Persuasive Paper

Type: Persuasive Paper
Length: Part I: approx. 5-6 pages (3-4 page paper, 1-page Cover, 1-page References);
Part II: approx. 1 – 1 ½ pages
Format: double-spaced; 12 point font, approx. 1” margins, pages numbered

This assignment is split into two parts. The first part is the persuasive paper itself. The second part is an audience analysis.

You are expected to use correct APA style, with ample reporting expressions appropriate to the genre you have a chosen. It is expected that the paper will be formatted professionally for the chosen genre, and be free of all grammatical and mechanical errors.

Part I—Persuasive Paper
The persuasive paper will incorporate one of the sources that you used in your Discussion Paper( I have included my Discussion paper) . You will identify an issue in that source, and argue for or against that issue. You will then find a second source that supports your position.

A purpose of the persuasive paper is to write a document aimed at a emulating the stylistic features of a specific writing genre. The genre is up to you: it may be a letter, a blog, a newspaper article, a (boring) report, or a magazine (trade or popular, but be specific—McLean’s or Inc.?). You should review the intended genre and identify stylistic writing features of that genre in order to meet reader expectations of that genre. Examine your own expectations of the genre to help with this analysis. Whichever genre or style you choose, you must support your reasoning for that choice in Part II of this assignment.

This assignment must be aimed at a specific audience which you will identify, and write to meet the needs and expectations of that audience. Some examples are a city council, an organization interested in your topic (non-profit, business, political, environmental, parents/teachers), student union, or administration. The more specific, the better.

Part II—Audience Analysis
In addition to the persuasive paper, you will include an Audience Analysis. You must identify and analyse the audience, in prose form (paragraphs).
Guidelines for the Audience Analysis:

Understanding one’s audience is one of the most important elements of effective communication, Audience analysis can help you gain valuable insight about your readers, which can help you to develop a relevant, meaningful topic. It can also help you to create a writing plan that is tailored effectively to your reading audience, with appropriate tone, style, language and content.

there are three main areas to consider when analyzing your audience: demographics, contextual and knowledge of the topic.

In addition to the questions below, you should consider how each of these factors (age, socio-economic status, etc.) affects your readers’ attitudes, expectations and opinions about you and your topic instructions.

Answer each of the questions below to demonstrate your understanding of your intended audience for the Persuasive Letter:

Demographic Analysis:
1- is my reading audience homogeneous or heterogeneous? If homogeneous, how are the readers alike? What do they have in common? If heterogeneous, how are the readers different from one another? What do readers have in common despite their differences?
2- What is the average age of my readers? What range of ages is represented?
3- In terms of socio-economic status, how would l describe my reading audience? Where do they fit in society’s social and economic status?
4- What occupations are represented in my reading audience?
5- What are my readers’ political and religious affiliations?
6- What ethic, racial and cultural groups are represented in my reading audience?
7- What is my role in relationship to my reading audience? Are we status equals or are we of mixed status?

Contextual Analysis:
1- What might my reading audience expect from this document?
2- What might I expect about my readers’ attitudes toward me (the writer) and my topic?
3- What concerns or problems do my readers have?
4- What interests and goals do my readers have?
5- What will motivate my readers? What types of needs do they have?
6- What biases or preconceived ideas might my readers have about me and my topic?

Knowledge Analysis:
1- How much does my reading audience already know about my topic? What, specifically, do my readers already know about the topic?
2- What can l inform my readers about that they do not already know? What new information would my readers benefit from? How could they use this new information?
3- At what point of sophistication will l be “talking over the heads” of my readers because my information is too complex? At what point of sophistication will l be “insulting the intelligence” of my readers because my information is too simplistic?
4- What questions might my readers have about my topic?