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How to perform a rhetorical analysis
How to perform a rhetorical analysis
How to perform a rhetorical analysis
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Leaders during times of great unrest would give their people hope through well written, poetic speeches. Those who were truly gifted with amazing speaking skills could turn entire groups against their enemies. Mark Antony in The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by Shakespeare is a wonderful example of someone who is not only a gifted speaker but is also a very poetic speaker. The best example of Mark Antony’s skills is during his monolog at Caesar’s funeral. In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar by Shakespeare, Mark Antony used to structure, diction, figurative language, and imagery to sway the crowd to believe that Julius Caesar was innocent. The end-stopped, enjambment and free verse of the poem help make Mark Antony seem to make Mark Antony’s speech be well written. In the entire speech, ninety-one percent of the sentence end in periods, commas, semicolons, or question-marks. The consent stopping at the end of the sentence help to build suspense throughout his speech. Antony also uses enjambment to keep the suspense high, as well as keep the attention of the Roman citizens. “Friends, …show more content…
Mark Antony uses personification and apostrophe to make ambition and judgment seem like they are living things. Antony used personification and apostrophe to make into Brutus a villain “O judgment, thou [art] fled to brutish beasts.” (32) and Caesar into an innocent good man “Ambition should be made of stern stuff.” (20). Antony speaks about how Caesar was not after power and that he only wanted to help the people of Rome. Antony achieves this by talking about when “I thrice presented him a kingly crown,” (24). Mark Antony was very distressed by Caesar's death, but he exaggerated his pain. Towards the end of his speech is when he truly exaggerates his pain “My heart is on the coffin there with Caesar.” and this helps the citizen to relate to
In his play Julius Caesar, Shakespeare employs various rhetorical strategies such as direct address, repetition, and apostrophe in Antony’s eulogy to convince the crowd into believing that Caesar was a good ruler. His excellent use of rhetoric begins before he starts his speech through the establishment of familiarity. Before Antony begins his speech, he refers to the crowd as “friends, romans, [and] countrymen” to establish a personal connection, indicating the use of direct address (3.2.82). By referring to the crowd as “friends,” Antony removes any separation between him and the audience, establishing a close bond by choice. As it came first on his list, it emphasizes the importance of his friendship with the audience as friendship implies
The most significant example is when a ruffled tribune, Marullus, screams at a crowd of celebrating peasants You blocks, you stones, you worse than senseless things (1.1.39) while they were celebrating Caesar’s victory over his rival Pompey. Another prominent example of this style was used in Mark Antony's Eulogy in Act 3, where he said You are not wood, you are not stones, but men. And being men, hearing the will of Caesar will inflame you; it will make you mad (3.2.154) In this quote, Mark Anthony is dangling the will of Caesar in front of the already animated crowd, appealing to the fundamental want of knowledge, and in hopes of gaining an even stronger reaction from the gathered peoples. By using this quote in his speech Mark Antony allows a bound of pathos to grow between himself and the majority. He differs from the other tribunes, who compared these same peasants to stones. Caesar’s right hand man has planted a seed, making the audience believe that Anthony is truly on the side of the people while also believing Caesar was kind and devoted to the peoples of Rome. This seed continued to grow when the full realization of the departed senator deaths hit the Romans at the sight of his mangled body.
Playwright, William Shakespeare, in the play Julius Caesar, utilizes many instances of rhetorical devices through the actions and speech of Caesar's right-hand man, Mark Antony. In the given excerpt, Antony demonstrates several of those rhetorical devices such as verbal irony, sarcasm, logos, ethos, and pathos which allows him to sway the plebeians. The central purpose of Mark Antony’s funeral speech is to persuade his audience into believing that Caesar had no ill intentions while manipulating the plebeians into starting a rebellion against their new enemies, Brutus and the conspirators.
Mark Antony’s speech, whose aim is to counter Brutus’ speech, enlightens the crowd on the unjust murder of Caesar. Though he never directly communicates to the crowd of his feeling towards the conspirators, Antony was able to effectively convey to the crowd, through the use of verbal irony and other stylistic devices/techniques in his speech, his true views of the assassination. Moreover, Antony was able to shrewdly emphasize his belief of the undeserved assassination of Caesar through the wide use of epiphoral and anaphoral structure in his speech. Antony emphasizes the wrongdoings of Brutus and Cassius through the ingenious use of the epistrophe along with verbal irony as he notes that “I should do Brutus wrong, and Cassius wrong” (III, ii, 125). Moreover, he stresses the importance of punishi...
This also helped get the crowd to listen to him, because they had just heard Brutus and were all fired up about the wonderful things he had said. So both the characters start off their speeches the same, gaining credibility, but because Antony had to work harder to gain it, he performed much better.... ... middle of paper ... ... Two times Antony called the people back from running away in anger and said another thing to deepen the seed he had planted in them.
is to do with how “I have moved the crowd”. The effect that Antony has
Shakespeare uses dramatic pathos, ethos, repetition and logos in the case of Antony to make his speech memorable in his effectiveness to sway the audience’s opinion. William’s use of Antony having the last word and subterfuge powerfully displayed a moment of literature memorable for the art of persuasion and manipulation. He veiled the true intent. The weaker written speech for Brutus had one effective point. The point that he killed Caesar for Rome. The breakdown of Brutus’s speech makes readers feel the tension and
They are used perfectly in the speech, as well as the most often. Foremost, he said, “It will inflame you, it will make you mad: ‘Tis good you know not that you are his heirs.” When the people found out that they were Caesar’s heirs, their emotions for him were plentiful and their love overabundant. They realized they were worthy enough to be thought of by Caesar. Also, Antony said, “This was the most unkindest cut of all;” He was referencing the cut of Brutus, and all of the commoners were heartbroken and enraged after seeing all of the wounds of the man they loved. In Antony’s speech, his use of pathos greatly influenced the commoners, more than any out of the
Antony asks rhetorical questions and lets the audience answer for themselves. Brutus uses ethos by stating that he a noble man and that is why the people should believe him but infact Antony questions his nobility by saying what Brutus said,” Brutus is an honourable man”(III.ii.79). In a way, Antony states what Brutus states to convince the audience by using examples that Brutus is wrong. Antony himself knows what kind of man Brutus is but lets the people figure it out on their own. In addition, Brutus uses logos by expressing that fact that Caesar died because of his ambition. This argument is severely under supported because his reasons are invalid and simply observations. Antony uses “did this in Caesar seem ambitious” to question Brutus’ argument (III.ii.82). Antony gives examples backing his argument like when Caesar refused the crown thrice to prove his humbleness. The way Antony convinces the people to rebel is by using pathos. He brings the audience in by stepping down to their level and showing them the body of Caesar. While Antony talks at Caesar's funeral, he pauses because” heart us in the coffin there with Caesar “(III.ii.98). When Antony becomes emotional, he reminds the audience about what injust event happened to the much loved
Mark Antony’s use of rough and sharp diction contributes to his purpose of convincing the Roman proletariat to turn against the conspirators. Antony addresses the people as “Friends, Romans, [and] countrymen,” and asks for them to “…lend [him their] ears” (III.ii.72), which all three of those words are very rough and direct, as well as
Mark Antony also includes a hyperbole in his speech to show how saddened the death of caesar made him and to make the audience feel sad. At the end of the speech Antony says to the audience “My heart
Through the whole of his spectacular speech, Mark Antony influences the crowd using his distinct diction. He is able to inculcate a fired up anti-Caesar mass of people, and he makes the populace believe that Julius Caesar’s death was a true tragedy. Antony gracefully applies his proficiency with ‘logos’ and ‘pathos’ to his speech and is able to adroitly gain followers. His strong reasoning and explanations allow the Romans to buy what he has to say. Antony’s ability to speak in a roundabout way is a key constituent of his speech. Withal, he is extremely humble and the way he plays down his prowess is impressive. Mark Antony puts all the parts of his remarkable rhetoric together, and the result is a speech for the ages.
Their infants quartered with the hands of war’. This shows the extent of the anarchy he will unleash on Rome. Furthermore Antony’s funeral oration is important as it follows Brutus’s speech in the play, where he has turned public opinion around to favour him, as he has been able to persuade and convince the crowds, through his rhetoric and oratory that Caesar ... ... middle of paper ... ...
Asyndeton is a rhetorical device which eliminates conjunctions in a list. Antony uses this to convey the idea that the list he is making is not complete. It adds drama and rhythm. He opens his speech with “Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears” (III.ii.72). Anthony is addressing the crowd as these titles. They are all friendly therefore he is trying to appeal to the crowd. He eliminates the conjunctions because there are many more friendly terms he can address them as. He wants his speech to be personal and is bringing together the social gap between the plebeians [also known as peasants] and him, a person who is higher up in the Roman society. This makes the plebeians believe that he is not talking down to them, but he is talking to them as a friend. The use of asyndeton in this instance makes Antony’s speech more personable and more appealing to the crowd.
In William Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, persuasion and rhetoric play a crucial role in a myriad of events and outcomes that occur. In Act one Cassius is trying to convince Brutus to turn against Caesar and join the conspiracy. Later, in Act three, Brutus and Antony speak at Caesar’s funeral. Brutus convinces the Roman people that what he and the conspirators did was for the good of Rome. Antony then persuades the plebeians that the conspirators had no reasonable judgement to kill Caesar and that all Caesar’s future plans were to help Rome. Though many characters appear to be rhetorical, Antony could be considered as the most. Persuasion and rhetoric are used throughout Julius Caesar when Cassius is trying to coax Brutus to join the conspiracy, and when Brutus and Antony convince the crowd at Caesar’s funeral.