Process+Analysis

__Process Analysis__ "explains how something works, how to do something, or how something was done." (Textbook- The Language of Composition)

"Smoking Animals out of a Tree- The smoking of a tree is quite an art and requires a certain amount of practice before you can perfect it. First, having found your tree and made sure that it is really hollow all the way up, you have to make sure whether there are exit holes farther up the trunk, and if there are, you have to send a man up to cover them with nets. Having done all this, you drape a net over the main hole at the base of the tree and this has to be done in such a way that it does not interfere with the smoking process and yet prevents anything from getting away. The important thing is to make sure that this net is secure; there is nothing quite so exasperating as to have it fall down and envelop you in its folds just as the creatures inside the tree are starting to come out. With all your nets in position you have to deal with the problem of the fire: this, contrary to all proverbial expectation, has to be all smoke and no fire, unless you want your specimens roasted. A small pile of dry twigs is laid in the opening, soaked with kerosene, and set alight. As soon as it is ablaze, you lay a handful of green leaves on top, and keep replenishing them. The burning of these green leaves produces scarcely any flame but vast quantities of pungent smoke, which is immediately sucked up into the hollow interior of the tree. Your next problem is to make sure that there is not too much smoke, for, if you are not careful, you can quite easily asphyxiate your specimens before they can rush out of the tree. The idea is to strike the happy medium between roasting and suffocation. Once the fire has been lit and piled with green leaves, it generally takes about three minutes (depending on the size of the tree) before the smoke percolates to every part and the animals start to break cover." (http://www.tcc.edu/students/resources/writcent/handouts/writing/process.htm, example 2)

This example demonstrates process anaylsis by giving a step-by-step guide to smoking animals out of trees. Process analysis can be written in a paragraph form along with many other different types of styles, including bullet form, video form, or audio form.

Chocolate Cake recipe Ingredients: 4 oz unsweetened chocolate, chopped 3 oz fine-quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cut into pieces 1 1/2 cups strong brewed coffee 5 tablespoons bourbon (preferably 80 proof) 2 large eggs, lightly beaten 1 teaspoon vanilla 2 cups cake flour (not self-rising) 1 3/4 cups sugar 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon salt Special equipment: 2 (7- or 8-inch) springform pans Accompaniment: sweetened whipped cream and fresh berries    

Preparation
Preheat oven to 275°FButter springform pans and line bottom of each with a round of wax paper. Butter paper and dust pans with flour, knocking out excess. Wrap bottom and 1 inch up side on outside of each springform pan with foil (to catch drips). Melt chocolates and butter with coffee in a 4-quart saucepan over moderately low heat, stirring constantly until smooth. Remove from heat and cool 10 minutes. Beat in bourbon, eggs, and vanilla. Sift in flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt and stir until batter is smooth (batter will be thin). Divide batter between springform pans (about 3 cups batter in each). Bake cakes in middle of oven 1 to 1 1/4 hours, or until a tester inserted in centers comes out with crumbs adhering. Remove from oven and cool in pans on racks 20 minutes. Run a thin knife around edge of each pan, then remove sides. When cool, remove pan bottoms and wax paper.   This is an example of process analysis because as a recipe, it clearly explains how to do something, in this case bake chocolate cake. __** Why this process works **__

Of the most basic elements of rhetoric, one of the most important is understanding, and Process Analysis is a key instrument in developing that understanding. Process analysis allows for the author to impart a deeper understanding of a process that is being or has been undertaken. From instructing the steps to a process for emulation to simply entertaining or informing the reader of the process, this pattern heightens the reader's understanding of the steps taken to accomplish a goal, making the author's communication of any point more effective.

List of group participants: -Christine Rosano -Jill McKee -Mike Reluzco -Margaret Scatena