Summary
Even when we think that we are not analyzing something, we most certainly are. Analyzing a text is part of our daily lives. Analysis requires not only to understand what the message is but how it is being conveyed and what effects does it have. In order to figure out the “how,” there are certain lenses, ways of looking, that might be helpful such as the Aristotelian lenses that examine the appeals to ethos, pathos, and logos. It is also essential to understand the context of the text, i.e. the audience it is being written for, the purpose, the genre and the medium it was published through. Other lenses that might be helpful for analysis would be to look at the role of “social and cultural markers of identity (race, gender, and class).” To end it all off, it is very important to answer the “so what” of your analysis. In other words, what did your examination tell you about the text as a whole.
Response
The best part about the essay was in the introduction: “life will be much more interesting to you if you learn to step back and think critically about how the rhetoric of texts of all kinds makes demands on you.” It just amazed me and made me realize how differently I would see the world if only I use a critical eye and a different piece of lens. There are so many factors to consider when looking at a text that I was completely unaware of. But, at least now, after knowing them I would try to utilize them and find the real intent behind each artifact.
Question
How many lenses are enough to use in a formal paper? Is there a specific order one should use to utilize lenses? Does every lens has the same importance or does it depends on the type of text one is analyzing?
I think this is a very important question. While reading the section about lenses I too had a similar question. It would be nice to know if there is some list of priorities for the lenses, so when utilizing them, you know which is the most important and which lense you should go into the most depth with.