Can her audience make the needed change?.However, she also knows that she should take the assignment seriously. Since her formal written report is for RCM 200, Mei knows only a few people will read it (like her instructor and some of her peers). Next, Mei considers her rhetorical audience. When analyzing rhetorical exigence for your topic, do not simply stop at “the audience needs information.” Go deeper! Think about the relational issues that go on with persuading an audience. Keep in mind that it is not enough to just give them information it must also be understandable. An informative report answers that problem, but it also needs to provide information in such a way that the audience is persuaded to believe the information as credible. In terms of reports, if you have to write an informative report it means you have an audience that needs information (which is something that needs to be done). This is something needing to be done (or a problem to be solved) that can be fixed, to some degree, with the cooperation of others. The first constituent is rhetorical exigence. Constraints: What challenges will your message face (constraints)?īy considering Bitzer’s three constituents of the rhetorical situation, you will analyze the situation before you begin to design your message and, as a result, start from a much stronger position.Rhetorical Audience: Who is your audience and how do they need to receive the information?.Rhetorical Exigence: What is the problem that your message will solve?.Before you even begin writing your message-that is, your written report or presentation-you need to consider the situation you are building your message for, by reviewing Bitzer’s three constituents: This is because “The Rhetorical Situation” is essentially a planning document. In this earlier chapter we mentioned that Bitzer’s theory was good for assessing the context of your communication situation. What matters is that you go through this process early enough so you are realize these issues now instead of the night before the report is due. If you need to change or refine it, that’s completely fine. As you go through the theory below, you might realize that your topic is too broad or that you don’t actually want to write about it. Please keep in mind that you are by no means locked into your f ocused topic and research question at this point. To help you see this in practice, you will continue to see how Mei and Hamid apply the theory to their own reports. You will also notice that there is some overlap between the two in terms of what you need to consider. While both theories are distinct in the rhetorical issues they consider, when combined you will have a much stronger message. Before we connect the theories to your report, we will briefly review the content in both. Specifically, you will be using Bitzer’s “ The Rhetorical Situation” and the Aristotle’s “ Modes of Appeal” to help form a message around you focused topic and research question. This chapter will show you how to do that. Now it’s time to craft your message.Īs we said in a previous chapters, rhetorical theory will help you craft a persuasive message for your audience. By now, you should already have a focused topic and research question for your report.
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