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ENGL 204

INTRODUCTION TO RHETORIC AND WRITING STUDIES

3 credits.

What does writing do? How? For whom? How and why do writers and readers compose texts that have an impact? Approaches these enduring questions of English studies from the perspective of Composition Rhetoric, one of English's subfields. Emphasizing critical reading and writing and built around a central theme that varies by semester, the course prepares students to analyze historical and/or contemporary examples of how writing creates communities, influences beliefs, and shapes knowledge.

Prerequisites & course information

Requisites: Satisfied Communications A and sophomore standing Course Designation: Core GenEd - Humanities & Arts Breadth - Humanities Level - Intermediate L&S Credit - L&S Liberal Arts and Science Repeatable for Credit: No Last Taught: Fall 2026 Learning Outcomes: 1. Analyze and evaluate public discourse Audience: Undergraduate 2. Learn about and use conceptual tools and theories to aid analysis and evaluation Audience: Undergraduate 3. Consume and produce rhetoric Audience: Undergraduate 4. Be familiar with key questions, methods, and ideas in the field of composition and rhetoric Audience: Undergraduate 5. Critically examine, from multiple perspectives, how public discourse affects you and means to respond Audience: Undergraduate 6. Understand historical and contemporary contexts when rhetoric had consequences for the public Audience: Undergraduate 7. Learn about and use tools for working with and drawing insights from writing in all forms Audience: Undergraduate Learning Outcomes: 1. Analyze and evaluate public discourse Audience: Undergraduate 2. Learn about and use conceptual tools and theories to aid analysis and evaluation Audience: Undergraduate 3. Consume and produce rhetoric Audience: Undergraduate 4. Be familiar with key questions, methods, and ideas in the field of composition and rhetoric Audience: Undergraduate 5. Critically examine, from multiple perspectives, how public discourse affects you and means to respond Audience: Undergraduate 6. Understand historical and contemporary contexts when rhetoric had consequences for the public Audience: Undergraduate 7. Learn about and use tools for working with and drawing insights from writing in all forms Audience: Undergraduate

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