audience.

TECHNIQUE: The informative document will employ slightly different strategies than the instructive because no action is required. The purpose of the document is to relay information (not to instruct). Consequently, there will not necessarily be a step-by-step layout. However, this does not preclude a chronology or listing strategy (for example, to show the progression of a process). The audience is not necessarily resistant (as might be the case with the persuasive document), so a Toulmin model analysis would not be as helpful as would in examining of how well the information is being relayed. How well do the details and visuals relay the information? Would the intended primary audience be able to adequately decipher the data?

NOTE: Technique (particularly in an informative or instructive document) can employ such strategies as visuals, comparisons (metaphors, similes, examples), charts, tables, or even anecdotal examples. Keep in mind that all three criteria here (purpose, audiences, technique) inform each other: the purpose is to inform the audience by use of the technique. The audience's level of understanding about the subject dictates the techniques used. Also look for layout strategies such as frontloading, chunking, reader cues, etc which can help or hinder the audience.

Critical Analysis #3 : The Instructive Document

Rhetorical Strategy

PURPOSE: The purpose of any instructive document is to inform the primary audience about how to do something. Since the instructive document is a how-to, several questions much be asked about purpose. What action or actions are are being performed? What will result from these actions? Is this a one-time action or one that needs to be repeated? Are there potential dangers involved in performing this action? The purpose section of the analysis should be explored thoroughly so that you can determine more about audience and technique.

AUDIENCES: The analysis should focus, in this case, on the primary audience (i.e. the user). A thorough audience analysis is particularly important in analyzing an instructive document. What is the education level? What are some of the possible cultural differences? Would the audience respond best to language or visuals (and here you can see a segue into the technique section)?

TECHNIQUE: There are several ways to lay out an instructive document. Consider how the document you've chosen is laid out. Does it use visuals, step-by-step, different languages, fonts, diagrams, etc? Consider the use of parallel structure and questions of user action versus system reaction.