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Shelby Keimel

ENC 2135-0038

Professor Isaacs

Rhetorical Rationale #3

15 April 2017

Unlike the other two genres chosen, the letter to the principal of a middle school allows

me to really evaluate the issue of deforestation. The research project completed on the same topic

did not allow for a real audience I felt I could convince. It lacked personality, whereas with

this letter, I am able to feel as if I am convincing someone on why my topic is so important.

As stated, I feel like a letter really allows me to convince the audience (the principal) how

important the knowledge of deforestation is. I would consider my secondary audience to be the

students of the principal, as I am hopefully convincing the principal to allow me to present a

presentation on deforestation to them. Although the students will not be reading the letter, they

are the whole basis of the letter. Initially, the principal may view this letter as just another paper

in his stack to go through and the students may think this is just another excuse from class, but I

hope my audience feels the need, as I do, to initiate change. Ethos and pathos are both two very

important rhetorical appeals in this genre. First, because I am writing to a principal of a middle

school, I must AT LEAST sound credible in my letter. I am trying to convince the principal to

allow me to extend my knowledge on the topic to his students, therefore I must assure him that I

am knowledgable on my topic. Pathos is also a very large part of this genre as the whole point is

to hopefully spark concern within the principal and students as to how deforestation is negatively

affecting our environment. In the letter, I began explaining how I witnessed a life-changing
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presentation in middle school due to how much it had opened my eyes. In the letter, I am trying

to show the principal how passionate I am about the topic being presented while also trying to

spark urgency on the topic. I believe I definitely achieved my purpose in the letter. If I could

have done anything differently, I may have had a powerpoint to go along with the letter to further

assist in the whole scenario.

I tried to make this letter very formal and polite, as I am trying to CONVINCE someone

of the importance of something. The letter has the same tone it would if speaking to a principal in

person. I used a few sources, such as the World Wildlife Fund and Live Science, to quickly

mention a few important and alarming statistics. Again, I mentioned these statistics in hopes to

spark a sense of urgency and importance in my presentation.

I initially was going to create a powerpoint as my final genre, but I felt that a powerpoint

was too easy and lacked ability to convince. With the letter, I have a more direct audience and am

able to speak to one person in regards to the topic. This helped me narrow down what needed to

be said and discussed regarding deforestation.

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Works Cited

Bradford, Alina. "Deforestation: Facts, Causes & Effects." LiveScience. Purch, 04 Mar. 2015.

Web. 15 Apr. 2017.

"Deforestation." WWF. World Wildlife Fund, n.d. Web. 15 Apr. 2017.