Critical Analysis Analyzing a Text

Rhetorical Context Background of the author What makes the author reliable or credible? Is the writer writing within his or her area of expertise? Does the author identify with a particular group or set of beliefs? What experience does he or she have? Is the author a writer by profession? Why is that significant?

Rhetorical Context Type / Genre of the Source Why is that significant? Is it a researched and documented essay by a specialist? Is it the text of a speech delivered to a specific audience? Is it an editorial or an op-ed piece? Is it a syndicated column, political cartoon, or comic strip? Why is that significant?

Rhetorical Context Intended Audience Why is that significant? Who was the article meant for? Does the author expect a popular audience? A general but educated audience? A specialist audience of shared expertise? Does the author anticipate an audience that share cultural, political, or religious values? What type of audience was it? Supportive? Sympathetic? Skeptical? Hostile? Why is that significant?

Rhetorical Context Primary Purpose Why is that significant? Is the work primarily informative or persuasive in intent? Is it designed to entertain or be inspiring? Does it narrate, describe, illustrate, define, compare, or offer analysis? What goals does the author identify in his/her thesis statement? Why is that significant?

Rhetorical Context Sources of Information Why is that significant? Where was the information obtained? Are the sources clearly identified? Beware of “unnamed” or “reliable” sources What kind of sources does the author use? Does he rely on facts and figures? Personal experience? Anecdotal evidence? Why is that significant?

Style Diction and Tone Why is that significant? Is the writer using a conversational tone or a more formal style of writing? Does the writer use slang words or technical words? Is the word choice concrete and vivid or abstract and intellectual? Why is that significant?

Style Sentence Structure Why is that significant? Are the sentences generally long or short, or varied in length? Does the writer use sentence fragments (incomplete sentences)? Does the writer seem to be using an overly simplistic style? If so, why? Does the writer use parallelism (coordination) or antithesis (contrast)? Why is that significant?

Style Figurative Language Why is that significant? Does the author make use of metaphors or similes? What are the items being compared? What is the point of comparison? What is the emotional impact of the figurative comparison? Why is that significant?

Style Organization Why is that significant? Where are the ideas placed? The beginning, middle, end? What does the placement say about the importance of the idea? What parts of the discussion are developed at length? What points are treated only briefly? Why is that significant?

Style Other things to pay attention to: Hyperbole (exaggeration), understatement, or irony Quotation marks, italics, or capital letters Repetition Examples