Rhetorical Analysis Of Black Men And Public Space By Brent Staples

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Rhetorical Analysis of Black Men and Public Space The author of Black Men and Public Space, Brent Staples, is an African American man who has a PhD in psychology from the University of Chicago and he is a member of the New York Times editorial board. Staples published an article that described several personal experiences in which he felt that the people around him were afraid of his presence. Staples’ purpose is to bring to light the prejudice that exists in everyday life for African Americans. In Black Men and Public Space, Staples appeals to pathos by using imagery and strong diction, and he uses a somber yet sarcastic tone to portray his message. Staples uses diction effectively throughout the article to reveal prejudices that he and …show more content…

He creates this tone to convey his purpose to the reader which is that prejudice is still an ongoing problem in American society, and that it will never be a thing of the past. Staples gives many personal anecdotes that are very somber; the readers are affected by this because they can emphasize and feel the prejudice that the victim, Brent Staples, faces. Although Staples is never delighted with the positions he is in, he never shows his resentment. In one part of the article, Staples said, “It is not altogether clear to me how I reached the ripe old age of twenty-two without being conscious of the lethality nighttime pedestrians attributed to me.” (Staples, 2). Staples attributes that he knows many people in American society automatically assume that he is a threat to “their” society because of Renovales 3 his race but he does not express it in an angry tone; which would be totally acceptable given his situation. He expresses that he is annoyed in a sarcastic somber tone which helps the reader understand his position. Brent Staples effectively used his personal experiences personal experiences that he has had in the past and present to convey his message to the reader. Staples conveys his message with the Prejudice is still occurring. The article Black Men and Public Space for Harper’s Magazine was effective in the rhetorical strategies staples used such an appeal to pathos with strong diction and imager, and

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