Conduct a comprehensive summary and analysis of an artifact using one of the rhetorical theories Assignment | Online Assignment

Write a 5 page analysis (5 pages of text, this does not include the title or reference page, as per APA format) of the article using the following format A. Cover/Title page with appropriate information (in APA style) B. Body of the paper structured as follows: a.) Introduction (should include in this section an attention getting device, preview, and reason why your project is relevant/important to the field of communication) b.) Summary of your artifact (explain the artifact you have chosen, highlight the author/creator, its intended purpose, audience, etc.) c.) Summary of theory (discuss the author of the theory, historical development, main theory concepts, criticisms of the theory, etc.). This will require you to go beyond the theory assignment in the historical sense especially. This section is also a great place to use scholarly original research. d.) Critical analysis of the artifact using the theory (evaluate how it is possible to use the theory to explain the artifact, analyze how the artifact is relevant to the theory, explain how the author of your theory would view the artifact, discuss the relevance of the theory to your artifact) e.) Conclusion (summarize your analysis, develop findings from your analysis, explain how future analyses building on yours could be beneficial to the field of communication) C. Reference page with appropriate information (in APA style)

COM 350
Rhetorical Theory, Spring 2020

Final Paper Assignment

For this assignment you are asked to conduct a comprehensive summary and analysis of an artifact using one of the rhetorical theories discussed this semester in COM 350.  This is the final assignment for the course and will be worth 100 points.  The final paper is due on May 11.

***Students should consider that your artifact assignments and theory assignments were preliminary work on this final paper.  Those assignments were also mechanisms to get “approval” for the artifact and theory that you plan to use in your analysis.  If, for some reason, you did not complete those assignments, or decide to deviate from those assignments please keep in mind that failure to get approval of your artifact or theory could result in you receiving a failing grade on the assignment if you choose an artifacts or theories that are inappropriate.

Also, I very much encourage looking at my feedback on both of these previous assignments, if you have not already, as they might provide useful information that will help you prepare the final paper.

Objectives:

1. Provide the student exposure to research in rhetorical and communication studies

2. Provide the student with practice in evaluating artifacts using rhetorical theory
3. Provide the student with feedback on their research, analysis, and writing skills

Process:

1. Locate an artifact of study. An artifact could be a speech, an advertisement, a small portion of a movie / tv show, a commercial, a presentation, a visual artifact, etc.

2. Choose a rhetorical theory discussed during the semester to use to assist you in analyzing the artifact that you have chosen. The theory should be one from a chapter of our text that we have discussed during the semester, and should match well with your previously chosen artifact.

3. Write a 5 page analysis (5 pages of text, this does not include the title or reference page, as per APA format) of the article using the following format

1. Cover/Title page with appropriate information (in APA style)
2. Body of the paper structured as follows:

a.) Introduction (should include in this section an attention getting device, preview, and reason why your project is relevant/important to the field of communication)

b.) Summary of your artifact (explain the artifact you have chosen, highlight the author/creator, its intended purpose, audience, etc.)

c.) Summary of theory (discuss the author of the theory, historical development, main theory concepts, criticisms of the theory, etc.).  This will require you to go beyond the theory assignment in the historical sense especially.  This section is also a great place to use scholarly original research.

d.) Critical analysis of the artifact using the theory (evaluate how it is possible to use the theory to explain the artifact, analyze how the artifact is relevant to the theory, explain how the author of your theory would view the artifact, discuss the relevance of the theory to your artifact)

e.) Conclusion (summarize your analysis, develop findings from your analysis, explain how future analyses building on yours could be beneficial to the field of communication)

1. Reference page with appropriate information (in APA style)

*you will not need to provide an “abstract” for this paper to meet with APA guidelines, since it a short paper.

4. In your critical analysis you will want to employ some original research relevant to your theory as it relates to your artifact. You should include at least 2 scholarly sources in your paper. These scholarly sources would ideally be peer reviewed journals in the field of communication.  Discuss briefly the original content you found in each source and how it is relevant to your artifact.  To be clear, these outside sources should present something new about the theory that was not discussed in our text, that you feel might be useful to add to an analysis of your chosen artifact.  You may also use your text as a source in this paper, but you should ALSO have two additional scholarly sources.

5. Use APA style. Double space your lines of text. Use 12 point type. Have a 1 inch margin around the page

6. The paper is due by the end of the day on the due date. The paper should be turned in using the assignment’s link under “course documents” in the course Blackboard site. It is your responsibility to make sure that your paper has been received.  If your paper is not visible in Blackboard and able to be opened in Microsoft Word, you will receive a zero for the assignment.  A great option is to preview your paper in Blackboard, so you can be assured everything is good.  I do not accept assignments via email.