Context

I am currently taking a course called Writing as Inquiry in which the students in the class examine travel writing as a form of rhetorical research and inquiry. Because the course centers around travel writing, the culminating project involved breaking up the class into four sections and completing independent travel expeditions along North Carolina's historic Highway 64. The highway runs horizontally across the entire width of the state and is deeply ingrained within different cultural aspects of North Carolina's regions. In order to fund the expeditions, I worked with a group of students to apply for Elon's SGA Special Allocations Grant. The grant funds nontraditional educational programs and events and, based on our application, we were granted $766.22 to put towards the cost of traveling along Highway 64.

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Rhetorical Decisions

Grant writing exemplifies the truest combination of professional and creative writing. There is a near-perfect unity of ethos, pathos, and logos within the grant application. The ethos of our application surrounded the concept of proving that the class is a reliable organization that will use the money ethically. The surest way to build up the ethos of the course was to follow the direction of the grant's CFP word for word. Adhering to the instructions, in a small way at least, proved that we were responsible and careful.

 

Our application's pathos was the necessary emotional pull that is needed to persuade the grant committee that our cause was the most deserving of the funds. The emotional aspect of the grant application contained the largest amount of creative writing. The section contains language that would typically be considered too informal and emotional for a typical professional writing document. However, because our pathos was based in the long-standing history of Highway 64 and its historical importance to the culture of North Carolina, it added to the persuasive nature of our application. Our pathos was also connected to Cicero's rhetorical purpose of movere, to move as well as the stylistic concept o middle style, writing that is moving to an audience. We aimed to emotionally move SGA through our creative storytelling.

 

In terms of logos, it was imperative that the provided information about the program details and budget was appropriate and accurate for the grant in which we applied. This accuracy not only was necessary within the requirements of the grant, but also for reinforcing our ethos. The logos of the grant application is where the professional writing combines with the creative writing. The pure rhetorical purpose of our application was to persuade SGA that our class was the most deserving of the funds. One of the most universal definitions of rhetoric is Aristotle's claim that rhetoric encompasses the available means of persuasion. Through a unique blend of professional writing and creative writing, grant applications exemplify Aristotle's definition of rhetoric.

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To read the grant application, click here.

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Reflection

The Highway 64 grant provided me with an opportunity to try a new form and style of writing that was previously unfamiliar to me. Though navigating a CFP for the first time was daunting, I soon realized that grant writing is a great way to combine both professional and creative writing styles. This grant application highlights my creative writing in a way that most professional writing and rhetoric projects do not. Additionally, it was interesting and refreshing to work on a project that had real money and opportunities at stake. The fact that our class was fighting for real money to fund a real academic research project made the experience that much more enjoyable and educational.