Rhetorical Analysis Of Ain T I A Woman

Ain’t I A Woman?

Sojourner Truth delivered her famous “Ain’t I A Woman” speech in 1851 at the women’s convention in Akron Ohio. Sojourner wanted people to be aware pf how differently women were treated from the black men, especially the black women. She spoke on the inequalities black women were faced with at that time in America. Sojourner emotionally connects with her audience by sharing personal experiences, repetitive language, and making references to the bible. Sojourner invites her audience to realize the injustices of discrimination.

Sojourner establishes a sense of identity as a victim of discrimination by describing the injustices as a black women in order to provoke an emotional response from her audience. Truth exclaims that no

Sojourner finishes the initial emotional connection with her audience through her religion. By making biblical references, Sojourner’s mostly Christian audience related to her as a fellow christian and responds more positively to her stance on equality. Through these personal anecdotes, Sojourner invites her audience, who are mostly women suffering from their own forms of discrimination, to realize the injustices of which they too are victims. Sojourner plays on the emotions of her audience in order to grab their attention and their willingness for change by sharing her own personal feelings to which they can relate.

Sojourner continues her speech with rhythmic and repetition, building up an energy in her voice and audience with a brief personal experience followed each time with that same rhetorical question. She draws a picture of her equality to men by expressing her strength and hard-working efforts as she “ploughed and planted, and gathered into barns, and no man could head me.” Again, following this statement , “and ain’t I a woman?” She rhythmically continues this pattern, making a claim to her equality she feels with males and then following it with the powerful question “and ain’t I a