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Rhetorical Analysis
Intro
In most cases, certain authors find it hard to understand why their works are not appealing to their audience, which usually leads to why some articles are more appealing than others? The answer to this question is that some writers indulge their passion in whatever they do; secondly, good writers include fascinating details relevant to real life and easy to relate to. That aside, appeal in writing can be increased by employing creative writing techniques; this could be storytelling or using a controversial statement to capture the audience’s attention and interest. This paper is a rhetorical analysis of Lamott, Anne’s article Shitty first drafts. By adequately utilizing the ethos, pathos, and logos as the main rhetorical appeals, the author effectively persuades the audience how to develop writing skills from poor-quality first drafts.
Pathos
Lamott, Anne utilizes pathetic appeal, also known as pathos, to evoke the audience’s emotions. This type of appeal involves using vivid imagery to foster understanding through an emotional response. According to Lamott, “very few writers know what they are doing until they’ve done it; they do not type a few stiff warm-up sentences and then find themselves bounding along like huskies in the snow; the right words and sentences just do not come pouring out like ticker tape most of the time” (22). From these sentences, “bounding like huskies in the snow” and “pouring out like ticker tape” is the author’s pathetic appeal. Through pathos, the author presents the overall ideas passionately; this fosters emotional response. Vivid imagery presents the writer’s content from visual elements, thereby improving the audiences’ understanding and interest in the article.
Logos
The second writing style that the author uses to appeal to the audience is the logical appeal, also known as Logos, and it means the use of reasoning and arguments to persuade readers. “For me and most of the other writers I know, writing is not rapturous; in fact, the only way I can get anything written at all is to write shitty first drafts” (Lamott 22). In this sentence, the author uses personal experience and other people’s behavior to show that the first writing attempt is usually of low quality. This makes sense to any audience, thereby building on the argument effectively. Through practical reasoning, the author avoids faulty logic and uses personal experience to make sense. Logos serves a crucial role in the article because it presents ideas and convinces readers through reasoning and evidence.
Ethos
The last rhetoric appeal used by the author is the ethical appeal (ethos). This writing involves the author perceiving themselves as an authority within their ideas. “I used to write food reviews for California magazine before it folded; my writing food reviews had nothing to do with the magazine -folding, although every single review did cause a couple of canceled subscriptions” (Lamott 25). Almost all good writing begins with terrible first efforts. It would be best if you started somewhere (Lamott 25). The main idea of these statements is to encourage writers not to give up. However, the author makes it more appealing by indicating personal experiences; and how failure led to success; this stylistic device is an ethical appeal. Ethical appeal is fundamental because it enables the author to tap into the audience; in this case, it is hard work, persistence, and consistency.
Conclusion
In the article Shitty first drafts Lamott indicates professionalism by using pathetic appeal; to be more precise, the author evokes the audiences’ emotions through vivid imagery; it fosters understanding and interest. The second rhetoric writing style that the author uses to appeal to the audience is the logical appeal. More specifically, the author uses personal experience and other people’s behavior as evidence of justifying claims. In the long run, the readers are convinced through reasoning and realistic evidence. The author’s last rhetoric appeal is an ethical appeal; it makes it easy for the author to tap into the values of the audience; in this case, it is hard work, persistence, and consistency. By adequately utilizing the ethos, pathos, and logos as the main rhetorical appeals, it is evident that the author follows a set of patterns, which is fundamental in presenting ideas and persuading the audience.
Work Cited
Lamott, Anne. “Shitty first drafts.” Wardle and Downs (1994): 527-31.