Writing a Rhetorical Analysis for AP English Language and Composition
The following information is intended to help anyone structure a rhetorical analysis. This was written with targeting the prompt from the AP English Language Exam course but will work with most other types of rhetorical analysis.
In the rhetorical analysis prompt for the AP English Language and Composition, you will be given a work to analyze along with the prompt. First, you will need to read the work in order to get a sense of the author's rhetoric. While reading the work, keep an eye out for rhetorical techniques you notice that you could mention while writing your essay.
Writing a rhetorical analysis entails examining the choices the author of a work makes in terms of rhetoric. When you are writing this kind of essay, keep in mind that your goal is to demonstrate the style of the author, not what they wrote (although this information may serve as evidence in proving your point).
Your essay should be divided into three sections: introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion. In your introduction, you should bring up context regarding the work and end with your thesis, which condenses the main points of your body paragraphs (claims) into one sentence (you should have all your claims planned out before you start writing your body paragraphs). Most importantly, make your thesis arguable. Do not simply state something like,
"In her eulogy to the American people regarding the death of President Reagan, former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher uses ethos and pathos to convey her message."
The fact that Thatcher uses ethos and pathos is obvious, and no objection can be made to this statement. Instead, form your thesis as follows.
"In her eulogy to the American people regarding the death of President Reagan, former British prime minister extols Reagan's efforts in defeating communism and relies on strong language and emotion in order to convince the American people that the two countries are on good terms and to maintain the alliance between the USA and Britain."
This thesis is more debatable than the first, and the claims that follow regarding her in the latter essay would support this thesis. Each body paragraph should contain a claim mentioned in the thesis, as well as plenty of analysis and evidence. The conclusion should tie this all together by restating key points of the essay and adding a twist by introducing a new concept or idea to the reader.
Introduction
Provide an introduction to the style of the author's work. Specifically, you should keep SOAPSTone in mind. SOAPSTone is an acronym that is used to provide context about a work. It stands for
- Subject
- Occasion
- Audience
- Purpose
- Speaker
- Tone
Body Paragraphs
Depending on the number of claims mentioned in the theses, different essays have different numbers of body paragraphs. Each body paragraph should address one claim mentioned in the thesis. It should begin with a topic sentence that introduces the claim to be discussed. Plenty of evidence from the text should be cited to support that claim. That feature about the author's rhetoric should then be linked to its effect on the audience. In other words, analyze the relationship between one of the author's claims and SOAPSTone.
The following bullet points summarize what you should include in your body paragraph.
- Topic sentence (one that clearly relates to the thesis)
- Evidence from the work, such as through quotations
- Analysis of this evidence, as related to SOAPSTone
Conclusion
A good conclusion to a rhetorical analysis involves briefly (in 2-3 lines) restating the thesis and the most important elements of your essay. Then, connect one aspect of the work to something entirely new. Rather than simply focusing on claims you previously mentioned, also try to introduce a new concept. One such example would be acknowledging an overlooked counterargument to the thesis or a more effective approach the author could have taken to more effectively convey his./her message in the given circumstances. However, the conclusion is not the place to mention any new claims that relate to the thesis; these belong in the body paragraphs.
At the following website, you can find sample scored rhetorical analysis essays from actual past AP Exams (and their score and scoring explanations) to view examples of essays that earn full (or close to full) credit, and others that fail to do so.
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