English: Rhetorical Analysis Methodology
Library and Research Resources at UNT
Student Newspaper Pass Subscriptions:
University of North Texas (UNT) students receive group pass subscriptions to The New York Times, which must be renewed annually.
Students also receive pass access to The Wall Street Journal, Dallas Morning News, USA Today, and US Press.
Library Catalog Direct Access:
Numerous additional newspapers and journals are accessible directly through the UNT library catalog.
Accessing periodicals through the catalog allows students to bypass publisher website paywalls and view every article from specific issues directly.
Scholarly Databases versus Free Search Engines:
High school research often relies on free platforms like Google Scholar or generative AI tools like ChatGPT to find sources.
In college coursework, free search tools are discouraged in favor of paid institutional databases provided through student tuition.
Database subscriptions are extremely costly, but tuition covers full student access.
Key Academic Databases at UNT:
UNT subscribes to major database platforms including EBSCOhost and Gale.
Academic Search Complete is the primary meta-database recommended for general research because it searches across all underlying databases simultaneously.
JSTOR is highlighted as a premier database for humanities and academic literature.
Best Practice: Avoid using the main general search box on the library homepage; navigate directly to specific individual databases relevant to the research topic.
Academic Context and Curriculum:
Formal research paper methodology is taught in the subsequent course sequence (English 1320).
An upcoming dedicated "Library Day" will introduce university database navigation.
Students analyzing newspaper articles for assignments may select their own source material provided it receives approval prior to submission.
Introduction to Rhetorical Analysis: The 2020 Census Advertisement
Rhetorical Skill Practice:
Rhetorical analysis practice focuses on analyzing skills required for major assignments rather than just assignment guidelines.
Practice is conducted using a short video public service advertisement for the 2020 United States Census.
Structural Analytical Method:
Effective rhetorical analysis follows a systematic progression from broad elements to narrow, specific details.
Identifying the broad purpose precedes isolating the specific purpose, target audience, and stylistic choices.
Identifying Purpose, Audience, and Thesis
Establishing Purpose:
Broad Purpose: Persuasive (as opposed to purely informative).
Specific Purpose: To persuade every person residing in the United States to complete the 2020 Census.
Target Audience Identification:
Broad Target Audience: Everyone living in America, regardless of legal citizenship status or background.
Explicit Audio/Textual Evidence: The advertisement opens with the statement: "In America, we all count no matter where we call home, how we worship, or who we love."
Visual Demographic Evidence (Inclusivity Framework):
Military veterans and law enforcement officers.
Children and young students.
Traditional lion dancers.
Weddings, including two distinct wedding scenes and an Indian wedding.
Mothers with infants.
Elderly individuals.
Children with physical disabilities.
Agricultural farmers.
Corporate business professionals.
A woman wearing a hijab (Muslim representation).
A quinceañera celebrant (Hispanic culture).
Asian individuals and girls.
White individuals.
Black individuals.
Religious practitioners across faiths, including Christians, Muslims, and a Jewish rabbi.
Soccer players and community shoppers.
Claim and Evidence Analytical Structure:
A complete analytical argument requires both a claim and explicit supporting evidence.
Example: Claiming the Census advertisement targets every U.S. resident is proven by visual evidence showing individuals from every major race, culture, religion, age group, and national origin.
Thesis Statement Formulation:
Core Thesis Statement: Everyone should take the census who can take it, in order to shape the allocation of the nation's resources.
Grammatical Mechanics: Employs appositive constructions (e.g., "Snowy, comma, the white cat, comma, jumped onto the bed") to insert explanatory non-restrictive clauses.
Scope: The thesis emphasizes that participation is unrestricted by citizenship status and explicitly provides the motivating purpose ("in order to shape resource allocation").
Civic Knowledge, Funding Allocation, and Representation
Federal Resource Distribution Mechanics:
Census population tracking supplies necessary geographic data () to guide federal and state funding distribution.
Explicitly Stated Funding Outcomes in Video: Healthcare, education, and public programs that touch all citizens.
Implicitly/Visually Portrayed Funding Outcomes:
Public and intramural youth sports leagues (supported by municipal or public university funds).
Local community parades (requiring municipal permits, street closures, and police protection/organization).
Public infrastructure, law enforcement, and military programs.
Civic and Political Representation:
Census analysis relies on common civic knowledge assumed of an educated audience.
Population data recorded by the Census determines legislative branch apportionment, directly altering state counts for the House of Representatives seats relative to the fixed Senate seats.
Rhetorical and Stylistic Choices: Imagery, Tone, and Sound
Visual Imagery Choices:
Diversity of Representation: Displays individuals across varied financial brackets, geographic environments (rural farms versus dense urban cities), and family structures (single adults, newlyweds, parents, multigenerational families).
Emotional Representation: Visual subjects are consistently portrayed as happy, smiling, and engaged.
Logical Persuasive Link: The imagery establishes an emotional link that filling out the Census leads to positive, happy community outcomes ("You don't want to be sad filling out the census; therefore, filling it out leads to happiness").
Auditory and Tonal Choices:
Overall Tone Descriptor: Upbeat, inclusive, positive, community-minded, and inspirational.
Musical Score Features:
Instrumentation: Prominent violins playing sweeping, rising melodic lines.
Register and Tempo: High-register, bouncy, and building compositions designed to evoke feelings of growing hope.
Harmonization: Uses major chords exclusively while avoiding minor chords (which convey sadness or melancholy).
Ambient Sound Effects: Features cheering crowds from soccer matches, municipal parades, and students leaving school grounds to emphasize social harmony and shared community joy.
Academic Writing Principles and Upcoming Assignments
Core Principles of High-Level Analysis:
Strong academic writing does not rely on complex SAT vocabulary or artificially complicated phrasing.
True rigor is achieved by taking simple, concrete observations (such as cheerful background music or smiling faces) and thoroughly explaining their complex persuasive effect on the specific target audience.
Upcoming Assignment Breakdown:
Task: Annotation Assignment.
Deadline: Due Friday at midnight in the Week 2 Canvas module.
Focus: Annotate assigned reading material specifically for the author's purpose and draft a single comprehensive analytical synthesis paragraph detailing that purpose.
Student Resources: Discussion notes, analytical outlines, and the 2020 Census video link are published on Canvas for reference.