The economic effect of Petroleum Rhetorical Analysis
Petroleum prices in recent decades have been majorly influenced by the middle east and were a means of the Middle East to show their ideas and beliefs. In an article called the coupled cycles of geopolitics and oil prices, authors Mahmoud A. El-Gamal and Amy Myers Jaffe write about how the geographic contents of nations affect oil prices. Countries such as Israel who are allies with the United States are majorly affected in the increase of oil prices since the Middle Eastern countries (Iran, Saudi Arabia), do not like Israel as a State. Another article titled; Oil industry fights ban on exploring the North Sea, by Greig Cameron shares his study on the economic loss of the oil industry in the UK. thousands of Europeans are losing jobs careers and other forms of employment because of the loss in the oil industry. Lastly, an article titled Gas prices May be 4$ in the Summer, written by Clifford Krauss shows us that oil prices are significantly going to increase in the summer due to the lack of companies pumping in the United States. The author uses word choice such as tension, to describe the Middle East since wars are driving oil prices to go up worldwide. Given the data and finding used in the lab report and articles, the authors were able to articulate their views and define them well to their audiences. They all used different word choices to portray their ideas of the middle east and show it is in chaos causing the oil industry in the world to tarnish with high oil prices.
One of the main qualities to look at in a lab report and articles are the keywords. Noticing these keywords allows the audience to identify them later on in the text and realizing the main idea the author is portraying. An excellent lap report would include an important keyword that contributes throughout the lap report and also contributing to the main idea. An important keyword used by Mahmoud A. El-Gamal and Amy Myers Jaffe (2018) is “wars”. Wars are the main reason why oil prices would increase, and it relates to the conflict in the middle east. The war between Saudi Arabia and Yemen caused more tension between Iran and Saudi Arabia on the domination of the oil industry. “Saudi-Yemen war has not only created a devastating humanitarian crisis but also increased the chances of more direct conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran that could lead to Bombardment of critical infrastructure,” (p.5). Using war in the beginning of the sentence the authors imply the destruction it has on not only human lives but also the destruction of infrastructure representing the oil industry in the middle east. Furthermore, the authors Mahmoud A. El-Gamal and Amy Myers Jaffe (2019) repeat war later on in the text to further add on to their main idea. “Therefore, they predicted that if no significant war would erupt in the aftermath and slash or as a result of the Arab Spring uprisings, oil prices would have to fall precipitously within the medium term, as a have done in fact,” (p.6). “War” is repeated multiple times in the text because it connects the idea that war and gas prices are linked together.
On the other hand, the keyword “inflation” from Clifford Krauss (2021) is very vague throughout the text. The main point of the whole title Gas prices May be 4$ in the Summer is due to the point of the word “inflation”. However, even though being very important the word does not seem repeated more than once throughout the text. It was only repeated relatively in the starting paragraphs but was not seemed to be repeated again. Inflation is the reason why gas prices could possibly be 4$ in the summer. After all, the whole concept of the report is trying to discuss why it can happen and explains the wars in the middle east being a factor. However, Clifford Krauss (2021) fails to link inflation with the wars in the Middle East and how it can affect gas prices across the world. There is a lack of information in detail throughout the report, which makes the audience question the author and why is he even writing this report. No sense is written in the report explaining what is “inflation” economic perspective which leaves the reader confused. Besides the inefficiency, the main point the author tries to get across is that the Middle East is in chaos and tries hard to connect the wars with inflation of oil prices. Not repeating and explaining the word “inflation” is the downfall of the report, it focuses on more of the Middle East than “inflation” itself.
In a lab report, it is always better to define unknown terms and keep sentence structure short, simple, and comprehendible. In doing so the audience is expanded, meaning more people are able to read it other than just hardcore scientists. Long sentence structures are unamusing very complex to understand and dictate. Nevertheless, a short sentence structure allows a reader to comprehend what the author is trying to say. Using periods, commas, semicolons, or other forms to break up a sentence is quite in handy. In the Oil industry fights ban on exploring the North Sea, Greig Cameron (2021) uses short sentence structures and interviews to talk about how unemployment is on the rise in the oil industry in the UK.
“He added: “It will harm a recovery in our sector, which will cost jobs in our communities across the UK.”
The body estimates that between 25,000 and 30,000 jobs have been lost over the course of the pandemic.”
Adding these short sentence structures and spaces shows the effect of damage caused, leading to unemployment. Reading in between the lines is what Cameron (2021) does best, it makes the audience not only interested but also invested. These sentence breakups and spaces give more power to Cameron’s (2021) main point on the effect it has on the oil industry ban on exploring the North Sea.
“Another good example is the industry is believed to be responsible for about 270,000 positions across the UK.
In December, Denmark’s politicians voted to cancel the country’s next offshore licensing round as part of its plans to end fossil fuel extraction by 2050.”
He shows that canceling the extraction of fossil fuels is leading hundreds of thousands of workers to become unemployed. All of the reports are structuralized in this sort of manner of short sentences and spaces between almost every line or two. Reading these reports and statistics makes the audience more engaged and fun. Cameron (2021) writes in this form of style to break down information more clearly and also very powerful. Making each sentence having its own importance throughout the text.
In conclusion, technical writing requires a lot of patience and details regarding their topic. Writers can have difficult times writing pieces that are very hard to understand and explain to a regular audience. However, using word choices and sentence structures can help better dictate the text and help to amplify their thesis. These two qualities can help amplify the quality of any lap report and piece of technical writing. Word choices allow the audience to recognize the word is being used throughout the text and show its importance. Simplicity is the best perfection. Sentence structures and breaks between transitions make the quality of any writing better. Allowing the audience to go from one topic to another smoothly, makes the flow of the text excellent.
References:
- Cameron G. (2021, March 16). Oil industry fights ban on exploring North Sea. Times[London, England], 21. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A655124366/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=AONE&xid=fbfb810b
- El-Gamal, M. A., & Jaffe, A. M. (2018). The Coupled Cycles of Geopolitics and Oil Prices. Economics of Energy & Environmental Policy, 7(2), 1+. https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A556734236/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=AONE&xid=3e9cd391
Krauss, C. (2021, March 15). Gas Prices May Be $4 By Summer. New York Times, B1(L). https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/A654974218/AONE?u=cuny_ccny&sid=AONE&xid=435b9c49
Rhetorical Analysis Reflection
My rhetorical analysis is about the economic effect of petroleum around the world. All the lab reports genre/text were very similar, and I discussed the different types of English they use to portray their beliefs. Each lab report had a different case and used different keywords to convey to the audience about the petroleum world. My rhetorical analysis did not explain who the audience but did in fact the genre and text. The purpose throughout my rhetorical analysis is to differentiate each lab report and I did that clearly. The tone was not discussed as much in my rhetorical analysis because I was using the tone of the other lab reports.
The context and setting were very clear throughout the whole assignment. Each paragraph represented a new country from a different lab report to show other views and perspectives. My reflection does adhere to the conventions of academic writing. It is well written and has appropriate technical writing for the topic at hand (rhetorical analysis). My reflection has appropriate sentences and mechanics that follow the rules of academic writing. My rhetorical analysis did help me achieve some of the learning course outcomes. The assignment has made me improve on drawing out resources and developing a rhetorical sensibility.
My rhetorical analysis enhanced my drafting, editing self-assessment reading, and revising tremendously. This is because I have read many lab reports that required dramatically appropriate technical writing. I did not negotiate my audience’s expectations of convictions of rhetorical situations. Reading lab reports has made me develop and engage in the collaborative and social aspects of the writing process. They help me engage in general analysis and multimodal composing in exploring effective writing across disciplinary contacts. Another factor is it helps me choose a side and helps my case in defending it. However, it did not help me practice various library resources and online databases using the CUNY library. Overall, it improved my source use practices such as summarizing paraphrasing, analyzing sources, and citing.
