Résumés are documents that are used worldwide to present someone’s skills and
qualifications. Résumés include the person’s name, contact information, education, awards, and
employment history. They are often used when someone is applying for a job, but they also can
be used in the entertainment and modeling industries for opportunities. The résumé is commonly
reviewed at a job interview, during the application process, by a potential employer. They use
résumés to see if one is qualified for the position in which they are applying for. Leonardo da
Vinci created the the first “résumé,” written about 1481-1482, but it did not look as the way it
does today. It was more of a letter written to a potential employer, Ludovico Sforza. Moving
along in history, for about 450 years, the résumé was a small description of a person included
their abilities and past employment. Fast forward to the early 1900s, résumés listed things like
weight, height, marital status and religion. By 1950 résumés evolved into something more than a
letter format. Résumé’s use to be considered highly mandatory. They started to include personal
information like interests and hobbies, deviating from including only information pertaining to
the job. It was not until the 1970s that résumés took on a more professional look. This
“professional look” came due to the beginning of the digital age altering the presentation and the
content. Today, people can make résumés at home on applications like google docs and
microsoft word. They have a professional format. Résumés are meant to show the positive
attributes of people. The motive is to persuade the employer to hire them. It is a biased piece,
leaving out poor qualities of the potential employee. Ultimately, they are one to two pages long
and are created on letter sized paper. When creating a résumé one might add key-words or
phrases in which the job description contains. The person who is applying for the position is the

subject of the document, and the recipient is the participant of the genre which is the potential
employer.
When analyzing the rhetorical devices that résumés contain- logos, ethos, and pathos are
all often present. Logos is present when analyzing the piece as a whole. If the job has a specific
skill set requirement, and someone has all of the qualifications, then the employer will look at the
résumé and decide to employ them. Ethos is also a huge component of résumés. The author of
the résumé is literally trying to persuade an employer to hire them by showing why they are
credible for the job. They are expressing qualifications that show that they are well suited for the
job, and may provide references, if not, it is otherwise requested in job application. It is used, as
a whole, to show off one’s credibility. They usually contain or come with, some pathos. When
presenting a résumé, it is usually during the interview process when applying for a job. When
presenting their résumé to a potential employer one might have: a “can-do” positive attitude,
they might make themselves come across as a team-player, and show communital values. They
will use keywords in their interview that are present in the job description, and connotate them
with positive qualities that they possess. Through emotion, and connotative language, ethos is, in
some ways, incorporated in résumés. This genre must be rhetorically rich in order to bring it’s
author success.
In the résumé I created, I have incorporated typical components of most résumés while
adding humor, and content that is blatantly exaggerated, to fit the description of your typical kiss
up coworker. I have included keywords in typical job descriptions, followed by a outlandish
skills only a CEO that favors favors will enjoy. The name, Dwight Schrute, pays homage to a
character on The Office that is a hyperbolized characterization of a kiss up coworker. I created a
résumé based on my pet peeve of people who kiss up to others to obtain what they want. I also

created this résumé based on its genre standards. Kerry Dirk’s “Navigating Genre” discusses the
importance of knowledge, on the use of specific genres, by giving the example of obtaining a
job. (Dirk, 253) Résumés are a complex genre due to its purpose of being biased in order to
persuade an employer to hire someone. Genre is a precedent: someone is successful in writing a
magnificent résumé to acquire a job, so the next person to write a résumé will use theirs as a
standard, thus creating a genre. (Dirk, 252) After reading Steve Martin’s “ Side Effects,” I was
inspired to make my project humorous. I added risky humor by incorporating “K ASS
university,” and other humorous concepts such as “Bending to extreme lengths due to lack of
spine,” and the city mocking the lack of spine called “Great Bend.” I kept a professional format
using google docs to create a modern day résumé. Although I stuck to the precedent genre of
modern résumés for the most part, there are aspects of it that wouldn’t be included normally in
the résumé I created. The résumé includes a large quantity of boasting, and awards that are not to
be include in résumés, as they really aren’t outstanding, but something a kiss up would hold to a
high standard. I also included tasks such as “detailing the CEO’s car” that would never be
present on a résumé to emphasize my pet peeve. In conclusion, after studying the genre of
résumés extensively, I was able to compose a document mocking m pet peeve of people who kiss
up to others while following precedent format of a résumé.

Dwight Schrute

100 Yesman lane
Great Bend, KS 67530

Executive Assistant 123.456.7890
Dschrute@aol.com

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Skills -Strong task management

- ability to memorize 16+ coffee orders
-ability to memorize and enforce all company policy
-physical skills; bending at great lengths due to lack of spine,

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Experience BCD INDUSTRIES / Executive Assistant to the CEO

May 2018 - PRESENT, Great Bend KS
- Hold record for booking the most events on time in a month for
the CEO
- Did not mail any of the company’s bills on time for the month of
May but I skillfully detailed the CEO’s car
- Received Employee of the Month May 2018
- Next to receive regional manager position
BCD INDUSTRIES/ Executive Assistant to the Regional Manager
April 2017 - January 2018, Great Bend KS
-responsibilities included: making copies, mailing paperwork, and
delivering messages
-took on side projects such as morning coffee trips for the regional
manager, and organized the company's secret santa. I am a team player
so I decided to take on buying the regional manager’s gift, myself, he
deserves an extravagant gift because he does so much for the company.
- New business year promotion to executive assistant to the CEO
BCD INDUSTRIES / Intern
June 2016 - April 2017, Great Bend KS
-Acquired office related skills
-acquired ability to laugh at boss’ jokes and was promoted to executive
assistant

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Education Kansas Assistance & Satisfaction School / Masters

September 2011 - May 2016, Great Bend KS

In my time at K ASS, I have learned and mastered Hospitality and Customer
Service. Contributes to my ability of going to great lengths for customers, and
second most importantly, the company

Great Bend High School
September 2007 - May 2011, Great Bend KS

I had graduated with a 4.0, despite great adversity in my virtual technology
addiction causing me to be unable to complete any school work. During high
school I was a part of the hospitality club and received teacher’s pet superlative.

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Awards -Employee of Month April 2017- Present

- would have had employee of the month June 2016 to April 2017 but as
an intern I was informed that I could not receive it. My boss told me I
would have had it after I spent the entire night after hours cleaning his
office for spring cleaning in June.