AP English Language and Composition

Introduction toRhetoric

Looking Ahead to the Rest of the Year

Summer reading review and responseIntroduction to rhetoric and the AP ExamColonial literatureThe Scarlet LetterAges of Reason and “Renaissance”The Adventures of Huckleberry FinnResearch Paper – American author and bookThe Great GatsbyWar (“What is it good for?”) and filmsVocabulary during the whole year (buy book soon!)Lots of AP strategies throughout (writing and

analysis)

Preview of the School Year

Understand the components of rhetoric.Understand and apply the elements of the

rhetorical ladder.Understand and apply the concept of

rhetorical context.Learn and apply a strategy (SACPETS) for

analyzing texts for rhetorical components.Understand and analyze texts according to

various components of the rhetorical ladder.Experience a variety of “texts.”

Goals of This Next Unit and Rhetoric

At the end of this unit you will be given a text to analyze on your own. This will involve being given an AP-style analysis question about the text and then being given only a class period to read the text and write an AP-style essay.

May the force be with you!

Final Assessment of This Unit

What Is Rhetoric?

Plato:  [Rhetoric] is the "art of enchanting the soul." (The art of winning the soul by discourse.)

Aristotle: Rhetoric is "the faculty of discovering in any particular case all of the available means of persuasion."

Cicero:  "Rhetoric is one great art comprised of five lesser arts: inventio, dispositio, elocutio, memoria, and pronunciatio."  Rhetoric is "speech designed to persuade."

What Is Rhetoric?

Quintilian:  "Rhetoric is the art of speaking well" or "...good man speaking well."

George Campbell:  "[Rhetoric] is that art or talent by which discourse is adapted to its end.  The four ends of discourse are to enlighten the understanding, please the imagination, move the passion, and influence the will."

Philip Johnson: "Rhetoric is the art of framing an argument so that it can be appreciated by an audience."

What Is Rhetoric? continued

George Kennedy: “Rhetoric in the most general sense may perhaps be identified with the energy inherent in communication:  the emotional energy that impels the speaker to speak, the physical energy expanded in the utterance, the energy level coded in the message, and the energy experienced by the recipient in decoding the message.”

What Is Rhetoric? continued more

Essential Elements in Rhetoric

Speaker

Audience

What is the purpose?

What is th

e context?

What is the su

bject?

What is the tone?

What strategies a

re used?

What is th

e exigency?

The “text”

Subject: What is the subject of this selection? (What is the main topic?)

Audience: Who is the intended audience?Context: What do you know about the writer of this

selection? What do you know about the background when this selection was written?

Purpose: What is the message of this selection? What effect does the writer intend to have on the audience?

Exigency: What is the need or lack of something that explains the creation of this text?

Tone: What is the author’s attitude towards the subject and/or the audience?

Strategies: What strategies does the writer use to convey the purpose of this selection?

SACPETS: an analytical tool

What is the meaning of the text? (In other words, what is the author saying? What is the author’s message? What is the author’s purpose? What is the author’s tone? What is the author’s attitude? What are the author’s views?)

How does the author show the meaning of the text? (What strategies are used?)

And (sometimes) what do I think about these two areas?

Ultimately, Rhetoric boils down to . . .

Upon completing the AP English Language and Composition course, students should be able to:

analyze and interpret samples of good writing, identifying and explaining an author’s use of rhetorical strategies and techniques;

apply effective strategies and techniques in their own writing;

create and sustain arguments based on readings, research and/or personal experience;

write for a variety of purposes;produce expository, analytical and argumentative

compositions that introduce a complex central idea and develop it with appropriate evidence drawn from primary and/or secondary sources, cogent explanations and clear transitions;

Course Goals from the College Board

demonstrate understanding and mastery of standard written English as well as stylistic maturity in their own writings;

demonstrate understanding of the conventions of citing primary and secondary sources;

move effectively through the stages of the writing process, with careful attention to inquiry and research, drafting, revising, editing and review;

write thoughtfully about their own process of composition;

revise a work to make it suitable for a different audience;analyze image as text; andevaluate and incorporate reference documents into

researched papers.

Goals continued

DictionSyntaxRhetorical/literary devicesOverall structureAppealsPurpose/ToneExigency

Some Tools for Looking at Strategies

Creates tone, attitude, and style

Selection of detailsWhy does the “speaker”

choose the words and phrases that he does?

What denotation do the words have?

What connotation do the words have?

Diction = Word Choice

Grammatical constructionSimpleComplexRepetitionInvertedPeriodic = main clause at

the end of sentence with phrases, dependent clauses before it

QuestionsImperativesExclamationsPunctuationParallelism

Syntax = Sentence Construction

Literary devices:AllegoryAlliterationAllusionFigurative language (metaphor, simile, analogy, symbol =

non-literal language) Imagery (sensory images) Irony/satire/parodyMetonymy (representative term is used for the actual object)MotifOnomatopoeiaOxymoronPersonificationPunSynecdoche (part represents the whole: “all hands on deck”)

Rhetorical/Literary Devices

Rhetorical devices:Antithesis (two contrasting images/phrases)Hyperbole (“this is the most used strategy of all

time!”)Deduction/Induction (general to details/details

to general)PacingRhetorical questionUnderstatementEllipsis (. . .)Anaphora (“I came, I saw, I conquered.”)Litotes (“not a minor strategy to use”)

Rhetorical/Literary Devices, cont.

Induction/deductionExamplesCompare/contrastCause and effectClassificationProcessDefinitionNarrationDescriptionSpatial

Overall Structure

Exposition = illustrates a pointNarration = tells a storyDescription = creates a sensory image

Argumentation = takes a position on an issue and defends it

Related to “Modes of Discourse”

EthosLogosPathos

Appeals

What does the person tell us about him or her?

How trustworthy is the speaker?

How valid is the information the speaker uses?

How biased is the speaker?

Ethos

What kind of information is used?

How reliable is the information?

How logical is the information?

How “documented” is the information?

Logos

How does the speaker appeal to our emotions?

How much does the speaker make us feel about the subject of his or her message?

What kind of emotional responses does the audience have about the message?

Pathos

What is the purpose of the speaker’s message?

What is the speaker’s attitude towards his or her subject?

What is the speaker’s attitude towards his or her audience?

Purpose/Tone

angrysharpupsetsillyboringafraidhappyhollow joyfulallusivesweetvexed tiredbitter

dreamyrestrainedprouddramaticsadcoldurgent jokingpoignantdetachedconfusedchildishpeacefulmocking

objectivevibrant frivolousaudaciousshockingsombergiddyProvocativesentimental fancifulcomplimentarycondescendingsympatheticcontemptuous

apologetichumoroushorrificsarcasticnostalgiczealous irreverentbenevolentseductivecandidpitifuldidactic

Some Tones

What is the context of the “text”?

What is the need for this message?

What does the “world” lack that is being argued for in the “text”?

Exigency

Activities to PracticeRhetorical Analysis

Practicing Rhetorical Analysis with a Film

This film is a fictionalized account of the Battle of Thermopylae of 480 BCE where an alliance of Greek city-states fight the invading Persian army in the mountain pass of Thermopylae. Though the oracles and the elders of Sparta warn King Leonidas not to fight the Persians (a force of over 100,000 soldiers!), he still does, enlisting the help of 300 Spartans, 700 Thespians, and a few other slave soldiers. Vastly outnumbered, the Spartans hold-off the Persians for three days, but they need reinforcements. The king’s wife, Queen Gorgo, asks the Spartan Council to send in the rest of the Spartan army to help the 300. This is her speech to the Spartan Council.

Rhetorical Context of 300

Take notes on the text of the speech.

Fill out the SACPETS sheet on the film.

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/MovieSpeeches/moviespeech300queengorgo.html

Assignment

Councilmen, I stand before you today not only as your Queen: I come to you as a mother; I come to you as a wife; I come to you as a Spartan woman; I come to you with great humility.

I am not here to represent Leonidas; his actions speak louder than my words ever could. I am here for all those voices which cannot be heard: mothers, daughters, fathers, sons -- 300 families that bleed for our rights, and for the very principles this room was built upon.

We are at war, gentlemen. We must send the entire Spartan army to aid our King in the preservation of not just ourselves, but of our children.

Send the army for the preservation of liberty.

Send it for justice.

Send it for law and order.

Send it for reason.

But most importantly, send our army for hope -- hope that a king and his men have not been wasted to the pages of history -- that their courage bonds us together, that we are made stronger by their actions, and that your choices today reflect their bravery.

Text of the Queen Gorgo’s Speech

Watch speech again, paying special attention to the audience’s reaction and the strategies that Gorgo uses.

Discuss SACPETS.What strategies does she use?This is what an AP question would look like for

this speech: After some information about the context of the speech, the question would ask: “Write an essay that defines the central argument of Queen Gorgo’s speech and analyze the rhetorical strategies that she employs in her argument.”

Review of the Gorgo Speech

One of the most popular contexts of rhetoric . . .

More Practice with Rhetorical Analysis

Delivered on July 14, 1992, in New York City, New York.

This convention nominated Bill Clinton as the Democratic candidate for president.

Elizabeth Glaser’s Address to the Democratic National Convention

Prior to the Democrat Bill Clinton (president during the years 1993-2001), the United States saw 12 years of Republican presidents: Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) and George H.W. Bush (1989-1993).

HIV/AIDS was first recognized in the United States by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 1981.

Both the Reagan and Bush administrations were criticized for not doing enough for HIV/AIDS prevention and research, with many critics accusing the Republican administrations of marginalizing the disease to the gay community.

Rhetorical Context

Wife of Paul Michael Glaser (actor in the popular Starsky and Hutch TV series in the 1970s).

After being married to Glaser, Elizabeth became a mother of two children and then an “AIDS activist.”

She co-founded the “Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation” in 1988.

Background on Elizabeth Glaser

Listen to and read the speech.Mark up the speech for elements of

SACPETS.Fill out SACPETS completely.On back of SACPETS,

compare/contrast this speech to Queen Gorgo’s speech.

http://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/elizabethglaser1992dnc.htm

http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/27096-1

Assignment

Review SACPETS.What strategies does Glaser use in

her speech?How effective is her speech?How is this speech similar to the

Queen Gorgo speech?

Discuss Glaser’s Speech

http://www.pedaids.org/Multimedia-Gallery/Video-Library/Video-Gallery.aspx

What happened to Elizabeth and Her Son?

More Practice: Word Choice & Allusion in Bruce Springsteen’s “The Rising”

Bruce Springsteen was born on September 23, 1949, in New Jersey.

He became a “classic rocker” during the 1970s and 1980s, and he is still producing best-selling songs and albums.

Nicknamed “The Boss, he is well known as a singer-songwriter who tours with the E Street Band.

His songs focus on “heartland rock,” with poetic lyrics and Americana elements. Much of his writing focuses on working class people on the East coast.

Some of his best known albums are Born to Run, Born in the USA, and The Rising. He likes “thematic” albums.

Besides selling more than 65 million albums in the United States and 120 million worldwide, he has earned at least 20 Grammy Awards, two Golden Globes, and an Academy Award.

Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him as the 23rd greatest artist of all time in its 100 Greatest Artists of All Time list.

Some Background on Springsteen

The song called “The Rising” appears on Springsteen’s album also called The Rising.

The song was written in late 2001 and the album was released in July, 2002.

Tracks from the album:1. “Lonesome Day” 2. “Into the Fire” 3.

“Waitin’ on a Sunny Day” 4. “Nothing Man” 5. “Countin' on a Miracle” 6. “Empty Sky” 7. “Worlds Apart” 8. “Let's Be Friends (Skin to Skin)” 9. “Further On (Up the Road)” 10. “The Fuse”   11. “Mary's Place” 12. “You're Missing” 13. “The Rising” 14. “Paradise” 15. “My City of Ruins” 

Rhetorical Context of “The Rising”

Can't see nothin' in front of meCan't see nothin' coming up behindI make my way through this darknessI can't feel nothing but this chain that binds meLost track of how far I've goneHow far I've gone, how high I've climbedOn my back's a sixty pound stoneOn my shoulder a half mile of line

Come on up for the risingCom on up, lay your hands in mineCome on up for the risingCome on up for the rising tonight

Left the house this morningBells ringing filled the airI was wearin' the cross of my callingOn wheels of fire I come rollin' down here

Come on up for the risingCome on up, lay your hands in mineCome on up for the risingCome on up for the rising tonight

Li,li, li,li,li,li, li,li,li

There's spirits above and behind meFaces gone black, eyes burnin' brightMay their precious blood bind meLord, as I stand before your fiery light

Li,li, li,li,li,li, li,li,li

I see you Mary in the gardenIn the garden of a thousand sighsThere's holy pictures of our childrenDancin' in a sky filled with lightMay I feel your arms around meMay I feel your blood mix with mineA dream of life comes to meLike a catfish dancin' on the end of the line

Sky of blackness and sorrow (a dream of life)Sky of love, sky of tears (a dream of life)Sky of glory and sadness (a dream of life)Sky of mercy, sky of fear (a dream of life)Sky of memory and shadow (a dream of life)Your burnin' wind fills my arms tonightSky of longing and emptiness (a dream of life)Sky of fullness, sky of blessed life (a dream of life)

Come on up for the risingCome on up, lay your hands in mineCome on up for the risingCome on up for the rising tonight

Li,li, li,li,li,li, li,li,li

 Copyright © 2002 Bruce Springsteen (ASCAP)

Listen to the Song “The Rising”

Write down many details about the narrator and make inferences about the narrator? (who, what, where, when, how, and why) And the audience?

Word choice: what is the significance/meaning of these words and phrases? Especially note the italics. "this chain that binds me" "sixty pound stone" "Left the house this morning" "bells ringing" "Wearin' the cross of my calling" "wheels of fire" "rollin' down here" "Faces gone black" "Mary in the garden" "garden of a thousand sighs" "catfish dancin' on the end of a line" "lay your hands in mine" "dream of life" "li, li, li, li, li, li, li, li, li"

Answer Questions about “The Rising”

Why use the pairs of words after each "Sky of" phrase? What is the effect?

Explain the meaning of the four lines of the chorus: "Come on up for the rising" etc.

What is the mood of the song? (How does it feel?)

Why is the song called "The Rising"?What is the message of this song?

More Questions

One person’s interpretation: http://teachertrenches.blogspot.com/2008/09/springsteens-rising-and-september-11th.html

It earned Grammy awards for Best Rock Song and Best Male Rock Performance of the year. Rolling Stone named it the 35th best song of the decade.

During the 2008 U.S. presidential election, "The Rising" was first used as a closing campaign rally song by the John Edwards campaign. Despite the song's grim setting, the "Rise up" refrain matched the closing exhortation of Edwards' speeches. The Hillary Rodham Clinton campaign then began to use the song as well, especially at the end of her rallies or victory celebrations. Following Springsteen's April 2008 endorsement of Barack Obama, the Obama campaign began replacing U2's "City of Blinding Lights" with "The Rising" as their commencement-of-rally song. (From wikipedia.com)

More Information about “The Rising”

The song was also played immediately following Obama's victorious presidential acceptance speech on the night of November 4, 2008 in Grant Park in Chicago. Rolling Stone later remarked of its use there, "when its metaphor of struggling through darkness was blasted at Obama's victory celebration, it became a national anthem for the 21st century.” (from wikipedia.com)

More on the Song

Answer the questions on the sheet about your knowledge of 9/11/01.

Then read the history.com article and answer the questions over that article.

Practicing with 9/11 Information

1. How does your account of the attacks correspond to the article’s account?

2. How accurate/reliable is this source? What is the “ethos” of this source?

3. What is the purpose of this article?4. Who is the intended audience?5. According to the article, who is responsible for the

attacks? How sure is the article?6. According to the article, how did the buildings collapse?7. Look at the paragraph with the quotations from George

Bush. What rhetorical strategies does Bush use?8. Finally, look up the list of tone words from the PowerPoint

on “Introduction to Rhetoric.” Pick at least two tone words from this list and explain how the tone words illustrate the attitude of the writer towards the subject of the article.

Going over history.com Article

Disclaimer: This is a study in rhetoric, not necessarily Mr. Anderson’s or Ms. Howard’s views.

Loose Change 9/11: An American CoupDocumentary film made in several editions1st edition: 2005; 2nd edition: 2006; 3rd

edition: 2007; and this edition in 2009.Narrated by Daniel Sunjata from the

television show Rescue Me, who is a strong advocate of first responders.

Written, directed, and edited by Dylan Avery.The forms of Loose Change have been

viewed online over 100 million times and have sold 2 million copies of the DVDs.

More Info on the 9/11 Attacks

What do we know and expect about documentary films?

Documentaries

Watch the prologue (the first 16 minutes) of Loose Change.

Answer the questions about the film.Complete video can be found at:http://vimeo.com/14946983We will watch most of it in class.So don’t skip ahead. Just review.

Assignment

Pay attention to the choice of images and how the images are edited.

Notice the narration (what is the tone of the narrator’s voice and what words are used?).

Listen to the sound carefully (what sound effects are used and how is music used?).

When Watching the Prologue . . .

1. How does music play an essential role in this prologue? Note the speed and intensity of the music. At what parts does music add to the visual images?

2. Note carefully the choice of details in this prologue. What is the sequence of events in this prologue?

3. What is implied by the sequence of events?4. Evaluate the use of ethos, logos, and pathos in the

prologue. Give examples.5. Who is the intended audience of this film?6. What rhetorical context does the prologue establish for

the rest of this documentary?7. At the end of the prologue, what is the stated thesis of the

documentary? [Hint: it’s in the form of a question.]8. How effectively does the prologue lead to the thesis?

Support your answer with examples. (In your answer, also consider the "documentary film" as a "text" for this thesis.)

Discuss the Prologue of Loose Change

Looking at the Structure of the PrologueLeader Hitler FDR LBJ Bush

and others

Set-Up of the Inciting Incident

The Inciting Incident(causes)

Results(effects)

Implications

CONGRESSMAN ALBERT THOMAS KNOWINGLY WINKS AT SMILING LBJ AFTER THE ASSASSINATION

There is evidence that Lyndon Johnson was directly involved. Johnson was seen ducking down in his car a good 30 to 40 seconds before the first shots were fired, even before the car turned onto Houston street. Lyndon Johnson was acting as if he knew bullets would soon be flying, ducking down repeatedly before the shots went off. At the ceremony of Johnson being sworn in as president, Congressman Albert Thomas was photographed knowingly winking at a smiling LBJ, while JFK's grieving widow stood next to Johnson.

http://nstarzone.com/JFK.html “The Truth Behind the JFK Assassination”

"THE WINK":

Watch until 1:13:00. And then watch again at 1:30:58 until the end.

During the remainder of the film, pay close attention to the dates and times mentioned. Parts of the argument in this film involve the sequence of events.

Watch the Remainder of Loose Change

1. Who are the bad guys (who are the ones responsible for the 9/11 events?)?

2. How are the bad guys portrayed?3. What are the arguments/conclusions in this

film?4. What types of sources are used in the

arguments?5. How are the arguments/conclusions stated?6. What rhetorical strategies are used in the

arguments?7. What do the filmmakers want the viewers of

this film to do?

Questions to Discuss over the Film

1. How does the magazine portray those who have created the "myths"?

2. Compare/contrast the ethos of this magazine with the ethos of the film. Which is more trustworthy? Why?

3. This magazine's article is structured with a "Claim/Fact" organization. How much does it address and to what degree does it address the claims made in the film?

4. What kind of "facts" does the magazine give to refute the "false claims"?

5. What is the purpose of the magazine's account?6. Who is the intended audience? What does the magazine want the

audience to do?7. What strategies does the magazine use to support its arguments?8. How does the form (science magazine vs. internet video) help to

shape the argument, purpose, and intended audience of message?

9. Fun question to answer on back (unrelated to rhetoric): What do you believe to be the truth? Why?

Read Popular Mechanics

Clips from Loose Change, 2nd Edition (1:19:50 to 1:23:50)

Ministry’s song, “LiesLiesLies”The Onion’s article on “Talking to Your Child

About the WTC Attack” http://www.theonion.com/articles/talking-to-your-child-about-the-wtc-attack,8058/

EdNews Parents on talking with kids about 9/11 http://www.ednewsparent.org/ask-an-expert/6749-ask-an-expert-talking-to-your-kids-about-911

Other Media in Regards to 9/11

No longer related to 9/11 conspiracy theories!

Read “Obama, the One-Term President” by Roger Simon.

Answer questions about article.

More Practice with Rhetoric

1. Read the title and the first paragraph (“Honest to goodness . . .”) of this article. Based on this, what do you believe Roger Simon thinks of President Barack Obama?

2. What reasons does Simon give for supporting his assertion that Obama will be a “one-term president”?

3. Read the remainder of the article and consider Simon’s main purpose in his writing. What does Simon suggest are the qualities that a president should have?

4. In Simon’s view, how does Obama measure up to his suggested qualities of a president? Provide a few examples to support your answer.

5. What methods does Simon use to communicate his views?6. Sample AP English Language Question: Write an essay

that analyzes how Simon uses rhetorical strategies to communicate his view of the role of the president.

Discuss Simon Article

Which of the three cartoons most supports Simon’s argument? Why?

Which of the three cartoons most supports those whom Simon is attacking? Why?

Looking at Cartoons

Read the prompt carefully, underlining the essential terms. Remember that your introduction should answer the prompt and that the essential terms should be focused on throughout the essay.

Read the text of the prompt with SACPETS in mind!

Mark up the text while focusing on: 1) What is the meaning of the text? (In other words, what is the author saying? What is the author’s message? What is the author’s purpose? What is the author’s tone? What is the author’s attitude? What are the author’s views?) AND 2) What strategies are used to show the meaning of the text?

Brief Tips on Responding to a Free-Response Essay Question

Keep in Mind the Rhetorical LadderDictionSyntaxRhetorical/literary devicesOverall structureAppealsPurpose/ToneExigency

Key Elements in an Opening ParagraphAuthor and title of the piece.Thesis that answers what the prompt

is askingNormally, this includes the

meaning of the piece with the elements that convey the meaning

Devices that help interest the reader to continue your essay

BUT NOT TOO LONG! (4 to 5 sentences)

Tips on Writing Body ParagraphsTry to organize paragraphs around a major

stylistic device being used in the passage.This is where you present your analysis

related to what you said in the opening paragraph.

As much as possible, use quotations, specific references, and details from the passage.

Place quotation marks around the words, phrases, and sentences that you take from the passage.

You should be referring to the key ideas from the prompt and from your opening paragraph.

Remember that the biggest difference between the mediocre/average essay and the excellent essay is the ability to explain how the strategies that you identify help to explain the meaning of the text!

It’s your ability to answer the question:

SO WHAT?!?!?!?

Big Difference!