Analyzing Rhetorical Strategies in "Pay Teachers More"

In this blog post, I will analyze the rhetorical strategies used in the article, "Pay Teachers More." There are three fundamental rhetorical strategies: ethos, pathos and logos. I will be answering questions found in Student's Guide on page 181-184.

Appeals to Credibility or Character: 

• Which items on the ethos bulleted list on page 182 can you recognize in your text?
• In the text, there are examples of:
• references to credible sources-- "The figure is from a study by McKinsey & Company, 'Closing the Talent Gap.'" (Kristof)
• author's public image/information about author's expertise-- link to bio shows that he has been a writer for The New York Times since 2001, Harvard graduate, Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, foreign correspondent for The Times and won many prestigious awards, including two Pulitzer Prizes. 
• acknowledgement of counterarguments and refutations to those arguments: "From the debates in Wisconsin and elsewhere about public sector unions, you might get the impression that we're going bust because teachers are overpaid. That is a pernicious fallacy." (Kristof)
• appeals to values or beliefs shared by the audience-- "We all understand intuitively the difference a great teacher makes." (Kristof)

• How and why would the author use these strategies?
• The author uses these strategies to relate to and engage with the audience, to establish his credibility and help to back up his claims with evidence.

• How do these strategies affect the audience's perception of the author's credibility and character?
• These strategies force the audience to consider his many accomplishments, both academically and professionally. The audience's perception is therefore more trusting and positive towards the author, because of these effective methods. 

• How does the use of these strategies impact the effectiveness of the text's overall message?
• The use of these strategies provide clarity in the text's overall message, as it verifies the claims that he makes. The reader not only trusts the author more, but finds that he or she can relate to him more. 

• Does the author seem to have any biases or assumptions that might impact their credibility?
• Yes, the author says, outright, that, "I'm not a fan of teacher's unions," (Kristof). This fact could help shape his opinion and overall sentiment towards the controversy. He also seems a little wary or bitter towards the government as a whole, as he rarely says anything positive about the institution. Overall, however, the writer is able to present his opinion without overwhelming the reader. 

tuckett. "Emotions." 08/01/2009 via Flickr.
Attribution Share Alike 2.0 Generic License.

Appeals to Emotion:

• Which items on the pathos bulleted list on page 182-183 can you recognize in your text?
• Some examples of pathos found in the article include:
• level of formality: uses words like "I" and other personal pronouns, which gives off a relaxed feel
• shocking statistics: salaries then and now, additional earnings that students would make if they had a "good" teacher, comparisons between other countries' and our education system
• tone of voice: conversational, relaxed, yet passionate

• What emotional responses is the author attempting to create? 
• The author is trying to stir empathy in the reader towards teachers. He is also trying to get the audience to question and doubt the current situation that education is in, especially as he relates it to other countries.

• What is the actual result?
• The author actually achieves this result, because after reading this, I personally felt sorry for the amount of disrespect that teachers receive in our country. I was also astonished that while other cultures seem to value and praise their nation's educators, ours looks down on them for their low economic status. This made me even more bitter, because their low income is not their choice.

• Are these emotions effective or ineffective for this particular audience and rhetorical situation?
• These emotions are effective, because this particular audience, if they read this article, would already have a strong interest in the education system. After reading the text, they must feel even more compelled to change or advocate for a change, and to think about teachers a little differently. 

• How do these emotional appeals affect the credibility of the author or the logic of the text?
• If anything, I think that the way that he presents his opinion and uses these rhetorical strategies boosts his credibility. At the end of the article, he seems like an honest, good-natured writer, who is an advocate for the educators of our country.

Appeals to Logic:

• Which items on the logos bulleted list on page 183 can you recognize in your text?
• Some logos examples that were included in the article are:
• Statistics: The writer included many different statistics, whether it was comparing teacher's salaries over a large number of years, giving evidence to claims of the benefits of having a "good" teacher, and other pieces of informative data.
• Effective organization of sentences, paragraphs, etc.: The author did a good job of creating a natural "flow" throughout the text, as his transitions were smooth and easy to follow. 
• Clear transitions between sections of text: "moreover," "indeed," "consider"

• What response is the author attempting to create by employing these strategies?
• The author is attempting to come off as well-educated, as well as knowledgeable about the topic he is writing on. Kristof also tries to provide the perfect amount of information that helps his credibility, while not overwhelming or boring the reader. 

• What is the actual result?
• The writer achieves this result, as well. He provides a large variety of statistics, and gives context surrounding all the data. He also refers to other credible sources. Additionally, the way he writes makes him sound even more intelligent and rational.

• Are these strategies effective or ineffective for this particular audience and rhetorical situation?
• These strategies, and the way that he carries them out in writing, are effective for this audience and rhetorical situation. The audience is proposed with a lot of new bits of information, that help to form a plausible and complete argument. 

--Jenny Bello


REFLECTION:

After reading my two classmates' blogs, I have a deeper understanding of how rhetorical strategies are illustrated in individual texts and articles. Both Rachel and Lauren did an excellent job of developing and analyzing these strategies being used in their texts, and I think that I did, too. I gave specific examples to the strategy being used in the article, and I explained why the writer might have chosen to do so. Lauren's article seemed to focus mainly on ethics, as did Rachel's. After discovering this, I am realizing that a lot of current and up-to-date controversies revolve around ethical issues. I think that this blog post and analysis will be advantageous when completing this upcoming project.