In the essay “Becoming Disabled,” Rosemarie Garland-Thompson arrives at a new definition of disability as a “social identity”. In her argument, Garland-Thompson borrows from the experiences of other minority groups, from history, and from the civil rights movement.
In this paper, first explain Garland-Thompson’s argument, then analyze the rhetorical strategies Garland-Thompson uses to make her argument and appeal to readers, some of whom may be surprised by or even resistant to her message. Why does Garland-Thompson choose the rhetorical strategies she does, and what does that reveal about the purpose, audience, and context for her argument? Garland-Thompson uses many strategies, so you have several from which you may choose to analyze.
Be sure to consider the strategies in relation to the topic and purpose of the essay and consider your own experience as a reader.
A successful rhetorical analysis pulls apart a text, explains how it works, makes an original claim about it, and supports the claim with specific details. Your goal in this assignment is to choose the elements of the text that you think are most important to making it work and make a critical argument about their effect. Your thesis will state your rhetorical argument about the text, establish the rhetorical elements you will focus on in your analysis, and explain how these relate to the author’s purpose and the impact you believe these elements make on that purpose. Be sure to review 5.4-What is Rhetorical Analysis?Links to an external site. for further help in developing your analysis.
Questions for Exploration:
* How does Garland-Thompson establish ethos in the text? How does the tone affect the author’s credibility? How does she present herself to her audience?
* How does Garland-Thompson appeal to reason or logos? What examples, facts, and evidence does she provide and what is their purpose? How does the organization of the essay function to deliver the argument?
* How does Garland-Thompson appeal to emotions and pathos? What emotions does the author wish to evoke in her audience? What specific examples and/or words does she use to appeal to her audience’ emotions?
* How does Garland-Thompson use identification (what the writer and audience have in common) in this essay?
* Consider the use of “we” in the essay. Who is the “we” in this essay?
* What is the author’s message? What does she want to accomplish by writing this essay? Paper One Timeline:
* Rough (First) Drafts should be between 750-1000 words – Due Thursday Jul 6
* Paper One Peer Review – Due Sunday Jul 7
* Revised (Final) Drafts should be between 1000-1250 words – Due Thursday Jul 11
* SHORT PAPERS WILL BE PENALIZED
Formatting and Requirements
* Include your name, my name, class and date in the upper left corner of the 1st page
* Format your essay according to MLA guidelines (see Documenting Sources: MLA StyleLinks to an external site. in Achieve)
* Include a Works Cited page listing all sources you used or consulted
