Assignment Details

Description:  As a rule, rhetoric can be defined as speaking or writing in a particular way to achieve a desired effect. To do a rhetorical analysis, you must examine how well an authors rhetorical strategies work to persuade a target audience to embrace a message. For this essay, choose ONE of the five career-related articles below and compose a rhetorical analysis in which you evaluate the quality and authority of the piece and its argument.

Harvey Deutschendorf’s “7 Reasons Why Emotional Intelligence Is One Of The Fastest-Growing Job Skills” Link: https://www.fastcompany.com/3059481/7-reasons-why-emotional-intelligence-is-one-of-the-fastest-growing-job-skills

Benjamin Herold’s “Jobs at All Levels Now Require Digital Literacy. Here’s Proof.” LINK: https://www.fastcompany.com/3059481/7-reasons-why-emotional-intelligence-is-one-of-the-fastest-growing-job-skills

Troy Markowitz’s “Constructing the Bridge between College Majors and the Workforce” LINK : https://www.forbes.com/sites/troymarkowitz/2017/09/26/constructing-the-bridge-between-college-majors-and-the-workforce/#6356b755d823

Alina Tugend’s “What It Takes to Make New College Graduates Employable” (This article may require you to log in with your BC student ID number and the 4-digit month and day of your birth [mmdd].) LINK: https://go.gale.com/ps/i.do?p=AONE&u=lincclin_bwcc&id=GALE|A335368516&v=2.1&it=r&sid=AONE&asid=744311c3

University of Southern California’s “Transferable Skills” LINK: https://careers.usc.edu/students/find-a-job/tips/transferable-skills/

IMPORTANT: As you begin composing your essay, consider who the target audience of the text and what the author’s overall goal are. Then, examine what strategies the author employs to achieve their purpose. Is it an emotional appeal meant to tug at your heartstrings? Is it a “black & white” article filled with facts and statistics? Is the author reinforcing their credibility through techniques like personal testimony, well-known organizations, and important scholars? Use the “Basic Questions for Rhetorical Analysis” to help guide you through the process of deciding whether or not the author has chosen effective and appropriate appeals for their text and audience. Note: Each of your paragraphs must provide evidence to support your belief that the author has successfully or unsuccessfully achieved their goals. DON’T simply summarize the article.

Assessment:  Your grade will derive from your abilities to identify the message and audience of the article, to argue a clear claim/thesis that states whether or not the text successfully communicates its message, to support that thesis with specific evidence and direct quotations culled from the article, and to organize your thoughts in an effective, thoughtful manner to help your reader clearly understand your argument. Consult the Essay Rubric for a detailed list of the criteria that comprise A, B, C, D, and F essays.

Requirements:  You should submit a 750 word essay (not counting the work cited page for the article you are analyzing), typed and double-spaced.  Use Times New Roman font in 12-pt size.  Format your paper according to MLA guidelines.