Birth Of A Nation Rhetorical Analysis

The idea of visual perception plays a vital role in how we as humans view the world. Because how we perceive things determines if we like or dislike them. This idea of perception plays a big role in the 1915 film, Birth of a Nation, by director D.W. Griffith. In this film the viewer relies on their senses to infer and understand the many rhetorical contexts that are present in this loosely based historical film. While watching this film the viewer will find themselves making connections to certain historical events through the rhetorical images and words that appear on the screen.
The first of those rhetorical images that I came across while watching this film was the director’s use of the historical topic’s. This film came out at a time

where people had different and mixed views the black race in the United States. By depicting the American Civil War, D.W. Griffith was able to show his audience the topic of war and suffering through visual images on the screen. These images include a full scale reenactment of a battle and the struggle of the north and south to live together. Griffith is also able to show his audience the different views of the northern and the southern states during this time period.
The images the director uses in this film are truly outstanding.

Even compared to today’s movie industry, Griffith is able to express many different and conflicting views through his great use of visual story telling. To me, the purpose of why the director chose to go with certain visual signals throughout the movie was confusing at first. But as the movie was coming to an end it all started to click, and I began to understand what Griffith was trying to explain to me as one of the members of the audience through his rhetorical images. The first conclusion I was able to draw was that the director was a master of using visual images. Whether it was setting up the scene or explaining certain actions done by characters, Griffith does it all. The second trait I was able to notice from the visual images was that the director sets scenes up for many different visual representations among audience

members.
As a member of the audience, I was able to infer what Griffith was trying to get across to his viewers as the purpose of his movie. The purpose and the focus of this movie was to really put down the black race and culture, he really tried to show how not only the blacks, but the carpetbaggers as well, were destroying the economy of the south until the KKK stepped in to save the struggling south. The terror and corruption that ensues during the final scenes of the movie shows just how important Griffith thought it was to have a powerful white race in charge of the government. Because without a white race at the helm of the government, the black race all but destroyed the economical proceedings. As the movie showed the blacks would show up to meetings drunk and disrespect the white members by putting their dirty feet on the table. Furthermore the black army and black party leaders would use their powers to take away what rightfully belonged to the white race.
With everything stated I truly believe that the views of the director were perfectly paired with the visual examples used throughout the movie.

My favorite example the director used in this film was when he showed Elsie Stoneman (Lillian Gish) with a cold, expressionless face standing next to the bird cage. This visual in my opinion explains how the film is drastically changing and is about to come to a climax and change how the audience views the movie. With this scene the purpose of the movie is fully revealed to the audience. This scene as a whole, to me represents rhetorically how the white race is not trapped by the black race yet but are very close. If she were to be in the cage that would represent that no matter what the whites did the blacks would reign supreme over them. But since she is out of the cage the whites still have a chance to regain control. The KKK is their last saving

grace.
And that is why I believe that this movie is a perfect representation of visual story telling. After all thats what visual rhetoric is its the telling of a story through visual images. Not only do you as the viewer get a deeper understanding for what is going on during the film, you are also able to draw your own conclusions on how you feel about certain things taking place during the film. You are able to look at not only the topic, author, and the purpose the author intended the viewer to see. But you are able to look beyond those topics and make inferences for yourself on why the author made certain rhetorical choices.