If the author fails to establish his or her purpose in an argumentative text, it can have a significant impact on how you infer the rhetorical situation. Here's how:
1. **Lack of Clarity**: Without a clear purpose set by the author, it becomes challenging to identify the main goal or intention behind the text. This can lead to confusion for the reader in understanding what message the author is trying to convey.
2. **Uncertainty in Audience Analysis**: The purpose of an argumentative text often influences how the author addresses the audience. Without a stated purpose, it becomes harder to gauge the target audience and their potential reactions, beliefs, or values that the author may be appealing to.
3. **Weak Ethos, Pathos, Logos Development**: The establishment of purpose is closely tied to the effective use of ethos (credibility), pathos (emotional appeal), and logos (logical reasoning) in argumentation. If the purpose is not clear, the author may struggle to develop these elements cohesively, impacting the overall persuasiveness of the text.
4. **Impact on Persuasiveness**: A well-defined purpose guides the author in structuring arguments, selecting evidence, and anticipating counterarguments. Without a clear purpose, the argument may lack coherence, making it less persuasive and compelling to the audience.
5. **Difficulty in Evaluating Effectiveness**: When the purpose is absent, it becomes harder to assess the success of the argumentative text in achieving its intended goal. Evaluating the effectiveness of the text in persuading or informing the audience becomes subjective and challenging without a defined purpose as a benchmark.
In conclusion, the absence of a clearly established purpose in an argumentative text can hinder the reader's ability to interpret the rhetorical situation effectively, impacting comprehension, analysis, and evaluation of the text's arguments and persuasive strategies.
