Rhetorical Situation

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Rhetorical Situation

• Chapter 1
• Reasoning Writing Well, 3rd Edition
• ENG 101

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What is the Rhetorical Situation?

• Every piece of writing has a context or
  circumstance surrounding it referred to as the
  rhetorical situation.
• Basically, this term refers to the way words are
  used in regard to five elements the occasion,
  writers purpose, topic, audience, and writers
  voice.
• All five elements of the rhetorical situation
  influence the effectiveness of writing.

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Occasion

• The occasion is the event, condition, or need
  that causes you to write.
• You may write an apology for hasty words, a thank
  you for a birthday gift, or an e-mail to a friend
  to keep in touch.
• On the job your writing may spring froma clients
  need, a problem, or another complication that
  requires a written response.
• Different occasions call for different writing
  strategies.

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Purpose

• Purpose refers to a writers motive, or reason
  for writing, which can be stated or implied.
• Purpose has two aspects general and specific.

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The General Purpose

• Writing has four general purposes
• to inform,
• to persuade,
• to express, and
• to entertain.
• More often than not, these general purposes are
  combined in various ways.

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The Specific Purpose

• To be clear, writing should have a specific
  purpose.
• Your instructor may assign a general purpose for
  a paper, but usually you will chose the topic,
  the specific purpose, and the audience.
• Jotting down your specific purpose and audience
  early will help you to select, sort, and shape
  ideas so that they unite and flow toward a
  conclusion that is appropriate for the rhetorical
  situation.

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Topic

• Topics for writing spring from real situations
  perhaps late payment of a bill, an incorrect
  shipment.
• If you have work experience, you may be able to
  base college papers on topics from those
  experiences.
• If not, you might draw from other experience,
  such as reading literature, travel, hobbies, or
  unusual events or people, always remembering to
  limit a broad topic to one specific purpose.

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Audience

• The writers audience is the reader.
• To accomplish your purpose, you should recognize,
  respect, and respond to your readers needs.
• Knowing characteristics of their backgrounds,
  interests, and viewpoints will help you to choose
  a suitable topic and devise an appropriate
  writing strategy.
• Writing that is addressed to no one in particular
  will lack a sense of purpose.

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Questions to Assess Audiences

• To whom am I writing? What do I know about the
  age, gender, education, social class, economic
  status, interests, and attitudes of the readers?
  How should these characteristics influence my
  writing?
• Why will they read this piece of writing? How can
  they benefit? Will they gain information? Be
  entertained? What else?
• How much do they need or want to know? How much
  can I assume they already know about the subject?
  What terms should be defined? How much should I
  say?
• How might they feel about the subject? How will
  their feelings affect my word choice and
  strategy?
• How will they react to my point of view? How
  should their probable reaction affect my approach
  to the topic?

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Writers Voice

• The sound behind the words is an important part
  of the rhetorical situation and affects how the
  audience will respond to a piece of writing.
• Your written voice is influenced not only by your
  knowledge, experience, beliefs, and biases but
  also by how you feel about the act of writing,
  the reader, and the topic.
• For example, your written voice may sound
  confident or unsure, encouraging or critical, or
  approving or sarcastic.

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How Should a Writers Voice Sound?

• To be respected by your readers, you need a
  written voice that not only serves your purpose
  but also reflects preparation, sincerity,
  integrity, and (at times) empathy for the
  audience.
• Readers expect competence and trustworthiness,
  and they are usually quick to recognize
  incompetence, insincerity, arrogance, or
  dishonesty.

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Summary

• To write effectively, a writer must consider the
  rhetorical situation, which has five elements
  the occasion, purpose, topic, audience, and
  writers voice.
• The occasion refers to the situation or event
  that prompts writing.
• The general purpose of writing may be to inform,
  persuade, express or entertain. The specific
  purpose involves responding to a certain need.
• The topic is the subject.
• The audience is the reader.
• The writers voice is the sound of the words on
  paper, and it influences the reaction of the
  reader.