Methods of Rhetorical Analysis
AP English Language and Composition
SOAPSTONE: A method for analyzing discourse
(speeches, essays, editorials, other writings)
Please number and label each response. Each section should be two-three sentences
minimum. Provide specific textual support and analysis for each response.
1. S – Speaker: Discuss the authority and credibility of the speaker / writer. How does the
speaker establish his or her ethos in the speech / passage? Explain specific ways that
the speaker / writer helps to define him or herself as a trustworthy and/or qualified
messenger.
2. O – Occasion: Analyze the reason(s) the writer / speaker is choosing to approach the
topic at this particular moment in time. Is he / she writing / speaking in reaction to a
specific event or person? Discuss how the occasion is revealed in the speech /passage.
3. A – Audience: Explain to whom this piece is directed. How do you know who the
audience is? How is the audience defined? Discuss how the speaker / writer
demonstrates understanding of the audience and how he or she uses that understanding
to accomplish his or her goals.
4. P – Purpose: Analyze the purpose / argument / claim of the speaker / writer. Explore
the purpose beyond its basic informative nature. You must identify at least one specific
action expected of the audience. Discuss how the purpose is revealed in the passage.
5. S – Subject: Explain the general topic, content, and ideas contained in the text. Does the
speaker / writer explicitly state the subject or is it implied?
6. Tone: Analyze the attitude of the speaker / writer. Tone extends meaning beyond the
literal. Find tone in the author’s diction, syntax, structure, and imagery. Give specifics
of the tone of the author and discuss how the tone affects the effectiveness of the
passage. Use your list of tone words to pinpoint the specific tone(s) of the piece.
SPATER: A method for analyzing visual media
(cartoons, photographs, drawings, advertisements, video, other visuals)
Please number and label each response. Each section should be two-three sentences
minimum. Provide specific textual support and analysis for each response.
1. S – Subject: Analyze the subject of the image. Explore the possibility of a larger, implied
subject beyond just the immediate, obvious subject itself. Discuss the context / occasion
of the image.
2. P – Purpose: Define the implied and /or explicit purpose of this image. Remember that
purpose must go beyond informing and must be connected to a specific action. Examine
any political implications of the image. Could the image be considered propaganda?
Analyze how the image furthers an agenda.
3. A – Audience: Identify the forum (magazine, newspaper, website) for which the image
was created. Analyze how the original placement of the image is connected to audience.
Determine whether the audience has changed and / or expanded over time. Describe
the characteristics of the primary and secondary audience.
4. T – Tone: Analyze the tone that the creator (photographer / artist / cartoonist) of the
image has toward his / her subject. Explain how the tone is communicated to the
audience.
5. E – Effect: Analyze the intended effect the image has on the audience. Explore the
possible unintended effects of the image.
6. R - Rhetorical Devices / Strategies: Analyze the rhetorical devices (strategies) and
appeals (ethos, logos, pathos) implied or made explicit in the image. Explain how those
appeals function.
SOAPSTONE and SPATER Grading Rubric:
Superior
(8 - 10)
30 points
Acceptable
Inadequate
(6- 7)
(0 - 5)
1. _____________/10
Depth of Analysis
2. _____________/10
Understanding of Rhetorical Functions
3. ____________/ 10
Appropriateness of Textual Support