Week 8: Joel Batz

A) The excerpt “Backpacks V. Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis” helped me realize how we all analysis something or someone without even knowing. I learned that over the years, as I interacted with people I have built a mental database that I draw on to make conclusions without even realizing it most of the time. I also learned that the better i get and know how to analyze situations and draw informed conclusions, the better I become at judging people, situations, and the media. Another thing that I learned is that the exigence, and audience are ways one can understand the context. firstly what I learned from this is the word exigence which means understating the purpose of the rhetoric. With that being said understanding the purpose of the rhetoric and the audience is essential to understanding the context of any speech, letter, etc.

B) “If we refuse to stop and think about how and why it persuades us, we can become mindless consumers who buy into arguments about what makes us value ourselves and what makes us happy.” This quotation stood out to me the most. The reason why is because nowadays we spend countless hours on screen, either on our cell phone, or on a computer for class or work, and we see countless amount of ads. Being the target of multiple ads it is important think about why and how this political ad, or commercial persuades us in order not to fall into every trap portrayed by the media and have our own voice and opinion.

C) One way the essay of “Backpacks V. Briefcases: Steps Toward Rhetorical Analysis” will affect my rhetorical analysis is by making sure I understand the purpose of the rhetoric as stated before and the audience. This is one of the many strategies I grasped from this essay and believe is the most essential because understanding the context will make it easier to analyze any text.