Rhetorical Analysis Chief Seattle

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This Earth is precious” is a transcription of Chief Seattle’s reply to the president of the United States due to the fact they tried to buy their lands. It is thought that this speech was given in 1845, but in fact, the date, location, and the actual contents of it are unclear and disputed. Chief Seattle was a warrior who tried to defend his people, protecting them, and their culture, “considered barbaric by the Washington government of the white invaders of America.” It is undeniable that Seattle’s letter is completely effective and eloquent, making clear the fact that for them their lands are not only something to own, but to respect. In his writing, Seattle invites the Washington government to think about what they want to do, by using certain literary devices, such as, rhetorical questions, irony, euphemism, hyperbole, etc. …show more content…

Through them, they invite the Washington government to reflect on what they want to do and its consequences. By using those impactful questions, he is able to make the white man’s offer sounds ridiculous, as he asks himself “how can they buy or sell the sky, the warmth of the land?”. Clearly, those things cannot be bought with any money in the world.
In addition, the use of irony is one of the most effective and valuable devices in this literary piece and Seattle use it so precisely that in some parts of the text is implicit. When he says “The sight of your cities pains the eyes of the red man. But perhaps it is because the red man is a savage and does not understand”, he is being very ironical. He knows that the “white man” considers his culture as the only one, the superior one, and he makes it clear by this play on words. Deep inside him, he knows that they think the red man as a

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