rhetorical analysis essay

Topic is cogent, original or approached in a novel manner/Thesis and preview or structure occur in the first or second paragraph

A thesis occurs, but not within the first or second paragraph/The subject matter has some uniqueness/Organization is perceived but not previewed anywhere.

A sentence is close to being a thesis, but seems vague/Structure is implied but not clearly identified

Topic lacks originality/No thesis is apparent in the paper/Structure is not previewed nor sign-posted

Assignment is clearly met/Pages required fall within the limit range/There is a “thesis for this assignment” that identifies what the assignment was and how this paper meets the criteria.

Paper addresses the assignment, but minimally meets the required page limits (e.g. using half of the page on the minimal page limit)/Assignment parameters are met barely

Paper addresses about half of the assignment requirements/One page short of the minimum page requirement exists

Paper does not address the requirements of the assignment topic/Multiple pages short of the minimum page requirement

Organization follows the preview/Sub-headings support the previewed structure/Transitions are exceptionally clear and connected/Sequence of ideas makes sense

Organization supports the thesis and the preview/Most transitions are appropriate and have a discernible connection

There are some signs of logical organization/Some shifts in idea expression are too abrupt/Some transitions exist

Paragraphs do not follow a structure order/An organizational plan is difficult to find/Transitions are abrupt or non-existent.

Substantial, logical & concrete development of ideas/Assumptions are made explicit/Details are germane, original, and insightfully offered.

Offers solid but less original reasoning/Too many citations indicate lack of original thinking/Contains some appropriate details or examples/Assumptions are not always clearly stated as such

Some theory components are meagerly addressed for analysis/Some citations are vaguely connected to a source/Reasoning seems obvious without insights that are new

Theory components are omitted in analysis/Faulty assumptions/Errors of fact/Non-supported claims/No footnotes or parenthetical citations are offered at all.

Source citations are varied, indicating wide range of research/Does not overuse quotations/Citations and references are more than the assignment’s minimum requirement.

Uses source citations to support, extend, and inform/Citations are at the assignment minimum required/Works Cited page has only the minimum required

Uses relevant sources, but over- relies on a few sources/Quotations may be too long, reducing original thought/Citations are not consistently written according to style chosen (e.g. Chicago, MLA, APA)

Does not offer citations or acknowledgement/ Over-uses quotation or paraphrase to substitute writer’s own ideas/No Reference or Works Cited page offered

Sentences are varied, complex, & employed for effect. Syntax makes sense without words needed to make a thought cogent.

Sentences show variety & complexity/Tone is usually appropriate

Oral style components number 6-10 (e.g. contractions/slang/colloquial/ Use/”a lot of”, etc.)/Clichés are abundant

Oral rather than written styles predominate (More than 10 instances of contractions/slang/colloquial use/”a lot of”, etc.)/Words are missing to make syntax make sense

Essentially error free/0-2 spelling errors/No fragments or run-on sentences exist

Between 3-5 spelling errors exist/No fragments exist/1 run-on sentence exists

Between 6-9 spelling errors exist/1 fragment occurs/I run-on sentence occurs Between 6-9 spelling errors exist/1 fragment occurs/I run-on sentence occurs

More than 10 spelling errors exist/More than 2-3 fragments exist/More than 2-3 run –on sentences exist.

Essentially error free/ 0-1 pronoun agreement problems/No subject-verb agreement problems/No possessive showing errors.

Between 2-5 pronoun agreement problems/1 subject-verb agreement problem/2-4 possessive showing errors

Between 6-9 errors in pronoun agreements/1 subject-verb agreement problem/5-7 instances of possessive showing errors

No MarksMore than 10 errors in pronoun agreements/More than 2-3 subject verb agreements/More than 8 possessive showing errors

Essentially error free/ All pages numbered/No penned or penciled typo corrections/No sexist language/No other punctuation errors

Page numbers on most of the pages/1-2 penned or penciled corrections for typos/No sexist language occurs/Other punctuation errors number 3-5

No page numbers indicated on any page/3-5 penned or penciled corrections for typos/Occasional sexist language/Other punctuation errors number 6-8

No page numbers indicated on any pages/More than 6 penned or penciled corrections markings for typos/Sexist Language/Multiple punctuation errors (10+) generally

Essay looks neat, crisp, and professional/Essentially error free in its presentation and formatting

Essay looks neat but violates one or two formatting rules

Essay looks fairly neat but violates some formatting rules/Multiple spacings are used between paragraphs to increase the size of the paper artificially

Essay looks untidy and does not follow basic formatting rules (e.g. margins, headers. Indentations, & subheaders)/Fonts change