Conquer READING a Rhetorical Analysis Passage So You Can SLAY Your Essay!

Main ideas / lessons

• Rhetorical analysis on the AP exam can feel overwhelming, mostly because of time pressure and because it’s one of the hardest student assignments.
• The key to improving is to read the passage “more consciously” by:
  1. Using the task question to guide comprehension.
  2. Actively marking significant transitions/shifts in the text.
  3. Turning those shifts into a clear understanding of the speaker’s message/purpose.
• Once you understand the message, complete the final planning steps before writing:
  • Select 4–6 pieces of textual evidence (rhetorical devices) and, on exam day, write about at least 2.
  • Label each chosen fragment with the rhetorical choice (what the author/speaker is doing) so each body paragraph has a clear target.
• The method is modeled using a 2012 AP English question about John F. Kennedy and U.S. steel executives raising prices in 1962.

Methodology / step-by-step instructions (detailed)

Step 1: Start from the task question

• Determine what you must answer based on the prompt.
• Guiding question used in this video:
  • “What was Kennedy’s message regarding the actions of steel company executives?”
• Goal: By the end of reading, you should be able to answer this question.

Step 2: Critically (actively) read and mark transitions

• While reading, actively identify important changes in the speaker’s wording and direction.
• Mark each significant transition/change by drawing a line at those points.
• After reading, you can compare your marks to the video example.

Example major shifts Kennedy highlights (by paragraph ranges):

• Between paragraphs 1–2: Kennedy shifts from exposing price gouging to comparing executives’ greed with ordinary Americans’ sacrifices.
• Between paragraphs 2–3: Kennedy explains how price increases will hurt consumers and other parts of national infrastructure.
• Between paragraphs 4–5: Kennedy argues there is no economic justification for the price increases (in terms of steel production/output).
• Between paragraphs 9–10: Kennedy shifts from praising/acknowledging unionized steelworkers to describing government intervention.
• Between paragraphs 11–12: Kennedy shifts from describing potential government action to emphasizing that free-market ideals require accountability from steel executives.

Step 3: Answer the prompt by splitting the “message” into two parts

The video suggests dividing Kennedy’s message into:

1. What the American public should understand about executives’ actions.
2. What the American public should do after understanding it.

Step 4: Plan your evidence for the essay (final planning stage)

• Find 4–6 pieces of textual evidence from the press conference to use in your essay.

Exam requirement rule of thumb

• You must write about at least two rhetorical devices.
• Therefore, technically two main paragraphs could work (one device per paragraph).

Recommendation

• Aim for at least three rhetorical devices.
• Aim for a structure with a thesis, 3 main paragraphs, and a conclusion.

How to choose evidence

• Ask: If I were an American in 1962, what lines would show that raising prices is terrible for the country?
• Ask: What lines would make me angry enough to support the Kennedy administration more strongly?

Evidence locations used in the model

• Evidence from paragraph 2
• Evidence from paragraphs 3–4
• Evidence from paragraph 7
• Evidence from paragraphs 10–11

Step 5: Label each selected fragment with “rhetorical choices”

• The video distinguishes (briefly) between:
  • Rhetorical devices
  • Rhetorical choices (what the author is doing in that passage)

Practical definition

• To identify rhetorical choices, ask: “What do I think the author is doing here?”
• Then explain exactly what the speaker/writer is doing using that language.

Step 6: Example rhetorical-choice labels for the chosen fragments

• First fragment: Kennedy contrasts ordinary Americans’ sacrifice with executives’ greed.
• Next fragment: Kennedy details potentially devastating consequences of raising steel prices.
• Seventh paragraph fragment: Kennedy exposes the lack of necessity/justification for raising prices.
• Last passage fragment: Kennedy represents/frames the investigative measures his administration plans to take.

Why this matters

• The speaker claims these choices are “strong” because a reader could quickly locate exactly where Kennedy presents a specific action/contrast—without being confused by other parts of the text.

Step 7: Begin writing with a strong thesis

• After reading + organizing evidence + labeling rhetorical choices, you’re ready to write:
  • Start with a strong thesis
  • (A separate video covers how to do it.)

Speakers / sources featured

• Tim Freygus (main instructor/speaker)
• John F. Kennedy (subject of the AP-style press conference text used for the example)
• 2012 AP English Literature/Language rhetorical analysis prompt (source referenced as the basis for the model task/text)
• U.S. steel executives / U.S. steel industry (referenced as the group Kennedy addresses in the passage)
• “Garden of English” / Lang Support (brand/course mentioned; a self-study guide and practice materials)