Rhetorical knowledge is an understanding of writing and strategies used within writing across a variety of different situations. This knowledge includes utilizing skills such as rhetorical appeals, as well as being able to recognize when rhetorical appeals are being used, what kind of appeals are being used, and when those appeals become fallacies. Rhetorical knowledge also includes a thorough understanding of genre and how genre might change according to who the audience is and what that audience’s expectations are. The use of multi-modality through images, videos, writing style, tone, voice, etc., are also aspects of rhetorical knowledge.
Using rhetorical appeals is a strategy that allows a writer to persuade their audience, and the chosen appeal might change based on who the audience is. Earlier in this class we took notes that explained three different rhetorical appeals. During this discussion I learned that a writer can use an ethos appeal to create credibility, a pathos appeal to create an emotional response, and a logos appeal to create a presence of logic. The daybook entry beside this demonstrates my ability to recognize when a specific rhetorical appeal is being used to persuade me. For example, I referenced a Papa Johns commercial, and I stated that the commercial uses an ethos appeal by using professional football players and the owner of Papa Johns as the spokesmen. I understood that through doing this, the company was trying to create a sense of credibility. Although an important part of rhetorical knowledge, recognizing when a specific appeal is being used to persuade an audience is just one skill that I have learned.
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Multi-modality is the newest aspect of rhetorical knowledge to me. In classes prior to this, when I was told to make a piece multi-modal I would immediately think to simply add pictures. Not only would I solely add pictures, but I would add random pictures in random places that had no real purpose. Due to class discussions and videos that we have watched, such as the Jaguar commercial, I now understand that multi-modality encompasses much more than just images. This technique can be achieved through color schemes, changes in font, the voice of the piece, word choice, language, organization, etc. In the blog post beside and below this I attempted to use multiple aspects of multi-modality to my advantage. At the very top of the piece there are two images, but those images have a significant meaning. I placed the images at the top of the piece to create an immediate division, to allow my audience to visualize the different sides of the issue, and I think those images successfully do just that. The use of those images is also my attempt to utilize an emotional, or pathos, rhetorical appeal, the aspect of rhetorical knowledge that I previously mentioned. Within the writing itself I asked multiple questions, and my goal was to relate to my audience on a personal level through doing this. I wanted them to become engaged in the reading. Near the end of the blog post I include another important aspect of multimodality, a guide, and I did this through a link. The link allows me to tell my readers where to go to further research the topic I am discussing. The last thing I will address is the poll I included at the bottom of the post. I felt that the poll would cause my audience to think critically about they had just read, and hopefully it would allow them to take stance on the issue, which they might not have done without this strategic tool. |
It blows my mind that throughout my entire education prior to college I was basically taught that genre was limited to Fiction, Non-Fiction, Mystery, Fantasy, etc. I had never considered that something such as the ransom note we read in class had its own genre entirely. This is an example of how my rhetorical knowledge has expanded because of the information I have learned in this class. The daybook entry below this is my love letter to an inanimate object, and although at the time I thought it was ridiculous, it demonstrates my knowledge of genre. Following the love letter I showed my ability to recognize the patterns and features within the love letter I had written to other love letters. This allowed me to recognize that the letter I had written fits into a genre itself. I was able to identify that there were specific rules that I had followed within my love letter, such as the fact that it was in a formal letter format and that it used positive language and cheesy compliments. My ability to recognize these rules and patterns displays my ability to recognize different genres. This is a key aspect of the entirety of rhetorical knowledge.