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Rhetorical Analysis Essay

Rhetorical Analysis of Facebook:

For this assignment, you will be analyzing your Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or any other appropriate social media profile. Although you most likely read Facebook profiles and newsfeeds on a regular basis, you are probably mostly unaware of the intricate rhetorical analysis you typically perform while viewing the platform. The goal here will not be to evaluate Facebook as a good or bad communication tool but to examine the rhetorical strategies people use to communicate with others.  As a writer, you will be addressing other first-year writers at Penn State, your classmates.  Although readers are likely familiar with different forms of social media, assume that they have NOT seen your profile page.  Your purpose is to analyze your profile and describe its strengths and weaknesses in terms of its appropriateness to the rhetorical situation and the use of the appeals (ethos, pathos, logos).  Therefore, part of your task is to review briefly the contents of your profile but then to also critically examine how the contents help to craft an online identity.

Expectations:

Grading criteria for this includes:

  • At least a two-page, single-spaced analysis
  • Analyze your social media account rather than summarizing it
  • Include specific visuals that go along well with the details in your essay
  • Analyze your social media account using the appeals invented by the philosopher Aristotle (Ethos, Pathos, Logos)

 

See Essay Below: 

Rhetorical Analysis of Facebook

The pictures, statuses, and articles shared on a Facebook profile do much more than communicate a person’s lifestyle. They paint a picture about that person, and about how they wish to be viewed by the numerous amount of friends linked to their Facebook. My Facebook profile makes many arguments, but perhaps its strongest argument is the one it makes about the strength of my family ties. The pictures that line my profile wall are filled with many distant and immediate family members. My statuses often include something about me thanking or reflecting upon a family member. However, my Facebook profile only reveals what is pleasant about the relationship between my family and me. It hides the negative aspects of our relationship behind the closed doors of our household.

One particular picture on my profile was taken at my graduation party in early August. The photo reveals a verdant background with many members of my family squeezing together as I lay across the ground in front of everyone. I thought it was appropriate to post this picture because I realize that most of my audience would take a liking to it. My audience consists of family, friends who live in my community or close to my community, and adults who I’ve gotten to know as a student, athlete, or worker. The picture provokes emotion because the caption says, “Family over everything”, showing that I truly care and value my family. I’m aware that most of my audience have families of there own, so by using an appeal to pathos I’m able to bring forth their emotions. When someone views the picture, they most likely reflect on the love of their own family and in doing so they decide to press the like button under my picture.

Another picture displays a classic day at the beach. My younger sister is hanging on my back while my brother stands directly behind my right shoulder. The background of the photo reveals beautiful blue skies with bright white clouds and the crashing waves of the ocean. Like the first picture, it includes beautiful and natural scenery. Knowing that most of my audience has an appreciation for the ocean and outdoors, it only made sense to post a picture where my family is standing on the sandy shores of the beach. This picture makes an appeal to pathos by exhibiting a beautiful scene of nature and evoking a nostalgic feeling. The picture also makes an appeal to ethos because of how my family is arranged. For example, my sister is hanging on my back as if I’m giving her a piggyback ride. This shows my audience that I care for her and love her, as a good brother should. It may also symbolize something deeper. If I’m willing to lift her up and love her in the picture, I may be willing to lift her spirits up and love her when life gets hard. In that case, the picture makes me seem like an ethical and morally sound individual.

My pictures aren’t the only things that allude to family connection. Many of my status updates and posts have something to do with a family member. For example, on my Dad’s birthday I posted a happy birthday message on his wall. This message included a Jim Valvano quote that said, “My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me”. Underneath the quote I continued to thank my Dad and wish him a happy birthday. The post, specifically the use of a quotation, made an appeal to logos. By using a quotation, I indirectly told my audience that I’m a fairly educated person that appreciates literature and words that have deeper meaning. This shows that I have a particular opinion in how a father should act, and disseminates my views on how I value my Dad. The use of quotes may also increase my credibility as a person who posts on Facebook, which makes an appeal to ethos. In both cases, logos and ethos, my credibility increases and my audience is more likely to appreciate the post.

My Facebook profile is filled with graduation pictures, particularly pictures taken after the commencement ceremony. All of the pictures include many different members of my family, but one particular photo includes my sister. In it, I’m bending over to reach her height level, resting my head on top of hers. The photo makes a direct appeal to pathos because it shows that I value my sister. I knew that most of my audience would enjoy the adorability my sister adds to the picture, and her cuteness may have caused my audience to feel joyful or youthful when looking at it.

In early August I decided to write a status update that expressed my gratitude toward the town I grew up in and the family and friends I grew up with. My post described the opportunities, memories, and support that my high school and town provided. My expression of gratitude made a direct appeal to pathos because my post showed how much I valued not only my family but also my town and school. I made reference to the teachers, coaches, directors, advisors, and fellow students that had such an impact in my learning. I knew that most of these people were a part of my Facebook audience, so my post would be an easy way to communicate with them directly. By using words such as “joy”, “amazing”, “gratitude”, and “thankful” I made an appeal to pathos and ethos. Not only did I touch on the emotions of my audience, but I also increased my credibility with them by thanking them directly. In doing so, I put myself in a rhetorical situation that allowed my audience to view my constraints with a particular interest.

Whether it’s through pictures or statuses, I’m able to share my family experiences on a daily basis. However, I only share what I choose to share. My Facebook friends are the audience members to these shared items, and I have the power to pick and choose that audience. Through rhetorical situations my profile is able to make many arguments, particularly that my family ties are extremely strong. It’s through different types of discourse that I’m able to use ethos, pathos, and logos to make my arguments and to share my experiences, and it’s through my rhetoric that I paint my own personal picture. My audience may view that picture in different ways, but their views were all created by my use of language and my portrayal of the world around me. My Facebook will continue to make that argument and I will be sure to use rhetoric as the driving force behind it.

Reflection:

I particularly enjoyed this essay because it allowed me to view my Facebook profile as an outsider rather than a user.  By analyzing the profile, I could see how I unconsciously used the different appeals to make my Facebook look credible and interesting.  If I were to change anything, I would choose to evaluate a more equal amount of pictures and statuses.  I evaluated more pictures than statuses, but if I had evaluated both aspects more equally my essay would have been more balanced.

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