Pat Conroy Analysis

n the “Pat Conroy Letter” (October 24, 2007) to the Charleston Gazette, Pat Conroy implies that the only good in banning books is giving students irresistible temptation to read them. Conroy emphasizes the dangers of banning books by juxtaposing books to real life utilizing diction, imagery, and conjunctions. He uses sarcasm in order to persuade the school board to change their book banning policy. Conroy captures the audience’s attention with a historical allusion to the Hatfields and McCoys to relate to the people in Charleston, West Virginia using sarcasm and humor in hopes of convincing that censorship is wrong.

Conroy expresses both negative and positive diction to juxtapose the brutal realities of life with the wonderful possibilities in books. He describes books as “dazzling” and “magnificent”. While conversely describing the parents and school boards as “know-nothing” and “cowardly’, which gives the audience a comparison between the two. Since Conroy uses diction to contrast the positive and negative, the audience sees how banning the books makes the parents and school board look like “teacher haters”. The image of teacher haters appeals to the audience’s emotions. This is how he gains their trust. Conroy also uses “grotesque” to describe the violence in his book about the

His readers now see his perspective and why books should not be banned. It is clear the Conroy used the rhetorical devices in a planned way. This allowed him to create a letter designed to persuade the readers in a way that appealed to their emotions. He used positive and negative diction, positive and negative imagery, and conjunctions in a way that would grab the reader's’ attention leading them to believe banning books is ultimately censoring students from the harsh realities that the world has to offer. This is leaving them censored and ignorant to the truth of the