Rhetorical Strategy ID
Thesis: Good or Bad?
Claims, Evidence, Reasoning
Conventions of Writing
The Rhetorical Situation
100

Homework? Done. Magic tricks? Done. Feed the cat? Done. Go outside and stand for five minutes? Done.

Repetition 

100
A thesis should identify a writer's...

Position

100

What differentiates a claim from a position?

A claim is defensible; a position is not

100

The use of the first person pronoun "I" is encouraged for the Rhetorical Analysis and Synthesis essays. True or false?

False

100

The historical background or significance tied to a piece of writing 

Context

200

The poor and the marginalized are suffering, and if Congress won't act, then we will.

Pathos

200

A thesis should identify two to three...

Talking points, ideas for body paragraphs, etc.

200

How should you use evidence in your writing?

To support either your central argument (of your paper or essay) or your body paragraph argument (an argument unique to the body paragraph you are writing)

200

What should you do in your writing before using a piece of evidence?

Introduce the evidence to the reader (can also be a summary of evidence) 

200
What is actually in the speech

Message

300

According to a board-certified dermatologist, minocycline is the way to go.

Ethos

300

"We should change the dress code because it is bad." Good or bad thesis?

Bad

300

In your own words, define reasoning. 

The "why" for a piece of evidence; commentary about why your evidence matters; helping your reader process your evidence; explaining the meaning or significance of your evidence

300

What should your body topic sentence do?

Introduce the claim of a particular paragraph, but NOT for your whole paper/essay

300

The person behind the words (includes this person's significance or justification for writing)

Writer

400

Be great. When I was a kid and I mowed the yard, I could have stopped there, but I didn't. I also used the weed-eater. My parents were so impressed, they gave me $10. Don't settle for just "good enough."

Anecdote 

400

"We should make summer breaks longer because students need more time to decompress, engage in summer sports without school hanging over them, and spend time with family." Good or bad thesis?

Good (not great, but good enough)

400

If your reasoning is insufficient, you cannot score above a 2 on the AP Lang essays. True or false?

True

400

Your introduction can benefit from including an awareness of the...

Rhetorical situation

400

A way to think about what the writer hopes will happen at the end of the speech or writing/why the piece of writing or speech exists

Purpose

500

Women want to make changes. Women cannot, however, vote. What are they to do?

Logos (rhetorical question functioning via logos)

500

"The time for change is now. We have waited too long, and we have worked too hard, for all of this progress to be set back. If we do not swiftly and decisively make a change to this legislation, people will suffer." Good thesis or bad?

Bad! This is actually a claim. 

500

Explain the "claim, evidence, reasoning" pattern in detail.

Answers will vary. Something like "you establish a claim, support that claim with evidence, and discuss how the evidence supports your original claim." 

500

What is the most important part of your introductory paragraph?

Strong thesis 

500

The spark that motivates a speech or essay

Exigence

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