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RHETORICAL CONTEXT It is important to consider the rhetorical context for any essay that you read or write. What is this? "Rhetorical" is an adjective that means "by the act of communication" or "intending to transmit meaning." In a composition class, rhetoric is the art of persuasive or engaging writing. "Context" is the situation that surrounds any event. Anything beyond the specific words of a literary work that may be relevant to understanding the meaning. Contexts may be economic, social, cultural, historical, literary, biographical, etc. The political context of the rule of Elizabeth and James, the religious context of Calvinism, the social context of homosexual relations and cross-dressing, and the literary context of Renaissance literature, for example, all have significant implications for understanding the words of Shakespeare. The rhetorical context, then, is the situation that surrounds your act of writing. What are you writing? Why? For what purpose? One important reason to understand the context is that it helps you focus on exactly what, why, and for whom you are writing, thus keeping your thinking clear and organized. If you cannot explain the rhetorical context of your essay, chances are that you may have to reassess just what it is you are trying to accomplish with your writing. Parts of the Rhetorical ContextSubjectPut simply, the subject of the essay/piece is your topic. It covers the content of what the essay is about. Obviously, you want to make sure that you are clear about your subject when you sit down to write. PurposeWhat is the essay/piece trying to accomplish? Possible examples may be to: narrate an episode from the past; relate an event and explain its importance; explain a concept or idea; examine and investigate a problem; or to argue a position. The purpose will be much more specific than these examples, however, because it will relate to a specific topic (the subject). Depending on the piece, you may identify several purposes (i.e., to explain why something is a problem, and to argue for a certain solution).AudienceThe audience of your work is the group of people you are writing for. The style, tone, organization, diction, and content of your writing will be dependent on who exactly it is you want to be affected by your ideas. For example, an essay about marijuana legalization might be very different if the audience was the Iowa legislature, the readers of the Des Moines Register, Polk County high school students, parent/guardians, or drug dealers. Occasion (or Situation)The occasion for writing is the external motivation you have for sitting down to write. For a composition class, some obvious external motivators may be the desire to get a good grade, or because the course requires you to write the essay. But for the readings, essays, photo journalism, etc. that we examine for this course, the situational motivation for the author is more complex. Why write about ___________ issue now? What facets of the issue make it a contemporary problem? With a partner, explain the context of each piece by identifying the subject, purpose, audience, and situation surrounding it. You will have to do a little research! Who is the author/speaker? What background history or experience makes them qualified to speak about the issues in their piece? 1. Nydia Velazquez “In Search of Justice”S:P:A:O/S:2. Cesar Chavez “Wrath of Grapes” Boycott SpeechS:P:A:O/S:3. Choose one EPA 20th Anniversary Environmental Justice Video SeriesS:P:A:O/S:Then, identify at least three examples of visual rhetorical strategies (i.e. ) in your chosen EPA video. Explain how they impact the audience, and why the author may have chosen to use them. 1.2.3. How did the impact of these pieces change after you learned more about the context? Were the rhetorical strategies more or less effective with this knowledge? ................
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