Tootsie Rhetorical Analysis

1. Steven Pinker opens his essay with scenes from the movie Tootsie to show his argument that people work around what they really mean when talking to others, yet we all want the full truth and also a fake truth when speaking to someone even if all we say is the fake truth when speaking to others. The scene from the movie at the beginning of the essays allows readers a chance to see humor, but also have a glimpse at what we as people do every day when we speak with someone. We all are guilty of saying one thing we want but not truly wanting it when the time comes. If Pinker would have just started his essay with the third paragraph that included his main argument, the point would not have been as clear and easy to understand as it was with the movie scene reference. The movie scene added real life relativity to the essay, and allowed readers to see what Pinker’s argument meant without having to think about a situation where his argument is

true.
2.

The quote by Pinker that states, “Such hypocrisy is a human universal,” is a way of saying that people will always be hypocrites. Hypocrisy is in human nature that we can say or want one thing, but do the complete opposite. It has been this way for years among human beings and it never changing. Pinker is not trying to be critical when saying this line in any way. He is simply stating the truth in human nature and what we do on an everyday basis. In my opinion, Pinker is completely correct in his words about human nature. Humans have always been hypocrites and it is something most of us cannot control for many reasons. He is just one of the few people to openly state his feelings about human’s habits. No human can honestly say that they have never been a hypocrite during their lifetime. Many people do not even realize when we are being a hypocrite because it is the type of world we grew up in. Hypocrisy is among us and there is no way of changing it because we say we want it to end, but would never actually try and end

it.
3. When a person asks someone to pass the salt they are conveying a message while negotiating a relationship. This is done by the person saying what they want, the salt, but not in a demanding way of getting what they want, could they pass the salt, and this allows for a person to get what they want without ruining a relationship by sounding demanding. A simple please in a question allows for a person to continue their nice relationship and receive what they want as well. I do this in almost everyday life when I ask my parents for something. It usually is a ride to a friend’s house or if they could go get me food. I simply say, “Could you please take me to so and so’s house?” My parents respond in a positive way because I did not make it a demand for them to bring me. I keep manners involved in the task that I want to be completed by them, and it makes them feel better about doing it because they do not feel forced into doing something. Politeness and a simple question makes people feel as if they are in control of the situation when it arrives, but they are really doing what a person wanted done all along.