Rhetorical Analysis Essay
Length: approx. 1000 words, excluding lengthy quotations
The rhetorical analysis essay is meant to build your critical thinking skills by having you closely read and interpret the rhetorical situation of a text. Using concepts from class, you will conduct a rhetorical analysis in which you will assess the effectiveness of the rhetorical strategies an author uses to make an argument.
For this assignment, you will select one chapter of Thomas King’s The Truth About Stories: A Native Narrative, and then analyze how the way the chapter is written contributes to King’s theme in the chapter, and to his argument in the text as a whole. Focusing on the rhetorical strategies King uses will require you to read and think carefully about the chapter you select, what it means, how this meaning is conveyed, whether this meaning is convincingly conveyed, etc. You will be required to use very precise evidence in support of your claims and conclusions.
Reminder: You are required to make an argument about King’s text; a description or summary of the chapter will not suffice.
How to proceed:
- Choose ONE chapter of Thomas King’s The Truth About Stories.
- Ensure you understand both the specific topic/theme of the chapter you have selected and also the ways in which the theme/topic fits into the broader argument King makes in the work as a whole.
2.1. In other words, what, precisely, is King dealing with or arguing in this chapter?
2.2. Think about how the topic of your chapter relates to the other topics King treats in his book.
- Write a short essay in which you discuss two or three ways King goes about dealing with his topic. Remember that your essay should not simply provide an overview of the chapter or the text, but that your focus should be on two or three strategies King uses to present the subject matter, as well as on the effectiveness or inadequacies of these strategies. You should support your ideas with specific evidence – i.e. quote the exact words from the text and interpret them. Put your thesis statement in bold font.
Be specific in your analysis of your chapter. Point to specific rhetorical features King deploys in the chapter, and suggest how and to what effect these features are being used. Consider the ways in which King’s treatment of his specific topic compares to, or differs from, his treatment of the topic in a different chapter. How does King use these rhetorical strategies alongside strategies from other chapters to build his argument in The Truth About Stories as a whole?
If you are unsure about where to start, here are a few things (there are many, many more) to think about in the context of your chapter:
- Why/how does King tell stories (Indigenous, or otherwise) in this chapter?
- Why does King offer biographical anecdotes (i.e. incidents from his own life)?
- Why does King rely so heavily on historical information, and what is the relationship of this “history” to the “stories” he tells?
- How is the chapter organized? In what way is it structured? Is it simply a linear narrative, or are there interruptions or digressions? What purposes do these interruptions have? How does this structure help/hinder King’s discussion of his topic in the chapter or his argument in the work as a whole?
- What is the tone of the chapter? Is it funny? Serious? Melancholic? Does the tone remain the same throughout the chapter, or does it shift? How does King manipulate his tone to explore his topic, and what effects do these manipulations have?
- Does King use any striking metaphors to make his point? Are there words or phrases that reappear throughout the chapter/text? What is the effect of repetition in this chapter/text?
**You do not need to answer any/all of these questions in your essay itself – they are just to help you get thinking about the rhetorical strategies King uses in the chapter/text**