Rhetorical Speech Assignments
4th Marking Period Asst.
Part 1. Choose a speech from the list below & sign up in class:
At least 3 students must respond to each speech to alleviate monotony when we get to the speech writing.
All speeches are linked on Scoodle.
1. Sports: Marion Jones-Thompson’s “Apology Address For False Statements & Illegal Steroid Use”
2. Women’s Issues: Margaret Sanger’s “The Morality of Birth Control”
3. Human Rights: Eleanor Roosevelt’s “The Struggle for Human Rights”
4. Politics: George W. Bush’s “9/11 Address to the Nation”
5. Media: Newton N. Minow’s “Television & Public Interest”
6. Obama: Barack Obama’s “Address on Libya: The Violence Must Stop”
7. War: Ricardo S. Sanchez’ “Military Reporters and Editors Forum Luncheon Address”
2. Research the speaker using the Library Website to assure credible information is acquired.
Part I: Provide the following in a typed MLA document using the words that are bolded below as headers (due
Thursday April 1):
10 Homework Points
SEE MY EXAMPLE BELOW FOR FORMATTING HELP
1 ______ a description of the circumstances that prompted the issue being discussed in the speech
2 ______ the point of view of the speaker and his/her ethos (what gives this person the right to comment on the
issue(s) at hand)
2 ______ a description of the audience of the original speech (be specific with who and where? and what the majority of
the audience's beliefs may have been at the time)
1 ______ the speaker’s purpose
2 ______ the context of the issue (Where is the speech being held? When? etc.)
The third part of this assignment will be for you to write a speech in response. In thinking about this, answer the following questions:
1 ______ your purpose for responding (to inform your peers about the topic or to persuade your peers in
rebuttal to the speech)
1 ______ point of view response: how will you respond to this issue (i.e. as an audience member, as a witness, as an
American citizen, as a student, etc.)
Your Name
Example Layout
Ms. Buccino/Blanchard
Adv. Eng. 11
April 1, 2011
George Bush Speech
Description of the circumstances: For this speech, blah blah blah
Point of View: (follow suit please)
Part II [attach to Part I]: Create an Annotated Bibliography for your sources (at minimum
of two and a maximum of 3)
You will also be completing an ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY [Note: this is easiest done on NoodleBib
under the annotation section (where you place the bibliographic information)]--but you may do this in a Word
document too (see link under Annotated bibliography). Be sure to title this document:
Annotated Bibliography: Topic (i.e. Marion Jones)
An annotated bibliography is 100 words which includes a summary and/or evaluation of each of the sources.
Your project should include all three of the following in your 100 words in one perfectly formatted
document. Do NOT use personal pronouns; write with a formal tone.
¨ Summary: Some annotations merely summarize the source. What are the main arguments? What is the
point of this book or article? What topics are covered? If someone asked what this article/book is about,
what would you say?
¨ Assessment: After summarizing a source, it may be helpful to evaluate it. Is it a useful source? How does it
compare with other sources in your bibliography? Is the information reliable? Is this source biased or
objective? What is the goal of this source?
¨ Reflection: Once you've summarized and assessed a source, you need to ask how it fits into your research.
Was this source helpful to you? How does it help you shape your argument? How can you use this source
in your research project? Has it changed how you think about your topic?
Annotated Bibliography Rubric ______ / 10 Minor Assignment Points
3 ______ 2 – 3 sources in Works Cited format (but not a Works Cited)
*Correct Citations
5 ______ 2 – 3 annotations
*100 words (summary, reflection, and evaluation included)
*Formal tone
*Grammar & Mechanics are nearly flawless
2 _____ MLA Format (spacing, proper indents, header, heading, proper title, alphabetical order)
stop - don't read below!!
What is a Rhetorical Analysis?
A rhetorical analysis assignment generally asks you to do two things:
1) figure out what each writer is trying to accomplish, and
2) identify what writing tactics he or she is utilizing to accomplish it.
The assignment is based on the premise that all writing is aimed at a specific audience for a specific
purpose. Your task with this assignment is to determine the exact goal of each piece of writing and to
explore, on paper, the strategies and devices used by the writer to achieve this goal
Decide What Each Article Is Aiming to Achieve
Audience analysis: Sometimes, this assignment is called “Audience Analysis,” because reading an article
with its audience in mind is central to evaluating rhetoric. Make sure to understand where and when the
speech was given to understand who the audience was. Determining the overall aim of the speech
should help you consider what the speech itself may be intended to accomplish.
Read with Rhetorical Questions in Mind: As you read each article, ask yourself what the writer is
doing and how the writer’s choices affect you as a reader. Often you can figure out the rhetorical aims
of an article simply by noticing their emotional impact on you. If you are angry or upset by a piece of
writing, the writer has achieved something and has done so using certain specific devices.
Decide What Rhetorical Tactics Each Article Is Utilizing
Read the speech closely, read it more than once, and annotate it (make notes in the margins) with the
aim of highlighting examples of the authors’ rhetorical strategies.
Organize your observations
Sometimes it’s difficult to identify and organize the devices you wish to explore in the articles you’ve
chosen. It can be hard to select the rhetorical strategies in the articles on which you wish to focus, and
even harder to determine how to contrast the articles’ strategies. Don’t attempt to be completely
comprehensive in your analysis; instead, try to figure out what rhetorical devices are being used most
in each article. (One article may rely heavily on emotional appeals via case studies, while the other may
utilize attention-grabbing slang to communicate ideas to the reader.) One way to clarify your thinking
and make your paper easier to write is to put together a traditional outline. If you’re a more visual
learner, it may be helpful to make a chart. This can help you break down the differences between the
articles. List the articles vertically along the left side of the chart, list the types of rhetorical strategies
employed horizontally along the top of the chart, and fill in the blanks with observations in note form.
Here’s an example of this sort of chart:
PART 3: Rhetorical Analysis Proposal
due Friday, April 1 in HARD COPY
Prepare a Proposal for your Rhetorical Analysis
Requirements:
In a Word Document, in bullet format with A, B, C etc., discuss the following:
A. Provide a copy of your speech annotated
B. Provide your thesis/working thesis
C. Define the Audience for your analysis (include your classmates & me)
D. Indicate which rhetorical components seem, at the outset of the study, especially compelling and
worthy of detailed study (at least 4). Also note where you see potential connections between elements.
E. Conclude by briefly discussing the key challenges you anticipate in preparing your analysis.
Rhetorical Analysis Writing:
Drafting Your Paper
Introduction:
Your introduction (which you might want to draft after you write your paper) should
• include a description of the topic being addressed in the articles you’re analyzing,
• list the titles, authors, and source publications of both articles,
• give an overview of the apparent aims of the articles, and
• tell your reader what to expect in your paper by way of an essay map.
Body Paragraphs:
As far as the body goes, you may wish to do one of the following:
1) Form subtopic sections out of the rhetorical strategies you’ve identified. If you go with this approach,
in each of these sections you can contrast the ways in which the articles make use of the devices. For
instance, a section on language might be made up of a paragraph or two revealing how, say, one article
makes heavy use of the slang and diction of young adults, while the other uses more formal language
and academic jargon.
2) Organize the body of your paper in two halves, providing a full analysis of one article in the first half
and the other article in the second. If you structure it this way, make sure that each of the sections
makes reference to the other, to show contrast.
Other things to keep in mind: As with any other paper, of course, be sure to use examples to illustrate
your points, and continuously link the ideas in your body paragraphs to your thesis by reminding your
reader how the rhetorical strategies you’re describing serve the articles in which they’re employed.
Remember that you don’t know what the writer’s aims are; you are only in a position to speculate, based
on the product in front of you (and the apparent perspective of the publication in which it appears). Make
sure to use language that communicates that understanding, such as “it seems that” or “the article
appears intent on convincing us that” or “one can only imagine that . . ."
Conclusion:
A note on conclusions: All papers need conclusions, yet it can be difficult to know how to write a
conclusion. Often, conclusions are viewed as a place to restate the introduction. That approach is rather
limited, though, since it allows for no real development in the paper, no growth of ideas. Try to look at a
conclusion as the last word you’ll have on a subject. In ending this paper, think about what you can say
to make the reader feel that the subject and your discussion of it matter. Remind your reader about the
importance of the issue, perhaps, or about the persuasive power of rhetorical devices in the media. Talk
about how the parts of a piece of writing assemble to form the whole, and the whole can change the
mind of the reader. However you approach it, remember that your conclusion is your last word on the
subject, the commentary that will, with luck, linger.
Paper Requirements:
- MLA format
- 1.75 - 2.5 pages
- If you cite your article or any research CITE it with proper in-text
citations. You don't need another Works Cited since you turned it in
before.
Assignment #3
Rhetorical Speech Response
Informative or Persuasive Speech
So, lets keep applying what we’ve learned in class. For this assignment, you will write a formal rhetorical
speech and present it to your classmates.
This speech will be 2.5 – 4.5 minutes in length and will be in response to the speech
you worked with in Asst #1 & Asst #2. You must decide whether it's better to inform
your peers about the topic or persuade them of your thesis (Ms. Blanchard and Ms.
Buccino will work with you to be sure your persuasive speech has an acceptable
thesis that you can work with).
When speeches begin, we will first listen to the speech from the Rhetoric Bank. Then, all the people in
the class who dealt with that speech will give their response speech.
Your ability to write an effective speech using rhetorical strategies will be heavily weighted in the
assignment, but delivery will also account for a portion of your grade.
Ideas to think aboutFOCUS ON THE CONTENT! How can you inform or persuade us (your
audience/classmates)?
-Modernizing the content of the speech:
Ex: How is what happened on 9/11 STILL relevant to America today?
EX: How are Human Rights practiced today? Are they still important?
-Informing us of the speaker/his or her background:
Ex: Who is Marion Jones anyway, and what did she do?
Ex: Who is Ricardo Sanchez, what did he do?
-Inform us of the events/content:
Ex: What is occurring in Libya? Why should we care?
-Defend a major point made by a speaker
-Argue/Rebut a major point made by a speaker
-Discuss relevancy to Americans/humans today
-Persuade us on the usefulness or lack there of, in a specific finding or
research found in your speaker's argument
Speech Response Rubric
Written Speech _________________________________
Informative or Persuasive
______(10) Rhetorical Speech Elements & Content
*An accurate and thought-provoking response to the speech (informative or persuasive)
*Audience, Context & Purpose are heavily considered
*Use of ethos, pathos & logos
*Style, Tone, Diction & Word Choice
_____(2.5) MLA Format
Written Reflection
_____(3) Speech Reflection (1.0 pages long)
*Discusses how you attempted to use rhetorical strategies in your speech
*Evaluates how successful you think you were in using rhetoric, issues you may have
had, and what you feel worked the best in your speech
_____(2.5) Grammar/Spelling/Syntax/Tone etc.
Performance of Speech
_____ (3) Performance of Speech
*Attire is appropriate for speech making
*Eye contact is essential
*Pacing and volume is audience-friendly
_____(2) Meets Time Frame
*2.5 - 4.5 minutes