Nicholas Eldridge Rhetorical Analysis

Who is the writer? Is there anything in the writer's background that might influence what is (or is not) included in the argument? The writer is William Boissonnault. He has multiple Doctorates (one in physical therapy the other in health science) and a asters degree in !rthopedic "hysical Therapy

What is the writer's purpose? What does the writer hope to achieve? The writer#s purpose is to tell his readers a$out the issue o% &direct access& and he hopes to achie'e telling them and state o%%icials laws should $e passed in %a'or o% not opposing.

What topic has the writer decided to write about? How broad is the topic? The topic is a$out direct access to certain medical %acilities without a re%erral. (t pertains mostly to alternati'e health clinics such as physical therapy and acupuncture.

What situation created the need for the argument?

(n the article he e)plains it is a ploy %rom physicians and chiropractors to limit access to those %acilities $ecause they are the competition. "hysicians are also stating that physical therapists are not taught how to diagnose or recogni*e certain medical issues and seeing a physical therapist may end up doing more harm to a condition you don#t +now a$out.

At what points in the argument does the writer appeal to logic? o the emotions? How does the writer try to establish his or her credibility? They try to esta$lish their credi$ility with their 'ast +nowledge and understanding o% the %ield. He re%ers to state statutes and administrati'e codes.

What is the argument's thesis? Where is it stated? Why? The thesis is stated in the %irst sentence to capture the reader and address the issue and e)plain it. &The American "hysical Therapy Association (A"TA) and its ,omponents continue to wor+ towards achie'ing unrestricted patient direct access to our ser'ices.&

How does the writer organi!e the argument? How effective is this arrangement of ideas? The writer organi*es the argument 'ery well with $old titles at each di%%erent topic and point in the argument. He states within the %irst paragraph who the argument is against and has many paragraphs a%terwards titled with a point o% argument and a summary at the end. This is 'ery e%%ecti'e in getting his point across and gi'ing lots o% in%ormation to $ac+ up his statements.

"oes the writer use similes# metaphors# and allusions? The writer uses a phrase in the title o% the article which is %rom a T- commercial. The phrase is &where#s the $ee%& he e)plains the phrase in the article as well saying that chiropractors that are %or the direct access and are arguing points ne'er say anything to $ac+ up what they say.

"oes the writer use parallelism# repetition# and rhetorical $uestions? The writer does use a rhetorical .uestion in the article. (Where#s the $ee%/)

%iven your analysis# what is your overall assessment of the argument? A%ter reading the article ( assessed that the writer put together a well written argument. He had many points and had %acts to $ac+ them all up. He stated what the argument was a$out right out and who it was against as well. He shows that one doesn#t necessarily ha'e to ta+e the side o% one or the other $ut you can see the o'erall $ene%it %or the pu$lic and that is the most important issue.