Here’s the strategies I covered in the ad hoc handout last class:
Audience
To whom does this piece speak?
Who isn’t included in the audience?
What kinds of previous knowledge(s) does the author assume the audience to have?
Kairos
Why is the author writing this piece now?
What events does the piece respond to?
What events/people/ideas does the piece name? Which doesn’t it name?
Ethos
Who is the speaker?
What qualifies/authorizes her to write on this subject?
What predispositions does she admit to holding?
To what communities does she belong?
Pathos
What kinds of emotions does this piece attempt to engender? (Point to a specific place/passage)
Does this seem sincere, or like a kind of pandering?
Logos (Evidence, Argument)
Does the piece supply sufficient evidence to support its claims?
Can you identify an unsupported claim?
Does the piece adequately contextualize statistical evidence?
What other evidence could the author use?
Purpose
Why does the author write this piece?
After putting the piece down, what should I do differently?
Think about the summary verb: describes, questions, asserts, challenges, supports, undermines, critiques, etc.
Style
Is the piece composed in past or present tense?
Is the piece composed in a personal, first-person voice or in a more objective, third-person voice?
What genre is the piece? Does it do anything to defy genre expectations?
Find a sentence that made you smile.
Find a sentence that made you frown.
Find a verb that grabbed your attention.
Are the similes and metaphors in the piece cool? cliche?
Arrangement
Are all the pieces in the right order?
Would you move anything around?
Did you notice a defective period? Is there a logical jump?
What kind of strategy does the introduction employ?
What kind of strategy does the conclusion employ?
