In the Rhetorical Analysis assignment criteria, there are a few things to really consider closely when it comes to argument:
- You will use analysis rather than summary (unless you would like to provide a brief summary to familiarize your audience with the text).
- You will use evidence from the text to connect to claims you are making about the text.
- You will have a thesis in the sense of a main argument you are making about the text.
The big scary word here, I would bet money on, for you is what is in #3: The Thesis.
(The below is mostly adapted from Daniel Hengel’s chapter in our textbook, so go there for more information!)
Thesis: It Sounds Scarier Than It Is
A thesis is simply a statement that holds two pieces of information: the topic and the angle you have on that topic. You need to tell us what you are writing about and the perspective or main idea(s) you have in relation to that topic.
Let me say this very clearly: you should almost NEVER have a thesis before you start writing. A *hypothesis* makes sense to have before you start writing (though even then, probably not, because you are taking all sorts of notes and all kinds of preliminary writing before you get to a place where you have an experiment idea).
Before you even get to a thesis, you should have done something resembling the steps we did on the previous page. That way, you have been fully immersed in the text and you can start to think of questions to ask:
- What do you see?
- What do you make of it?
- Why does it matter?
For what you see, mention some words, characters, images, themes, etc. that grab your attention and interesting you.
For what you make of it, explore what you think about it. Try to move beyond value judgments like “I liked this” or “this is boring.” Really focus on how rather than only what. So, “I liked this because…” is a much better framing. Though, even better would be something like “This theme comes up a lot because…”
For why it matters, think about how your analysis reveals something somewhat new, interesting, important, etc. Questions you should ask: is this too simple? Would anyone already know this in a way that my analysis does not add anything more nuanced to that common knowledge?
For instance, if you analyzed Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and your thesis ends up being something like “This speech advocates for racial equality,” then this is a thesis that does not have a good answer to “why it matters.” Most would already know this! Now, perhaps you offer up an interesting or unique analysis that says something more specific about how racial equality is presented in the speech as a theme, but, generally, a thesis like that will not make for an insightful essay.
These questions can help you on the path toward eventually having a thesis, which, again is just presenting a topic with your take on that topic (which is then supported by your analysis of evidence throughout the paper).
Things to Keep In Mind on a Thesis
You should also be careful not to do something too broad. This can be tied to issues of scale that we talked about on the last page. Writing a thesis like “hip-hop is protest music” is not specific enough and is an easy thesis to argue against because it is not hard to find many examples of hip-hop that is not protest music. Be more specific or qualify claims to help you here.
A thesis can also be too speculative. Lots of things can’t be proven but can still be written about. However, some things are so hard to prove that writing about them really offers nothing new. A thesis about aliens or the existence of God, for instance, might be too speculative to write about.
A thesis can take many forms. It can be in the first paragraph. It can be in the second paragraph. It can be in the third paragraph. It can be at the beginning or end of a paragraph. It can be one sentence. It can be three sentences. Generally speaking: make sure it is closer to the beginning than the end of the paper, make sure it is small enough that it is an accessible argument someone can read (I would say 1-3 sentences is a good range). Make sure it covers what you are writing about and a claim you are making about that topic (i.e., your angle on it).
Think back to the rhetorical analysis you read for class: What do you think Yablonovskiy saw? What do you think Yablonovskiy made of it? Why did you think Yablonovskiy thought it matterered? What do you think Yablonovskiy’s thesis is? Is it specific enough? Does it offer a topic that is not too speculative? Where is it? How long is it? Use the essay as a model to think about your own thesis.
Task
Comment below by giving some preliminary answers to the three micro-questions of what you see, what you make of it, and why it matters for YOUR rhetorical analysis project.
Once you comment below, click the button below this to continue with the module.
1) For my rhetorical analysis, I see two different albums with many different themes in each song.
2) These two albums I am using for the rhetorical analysis reflects on certain points in my life where I have listened to these albums because of the lyrics and the state of mind I had in those respective times.
3) I think it matters because using these two albums from separate points in my life, it shows my growth as a person from then to now to tell a personal story in the rhetorical analysis through these albums and how I transformed into since then.
1. What do you see?
I see Joe Rogan and David Goggins are discussing how you need to suffer in order to be better, physically and mentally.
2. What do you make of it?
I try to relate what they are saying to my personal life. By forming the relationship, it’s more impactful and is applicable to my life.
3. Why does it matter?
Listening to the perspectives of other people have helped me learned a great deal from their mistakes. This enables me to not make the same mistakes during my life.
1. What do you see?
Two coming of age stories. Stories about young people struggling with love and perception.
2. What do you make of it?
I think both books are telling stories of how hard it is to learn that we are all bad at perceiving one another. That we are all “mirrors and windows” as is said in Paper Towns. Both stories are about love and how we can love someone who isn’t real.
3. Why does this matter?
I read both these books at very different times in my life, almost ten years apart. I want to explore how they both deal with personal and interpersonal identity and how I’ve changed with these books.
1. Two things that make up who I am and what my personality is like.
2. I like listening to music and video games because it just relieves all my stress and it relaxes me.
3. I think this matters because sometimes in life we take things too seriously sometimes we just have to relax and listening to music and gaming does just that for me.
1)What do you see? Two characters who are trying their best to accomplish their goals.
2)What do you make of it? I try relate to them by connecting their goals and obstacles endured with my own.
3)Why does it matter? Comparing their lives and hardships to myself and I help encourage me to accomplish my goal just as they did.
1. What do you see? I see hobbies of mine that make up who I am-being chess and dunking.
2. What do you make of it? I will use these two hobbies to connect life lessons that I have learned from each one.
3. Why does it matter? It matters to me because I don’t know where I would be without the lessons I have learned from my hobbies. I learned from chess that patience is a virtue and I learned from dunking that anything is achievable if you truly set you mind to it.
What do you see?
I see an episode of my favorite character not giving up.
What do you make of it?
Even tho all odds are against him he still makes it through.
Why does it matter?
I saw this when I was younger it really gave me a lot of motivation to workout and taught me to never give up on anything.