The Murder of Emmett Till

Division or Analysis Essay: Rhetorical Analysis750-1000 wordsIn a division or analysis essay, the essayist analyzes a text by breaking it down into component parts. In a rhetorical analysis or division essay, the essayist specifically breaks down the rhetoric of the text into component parts. The different parts the compose the rhetoric of a text are rhetorical appeals and the rhetorical situation. Read the Unit 2 Overview for a closer look at rhetorical appeals and the rhetorical situation.In this unit, we will watch and analyze The Murder of Emmett Till(Links to an external site.), by Stanley Nelson, and Egypt in Crisis(Links to an external site.), by Martin Smith & Marcela Gaviria.For Essay #2: Rhetorical Analysis, you can write about one of the two documentaries we will cover as a class, or you can choose a different documentary from PBS Frontline(Links to an external site.)or American Experience. (Links to an external site.)If you choose a different documentary from the ones we cover in class, make sure you choose one that is 50 minutes or longer.How to Write a Rhetorical AnalysisIn order to write a rhetorical analysis, your thesis statement will elucidate the main message and purpose of the film, and the body of your essay will show how that message and purpose are communicated through rhetorical appeals.Thesis StatemenYour thesis statement should be located in the first paragraph, probably the last sentence or two of that paragraph. It should include the message and purpose of the documentary film. Make sure you go beyond stating the obvious. For example, yes, one of the purposes of The Murder of Emmett Till is to inform the audience about the murder of Emmett Till. However, that is too obvious. Go further in your thesis statement by describing what the documentary is attempting to persuade the audience to think.Paragraph OrganizationYou should focus only on 2-3 scenes, each 3-10 minutes long. In each scene, you’ll discuss the kind of emotion the writer/director attempts to invoke in the audience; the credibility or believability of the speakers within the documentary; and the logic or reasoning the writer/director uses to reach the audience. Emotion, credibility, and logic are all rhetorical appeals.Consider how you will organize your essay. Will you discuss one scene per paragraph and include all the rhetorical appeals of the scene in that paragraph? Will you discuss each rhetorical appeal separately, including multiple scenes under one appeal? What will work best to prove your argument? NOTE: your argument is your thesis statement. You should be persuading your reader that you are correct about the purpose and message about the documentary.Your conclusion should include the last thing you want your reader to think about.MLAAs always, use MLA guidelines. This means your essay should:be double-spacedhave a 12-inch font and 1-inch marginshavean MLA heading (see the MLA template)include a Works Cited page (we’ll discuss this later in the unit)RubricAThesis statement is clear and complexStudent discusses all three rhetorical appealsParagraphs are organizedStudent follows MLA guidelinesEssay is free of most grammatical errorsStudent reaches word countEssay is turned in on time (there is a 5% per day penalty for essays turned in late)I also have to site the video in quotation marks.