Rhetorical Analysis: The Next Hundred Years

Introduction
The text, The Next Hundred Years, is an effective persuasive text due to the use of exigence placement, original use of metaphor, and other forms of rhetorical strategies. There are three exigencies addressed in the text, the main exigence being directed to poverty. The other two exigencies, global warming and modern weaponry, give further insight into why the world is so impoverished. The Laurates use a metaphor of destructive power to illustrate the real and terrifying power that both global warming and modern weaponry have on the world. The statement by the Laureates outlines the main issues of the world today, providing realistic solutions. The combination of both the multiple exigencies and the use of a powerful metaphor clearly

The positioning directs the audience to think of the larger picture of the world as a whole, rather than as individual nations. Each exigence is common to every nation with some variation in severity. To bring the exigencies together, the Laureates use a metaphor that relates the destructive power of a nuclear weapon to the destructive power of a massive fire, creating a unifying visual of the exigencies. Once nuclear weapons are used to fight wars, it is easy for the rest of the world to fall into chaos. The metaphor provides a very real and plausible visual for the audience to consider, providing a scare tactic to persuade the audience to understand the urgency of the

The metaphor paints an image that encompasses the exigencies, making the reality very clear that the war and use of modern weaponry belittle the problem of poverty and global warming. Furthermore, the placement of the theoretical solution after the metaphor draws more attention to its main intent and criticism of the national powers of today. The tone of voice used in the beginning of the statement is resentful and judgmental; the audience is blamed for its selfish “unilateral search for security” (Nobel Laureates, Ln. 11). The tone becomes more directive as the statement moves toward presenting solutions to the exigencies: “move toward…social justice… [giving] hope of peace” (Nobel Laureates, Ln. 14-15). The changing tone throughout the statement has a strong pathos appeal; as the tone changes, so should the emotions of the audience. The tone that is used to express the statements about the world powers only holds persuasive power due to the ethos appeal. A statement as bold as the Laureates statement can only be given by someone who has a strong grasp of political systems and international problems. The Nobel Laureates are the perfect individuals to form this statement as they are awarded for being some of the greatest minds of our time, which showcases their credibility and