Posted: December 3rd, 2015

You will choose a rhetorical artifact and fully apply one of the methods to it

RHETORICAL CRITIQUE – 100 POINTS
In this assignment you will take on the role of rhetorical critic. The purpose of this critique is for you to demonstrate mastery of one of the methods of criticism we have discussed. You will choose a rhetorical artifact and fully apply one of the methods to it. You are going to create an argument that uses a particular method to interpret an artifact in support of a critical claim.
MINIMUM CRITERIA – FAILURE TO MEET THESE MAY RESULT IN AN AUTOMATIC “D” (60/100)
1. When discussing the method you must primarily reference the relevant assigned course texts. In other words, you may not rely on course texts from other classes.
2. You may NOT use or cite my lecture slides except for material on a method that is not covered by the course readings.
3. Your artifact must be appropriate for your assigned method. For example, a “hard news” story would be inappropriate for a neo-Aristotelian critique. If in doubt, ask.
AUDIENCE ASSUMPTIONS
You should write for an audience that is generally knowledgeable about communication criticism, but not conversant in your given method.
RESEARCH REQUIREMENTS
You are not required to conduct additional research on your method. However, in order to adequately do your analysis you will likely need to do outside research.
Any claims you make should be backed up by research using sources that are both reliable and appropriate for the claim being made. This standard may fluctuate depending on your method and claim. For example, if you are doing accurate interpretation you would not want to use a highly partisan political site to verify claims made by a politician in a speech. However, stories from this same site can be suitable as evidence in a narrative analysis. If in doubt, please ask.
PAPER STRUCTURE
CRITICAL CLAIM
At the top of your paper provide your critical claim. Make this a precise statement about what you will prove in your paper. This should be no more than two sentences.
INTRODUCTION (APPROX. 200-300 WORDS)
This section opens the essay and orients the reader to the rest of the argument.
1. Begin with an opening “hook” that draws in the reader
2. Provide a brief statement telling the reader what your artifact is and what method you will use
3. Articulate a clear and precise critical claim (thesis statement) that orients your argument (restated from previous section, may copy and paste)
4. Provide a brief description of the order of the paper (signposting).
ARTIFACT INTRODUCTION AND CONTEXTUALIZATION (300-600 WORDS)
In this section you will introduce your artifact.
1. Give a description of the artifact.
2. Contextualize the artifact within its social, cultural, and/or economic milieu. For example, box office and/or critical reception for films or the historical circumstances surrounding a speech. You will need outside sources here that verify any claims you make about the artifact.
METHOD EXPLICATION (900-1200 WORDS)
This section describes the method you will use to analyze your artifact. Your goal here is to demonstrate to me that you comprehend the key elements of the methods and can accurately identify, define and explain various concepts associated with the method.
1. Introduce the method by explaining its purpose.
For example: Neo-Aristotelian criticism is concerned with…
1. Identify and explain at least two presuppositions of the method that relate to your critique.
For example: Neo-Aristotelian critics assume
2. Identify, define, and explicate those concepts from this method you will use in your critique.
For example: In this critique I will examine (name of artifact) by focusing on (concepts). Then explain the concepts.
NOTE: I expect that this section discusses the concepts that you will use in your analysis.
INTERPRETATION (1200-1500 WORDS)
In this section you will conduct your analysis of the artifact. Your goals here are is to correctly deploy the concepts you describe in your methods section to:
1. “Fix the meaning” of the artifact in a way that can deepen the audience’s understanding and appreciation of that artifact.
2. Clearly support and illuminate your critical claim.
3. Provide internal and/or external evidence that supports any claims you make. You may need to use outside research that supports your claims.
You should not forget that you are using a specific method of criticism – therefore you MUST use the vocabulary and concepts of that method, and use them correctly. However, this is more than “jargon dropping” – you need to explain and illustrate to your audience how these concepts work in your critique.
CONCLUSION (300-600 WORDS)
In this section you need comment on and explain the argument you made in the analysis. This is not simply a summary of what you wrote in the previous pages. You need to:
1. Tie your proofs from the previous section together into a coherent defense of your critical claim (thesis).
2. Explain the significance of your findings. This is your “so what” moment. It is also the place for you to most clearly state your insights into the artifact you just critiqued.

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