LENGTH: 600-800 words (approximately 3 – 4 pages, double-spaced)
OVERVIEW AND TEXTS: Write an essay that presents a detailed analysis of the arrangement of ONE of the texts listed below from the LIBS 7001 Course Reader. Demonstrate your understanding of the relevant rhetorical concepts (namely those related to arrangement) and critical reading techniques that we studied so far as you respond to the following questions: How does the author arrange the specific text you have chosen to discuss, and is that arrangement effective for its purpose and audience? Why or why not?
TEXTS: Chose ONE of the following texts from the LIBS 7001 Course Reader:
1. Henry Petroski, “Lessons from Play; Lessons from Life” (pp. 424-430)
2. John Yorke, “What Makes a Great Screenplay?” (pp. 608-618)
ASSIGNMENT DETAILS: This assignment asks you to analyze and evaluate the arrangement (order of ideas) of a specific text in light of its audience and purpose. You are not being asked to identify or take a position on the ideas and/or thesis the author presents. Rather, your assignment is to conduct a detailed analysis of how the author arranges (organizes) his/her essay, and to provide your informed assessment of whether or not the organization—the arrangement or order of ideas—is effective for the purpose and intended audience of that text. Formulate a clear thesis that states your assessment of the text’s overall arrangement. Essays that merely summarize the text’s ideas, and/or do not have a thesis, will not fulfil the assignment requirements.
After briefly identifying the essay’s purpose and audience, spend the majority of your essay analyzing how the author organizes the text you have chosen to analyze (do not spend your time debating or summarizing the issues or ideas the author presents). The “Copyright Acknowledgements” (pp. vi-xxi) section of our course reader will help you to identify the original intended audience as you assess the effectiveness of the arrangement for connecting with that audience. The ideas and techniques discussed in the class on arrangement will also assist you as you consider some the following questions and answer them in detail:
What specific techniques does the author use to begin and end the essay?
Analyze the placement of the thesis (main idea): does the author present it at the start of the essay or does the author build towards it?
How does the author arrange the middle paragraphs?
Critique the author’s use/placement/arrangement of specific examples (also known as “illustrations”) to provide evidence for his/her assertions.
Analyze the specific sequencing pattern(s) for organizing the middle paragraphs employed by the author, such as varieties of chronological sequence or spatial sequence.
You can note, but don’t have to discuss in detail, the author’s use of specific methods of development we’ll explore during this term (including comparison and contrast, narration, description, definition, classification, causal analysis, and narration).
Consider if/how author use transitions to reinforce the main idea and create unity and coherence in the essay (at the paragraph level and/or as a whole)
You do not need to address all of elements of organization listed above—focus on those key aspects of arrangement that are most applicable to the particular text you have selected to analyze. Prior to submitting your analysis essay, format it according to the guidelines provided below and use the “Analysis Essay Checklist” handout to review your essay and make final improvements before you submit it to the instructor.