Argument, Writing, The Rhetorical Situation: Sept .21

Arguments are everywhere

— You may be surprised to hear that the word "argument" does not have to be written anywhere in your assignment for it to be an important part of your task. In fact, making an argument—expressing a point of view on a subject and supporting it with evidence—is often the aim of academic writing. Your instructors may assume that you know this and thus may not explain the importance of arguments to you in class. Nevertheless, if your writing assignment asks you to respond to readings and class discussion, your instructor likely expects you to produce an argument in your paper.

— Argumentation is not just what your instructors do. We all use argumentation on a daily basis, and you probably already have some skill at crafting an argument. The more you improve your skills in this area, the better you will be at thinking critically, reasoning, making choices, and weighing evidence

— Your next assignment, a rhetorical analysis of the presidential debate, will give you further practice in analyzing arguments and rhetoric and evidence. This will better prepare you to craft your own argument for you research paper.

Traditional Rhetorical Situation: The Rhetorical Triangle

Other Ways to think of the elements of the Rhetorical Situation

— Among the rhetorical elements outlined by Lloyd Bitzer in "The Rhetorical Situation" (Philosophy and Rhetoric, 1968), five are most likely to give readers insight into an argument essay:

— The easiest way to remember these five major components of rhetorical analysis is with the acronym realm:
reader
essay
author
limitations
motivation

— MOTIVATION: Bitzer calls this the exigence or the real-life spark that caused the writer to begin writing. When we consider argument texts, the motivation for writing is often a particular confrontation with someone who holds an opposing position or an insight into a problem that could be solved. Sometimes a writer's motivation is based on his or her values: the writer sees an event and feels strongly that such occurrences should not happen or should not work out the way this particular event did. Such a spark or motivation spurs the writer to begin thinking and eventually writing out the logic that supports a position in a controversy.

— THE READER: Whom is the writer writing to? Given the motivation for the argument, the writer might directly target someone with the power to change a policy or enact a law. Or the writer might decide that mobilizing public sentiment can help change a circumstance the writer views as unfair or wrong-headed. The most effective arguments are tailored specifically to their readers, so this element is a key part of "The Rhetorical Situation" or a rhetorical analysis.

— THE AUTHOR: The writer is the next element to look at in a rhetorical analysis. A writer can adopt a particular mask to present to readers, emphasizing their common humanity or specialized education. In many rhetorical situations, the author will try to highlight the traits she shares with her readers. In other instances, the author may write as an outsider who has a better perspective on a problem or situation. Just how the author presents her character and knowledge, as well as how the author connects with the audience, are key elements in understanding the overall effectiveness of many arguments.

— THE LIMITATIONS: Because writers must accommodate readers' background knowledge and their attitudes toward the focus of the argument, that set of limitations is most obvious as a component of rhetorical analysis. But writers are also limited by their own knowledge, by their perspectives on a topic, by their values, by their emotional connection to a topic. These, too, are key limitations. Finally, because this type of rhetorical analysis focuses on the motivation for an argument, the historical, political, economic, and social contexts for the motivating event also pose some limitations on what a writer can and cannot argue for. These limitations, or constraints as Bitzer labels them, are important to recognize as shaping forces of an overall argument.

— THE ESSAY (OR FOR OUR PURPOSE: THE RHETORIC):The text itself is perhaps the most obvious piece of the rhetorical context to look closely at. Each argument has its own shape based on the specific claim, organization, argument strategies, types of evidence, and style. Each of these sub-points can repay careful analysis to see how they contribute to the effectiveness of an overall argument.

Applying this to your assignment

— In a live, televised debate it is more difficult to quickly analyze rhetoric because you do not have the ability to reread parts of a text and spend a lot of time thinking about it.

— You also have many different elements to consider

— Such as?

— In your notebook jot down what strategies and techniques you can use to effectively watch, understand and analyze the presidential debate.