Readings &
Assignments Schedule (weeks 1–5)
*all
readings & assignments to be read by and/or turned in on date they are
listed under
T 08/26 Course
overview + introduction + a tiny bit of teaching
TR 08/28 Rhetoric
I + in-class writing
READ: course documents (i.e. this syllabus)
* * * *
*
T 09/02 Rhetoric
II + in-class writing
READ: “The Case for Reparations” parts I–II [link at website]
TR 09/04 Summary
& Evaluation I
READ: “The Case for Reparations” parts III–V [link at website]
WRITE: Mini-essay 1
* * * *
*
T 09/09 Rhetoric
III
READ: “The Case for Reparations” parts VI–X [link at website]
TR 09/11 Analysis
I
READ: “Hidden Intellectualism” [link at website]
WRITE: ESSAY ARGUMENT 1
* * * *
*
T 09/16 Craft
& Style I
READ: Craft & Style #1 [links at website]
TR 09/18 Analysis
II
WRITE: ESSAY ARGUMENT 2 draft
* * * *
*
T 09/23 SMALL
CLASS SESSION <
TR 09/25 SMALL
CLASS SESSION =
Readings &
Assignments Schedule (weeks 6–10)
*all
readings & assignments to be read by and/or turned in on date they are
listed under
T 09/30 Rhetoric
IV
WRITE: ESSAY ARGUMENT 2 final draft
TR 10/02 Craft
& Style II
READ: selections on writing [handout]
* * * *
*
T 10/07 Summary
& Evaluation II
WRITE: Mini-essay 2
TR 10/09
NO
CLASS — FALL BREAK
* * * *
*
T 10/14 Film
Session
TR 10/16 Film
Session
WRITE: ESSAY ARGUMENT 1 revised draft
* * * *
*
T 10/21 Critical
Inquiry I
READ: film selections (handout)
WRITE: Mini-essay 3
TR 10/23 Critical
Inquiry II
READ: film selections (links at website)
* * * *
*
T 10/28 Analysis
III
TR 10/30 Analysis
IV
WRITE: ESSAY LITERARY ANALYSIS draft
Readings &
Assignments Schedule (weeks 11–15)
*all
readings & assignments to be read by and/or turned in on date they are
listed under
T 11/04 SMALL
CLASS SESSION =
TR 11/6 SMALL
CLASS SESSION <
* * * *
*
T 11/11 Rhetoric
V
WRITE: ESSAY LITERARY ANALYSIS final draft
TR 11/13 Craft
& Style III
READ: selections on feminism (handout +
links at website)
* * * *
*
T 11/18 Analysis
V
TR 11/20 Analysis
VII
READ: selections on sports (handout +
links at website)
* * * *
*
T 11/25 Craft
& Style VI
WRITE: ESSAY RHETORICAL ANALYSIS draft
TR 11/27 NO
CLASS — THANKSGIVING
* * * *
*
T 12/02 Critical
Inquiry VI
WRITE: Mini-essay 4
TR 12/04 Final
Class Meeting
A
Contemporary American Rhetoric: Culture , Ethics, & The Narrative of
Argument
Assignments,
Mini-essays, & Essays
Mini-essays
The Mini-essays are topic + reading-driven
assignments in which students implement their close reading skills and expand
their rhetorical writing. Response will focus on the specific rhetorical genres
we are exploring: analysis, evaluation, inquiry, style, structure, and
synthesis.
Through
reading-related prompts, you will be asked to (re-)investigate texts more fully
and accomplish specific tasks. Typically there is not one precise response to the prompts (there
may be a number of acceptable ways to respond, and you are free to respond in
any way you see fit, so long as your response is focused and thoughtful), though
there can be misdirected or poorly investigated tasks.
As the
syllabus states, there are four (4) mini-essays, each accounting for 25 points.
The level of writing/responding should conform to academic course standards.
Incomplete, poorly-composed, or off-topic responses will not receive full
credit. Think of these responses as essays (1 ½ – 2 pages each) and NOT as exercises or
journal free-write responses as they will be graded on their mini-essay-ness.
As
always, you should follow MLA guidelines. Mini-essays must be turned in by the
start of class.
Topics
#1 Annotate and summarize an article from the “Technology”
or “Science” section of Google News. Turn-in 1) the printed article with your
annotations and 2) your mini-essay summary.
due
Thursday 9/4
#2 Perform a close reading on one of the selections on
writing and analyze the argument and supporting details.
due
Tuesday 10/7
#3 Write a review of the film. Use elements of summary, analysis, and critique to support your judgment.
due
Tuesday 10/21
#4
Perform a close reading on one of the pieces from the selections on feminism or the
selections on sports. Identify where the writer’s views are most distinguishable. Does
the writer use voice markers, signal phrases, or other “clues”? *Hint: you are analyzing voice in concert with style.
due
Tuesday 12/2
Argument 1 (Entering the Conversation +
Revision)
Schedule/Due
dates: Thursday,
September 11
Rhetoric
(from the Greek rhetor, meaning “speaker in the
assembly”)
The
art of using language for persuasion.
Context
To write
is to enter an existing conversation, to “put your oar in,” so to speak.
Typically, the most engaging pieces of writing respond to an existing argument
or discussion in an attempt to persuade the reader about a specific topic. The
use of direct-response rhetoric to persuade demands close reading, thoughtful writing,
and attention to detail(s). The appropriate discourse for your conversation is
one that engages the existing discourse on its terms and concepts and builds
outward from there. As always, attention to craft is essential, but your
“textbook” is the whole of persuasive writing. Your most relevant “textbook”
models are what you already know and what you’ve read so far.
This
assignment should provide you the opportunity to strengthen your investigation, evaluation, critical thinking, and rhetoric skills. You will write a 2–3
page persuasive essay.
Primary
Writing Task
The goal
of this rhetorical essay is to arrive at an interpretation that is based on a single claim
or small constellation of claims. This means you must have an argument, and it’s important to fashion
your argument around a succinct premise/thesis, usually a sentence or two. A
premise/thesis must be of appropriate scope, debatable, and not obvious. You
support your premise and overarching argument by investigating details in the text, in this
case, the topic of your rhetorical appeal (which you’re an “expert” on). Investigate
something that interests you and try to figure out why it does—and why it is
important to your argument about the topic. Hopefully, your interest will lead to questions
that will help you develop your own interpretation of what the topic is, what
the arguments might be, and how you can best use rhetoric/persuasion. Your interpretation
must include discussion of parts, elements, and characteristics of your topic
(your viewpoint is confident and balanced). It is then your task to combine what you’ve discovered
into an essay. You are entering into a conversation and adding your interpretation
to build upon
an existing conversation.
Requirements/Guidelines
For Writing
Your 2–3
page essay should include:
•
A premise/thesis (What is a meaning of your persuasive appeal?)
•
A set of claims that lead to and support your thesis (Why is this a meaning for
your topic?)
•
Evidence that supports your claims (How is this meaning exposed?)
Topic:
Enter the
conversation of Ta-Nehisi Coates and build upon it/add to it
Purpose:
To persuade your
audience about why your understanding, investigation, and interpretation of the
conversation is important to them
Audience:
fellow students,
professors, university administrators and staff
Format:
Follow proper
MLA guidelines. You must have a title. Your essay length is 2–3 pages.
You receive 25 pts for
completing the essay and another 25 pts for completing the revision/letter.
Criteria
For Evaluation
The best
essays will:
– have a
PURPOSE and address an AUDIENCE
– have a
clear and consistent argument
– have a
persuasive position supported by a premise/thesis
– offer
sufficient support of the position
–
investigate the position through close reading and/or critical inquiry
–
investigate individual elements of the argument
–
authentically persuades the audience
–
effectively organize ideas and paragraphs
– use
appropriate and consistent language
– avoid
ambiguity and confusion
– follow
the rules of grammar and punctuation
– adhere
to MLA formatting
–
recognize the importance of readings and class discussions
– enter
the conversation creatively
– frame
and blend quotations
Important
Texts
– “The
Case for Reparations”
– OWL
ESSAY REVISION
The revision portion of
this essay is comprised of two components: 1) a fully-revised essay and 2) a
one-page narrative about your revision process. The revised essay is a
straight-forward style/content/structure/craft overall revision. The one-page
narrative will take the form of a letter—addressed to me, your instructor—about
how the revision process improved your original essay, what tools you implemented,
how you view the new vs. old essay, and whatever else you might like to say
about revision and its processes.
REVISED ESSAY &
LETTER ARE DUE BY OR BEFORE Thursday 10/16.
(50 pts)
Argument 2 (The Persuasive Narrative)
Schedule/Due
dates: Thursday,
September 18 — draft (2 copies)
Tuesday, September 30 — Final draft
Rhetoric
(from the Greek rhetor, meaning “speaker in the
assembly”)
The
art of using language for persuasion.
Narrative (Gerard Genette, “Boundaries of
Narrative”)
“...may be defined simply as the representation of an
event or series of events by language, and more specifically by written
language.”
Context
The persuasive
narrative. What
is it? A piece of writing using knowledge, experience, and craft to persuade
the reader about a specific topic. Why this form? The use of narrative-based
rhetoric to
persuade opens up a range of possibilities, both contextually and
stylistically. How so? Rather than writing in a specific, rigid style (e.g. the
robotic and systematic “academic argumentative essay”), you determine the
appropriate discourse for your essay. As always, attention to craft is
essential, but your “textbook” is the whole of persuasive writing. Your most
relevant “textbook” model is the essay “Hidden Intellectualism.” And remember:
observe the elements of narrative.
This
assignment should provide you the opportunity to strengthen your investigation, evaluation, critical thinking, and rhetoric skills. You will write a 3+ page
persuasive essay.
Primary
Writing Task
The goal
of this rhetorical essay is to arrive at an interpretation that is based on a single claim
or small constellation of claims. This means you must have an argument, and it’s important to fashion
your argument around a succinct premise/thesis, usually a sentence or two. A
premise/thesis must be of appropriate scope, debatable, and not obvious. You
support your premise and overarching argument by investigating details in the text, in this
case, the topic of your rhetorical appeal (which you’re an “expert” on). Investigate
something that interests you and try to figure out why it does—and why it is
important to your argument about the topic. Hopefully, your interest will lead to questions
that will help you develop your own interpretation of what the topic is, what
the arguments might be, and how you can best use rhetoric/persuasion. Your
interpretation must include discussion of parts, elements, and characteristics
of your topic (your viewpoint is confident and balanced). It is then your task to combine what you’ve
discovered into an essay. You are entering into a conversation and adding your interpretation
to build upon
an existing conversation.
Requirements/Guidelines
For Writing
Your 3+
page essay should include:
•
A premise/thesis (What is a meaning of your persuasive appeal?)
•
A set of claims that lead to and support your thesis (Why is this a meaning for
your topic?)
•
Evidence that supports your claims (How is this meaning exposed?)
Topic:
The “unexpected”
becomes astonishing/captivating/affirming/artful/commonplace/etc., i.e. an
important yet arguable realization conceived from experience
Purpose:
To persuade your
audience about why your topic, investigation, and interpretation are important
to the conversation
Audience:
specific
place/title of publication
Format:
Follow proper
MLA guidelines. You must have a title. Your essay length is 3+ pages.
Criteria
For Evaluation
The best
essays will:
– have a
PURPOSE and address an AUDIENCE
– mix
elements of rhetoric and narrative throughout
– have a
clear and consistent argument
– have a
persuasive position supported by a premise/thesis
– offer
sufficient support of the position
–
investigate the position through close reading and/or critical inquiry
–
investigate individual elements of the argument
– authentically
persuades the audience
–
effectively organize ideas and paragraphs
– use
appropriate and consistent language
– avoid
ambiguity and confusion
– follow
the rules of grammar and punctuation
– adhere
to MLA formatting
– use
“Hidden Intellectualism” as a model
–
recognize the importance of readings and class discussions
– enter
the conversation creatively
– frame
and blend quotations
Important
Texts
–
“Hidden Intellectualism”
–
“Touching the Earth”
– course
documents
– OWL
(75 pts)
Literary Analysis
(Textual Analysis)
Schedule/Due
dates: Thursday,
October 30 — draft (2 copies)
Tuesday, November 11 — Final draft
Rhetoric
(from the Greek rhetor, meaning “speaker in the
assembly”)
The
art of using language for persuasion.
Analysis (from the Greek analysis, meaning “taking apart,
decomposition)
The process of separating the constituents of a whole and
discerning the matter in which they are interrelated
Context
The literary
analysis is a
cornerstone of the humanities, the social sciences, and scholarly writing in
general. This specific type of analysis calls on a writer to offer a rhetorical interpretation of a text (or specific aspects
of a text). The interpretation is displayed, foremost, through two “writerly”
tasks: 1) a comprehensive understanding of the text being analyzed and 2) a
demonstration of significant rhetorical skill. The literary analysis also
requires an adept mixing of genres. The focus of this literary analysis should be a specific aspect,
element, and/or characteristic of a text, not the text as a whole. A literary analysis is not a
summary of a text, nor is it a book report-like critique. Literary analyses
require an appropriate balance in their investigation, i.e. the rhetoric should
be both subjective and objective. There are an infinite number of ways to
construct a literary analysis, but your most relevant models are the selections
on film.
This
assignment should provide you the opportunity to strengthen your interpretation, analysis, close reading, critical thinking, and rhetoric skills. You will write a 4+ page
analytical essay.
Primary
Writing Task
The goal
of this rhetorical analysis essay is to arrive at an interpretation that is based on a single claim
or small constellation of claims. This means you must have an argument, and it’s important to fashion
your argument around a succinct premise/thesis, usually a sentence or two. A
premise/thesis must be of appropriate scope, debatable, and not obvious. You
support your premise and overarching argument by investigating details surrounding the topic of
your rhetorical appeal. Investigate something that interests you and try to
figure out why it does—and why it is important to your argument about the topic. Hopefully, your interest will
lead to questions that will help you develop your own definitive interpretation
of what the topic is, what the relevant arguments are, and how you can best use
rhetoric/persuasion. Your interpretation must include discussion of parts,
elements, or characteristics of your topic (your viewpoint is subjective and objective). It is then your task to
combine what you’ve discovered into an essay. You are entering into a conversation and adding your interpretation
to build upon
an existing conversation.
Requirements/Guidelines
For Writing
Your 4+
page essay should include:
•
A premise/thesis (What is a meaning of your persuasive appeal?)
•
A set of claims that lead to and support your thesis (Why is this a meaning for
your focus?)
•
Evidence that supports your claims (How is this meaning exposed?)
Text
& Topic: You
will propose a text and topic for literary analysis
Purpose:
To analyze a text and to persuade your audience about why your interpretation, focus, and investigation are
important to the conversation
Audience:
specific
place/title of publication
Format:
Follow proper
MLA guidelines. You must have a title. Your essay length is 4+ pages.
Criteria
For Evaluation
The best
essays will:
– have a
PURPOSE and address an AUDIENCE
– have a
clear and consistent argument
– have a
persuasive position supported by a premise/thesis
– offer
sufficient support of the position
–
investigate the position through close reading and/or critical inquiry
–
investigate individual elements of the argument
– mix
and blend rhetorical genres throughout
–
authentically persuade the audience
–
effectively organize ideas and paragraphs
– use
appropriate and consistent language
– avoid
ambiguity and confusion
– follow
the rules of grammar and punctuation
– adhere
to MLA formatting
–
recognize the importance of class readings and discussions
– enter
the conversation creatively
– frame
and blend quotations
Important
Texts
–
selections on film
– course
documents
– OWL
(100 pts)
Rhetorical Analysis
(Cultural Critique)
Schedule/Due
dates: see
detailed schedule on following page
Rhetoric
(from the Greek rhetor, meaning “speaker in the
assembly”)
The
art of using language for persuasion.
Analysis (from the Greek analysis, meaning “taking apart,
decomposition)
The process of separating the constituents of a whole and
discerning the matter in which they are interrelated
Critique (from the French, based on Greek
kritike tekhne meaning “critical art”)
Context
A cultural
critique calls
on a writer to address issues of substantiation, evaluation, and/or policy. One trait
most cultural critiques have in common is that they are, at their core, arguments. Many times these
critiques—though not all—take the form of a proposal (1. Here is a problem. 2. Here are ideas concerning that
problem. 3.
Here is a solution to that problem). A cultural critique analyzes and comments on a specific
feature of modern culture. The focus of this rhetorical analysis should be on a
concrete, recognizable phenomenon or circumstance or object, not on some vast
historical or political trend. Cultural critiques require an appropriate
balance in their investigation, i.e. the rhetoric must be both subjective and
objective. There are numerous ways to construct a cultural critique, but your
most relevant models are many of the class reading and handouts.
This
assignment should provide you the opportunity to strengthen your investigation, analysis, critical thinking, and rhetoric skills. You will write a 5+ page
analytical essay.
Primary
Writing Task
The goal
of this rhetorical analysis essay is to arrive at an interpretation that is based on a single claim
or small constellation of claims. This means you must have an argument, and it’s important to fashion
your argument around a succinct premise/thesis, usually a sentence or two. A
premise/thesis must be of appropriate scope, debatable, and not obvious. You
support your premise and overarching argument by investigating details surrounding the topic of
your rhetorical appeal. Investigate something that interests you and try to
figure out why it does—and why it is important to your argument about the
topic.
Hopefully, your interest will lead to questions that will help you develop your
own definitive interpretation of what the topic is, what the relevant arguments
are, and how you can best use rhetoric/persuasion. Your interpretation must
include discussion of parts, elements, or characteristics of your topic (your
viewpoint is subjective and objective). It is then your task to combine what you’ve discovered into an
essay. You are entering into a conversation and adding your interpretation
to build upon
an existing conversation.
Requirements/Guidelines
For Writing
Your 5+
page essay should include:
•
A premise/thesis (What is a meaning of your persuasive appeal?)
•
A set of claims that lead to and support your thesis (Why is this a meaning for
your topic?)
•
Evidence that supports your claims (How is this meaning exposed?)
Topic:
You will propose
a topic for cultural critique
Purpose:
To analyze and critique a specific aspect of culture and
to persuade
your audience about why your topic, investigation, and interpretation are
important to the conversation
Audience:
specific
place/title of publication
Format:
Follow proper
MLA guidelines. You must have a title. Your essay length is 5+ pages.
Criteria
For Evaluation
The best
essays will:
– have a
PURPOSE and address an AUDIENCE
– have a
clear and consistent argument
– have a
persuasive position supported by a premise/thesis
– offer
sufficient support of the position
–
investigate the position through close reading and/or critical inquiry
–
investigate individual elements of the argument
– mix
and blend rhetorical genres throughout
–
authentically persuade the audience
–
effectively organize ideas and paragraphs
– use
appropriate and consistent language
– avoid
ambiguity and confusion
– follow
the rules of grammar and punctuation
– adhere
to MLA formatting
–
recognize the importance of class readings and discussions
– enter
the conversation creatively
– frame
and blend quotations
Important
Texts
– class
readings
– course
documents
– MLA
style guide
Detailed
Schedule/Due dates:
TR 11/13 topic
ID and explanation (in-class writing activity)
T 11/18 criteria
of evaluation (in-class writing activity)
TR 11/20 in-class
writing/drafting
T 11/25 ESSAY
draft
T 12/9 ESSAY
Final draft due by NOON (12 p.m.)
(125 pts)