Rhetorical Analysis

In this analysis, you will build on the understanding you began developing in your Language Narrative to examine the personal biases and prejudices you may have internalized, and to understand how power or authority is distributed within organizational systems (such as schools), including recognizing potential forms of privilege, oppression, and discrimination based on language and/or literacy.

You will be engaged in PRIMARY RESEARCH to produce your Analytical Report:

1. First, you will select a particular language community (it could be your home community, your school community, work, hobby, etc.) that you have access to and want to learn more about.
2. Second, develop an original RESEARCH QUESTION(S) that focuses on some aspect of language use within the community you’ve selected. Be sure to develop research questions that: 1) interest you; and 2) seek to explore the HOW and the WHY of language use in a community.
3. Third, you will gather primary data through at least TWO of the following primary research methods:

   Interview
   Oral history
   Observation*
   Survey (see Dr. Mary)
   Artifact from the community (can be physical or digital object)

*You must NOT use any individual’s or group’s name or any identifying details in discussing what you observed.

1. Fourth, after you’ve gathered your data, you will ANALYZE your data to discover what it might mean in terms of our understanding of how authority and power are distributed within community or organizational systems, including recognizing potential forms of privilege, oppression, and discrimination.
2. Finally, you will compose a report to me that that describes the community and your research question(s), explains your methods for collecting primary data, and rhetorically analyzes your findings. You may choose your own headings in the report.

As this is primarily an ANALYTICAL assignment, focus on details is crucial. Your report should provide specific examples of language use, ANALYZE these, and draw tentative conclusions that tell us something about the HOW and WHY of the language use, conventions, and adaptations this community makes. Carefully re-read the selections of readings from the third and fourth weeks and pay close attention to HOW the writers bring in specific examples and comment on them, connecting these examples to their overall thesis.