WRT 104; Spring 2014 Instr: L. Briggette Project #2 Assignment ®Revision Workshop: Wed. March 5th ®Essay Due: Fri. March 7th
Project #2 – The Rhetoric of Advertising: Evaluating Still Image Ads
As we’ve moved through our semester thus far, we’ve considered our own stories as rhetorical situations, and we’ve thought a bit more about our own educational experiences.
For our next assignment, rather than look at phenomena that we ourselves experience, we’re going to start exploring the rhetoric of that which surrounds us: product advertising. As consumers, we are engulfed by advertising on a constant basis; for this analysis, rather than make snap judgments about what we witness in advertising, we will slow down to discover and define more completely what we see (and re-see!). This assignment will require you to thoroughly evaluate a still-image advertisement for a product or brand of your choice.
As with our everyday communication, with advertising there is always an intended audience, a specific purpose, a message, and there are certain appeals specific to that intended audience. We will consider the audience, purpose, and message of the advertisements, but as part of your analysis, you will also consider the audience, purpose and message of your own evaluation. You will decide who the particular audience is for your evaluation (besides me); you will ask yourselves – Who will benefit from my analysis? And further – Why does the particular evaluation matter to my audience? We will practice this approach to analysis in class. We will also practice “reading” images, and we will practice applying rhetorical analysis to advertisements in class.
You will:a) choose a product or brand and one example of still-mage advertising associated with it, b) define an audience for your evaluation, and c)determine the purpose and message of your own evaluation.
A strong evaluation will thoroughly do the following:
ØClearly present an in-depth “reading” of the advertisement in a way your rhetorical audience will understand.
ØClearly identify the audience, purpose, message and rhetorical appeals present.
ØClearly articulate why this particular advertisement should be evaluated.
ØDetermine at least two criteria for which you base your evaluation, as well as use concrete examples from your advertisement to show whether or not criteria are met.
ØClearly articulate your judgments as to whether or not the ads meet your two criteria.
ØClearly explain why your evaluation is a fitting response to a rhetorical situation.
ØEstablish the logical order in which to present these items in a formal evaluation.
A carefully organized Evaluation will have the following elements: ®This entire essay will be written in the “third person perspective” (this means that your pronouns will be “he,” “she,” “one”), and you should not refer to yourself as “I,” or to the “you” perspective. ®An introductory paragraph (or two) that explains what you’re attempting to do in the evaluation. ®A thesis statement/s that reveals the rhetorical ideas you’re working with throughout the essay. ®Several body paragraphs that address the major components of the assignment (see above) ®A concluding paragraph (or two) that attempts to summarize what you’ve said in your evaluation (more personalized to your ideas and advertisements, and less general – avoid generic and cliché statements like, “Everyone interprets advertisements differently”). ®Each paragraph should address ONE (and only one) discussion point or moment of analysis.
Nuts & Bolts:
Typed, double-spaced, Times New Roman, 12pt. font.
MLA formatting for sources used in your evaluation (your image, plus other research you may bring in from the media)
A Work Cited Page
A title for your evaluation
Sloppy-Copy Workshop: Wednesday, March 5th – Bring a FULL & COMPLETE draft of what you have so far. You will work independently, and with another student to receive peer feedback on your work thus far.
Pre-Portfolio Draft due: Friday, March 7th via Sakai Dropbox (which I will set up before then)
We will discuss more of the details as we work on the project over the next week.
As always, please feel free to contact me at any point about the progress of this project, or about any thing else you’d like to discuss with me. I will try to make myself as available as I can.
-- Email: lindy_briggette@my.uri.edu -- Phone: 207.671.1033 (to call, or text) -- In person: By appointment – I’m on campus MWF.
WRT 104; Spring 2014
Instr: L. Briggette
Project #2 Assignment
® Revision Workshop: Wed. March 5th
® Essay Due: Fri. March 7th
Project #2 –
The Rhetoric of Advertising: Evaluating Still Image Ads
As we’ve moved through our semester thus far, we’ve considered our own stories as rhetorical situations, and we’ve thought a bit more about our own educational experiences.
For our next assignment, rather than look at phenomena that we ourselves experience, we’re going to start exploring the rhetoric of that which surrounds us: product advertising. As consumers, we are engulfed by advertising on a constant basis; for this analysis, rather than make snap judgments about what we witness in advertising, we will slow down to discover and define more completely what we see (and re-see!). This assignment will require you to thoroughly evaluate a still-image advertisement for a product or brand of your choice.
As with our everyday communication, with advertising there is always an intended audience, a specific purpose, a message, and there are certain appeals specific to that intended audience. We will consider the audience, purpose, and message of the advertisements, but as part of your analysis, you will also consider the audience, purpose and message of your own evaluation. You will decide who the particular audience is for your evaluation (besides me); you will ask yourselves – Who will benefit from my analysis? And further – Why does the particular evaluation matter to my audience? We will practice this approach to analysis in class. We will also practice “reading” images, and we will practice applying rhetorical analysis to advertisements in class.
You will: a) choose a product or brand and one example of still-mage advertising associated with it, b) define an audience for your evaluation, and c)determine the purpose and message of your own evaluation.
A strong evaluation will thoroughly do the following:
A carefully organized Evaluation will have the following elements:
® This entire essay will be written in the “third person perspective” (this means that your pronouns will be “he,” “she,” “one”), and you should not refer to yourself as “I,” or to the “you” perspective.
® An introductory paragraph (or two) that explains what you’re attempting to do in the evaluation.
® A thesis statement/s that reveals the rhetorical ideas you’re working with throughout the essay.
® Several body paragraphs that address the major components of the assignment (see above)
® A concluding paragraph (or two) that attempts to summarize what you’ve said in your evaluation (more personalized to your ideas and advertisements, and less general – avoid generic and cliché statements like, “Everyone interprets advertisements differently”).
® Each paragraph should address ONE (and only one) discussion point or moment of analysis.
Nuts & Bolts:
We will discuss more of the details as we work on the project over the next week.
As always, please feel free to contact me at any point about the progress of this project, or about any thing else you’d like to discuss with me. I will try to make myself as available as I can.
-- Email: lindy_briggette@my.uri.edu
-- Phone: 207.671.1033 (to call, or text)
-- In person: By appointment – I’m on campus MWF.