Op Ed Speech
Op Ed Speech – Analyzing Textual Arguments
Critiquing persuasive appeals in an op-ed piece 50 pts
Goals:
-To develop creative and thoughtful analysis of persuasion
-To pay close attention to revision, especially self-evaluation and offering helpful critiques in peer review workshops
-To understand how to use the periodical resources in the MSU Main Library
-To create and organize materials in a comprehensive presentation that includes a complete introduction, an organized and thorough body of main points, and a sense of closure.
-To perform with information and delivery that engages the audience.
The Assignment: In order to make persuasive arguments of your own, it is vital to understand 1) how others construct such arguments and 2) the context in which your arguments are situated, and those two tasks are what we will be pursuing for the remainder of the semester. This speech will give you an opportunity to share and evaluate the different ways that others have made persuasive cases about a contemporary controversial issue. We will break apart an argument to understand how it works by isolating the textual claims and the forms of support employed in order to make that argument.
This speech should focus on an op-ed piece (e.g., letter to the editor, editorial, blog, etc.) of your choosing, but it should be one that relates to a controversial issue that you will be interested in researching for the remainder of the semester. Do not choose a piece of reportage as it is much easier to identify persuasive strategies in an op-ed piece than in an informational piece in Time or Newsweek.
-Choose an op-ed piece fitting the above criteria, that interests you, and that no one else has chosen. For this part, it may be fruitful to just find periodicals that you like in the stacks of the Main Library (1st floor) and peruse the editorials page. Make a copy, and bring the piece to class on Tuesday.
-Discuss what the piece is attempting to persuade you
Critiquing persuasive appeals in an op-ed piece 50 pts
Goals:
-To develop creative and thoughtful analysis of persuasion
-To pay close attention to revision, especially self-evaluation and offering helpful critiques in peer review workshops
-To understand how to use the periodical resources in the MSU Main Library
-To create and organize materials in a comprehensive presentation that includes a complete introduction, an organized and thorough body of main points, and a sense of closure.
-To perform with information and delivery that engages the audience.
The Assignment: In order to make persuasive arguments of your own, it is vital to understand 1) how others construct such arguments and 2) the context in which your arguments are situated, and those two tasks are what we will be pursuing for the remainder of the semester. This speech will give you an opportunity to share and evaluate the different ways that others have made persuasive cases about a contemporary controversial issue. We will break apart an argument to understand how it works by isolating the textual claims and the forms of support employed in order to make that argument.
This speech should focus on an op-ed piece (e.g., letter to the editor, editorial, blog, etc.) of your choosing, but it should be one that relates to a controversial issue that you will be interested in researching for the remainder of the semester. Do not choose a piece of reportage as it is much easier to identify persuasive strategies in an op-ed piece than in an informational piece in Time or Newsweek.
-Choose an op-ed piece fitting the above criteria, that interests you, and that no one else has chosen. For this part, it may be fruitful to just find periodicals that you like in the stacks of the Main Library (1st floor) and peruse the editorials page. Make a copy, and bring the piece to class on Tuesday.
-Discuss what the piece is attempting to persuade you