English 1B essay

RHETORICAL ANALYSIS OF professional WRITING

Prepared for
Kaye Sanders
LLD 100A Instructor
San Jose State University

Prepared by
R. B.
LLD 100 A
San Jose University

February 12, 2013

Introduction
A message can be sent and received between people in various ways, but it requires a great deal of background and knowledge regarding the subject matter of the desired message. The writing is one of the most fundamental forms of communication that gives the writer the chance to carefully consider the message itself, the audience, and the most effective way to deliver the desired message. Writing even gives the communicator of any idea the opportunity to include the necessary background information to prime the desired audience for the message. The ability to convey complex and nuanced ideas makes it unique and immensely powerful.

In order to maximize the probability that the receiver of the message understands what the writer is trying to convey an effective writer employs appropriate rhetorical writing strategies. These strategies allow the writer to tailor the message based on the content of the message and the desired audience. Some examples of rhetorical strategies include appeals, narration, definition, and process analysis. These strategies are geared towards focusing on the kind of content that should be included in the written work in order for the reader to receive the desired message. For example an article in a political science journal discussing the complex situation in a recently destabilized region should be written in a style that is free from informality and levity.

An effective way to become more familiar with the use of rhetorical strategies is to analyze how a professional writer has used them. Towards this aim, this paper will analyze how John Pivnichny, an experienced and well-educated electrical engineer, used rhetorical strategies in his article- “A Signal Generator for the VHF Operator”. The article was written in October of 2010 in the QST Journal. This journal is a subscription magazine aimed at technically savvy radio enthusiasts with a background in electromagnetics. Some of these types of articles contain information that may have some industrial application but on the whole they are intended to provide aspiring physicists and engineers information regarding technical projects they can work-on to enhance their understanding of fundamental principles. This particular article is intended to inform radio operators of a specific class of radio about why they should learn how to use a signal generator with a specified component, as well as how to buy one or even make one. In the analysis of this article special attention will be paid to the genre and style, rhetorical appeals, division and classification, narration and process analysis, and finally the use of data and diagrams.

Analysis of Rhetorical Strategies

Genre and Style
This article was published in a journal for a sophisticated audience that has a working knowledge of physics (especially electromagnetism) so the style of writing is like that of a technical report. However this article is not an academic paper, so some of the conventions followed by that type of paper are not strictly adhered to in this paper. One example of this is the exclusion of pronouns and self-identification with words such as I or me in academic journal articles. In this paper the author does not see the need to create a barrier between the information being represented and himself or the audience. A perfect example is when he is discussing how to acquire a capacitor that will be needed to modify a signal generator for very high frequency use. Pivnichny informs the reader that finding the particular part may be difficult so he says, “I have several, so I can send you one at nominal cost”. By doing making this offer the author creates a sense of familiarity and community. This is very interesting because this gesture demonstrates that Pivnichny is passionate about this topic, which is scientific in nature, and he wants to help others overcome obstacles that they may face to continuing their projects. This style is used throughout the article, including the segments that are procedural. The result is a technical paper that reads like a scientist’s letter to a colleague.

Rhetorical Appeals
Rhetorical appeals are often used to effectively support claims. The three types of appeals: ethos, logos, and pathos are used in varying amounts depending on the content and purpose of the message. In the physical sciences and engineering fields, the claims being made rarely (if ever) have emotional components so pathos is marginal in this. Instead, the claims hinge on the ethos and logos used to support them. In this article Pivnichny is claiming that radio users that operate at very high frequency (VHF) should procure and learn how to use a signal generator with a dual 5 to 15pF variable tuning capacitor. He also claims that the purpose of the generator will be to “…perform receiver and filter alignment tasks, serve as a source for measuring antenna patterns and, along with return loss bridge, for evaluating antenna SWR”. Whether or not the reader is convinced will depend on the logical argument that is made and whether or not the author is credible. The easiest of these for the reader to verify is the author’s ethos. He holds several advanced electrical engineering degrees so he is obviously knowledgeable about the subject. Also by being published in a journal that is dedicated to radio operation, Pivnichny gains additional ethos. The article itself employs mostly logos to support the author’s claims. By giving scientific descriptions of the signal generator the reader is able to consider the physical evidence supporting the claim that it is necessary for radio operation at VHF.

Division and Classification
This article does not utilize the strategy of classification a great deal, but it uses division well to clarify the content of the message. First Pivnichny introduces the topic, and then the article is divided into five sections. These are: The Oscillator Design, Construction, Calibration, How to Measure SWR at 222 MHz, and Radios for 222 MHz. The first body paragraph discusses some of the physics theory behind the signal generator as well as some of the components that it contains. The construction section gives detailed instructions on how to build the device. Once the reader has followed the instructions and built the oscillator, Pivnichny tells the reader how to calibrate the machine to optimize performance. After the calibration process the author shows reader how to use the device. Finally, the author describes to the reader how a signal generator can be used to build radios that have ultra-high capabilities and that have only rarely been in the hands of civilians. By dividing this article into these sections the author does a nice job of communicating his message, and he does it in the most logical way that helps readers easily to examine and understand the applications of a signal generator.

Process Analysis
This article is dynamic in that its narrative is not necessarily in the style of a lab report, because it is not meant for academia and its sole purpose is not just to inform but also to encourage the reader to try an educational project. It does however; use the rhetorical strategy of process analysis. The construction and calibration sections along with the section on how to use the oscillator are especially process oriented. This strategy works best for this type of article because process analysis is largely focused on how a phenomenon works. For example, in the calibration section, writer gives instructions that “the generator in the MFJ-259 only goes up to 170MHz, counter easily reads the 250MHz needed for the 1.25 meter version… It should be enough for general use…” Pivnichny also does a good job of analyzing the reasons each step must be followed by explaining the physics behind the operation of the device. As was discussed before, the division of the article is such that there is cohesiveness and the process analysis is along those lines.

Data and Diagrams
Another aspect of effective written communication is the appropriate use of visual aides. Using data and diagrams is an important part of communication in general but it is especially important for technical communication. Science and engineering often involve concepts that are abstract and not easily understood because they cannot be visualized and they are not necessarily relatable to experiences that a reader may have had like in other subjects. In this article Pivnichny includes seven visual aides (four pictures, two schematics, and a table). The first picture is of the front of a signal generator. This picture is useful because if the reader decides to try to acquire one, he or she will have a general idea of what they are supposed to look like. The second and third pictures are of the inside of the oscillator with the second depicting the capacitors that make it generate signals at VHF and the third show the capacitors attached to an operational amplifier (Figure 2, 3 page 34). These pictures are useful but for somebody to understand how to construct the oscillator a more detailed visual aid is required. In the article Pivnichny includes two schematics of the circuit diagram, as shown in Figure 4 and Figure 5 that a person would need tow construct build the oscilloscope. The circuit diagrams show the components required, their specifications, and the topology of the different connections. After the schematics the article includes a Table 1 of frequencies and their associated signal strengths. This is especially important because this is an advanced electrical engineering project and knowing what to expect will help the builder know if the device is working properly. Finally a picture of the radio-oscillator setup is included. This picture isn’t all that helpful for the building process because it is somewhat obvious how it will be connected to the radio but it may be there for the purpose of exciting the reader about what the finished product will look like. Use of all of these visuals aids is important because it provides the support information that can help to imagine how device performs its job.

Conclusions
Pivnichny’s article is an excellent example of effective writing because it appropriately utilizes rhetorical strategies to communicate a complex message. By choosing to write in a style of a technical report but still maintaining a level of familiarity the article is both informative and inspiring to the reader. It is also important to mention that a knowledgeable and well-educated person wrote the article so the message had credibility. The author was also able to divide the article in a way that gave it cohesiveness. Finally the diagrams in the article are ideally suited for this type of message. After analyzing Pivnichny’s article it is easier to see how rhetorical strategies can be used to convey a clear and well-received message.