AP Rhetorical Analysis Prompts
Prompt: In the following expert, John Updike, in his essay titled “The First Kiss,” describes the opening of a new baseball season, including reflecting on the past season and the attitude of the fans as the new season begins.
Directions: Read the following narrative carefully. Then, in a well-developed essay, analyze the author’s use of metaphor and other rhetorical devices to convey an audience’s attitude toward a sporting event.
In John Updike’s “The First Kiss”, many rhetorical devices are used to convey his message and deliver a fantastic passage to the reader. These devices include metaphors, sentence structures, and imagery.
In this passage, metaphors are used in many different ways and frequencies. In paragraph 4, he says, “But monsters have short memories, elastic hearts, and very foolish faculties, as many an epic attests.” Here, his metaphor of the“monster” is introduced. He uses this to convey the crowd that supports the Red Sox, season after season. In the end of the 5th paragraph it says,“Monsters love high notes and hoards of gold.” In this sentence he was using the “monster” to depict the love the crowd had for the game and that after the high note on the Star Spangled Banner, emotions are high, and that moment sparks the excitement and competitiveness the “monster” so often exhibits. In paragraph 8 he says, “The many-headed monster booed furiously, and Zimmer laughed, shaking hands with his opposite manager, Torborg.” Here the image of the opposing team’s fans comes into view as they express their disgust for the opposing team. It also shows a contrast between the players attitude, happy and joyful, to the fan’s attitude, competitive and intense. Updike finishes the metaphor in paragraph 10 by saying, “A hard lesson for a hungry monster to master, but he has six months to work on it.” This closes with reitterating the idea of the competitive and faithful fans and that when the season opens, they all have high hopes and dreams that sometimes clouds their logic. Updike states that they will come back to their logic within the 6 month season and may or may not support their team from different perspectives.
Another device used in this piece is sentence structure. In paragraph 1 the last sentence, “But the west sky dried to a moltted pewter, the tarpaulin was rolled off of the infield and stuffed into a mailing tube, and we faithful braced for the first kiss of another prolonged entanglement.” This loose-periodic sentence sets the pace for an exciting and anxious piece, as the sentence starts out in a hurried list and then calms down at the end. In paragraph 3, “In September, the mini-resurrection, Zimmer’s last stand, the miraculous last week of no losses, waiting for the Yankees to drop one.” This loose sentence highlights an increase in the passages pace as the author lists the excitement a fan experienced from the previous season and the hopes that the fans had for their team. It is followed by “Which they did.” A blunt and to the point sentence, outlining the proud-ness and cockiness the fans embrace. Then, “Enough. You’ll never get us to care again. Red Sox.” This statement shows the tragic loss of a season and the frustration experienced by the fans. They had given up hope and turned away, however, in paragraph 4, it says “But monsters have short memories, elastic hearts, and very fool able faculties, as many an epic attests.” This just shows that a true fan will always be a true fan and that they will always come back hoping for a better season. This loose sentence lists the qualities of the “monster” and states very plainly that frustration with a team doesn’t last long. In paragraph 9, the 1st sentence says, “That laugh said a strange thing. It said, This is fun.” This imposes a confusion felt by the tire-less and ferocious fans as they view their calm an laid-back player who is just in it for the love of the sport.
Another device used in this piece is imagery. In paragraph 9, is says “...not all the solemn money men in fur-collared great coats, not all the scruffy media cameramen and sour faced reporters that crowd around the dugouts can quite smother the exhilarating spaciousness and grace of this impudently relaxed sport...” This sentence is describing the typical money making business and the fans that attend and the status they hold. It contrasts this by saying that baseball is not that and that it is about the love of the game over the attire of the fans. In paragraph 7, “the new Red Sox uniforms appeared tight as outfits for trapeze artists but otherwise struck the proper conservative note for a team of millionaires; buttons on the shirt and a single red pinstripe.” This description of the uniforms gives the reader the impression of a very uptight and neatly kept team. This is a comparison to the uptightness and uneasiness felt by all at the start of the season and the process by which the players and fans ease back in to the swing of things. Also in that paragraph it says, “A moment of sun made some of the windows of the Prudential Center Sparkle.” This again, highlights the newness of the season and every piece that goes into the season for preparation.
Metaphors, sentence structures, and imagery are used in this piece. Together they help John Updike convey an audiences attitude towards a sporting event, and in this case baseball. He goes from the monstrous fans to the enjoying teammates as they all begin the long and anxious 6 months of baseball season.
Directions: Read the following narrative carefully. Then, in a well-developed essay, analyze the author’s use of metaphor and other rhetorical devices to convey an audience’s attitude toward a sporting event.
In John Updike’s “The First Kiss”, many rhetorical devices are used to convey his message and deliver a fantastic passage to the reader. These devices include metaphors, sentence structures, and imagery.
In this passage, metaphors are used in many different ways and frequencies. In paragraph 4, he says, “But monsters have short memories, elastic hearts, and very foolish faculties, as many an epic attests.” Here, his metaphor of the“monster” is introduced. He uses this to convey the crowd that supports the Red Sox, season after season. In the end of the 5th paragraph it says,“Monsters love high notes and hoards of gold.” In this sentence he was using the “monster” to depict the love the crowd had for the game and that after the high note on the Star Spangled Banner, emotions are high, and that moment sparks the excitement and competitiveness the “monster” so often exhibits. In paragraph 8 he says, “The many-headed monster booed furiously, and Zimmer laughed, shaking hands with his opposite manager, Torborg.” Here the image of the opposing team’s fans comes into view as they express their disgust for the opposing team. It also shows a contrast between the players attitude, happy and joyful, to the fan’s attitude, competitive and intense. Updike finishes the metaphor in paragraph 10 by saying, “A hard lesson for a hungry monster to master, but he has six months to work on it.” This closes with reitterating the idea of the competitive and faithful fans and that when the season opens, they all have high hopes and dreams that sometimes clouds their logic. Updike states that they will come back to their logic within the 6 month season and may or may not support their team from different perspectives.
Another device used in this piece is sentence structure. In paragraph 1 the last sentence, “But the west sky dried to a moltted pewter, the tarpaulin was rolled off of the infield and stuffed into a mailing tube, and we faithful braced for the first kiss of another prolonged entanglement.” This loose-periodic sentence sets the pace for an exciting and anxious piece, as the sentence starts out in a hurried list and then calms down at the end. In paragraph 3, “In September, the mini-resurrection, Zimmer’s last stand, the miraculous last week of no losses, waiting for the Yankees to drop one.” This loose sentence highlights an increase in the passages pace as the author lists the excitement a fan experienced from the previous season and the hopes that the fans had for their team. It is followed by “Which they did.” A blunt and to the point sentence, outlining the proud-ness and cockiness the fans embrace. Then, “Enough. You’ll never get us to care again. Red Sox.” This statement shows the tragic loss of a season and the frustration experienced by the fans. They had given up hope and turned away, however, in paragraph 4, it says “But monsters have short memories, elastic hearts, and very fool able faculties, as many an epic attests.” This just shows that a true fan will always be a true fan and that they will always come back hoping for a better season. This loose sentence lists the qualities of the “monster” and states very plainly that frustration with a team doesn’t last long. In paragraph 9, the 1st sentence says, “That laugh said a strange thing. It said, This is fun.” This imposes a confusion felt by the tire-less and ferocious fans as they view their calm an laid-back player who is just in it for the love of the sport.
Another device used in this piece is imagery. In paragraph 9, is says “...not all the solemn money men in fur-collared great coats, not all the scruffy media cameramen and sour faced reporters that crowd around the dugouts can quite smother the exhilarating spaciousness and grace of this impudently relaxed sport...” This sentence is describing the typical money making business and the fans that attend and the status they hold. It contrasts this by saying that baseball is not that and that it is about the love of the game over the attire of the fans. In paragraph 7, “the new Red Sox uniforms appeared tight as outfits for trapeze artists but otherwise struck the proper conservative note for a team of millionaires; buttons on the shirt and a single red pinstripe.” This description of the uniforms gives the reader the impression of a very uptight and neatly kept team. This is a comparison to the uptightness and uneasiness felt by all at the start of the season and the process by which the players and fans ease back in to the swing of things. Also in that paragraph it says, “A moment of sun made some of the windows of the Prudential Center Sparkle.” This again, highlights the newness of the season and every piece that goes into the season for preparation.
Metaphors, sentence structures, and imagery are used in this piece. Together they help John Updike convey an audiences attitude towards a sporting event, and in this case baseball. He goes from the monstrous fans to the enjoying teammates as they all begin the long and anxious 6 months of baseball season.