In “Silent Spring”, author and biologist Rachel Carson addresses the threat of deadly poisons, specifically parathion, to not only farm pests, but also to the entire milieu of wildlife in and around farmlands. Carson does well to influence and even configure her reader’s thoughts on the liberal use of pest control through rhetoric so to gain the reader’s support. Although diverse and abundant with rhetoric in her composition, three of the most significant and influential applications of rhetoric are through appeals, multiple rhetorical questions, and hyperbolic generalizations.
As found in all styles of persuasive compositions, the appeals are vivid and thoroughly present here in the forms of ethos, logos, and pathos. Ethos, the use of credibility, authority, and/or character to persuade the audience, is used by Carson where she quotes the Fish and Wildlife Service on the dangers of the use of parathion. This not only displays to the reader that another also feels this way about parathion, but it also introduces a highly credible and authoritative establishment that shares this idea. Logos, the reasoning that the audience finds in the media, appeals to the reader’s common sense where Carson logically explains, “The problem could have been solved easily by a slight change in agricultural practice—a shift to a variety of corn with deep set ears not accessible to the birds…” The reader understands that there are better alternatives and may begin to question the morals of the farmers. Immediately after this application of logos, the tone becomes dark and accusative as Carson implements pathos, influence achieved from the manipulation of feelings, desires, or fears, by presenting the farmers as persecutors. She does this by us...
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...al poisons for emphasis, the pun of the falling fell birds, the idiomatic juxtaposition of the lives of birds and the prosperity of crops in this cumulative (or loose) rhetorical question, all rhetorically causing the reader to support Carson and ponder deeply on the question: Who is responsible for this trend of using these poisons? Carson vaguely answers that it is the “authoritarian temporarily entrusted with power.” The farmer seems to fit, however not all farmers, as that would be a hasty generalization. But more importantly, why weren’t more environmentally-friendly alternatives being used? Carson has logically addressed the alternative of corn with deep set ears not accessible to the birds, and surely there is one for every situation. “Silent Spring” was published in 1962, so this provokes another question: How has this problem been addressed since then?
Olson, Annie. “An Introduction to Rhetoric.” Le Tourneau U, May 2006. Web. 6 Dec. 2011.
“Consider the lobster” by David Foster Wallace and “Letters from Birmingham Jail” by MLK Jr. apply rhetoric such as pathos, logos, ethos, and diction in order to create a firm persuasive essay. In Wallace’s article the audience is questioned about the morality behind killing and cooking a lobster, while in MLK’s article we are persuaded to take action about social injustice and inequality. Both authors try to prompt their readers with different types of rhetoric, but together they apply pathos more than ethos and logos.
In the New York Times article “When a Crop Becomes a King”, author Michael Pollan argues there is an overproduction of corn that does more harm than it does good. He writes this in response to a farm bill signed by then President Bush to increase the budget for corn production which caused much controversy. Pollan uses an infuriated and frustrated tone in order to convince American consumers that corn has taken over their environment and economy. Michael Pollan uses rhetorical strategies to challenge conventional views of corn and to argue against additional corn production.
In the “180” movie Ray Comfort outstandingly used rhetorical appeal throughout his argument in a thorough way to further grasp his audience’s attention. He used pathos, ethos, and logos during the course of his dispute of abortion and the Holocaust. Comfort uses pathos more frequently than the other two appeals, to plea to the audience’s heart strings. An example of when pathos was used was when
“Eating Green” will attract the general population more than Vidal’s article because it uses personal and evidential examples, multiple types of appeals, and offers a better understanding through her choice of using persuasion in her writing style.
“Thoughts in the Presence of Fear” is a manifesto written by Wendell Berry, dated October 11, 2001. It is a post-September 11 manifesto for environmentalists. Berry uses terms such as “we” and “they” as he expresses his ideas, regarding how our optimism for a “new economy” was founded upon the labors of poor people all over the world. I will conduct a rhetorical analysis of four sections of Berry’s manifesto; Sections XI, XII, XIII, and XIV; and discuss his use of ethos, logos, and pathos. Berry uses pathos more often in his paper, to instill feelings of guilt and fear in his readers. While many areas of his paper can be thought of as logos, Berry makes little use of ethos.
Reputable environmentalist Janisse Ray in her narrative “Altar Call to True Believers” uses pathos, logos, and ethos efficiently to create a convincing kyros for her essay. To start off she uses ethos. She admits her own faults, capturing the reader’s attention as well as “playing” upon the readers trust and understanding. Next she uses pathos. Ms. Ray identifies with her audience and displays her own background to gain more of the reader’s empathy. Lastly, she capitalizes on logos. Janisse logically forges an ideological circumstance for what, how, and why the people of planet earth should be doing to help the environment. In this essay I will argue that Ray’s rhetoric succeeds due to the empathy she establishes with her audience by self depreciation.
The rhetorical occasion of this excerpt is to inform others about the dangers of chemicals on earth’s vegetation and animal life.
Saukko , Linnea.“How to Poison the Earth.”The Brief Bedford Reader. Bedford/St.Martin’s Boston: 9th edition ,2006.246-247.
Berry does not hesitate in using harsh words and metaphors like “the hamburger she is eating came from a steer who spent much of his life standing deep in his own excrement in a feedlot”(Berry 10). This provokes the readers to feeling horrible about industrial eating. He uses our pride while pointing to the lies of the make-up of industrial foods. He plays on human self-preservation when writing about chemicals in plants and animals which is out of the consumer’s control. He tries to spark a curiosity and enthusiasm, describing his own passion of farming, animal husbandry, horticulture, and gardening. The aspect of feelings and emotions is, perhaps, the strongest instrument Berry uses in making his
Pastor’s strongest rhetorical technique is the use of logos. The viewers are provided with an abundant amount of facts and knowledge that help to support Pastor’s point of view. The video attempts to persuade readers to eat organic, and this goal is accomplished by providing evidence that processed food creates an unhealthy lifestyle. For example, Pastor notes that there has been a 150% increase in obesity, causing a shorter lifespan. Pastor also provides statistics such as one American every five minutes dies of obesity, and one out of three people get diabetes. These facts are meant to get the viewers attention, and cause them to think twice before they eat fast food. These logos are effective because they are able to make a huge statement, screaming to the viewers that lives are in jeopar...
The advertisement of the Office of National Drug Control Policy strongly persuades the reader not to dabble with marijuana. In the image, the close-up of a crooked bicycle wheel sits on an asphalt road. At first glance, maybe the reader does not recognize what the image explains the reader and what is about. However, the viewer figures that there is a sad story in the ad. The viewer reads the story of this wheel on the upper right hand corner of the picture. Then the viewer understands that this advertisement is about marijuana. In this advertisement, Pathos, which is used for emotional appeal, is embedded efficiently. Also, it is the best choice for this anti-drug ad and more suitable than ethos or logos because appealing to person’s character or logic do not work so much for the marijuana addicts. That is why this image successfully persuades people who disregard the risks of marijuana.
The use of language is a major factor in George Orwell’s book, “Animal Farm.” Orwell constructs rhetoric the most through the pigs because it is how they gain power and become the highest class on the Manor Farm. The pigs use rhetoric to convince the other animals to go through with the rebellion, to harvest, to build the windmill, and to accept the changes made on the farm by using the three appeals: logos, pathos, and ethos.
What would happen if pesticides had never been invented? Would the world be a prettier place? Could the world function without pesticides? Rachel Carson does her best to show how pesticides have destroyed the world in her novel, Silent Spring.
Freeman, Carrie Packwood. "Framing Animal Rights in the "Go Veg" Campaigns of U.S. Animal Rights Organizations." Society & Animals 18.2 (2010): 163-182. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 21 Sept. 2011.