EmpoWord - A Student-Centered Anthology & Handbook for College Writers, 2018a

General Introduction
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and produce texts that are tailored to those situations. Whenever you create a new piece of
writing, you should ask, What will make my writing most effective based on my rhetorical
situation?
Every text comes into being within a specific rhetorical situation and reflects the characteristics
and values of that situation. Although there are
many ways to break
down a rhetorical
situation, I use the acronym SOAP for
subject,
occasion,
audience, and
purpose. 11 These are
distinct elements, but they often overlap and inform one another. Let’s take a closer look:
Subject: The subject, put simply, is what you
are writing about. It’s the topic, the
argument, the main concern of the rhetoric
you are producing or consuming.
Every text has at least one subject;
sometimes, a text will have both an implicit
and explicit subject.
Occasion: Every piece of rhetoric is located in
time and space. The term occasion refers to
the sociohistorical circumstances that
prompt the production of a piece of rhetoric.
What is it that makes you write? How does
your moment in culture, geography, and
history influence your writing?
Every text has an occasion; sometimes, that
occasion is clearly stated, and other times we
have to infer.
Audience: The target audience for a piece of
rhetoric is the person or group of people for
whom you’re writing. Although many people
will encounter certain texts, every piece of
rhetoric is designed with a certain audience
in mind.
Every text has at least one audience;
sometimes that audience is directly
addressed, and other times we have to infer.
Purpose: As I mentioned above, every piece
of rhetoric tries to accomplish something. We
can state this purpose using an infinitive verb
phrase, like “to entertain,” “to persuade,” “to
explain.”
Every text has at least one purpose;
sometimes that purpose is obvious, and
sometimes it is insidious.
Identifying these elements is only step one. What matters more are the implications that each
of these elements carries. For each text you create, you should ask What is my subject? What is
my occasion? Who is my audience? What is my purpose? But you should also ask How do each
of those answers influence the way I will write?