Getting Started: How to Write a Rhetorical Analysis Thesis Statement
No sentence of your essay can be annoying and hard to complete as a thesis statement. This is because a thesis is that sentence that servers as your paper’s backbone, giving you direction and controlling the scope of your argument. Without a strong thesis statement, you will not go far with your written assignment. What complicates the matter is that thesis statements vary from course to course and from discipline to discipline. From rhetorical analysis to research papers, a thesis statement bears a lot of weight. In this guide, you will find tips on how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement.
Coming up in this handout:
- What is a rhetorical analysis thesis statement?
- Developing a rhetorical analysis thesis statement
- Attributes of a good rhetorical analysis thesis statement
Spare a few minutes of your time and go through this guide. You will need this tool throughout your course. What is more, share it with your friends and cause them to love rhetorical analysis homework. Are you ready? Let us hit the road…
Stepwise guide of how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement
Many authors fumble when writing rhetorical analysis because of the inability to organize their thoughts in a logical manner and defend their arguments. To overcome this, you need a functional thesis statement that offers direction to your paper from the interlocution to the conclusion.
Immediately after an interesting and brief introduction, you must state your position in one sentence. This sentence, which comes toward the end of your intro, is the thesis statement. It mainly gives a summary of your argument.
What a thesis Statement does During Rhetorical Analysis
Orients the reader – From the interlocution, the person reading your essay will know your purpose and the importance of the subject matter.
It is a roadmap of your paper – as you develop your paper, a thesis statement ensures that you remain on track. Without a good thesis statement, you are likely to get off the tangent, miss the mark and end up with something different from a rhetorical analysis essay.
Gives answer to the question at hand – As you work out on how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement, remember that your main business is to provide solutions to the question asked of you.
It makes a disputable claim – A thesis statement is not a flat statement but an arguable statement with the potential to a spark a discussion among readers.
Developing a strong thesis statement in rhetorical analysis
You may be wondering if there is a known formula to use when drafting a thesis statement. While many authors dispute its existence, this handout got you sorted. We have a systematic approach to follow and have your thesis in a few minutes.
Let us examine some of these steps:
Read the text or watch the movie – You can only envisage an argument over a document, when you understand what you are analyzing. So, take your time to read and read the text to get the author’s main point plus the rhetorical appeals he employs to change the attitude of the audience towards the topic. For films, sit down and watch the movie, keenly following the plot.
Establish relationship between facts – As you read the text, bring out the facts, which the rhetorician uses to back his case. For instance, look out for contrasts and similarities in the document. Once you have these relationships, try to get their significance.
At this point, you should have a tentative thesis, which you can develop and support with evidence from the text. Always remember that mastering how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement takes various forms. Therefore, feel free to adjust to steps that befit you to complete the task ahead.
Writing a specific and clear thesis statement for your rhetorical analysis
Among other attributes, an excellent thesis statement should be specific and clear. A specific statement points out your main idea, which you intend to support in the rest of the paper. Make it clear so that everyone reading your intro gets a full picture of what you are talking about without developing conflicting mental images of the issue at hand.
This is how you should declare your intentions:
State the rhetorical methods the author uses. The basis of rhetorical analysis is bringing out rhetorical appeals, which a rhetorician uses to pass his message. Pinpoint these strategies in your thesis and wait to flesh them out in the rest of your paper. Do an evaluation of the author’s success or failure in using logos, ethos or pathos to woo the audience.
Adopt a narrow focus of your essay. As you think about how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement, bear in mind that you cannot cover everything in the text within your essay. You must identify those areas that matter most. You may also consider a complex approach to get enough materials to discuss and support your argument.
Endeavor to present an original argument. If you choose to follow a particular path in your essay, stick to the path and delve into the document to get all the details you need to cement your claim. Since rhetorical analysis is about your evaluation of the author’s effectiveness in persuading reader, your analysis should be as unique as possible.
Avoid passing judgment on the text. A good way to state your position on the text is to use words like ‘successful’, unsuccessful, ‘effective’, ineffective, etc. Do not be the judge and say if the author did a bad or good job.
More tips on how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement
To write a good thesis statement for your rhetorical analysis, focus on the tone and the main argument in the text. At the end of it, your paper should clearly bring out the rhetorician’s style, target audience and his effectiveness in applying various techniques to influence the opinion of the audience.
Your thesis statement must therefore resonate with the main purpose of your rhetorical analysis essay. The following hints on how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement should help you understand this better.
STEP 1: Brainstorm about your topic. Take time and think about all the possible angles of the piece you want to analyze. As you do this, note down the author’s tone, appeals, and arguments. As you do this, be sure to deduce the target audience, the author’s goal and the most appealing elements of the text that are worth discussing in your analysis.
STEP 2: Narrow your brainstorm. Condense your brainstorm such that you only have the main ideas, which you intend to explore and defend using proofs in the rest of the paper. Ensure that your argument highlights reasons why the author was successful or unsuccessful in making his case. Was his tone effective?
STEP 3: Craft your thesis. At this point, come up with a strong thesis that gives an overall view of your argument, which you are set to pursue in your rhetorical analysis essay. Take a clear position on the author’s style, tone and application of different appeal strategies.
The secret is here is to compose several thesis statements, with varying tones and styles. By this, you will be able to come up with a strong and excellent thesis statement.
STEP 4: Adjust your thesis. As you gain deeper understanding of how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement, keep in mind that your thesis must be in harmony with your argument. Since your argument may change from what you had before, revisit your thesis statement and make necessary changes. After this, you can comfortably say that you have worked on your thesis successfully.
Examine the following example as you reflect on the above steps:
“In “Why I Won’t Buy an iPad (and Think You Shouldn’t, Either)” the author uses facts about Apple, his expertise and appeals to the needs of consumers to persuade potential buyers of iPad that Apple limits their digital rights by determining the content they can use on the devices.”
This is a thesis statement of a rhetorical analysis by Bethany Jensen, a Professor York. The writer makes it clear about his position on the effectiveness of the author to win his audience.
With this example and various approaches that we have discussed in this handout, you should find no difficulty when developing your thesis. Make these basic principles of how to write a rhetorical analysis thesis statement, your study tool to turn around your performance. Hope this helps!
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ONLINE REFERENCES:
http://writingcenter.unc.edu/handouts/thesis-statements/
http://writingcommons.org/index.php/open-text/writing-processes/focus/856-formulating-a-thesis
http://www.ehow.com/how_7880824_make-thesis-statement-rhetorical-analysis.html
http://www.kean.edu/~roneilfi/How%20to%20write%20a%20thesis%20statement.htm
http://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Rhetorical-Analysis
https://gustavus.edu/writingcenter/handoutdocs/thesis_statements.php
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/725/03/
https://writing-speech.dartmouth.edu/learning/materials/materials-first-year-writers/developing-your-thesis