Persuasive Analysis PaperEnglish III—Fall 2015

In this paper, you will take the analysis skills we have learned in this unit and apply them to a new text. Below is a list of works from multiple time periods throughout American history. Read through all of them, and then pick which one about which you would like to write.

  1. United Nations Speech – Hilary Clinton
  2. Commencement Address to Wesley College – Barbara Bush
  3. “Why We Should Go to the Moon” – John F. Kennedy
  4. The Crisis, No. 4—Thomas Paine
  5. The Writs of Assistance—James Otis
  6. “Whistle”—Benjamin Franklin

Once you have chosen your text, you should re-read and annotate it (and the background/author information) carefully. The first step is to figure out the author’s purpose. To do this, you should consider the author’s (these are not meant to be individual paragraphs):

a)Overall argument/purpose

-What are his/her main points with regards to their subject matter?

b)Personal/political background

-How does this impact your understanding of their agenda?

c)The historical context

-What is going on in America at the time? Ex: War? Recession? Slavery?

d)Genre

-Is this a speech? An address to the American public? Broadcast? Pamphlet? Etc.

e)Audience (complete a SOAPSTone profile)

- Is it directed to all Americans, the middle or upper class, the “common man,” etc.??

-How does this audience impact their use of these strategies??

When you have determined the purpose for which the author is writing, then you should go back and look for persuasive strategies(literary devices, rhetorical appeals, syntax, etc.) that the author uses to accomplish his or her purpose. You will need to choose 2-3 strategies that are the most important.

PROMPT: Your paper will analyze how those 2-3 key strategies help the author achieve his or her goal/purpose.

Mon Oct 19
Full annotation of text
(checked in class) / Tues Oct 20 / Wed/Thurs Oct 21-22
TYPED Working Thesis DUE / Fri Oct 23
TYPED Thesis Rewrite/Outline DUE
Mon Oct 26
/ Tues Oct 27 / Wed/Thurs Oct 28-29 / Fri Oct 30
Complete Annotated Text Due (Formative Grade)
Mon Nov 2
TYPED ROUGH DRAFT Due (QUIZ Grade)
Peer/Self-Edit Day / Tues Nov 3 / Wed/Thurs Nov 4-5 / Fri Nov 5
TYPED FINAL COPY (with annotated text) DUE
Submitted to Turnitin.com by 7:25a.m.

Paper Format Requirements:

  • Use correct MLA format (heading, header, title, double-spaced, Times New Roman 12pt. font, 1” margins, etc.)
  • 2-3 pages long
  • Minimum 2 devices/appeals
  • 6 textual quotes total (2-3 per body paragraph)
  • FINAL DRAFT, due FRI, NOV 5th, hard copy and Turnitin.com. No excuses! Even if you are absent, your paper should be uploaded by 7:25A.M. on Tuesday 11/5.

NOTE: INSERT KHS ACADEMIC HONESTY STATEMENT

Anwell-written essay should contain the following (specific rubric to follow):

  • Thesis: makes a clear argument about how the author uses 2-3 persuasive strategies to accomplish his or her purpose.
  • Evidence: relevant, specific quoted passages from the text that support your claims. The quotations are not left to speak for themselves, but are followed by insightful analysis of how the author uses the devices to accomplish his or her purpose. This commentary does not stop at identifying the type of persuasive strategy (i.e. “the parallelism in the sentence is created by beginning every clause with the phrase ‘we have already”), but rather continues on to explain the function of that strategy (i.e. “this use of parallelism highlights how many different methods the colonists have used to try to avoid war. Emphasizing these repeated attempts makes the colonists seem as if they have moral high ground, as the parallelism indicates that they have been reasonable, patient, and law-abiding for ten years.”).
  • Organization: logical ordering of paragraphs that matches up with thesis, smooth transitions, and clear progression of argument.
  • Format/Mechanics: close attention paid to grammar, spelling, and MLA format. 0-2 minor errors.
  • Language: clear, readable, coherent prose. Sentence lengths and structures are varied. Good, specific word choices.