Rhetorical Analysis Guidelines
Specs:
3 full pages minimum
MLA format: Times New Roman, 12pt, double–spaced
Pick one of the essays from Perspectives on Contemporary Issues related to an academic/career
interest (listed on the next page) to analyze and evaluate:
In your analysis, you should address (not necessarily in this order):
Audience: Whom is the writer trying to reach? What evidence can you provide for this interpretation?
The Author’s Thesis: Identify it. It may be explicit (written in the essay) or implicit (you’ll have to
infer it from the reading).
The Author’s Reasons: What secondary claims does the writer offer to support his or her thesis?
These tend to be what comes after “because.” For example, “The states should not be in the
lottery business because lotteries exploit the poor.”
The Author’s Methods: Analyze and evaluate the strategies the author uses to make his or her case (to
prove the reasons and support the thesis). Some of these might include appeals to logos, pathos,
