Connected reading: Chapter 8 from Sonja Foss’s Rhetorical Criticism
artifact – music video “Older than I am”, by Lennon Stella
For this paper I will be analyzing the music video “Older than I am”, by Lennon Stella. The paper must be analyzed by comparing and contrasting it through the lens of environmental communication.
Examine the elements of the music video “Older than I am”, by Lennon Stella and then do an ideological analysis — exploring what -isms are communicated by your artifact.
– Does your artifact communicate dominant ideologies, such as anthropocentrism, patriarchy, or environmental racism?
– Or perhaps your artifact communicates other ideologies, such as ecocentrism, ecofeminism, or environmental justice?
– Your artifact may communicate more than one ideology, of course, but your aim will be to explore primarily one ideology, if possible, so that you can go more in depth with that.
Write a background
Research and write a 300+-word background of your artifact. Include a history, a brief summary of key information, including important critical and scholarly work about the artifact, if available. Explore what others have written or produced about your artifact. You will want to share what scholars have written about similar artifacts. Be sure that you cite all of your sources in APA and include them in your references list. Your research must be academic, not simple web research. Use the library databases to find the best, most credible information.
Analyze your artifact
Analyze your artifact using ideological analysis as described in detail in the Foss chapter. Make a diagram, columns, piles, lists, or other organizing tools to help you see the relationships between the elements in your artifact. You do not have to include your notes with your final paper.
Report of the findings of the analysis
Using your notes from your analysis, write up a report that summarizes your findings. Engage a narrative structure that tells the reader how you arrived at various ideas and conclusions. This section should be approximately 1000+ words in length.
Formulate your question
Compose a question that does not include your artifact, but that addresses the larger, broader rhetorical issue you are exploring. For example, if you are writing about The Wire, you could ask a question about the rhetoric of police brutality in television police procedurals. For examples of research questions, see Foss p. 11.
Connecting to rhetorical theory
Do you see connections to what we have learned through reading Hendry? Do you identify new ideas or concepts? Do you make new connections between ideas or concepts? Include what other scholars in communication studies have said about your chosen rhetoric. How are you contributing to the larger conversation?
The final draft of your essay needs to be 2000+ words, excluding title and references page. Your essay must include the parts listed in the example outline below demarcated with section headings. Your introductory paragraph must clearly state your research question. You must include all your sources on a references page, including Foss and Hendry.
Example Outline:
I. Introduction (150+ words)
II. Background (300+ words)
III. Analytical Method (100+ words)
IV. Research Question
V. Report of Findings (1000+ words)
VI. Contribution to the Research (150+ words)
VII. Conclusion (100+ words)
VIII. References
Format in APA
– double-space essay and format it in 12-point
– Times New Roman font
– in-text citations and references page must be impeccably in APA style.
Essay will be graded according to the following rubric.
Artifact Essay Rubric
Total: _____/100- Meets the word count of 2000+ words. 10
– Formatted in APA, including double-spaced, Times, 12-point font. 10
– Includes references page in APA style with a minimum of 5 sources. 10
– Introduction presents a clear statement of purpose that organizes the essay. 10
– Author asks a meaningful and thought-provoking research question. 10
– Essay briefly describes rhetorical analysis method. 10
– Essay follows chosen rhetorical method effectively in a thorough analysis. 10
– Author connects to the rhetoric of ecology and contributes meaningfully to said academic discourse. 10
– Essay adheres to correct grammar, punctuation, and spelling as appropriate for an academic essay. 20
