Assignment #2
20%
Assignment Requirements
• Deadline: End of day on Friday at the end of Week 6 (see Course Schedule for date)
• Assignment length: Approximately 500-700 words max (not counting quotations and
citations). Do not exceed this word length limit.
• Upload your assignment (as a Word document) to the Assignment 2 Dropbox under
“Assessment” online. Your assignment file name should include your name in it to
help me keep track of it: for example, “JanetWong_A1.docx”. Uploading your
assignment here will simultaneously submit it to Turnitin.
• This is an individual assignment. Please do not collaborate with anyone or have your
work edited by another. If you have questions, contact your instructor.
• Format your document as a memo directed to your instructor. Leave ample margins
and use 12 pt Times New Roman font.
• If you draw information from the article you are analyzing, please place direct
quotations in “ “, but you do not need to provide parenthetical citations. If you take
content from a secondary source, you MUST cite it. This is very important. If you
don’t follow these instructions, you run the risk of being charged with academic
misconduct. Direct quotations must be acknowledged in “ “, and you must indicate
the sources in parentheses ( ) after those places in your letter where you rely on the
sources. Paraphrased material doesn’t require “ “, but it must still indicate sources in
( ). You do not have to provide a References list for this short assignment. After this
assignment, I will be asking you to use APA citation format, including in-text
citations and a References list.
The Week 6 slides discuss rhetoric, persuasion, and risk and crisis communication. This
assignment focuses on rhetoric and persuasion.
You have two options in this assignment. Complete ONE of the following only:
1. Perform a rhetorical analysis of one of the articles below.
OR
2. Write a rhetorically persuasive response to one of these articles. You can rebut,
re-focus, extend, or modify the original argument. Be sure to incorporate
rhetorical appeals and Toulmin argument in your rebuttal.
For both assignment options, your submission will be graded based on how well you
demonstrate your understanding of the techniques of persuasion discussed in Week 6.Article 1: Time to Focus on Domestic Violence. Discusses
addressing domestic violence
in the context of #MeToo movement.
Article 2: Public health ignores men’s suicide. Discusses challenges of addressing suicide
among middle-aged men.
Article 3: Gentrification’s toll on the health of long-term residents. Discusses how
gentrification of neighbourhoods can have negative health and social impacts
on long term residents and people who live in poverty.
Article 4: Are Sick Day Policies Making Us Sicker? Discusses how employers’ sick
leave policies do not support the health of workers.
Article 5: Governments should tackle growing problem of loneliness. Discusses the social
and health impacts of loneliness and challenges of addressing the problem.
Article 6: Workplace violence is not part of a doctor’s job. Discusses reducing assaults on
physicians at work.
Option #1: Guidelines/Structure For Rhetorical Analysis
You will perform a rhetorical analysis of your chosen article. That is, you will analyze
the content of the editorial you have chosen to determine its rhetorical situation (Week 2
slides), purpose, intended audience, argument (with reference to Toulmin structure),
persuasive strategies, and rhetorical appeals. Your goal is to gain a better understanding
of how persuasion works by carefully examining this attempt at persuasion.
Write the assignment in memo format directed to your instructor (see Week 4 slides for
an example of memo format). Your memo should be single-spaced and use Times New
Roman 12 point font. No title page is required. No additional research is required.
1. Paragraph #1: Briefly indicate the extent to which you think the essay is
persuasive (compellingly so, somewhat, not at all?) and why you hold this
opinion. Then, identify the audience for the essay and explain why you believe it
is well tailored to the audience or not.
2. Paragraphs 2-3: Provide a careful account of the argumentative and persuasive
techniques employed in the essay. You must refer to the rhetorical appeals and
Toulmin argument structure here. Identify the major claims, important evidence
or data, and implicit or explicit warrants. Also consider backing, rebuttal, and
qualifiers as appropriate.
3. Paragraph 4: Critique at least two of the essay’s arguments or appeals. Why
shouldn’t we agree with this claim? Why is the evidence weak or inappropriate?
Which warrant is unconvincing? Which rhetorical appeal is ineffective? How
could the essay be more effective?
4. Paragraph 5: Briefly summarize your thoughts about this persuasive essay.Option #2: Guidelines for Persuasive Response
Write the assignment in memo format directed to your instructor (see Week 4 slides for
an example of memo format). Your memo should be single-spaced and use Times New
Roman 12 point font. No title page is required.
Instead of analyzing the persuasive techniques used in the article itself, write your own
persuasive response that either rebuts, re-focuses, extends, or modifies the original
argument. This type of policy document or position paper is often written to gain support
or influence policy makers and decisions.
If you choose this option, you may wish to support your position with research. Be sure
to acknowledge your secondary sources as requested above.
Do not simply critique the existing article. Instead, define your own position about the
subject matter and write a persuasive argument that supports your position and
perspective. Your persuasive piece should target the same audience as the initial article.
Your persuasive argument should employ the three rhetorical appeals and the Toulmin
argument structure (both first and second triads).
It’s difficult to suggest a structure for you, but, generally, persuasive pieces place the
primary claim at either the beginning of the article or the end of the article and support
the claim with evidence and reasoning in the body of the article.
