Rhetorical Analysis
Cancer is a disease that affects the body in a deadly way. Cancer treatment like chemotherapy affects the way a person views their body image. Author Madison F. Van published a scholarly paper called “Body Image among Adolescents and young adults diagnosed with cancer: A scoping review.” The author informs the reader percentages and data to evaluate the positive and negative viewpoint on the way cancer treatment positively and negatively impacts the body. The body image is affected psychologically and cognitively which is shown through the percentages of BI. The author uses studies reports on social outcomes with cancer patients’ body changes. This essay will help the reader gain a better understanding of how cancer treatment affects the patient cognitively and their emotional state. The rhetorical analysis will let the reader gain a better understanding of how the rhetorical strategies form the article. Madison strategizes to fully break down the data through study reports and clinical implications on the theory of cancer patients functioning with their negative or positive body image. The author uses rhetorical situations to evaluate the way body image correlates with cancer.
Cancer treatment like chemotherapy kills the red and white cells which make the body feel very fatigued. The author uses an informative tone which makes the audience engaged and want to learn or gain more knowledge from the data. “Appearance changes included hair loss, weight changes, scars, among others” (Van et al). The informative serious tone makes the reader empathetic for people who are withgoing changes with their body due to cancer. This informative tone lets the audience gather information about the mental health of cancer patients. The author reels in information from statistics and data. The author uses this approach to raise awareness for cancer patients dealing with a tremendous change in their body, which also affects their mental health and can cause “depression” and “avoidance of social issues”. The use of qualitative studies is shown to inform the audience of positive and negative images which contribute to raising awareness for patients getting the support they need with gaining “pride” and “confidence”. For example, “These studies represent a dedicated support system for patients struggling emotionally and finally getting help with “interventions” and “support groups” to get a fanatical support system to navigate “body acceptance”. The emotional and cognitive connections show that body image is a principal factor when it comes to battling cancer. The data is used to inform the audience that body image affects one’s mentality. For example, “Females had higher negative body image compared to males”. Considering this, females mental health decreased much more than males since women want to feel confident in their body, it plays a huge role emotionally. The purpose being conveyed is clearly to cause a discussion about cancer patients’ view on their bodies, how it can impact them mentally and emotionally. She uses her data and study reports to make the reader think critically and push them to open their eyes to the real world. Cancer patients go through a tremendous amount of stress, and it impacts their body positively or negatively, the author’s main purpose is to inform the reader gain better knowledge of their bodies and how it feels to have cancer.
The author’s paper is clearly to inform the audience with an objective approach to showcase the findings of theories when it comes to adolescents with cancer. The author is part of the department of kinesiology, she is interested in doing cancer research. The paper’s main audience will reach families of patients with cancer or cancer patients to view their statistics and data. The audience will be engaged in gaining knowledge about the process of cancer patients’ treatment having permanent body changes through the studies reported. The genre being a scholarly paper reaches an audience who may be familiar with cancer treatment and body image. The medium also applies considering it is online. It is used to reach families of patients, even doctors, to understand what their patients go through mentally. The genre supports the purpose of how cancer affects the body and mental health. The author’s conclusions of body image correlations are shown to gain a deeper knowledge beyond cancer patients. The rhetorical situation is gaining a bigger amount of knowledge with data and statistics. When a person goes with a change like having scars on their body, it can tarnish the mind. The connection between mental health and body image is an important factor the author is conveying. The author wants the reader to feel how it is to walk in a cancer patient’s shoes. She builds off her information by providing evidence like data. For example, “These studies described 11 unique interventions or programs focused on mindfulness and self-compassion (n = 3), body image and self-esteem (n = 3), exercise/physical activity (n = 2), social support (n = 2), psychosexual development (n = 1), resilience in stress management (n = 1), and general AYA-specific education and resources (n = 1), with two studies having multiple aims (e.g., mindfulness and social support).Van et al). The main goal of providing data is to show the positive side of having interventions to appreciate the body after battling cancer.