100 Rhetorical Analysis Essay Topics

Rhetorical analysis essay topics always stood out from other tasks of similar nature. There are many assignments students get at college, but this one is more difficult, largely because few people understand what it even means. Rhetorical analysis means writing an essay where you research a specific text or speech and determine what elements it contains to impact the audience.

These could be literary devices, plot, characterization, style, method of influence, and many other things. To write a good essay, you should understand what makes an author’s rhetoric effective, but even more importantly, you must choose an appropriate topic for your future analysis. The choice is vast, so it’s not an easy task, but fortunately, we have many interesting options you could choose from.

How to Pick Rhetorical Analysis Ideas

The first thing to know is that any topic you select must resonate with your believes in particular. Sure, it has to have academic value — one cannot just write whatever comes into their mind, but your own interest is almost equally important. If you think the text you’re analyzing is boring, you’ll never succeed with your essay. If you hate your chosen topic, there is actually a bigger chance of getting great results with it because you could always pick a negative stance, introducing an argument against the author’s usage of literary techniques. So, passion for the text is everything, whether it’s of positive or negative nature. Recall any works that affected you on some level and use them as the basis for your essay.

Another strategy for picking good topics for rhetorical analysis is to discuss it with friends or professors. They might not know your preferences, but they could give new ideas through their brainstorming. Doing research before you start working on assignment is also crucial. For example, you decided to analyze a short article written by an unknown writer, but you don’t entirely understand how rhetorical analysis works. You won’t be able to find other similar analyses available, so you’ll be stuck. If this is your first try, be sure to select an essay topic other people have already explored before — it’ll give an idea of how to proceed.

100 Rhetorical Analysis Topics List Developed for You

Still feeling uncertain? It’s not a problem, so there is no need to worry! Take a look at the list we’ve composed below. It has 100 topics you could use for your essay.

Easy Rhetorical Analysis Essays Topics

Let’s start with something you won’t have any problems with! Some texts are widely known, so finding research on them isn’t difficult.

1. What literary devices used in “Pride and Prejudice” turn this book into being so popular even now?
2. Literary tactics used within Wordsworth’s poems
3. What symbolism do Harry Potter’s green eyes have?
4. What makes TV Hannibal Lecter’s monologues influential?
5. Fox Mulder’s vs. Dana Scully’s modes of persuasion
6. How true love is depicted in cartoons to resonate with children?
7. Tone of TV Sherlock Holmes & Why he rubs people the wrong way
8. Why are King Arthur’s speeches inspiring within ‘Merlin’ TV show?
9. Describe setting of the Hunger Games & Explain what makes it gruesome
10. Explore choice of dresses in your favorite TV show & Explain what it implies

Rhetorical Analysis Essay Ideas For High School

Good rhetorical analysis essay topics for high school are also pretty easy. Here they are.

1. Frankenstein novel and movies: Their stylistic similarities and differences
2. Why is Ron Weasley less compelling character for many readers/viewers?
3. How setting in ‘Games of Thrones’ reflects its plot
4. Which elements help create the perfect setting in magical realism genre
5. Why are movies usually worse than books they are based on?
6. Harry Potter in the movies vs. books: Differences in portrayal
7. Elements within fiction that inspire fans to write fanfiction on its basis
8. Three stories by Kate Chopin – Their similarities in terms of stylistics
9. Why Romeo and Juliet are still known in our days?
10. Details about secondary characters in “To Kill a Mockingbird”

Rhetorical Essay Prompts For College

How about rhetorical analysis example topics for college? They are a little more complicated, but it just makes them all the more interesting!

1. Your favorite Shakespeare’s poem & Why you like it
2. Role that color green plays in Twilight saga
3. Analyze appearance of vampires from Twilight vs. Interview with a Vampire
4. Compare movies based on Stephen King’s works versus his novels
5. Explore every chilling element in “The Birthmark” by Hawthorne
6. Choose your favorite novel and elaborate on how characters communicate in it
7. Soap operas & Why many people consider characters’ behavior in them exaggerated
8. Setting and conflict in Joyce’s “Ulysses”
9. Analyze the major conflict in Tolstoy’s “War and Peace”
10. Elements of presidency and dictatorship within “Hunger Games”

Non-Fictional Ideas

Analyzing fiction is the most popular choice, but how about rhetorical essay topics on other kinds of works?

1. Trump’s least effective speech: Why was it not successful?
2. Obama’s introduction of new health policies: How did people react?
3. What tactics should ancient kings’ speeches follow to motivate their armies?
4. Surrender speech, its weaknesses & strengths
5. What elements should historical books have to be perceived as convincing?
6. Pathos in real-life stories written by survivors of tragic events
7. How to separate true accounts written by victims from fake ones?
8. Choose any article written by journalist and analyze its efficiency
9. Ethos in reports presented by medical personnel
10. Logos of arguments used by teachers to prove usefulness of their subjects to students

 Rhetorical Topics for Art and Culture

Creative topics for rhetorical analysis essay is something lots of students prefer.

1. Why is Mona Lisa’s smile considered elusive?
2. Painting that stopped you in your tracks
3. Most successful billboards ever created
4. Least effective billboards you have ever seen
5. Song that you consider the best representative of your culture
6. Advertisement that struck a chord with you
7. Can rap be considered American cultural heritage?
8. What makes known blogs popular?
9. Which elements help make a successful ad?
10. What design of an apartment could say about its owner

Ideas for Rhetorical Analysis Essay on Movies

Probably everyone likes movies. If so, these rhetoric topics might be your best pick.

1. Analyze actors’ performance in ‘Titanic’: Is it believable?
2. How do horror movies manage to scare their audience?
3. How fighting scenes in ‘Twilight’ look
4. ‘Saw’ movie: A mindless horror or a chilling thriller?
5. Which version of King Kong is better and why?
6. Analyze the oldest movie and techniques used in it for influencing audience.
7. Which Harry Potter movie is the worst in an entire franchise?
8. Compare versions of ‘Pride & Prejudice’ & State which one stays closest to the original
9. Can we consider “Jurassic Park” impressive in our days?
10. Compare Chinese action movies against American ones

History Prompts

The past is fascinating, and these rhetorical analysis paper topics could help analyze it more deeply.

1. Pick an old historical figure & Analyze how they became known
2. Winston Churchill: His actions versus his words
3. What people thought about honesty in the past & How did they express it?
4. Why are many important historical documents locked away from the public?
5. Analyze reasons for WW2 based on available historical documents
6. How weddings were organized in the past & What do people do now to express their love?
7. What role symbolism played in Ancient Egypt?
8. People’s dreams of immortality and how they progressed over the years based on literature & art
9. Understanding how Syrian politics promoted war
10. Analyze setting in Troy and reasons that brought war into it

Advanced Rhetorical Ideas

If you like a challenge, check out these more difficult rhetorical essay topic ideas.

1. Portrayal of hope in three different works of art: How did their authors express it?
2. Value and meaning of food as presented in “Hunger Games”
3. What does the Stag man mean in TV show “Hannibal”?
4. Depictions of Mind Palace in “Sherlock” and “Hannibal”
5. Christmas in poor vs. rich families in literature: How are they portrayed?
6. Analyze every speech of Martin Luther King in regard to their effectiveness
7. How animals communicate within different literary works
8. Compare & Contrast leadership strategies of two historically relevant people
9. Why is Mother Teresa talked about still? Delve deeply into reasons
10. Pick two different ambitious people & Evaluate how they fought to realize these ambitions

Enjoy What You Write and Write What You Enjoy

We hope that our list of topics helped find good rhetorical analysis topics. Pick any idea and develop it into a unique essay. Personal involvement means a lot when it comes to analysis, especially of a rhetorical nature. Since it requires taking firm position on a subject, you should have an actual interest in it. Remember what stories you’ve read before, think about the last inspirational or funny speech, and you’re ready to go!

But if something else is bothering you and you don’t feel up to looking for topics for rhetorical analysis, let us know. We’ve been assisting students in different ways for quite a while, so we could help figure out which theme to choose or even craft an essay in your stead. Explain your requirements, talk with your specialist, and get your essay done right by your deadline.