Rhetoric &Assessing Rhetorical SituationsTHE BEGINNING OF SUCCESSFUL

TECHNICAL COMMUNICATION

Rhetoric is not a bad word

Rhetoric

The art of successful communication

The process of finding all the available means of persuasion in argumentation

The process of composing “texts” in a manner where the author makes conscious, deliberate choices that factor in the variety of ever-changing conditions that decide the texts’ potential effectiveness

Rhetorical analysis

A process of reverse engineering a finished piece of writing to ascertain why the various choices were made

As a model to follow in your own writing

As a critique to understand why a piece of writing doesn’t work

How Rhetoricians think

Language is full of potential different interpretations, a plurality of meanings in a single word or phrase, and misunderstanding is always easier than understanding

Meaning is always made between people and contexts; meaning is not a pre-determined thing that can simply be traded

Communication written without incredible amounts of pre-thinking about the entire communicative situation is bound to fail

Bad technical communication

Does not take into account the audience’s needs

Assumes that what you meant to say is what’s going to come across

Does not consider the best way to present information (for the audience and context)

Is useless, confusing, and doesn’t consider the bigger communicative situation

Rhetorical situation

The inter-related cluster of concerns that should be considered in any communicative setting.

The rhetorical situation acknowledges that the best communication happens in complex spaces where many decisions have been made long before any communication or drafting of a text begins.

One version

Audience

Purpose

Context of Use

GenreMedium

YOU

Purpose

Informative:

Inform

Describe

Define

Review

Instruct

Notify

Advise

Demonstrate

Persuasive:o Persuadeo Influenceo Recommendo Changeo Advocateo Defendo Justifyo Supporto Urge

Audience/Readers

Audience/Readers

Education Level

Technical Knowledge

Cultural Matters

What They Will use the Document for

Age

Gender

Title- esteem

Subject Familiarity

Attention Level

Genre

Memos

Emails

Descriptions

Proposals

Activity Reports

Analytical Reports

Resumes

White Papers

Help/Support Documents

Note:

Some of these (such as Support documents) will have varying genre expectations based on the medium (i.e., print support has different demands than online support)

Medium

Print Font Choices/Font Size

White Space

Layout

Quality of Paper

Size/Shape of Paper

Cost to Produce

Medium

Primarily Visual Understanding an image

Zoom level/various scales

Universal symbols

Consistency of angle, aspect, spatial arrangement

Color is essential to the meaning

Level of detail

Medium

Web Usability

Ease of interaction

organization/flow

Navigation

Sensible, easy

Web safe colors

Accessibility concerns

Context of use

Physical placement of the user

How much time they have to look it over

Proportion in relation to value

Time of use

Geographical location

Need for preservation

Bitzer

Rhetoric is situational

The situation dictates the observations that can be made and actions taken

Meaning resides in events; rhetors merely react to those

Rhetorical Situations are found/encountered like objective things we can stand outside of and assess

Vatz

Rhetoric is translation

Observations made and reported create the situation

Meaning resides in people

Rhetorical Situations are created through subjectivity and the rhetor is always part of that

• Rhetoric is situational• The situation dictates the

observations that can be made and actions taken

• Meaning resides in events; rhetors merely react to those

• Rhetorical Situations are found/encountered like objective things we can stand outside of and assess

It’s PEOPLE!!!

We mostly learn about situations or events through other people. Choice of what details to communicate

(something is always left out)

Meaning/importance is (or is not) added through how the details are communicated

Think back to our connotation activity

“Events only become meaningful through their linguistic depiction.”

Why the Difference Matters

Ethical Responsibility

Bitzer’s model puts no ethical responsibility on the rhetor. They are merely working in an objective situation

Vatz’s model puts ultimate responsibility on a rhetor to be careful in how they represent/(create) the situation they’re responding or entering into

Obama on terrorism

“ISIL is not Islamic. No religion condones the killing of innocents, and the vast majority of ISIL’s victims have been Muslim. ISIL is a terrorist organization, pure and simple. And it has no vision other than the slaughter of all who stand in its way.”

Dan owns a newsstand with a POS (point-of-sale) system that he designed himself. Since it’s his own creation, it operates quite differently from most POSs. His employees are struggling, accidently giving away product, and not knowing what to do when something goes wrong. He decides he needs to write an employee instruction set/procedural manual.

Purpose: inform employees on how to use the POS and manage problems when they arise Sub-Purposes: control inventory, maximize profits,

keep frustrated employees from quitting

Audience: current employees concerns (which will affect writing choices)

Previous experience with POSs

Education level of readers

Technical experience of readers

Quick access to answers

Reader investment (how much they care)

Contexts: Professional environment (sets tone)

May need to be used during a problem while customer waits (sets design)

Revolving employees (sets need to not require previous knowledge)

Genre: Clarity is key (versus other documents where

persuasiveness or research might be key)

Lean prose, bullets, numbers

Medium Probably print (help inside program is useless if program

is not working)

Size, binding, storage

TOC, tabs, access