Professional writing differs from other types of writing in various contexts. Professional writing is geared to the workplace; it functions as a call to action, as a set of instructions, to persuade, to inform, and even to discuss goals. The form of writing allows different sectors of the workplace to actively communicate, regardless of their differing line of work.
Rhetoric is crucial in professional writing. The way you speak to the general public is going to vary greatly from the way you speak to a well-informed audience, your boss, or even your subordinate. Audience, as Bowden and Scott (2003) argue on page 27, play a large role in rhetorical stance. A speech or paper for a client is going to use more persuasive language than say that to a coworker. When writing professionally, the audience is the most crucial. Your audience is the basis of why you are writing, and therefore needs to determine how you speak and write. The writer needs to consider how much the audience knows, what level of language they understand, what they hope to get from the information, how they value the situation, and why the writer is expressing the ideas. The audience’s needs and values must be considered and reflected in the professional writing realm in order for the piece to be purposeful.
Appeals within the rhetorical triangle also play an important role. Ethos; the appeal to ethics, logos; the appeal to logic, and pathos; the appeal to emotions, all develop the tone of a written piece. Ethos establishes the writer’s trustworthiness (13). As described by Aristotle in the piece ethos is, “like persona, the character a writer projects through text,” (13). How the writer conveys themselves to the audience will influence how likely the audience is to listen to what they have to say, how much they will believe it, and even how they are going to respond to it. Furthermore, the appeal to reason and logic allows writers to validate premises. As the text states on page 15, “The key to an effective argument is persuasive, well-supported reasons.” Logos gives the audience a reason to listen; it supports the writer’s claims. Finally, pathos connects the audience to the writer, “emotional appeals can be used to establish a bond with an audience, create goodwill toward and audience (a connection to ethos), or ensure the safety of an audience,” (14). Despite the professional realm of writing, emotions still carry some weight. Emotional appeal requires a fine line; too much or too little use will likely influence the audience to underwrite its trust in the writer.
As a reflection, water scarcity is not a well-known public issue in my opinion. Water scarcity and water stress within the United States is a real problem that we don’t see often in the media. Generally speaking, the first solution to the issue is investment; specifically in infrastructure. That being said, the information on water scarcity and water stress cannot be proposed like an ASPCA commercial, but rather how the cost of investment now will decrease the cost of maintenance. The audience requires consideration of how you are going to present the issue. Their values, their reasons, and how they perceive you will influence their choice in investment. Rhetoric assists in the realm of professional writing for these very reasons. Generally speaking, your word choice needs to stem from the audience’s experience with your topic. It needs to reflect how they are going to feel; build the connection the article touches on. It needs to consider how they are going to respond to you; give them reason to trust you. It finally needs to give them reason to respond and act; give them validation and reason to act, if a claim is made there needs to be information behind it.