Rhetorical Analysis

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ENG102_MH_V5 | Writing Assignment 1: Rhetorical Analysis

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English Composition II

Rhetorical Analysis

2 October 2021

How Ava Morales Saves Purple Polar Bears With Sympathy, Trust, and Logic

Though Purple Polar Bears are still a relatively new species, their close

encounters with humans and cities make them a particularly hot debate topic in

rural, northern areas in the U.S. Some feel that they are a significant threat and

must be dealt with immediately, and others feel that they are fascinating

creatures that are nowhere near as fierce as their claws may make them

appear.(1) This debate has become so heated in the small town of Treeville,

Maryland, that a public forum was held to hear all sides of the debate. It was at

this venue, following speech after speech of fear-inducing rhetoric about the

bears, that (2) Ava Morales made her stand to help the creatures. (3) Ava

Morales is a local of Maryland and has run an Animal Rescue Shelter for over

twenty years and has a degree in Animal Behavior. The audience was full of

locals, many with their own personal encounters with the bears, and a number

of environmentalists and members of the press. Everyone was likely on edge

and on high alert given preceding speeches, and Morales had her work cut out

for her.(2) However, Morales was able to deliver an impassioned and effective

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speech in defense of the Purple Polar Bears. (4) Morales' speech was so

effective because of her ability to build trust with her audience, to appeal to their

sympathy, and back her stance with specific examples and research.(5)

Despite disagreeing with a popular stance on the bears, Morales was able

to show she understood her audience and to verify that she was a credible

source (6) given her own experiences. Morales opens her speech by stating, “I

know you are afraid. Who wouldn’t be? These creatures are huge, larger than

the common grizzly, with sharp teeth and claws and an incredible fortitude for

problem solving. And they’re roaming your backyards!” (7) (0:31). I don’t know if

this was part of Morales’ original plan, but it is important that she acknowledges

how her audience is feeling. By hearing Morales’ justify their feeling of fear, the

audience is able to feel that she understands where they are coming from and

has been listening to their concerns. Morales makes the fear feel justified by

listing specific examples, likely things that others have already said about the

bears. (6) Morales then explains, “When I first saw a purple polar bear in my

own backyard, I froze. I was terrified, not knowing what it wanted” (7) (0:45).

Here, Morales qualifies that she has personal experience with the bears and

has felt what many of the listeners experienced. This builds the audience’s trust

in Morales because she demonstrates understanding and firsthand experience.

This maximizes her credibility but also ensures her relatability to the audience.

(8) Knowing that she understands them, the audience no longer feels they need

to defend their positions, or be defensive against Morales, because she already

understands. This also means they’re ready to listen to what she has to say. (9)

This strategy of convincing the audience of her credibility through experience

and knowledge is called ethos. In this case, she targets the knowledge of the

opposing view, and shares her first hand experience, something she will

continue to do throughout her speech. However, she also appeals to the

audience on an emotional level. (6)

While Morales is able to justify the audience’s fear, she’s also able to tap

into their sense of pity. This strategy of evoking emotional feelings within the

audience is called pathos, and it is a strategy that Morales does quite well

throughout her speech.(6) While it was important to acknowledge the bears are

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frightening to see, Morales’ doesn’t let the audience linger there for too long. (8)

Morales finishes her backyard memory by explaining that once she saw the

bear rummaging through her gardens and trashcans, and finding little it found

worthy of eating, she started to feel sorry for it (1:05). It was a feeling that was

“exasperated further when [she] spied the two small cubs watching carefully

from the bushes. This bear was merely a mother trying to feed her children. And

finding little acceptable” (Morales 1:35). (7) By referring to the bear as a “mother

trying to feed her children,” Morales pulls on the audience’s heartstrings. She

doesn’t call it a bear trying to feed cubs, but instead chose language that makes

it possible for the audience to put themselves in the bear’s metaphorical shoes.

(8) She then explains that this prompted her to do research on the Purple Polar

Bears’ feeding habits and food scarcity, stating she found the results “dismal

and without much hope” (Morales 2:05). (7) These are very emotionally strong

words that give a feeling of hopelessness. (8) But, Morales doesn’t stop there.

“Can you imagine,” Morales asks her audience, “trying to feed your children, to

thrive, with barely enough resources to feed yourself, and when you venture out

of the safety of your home to seek more resources, being chased away with

sticks and stones or even fired at?” (2:15). (7) Here, Morales asks her audience

directly to put themselves into the position of the bears, illustrating a frightening

picture of struggle and a lack of acceptance. While some audience members

may feel this goes a bit far, since it is only a bear, Morales delivers the request

with sincerity and tact, forcing listens to image themselves in the scenario. She

pauses to a silent room giving them time to process. (8) While audience

members may still be concerned about the bears, they’re also starting to feel

sorry for them, which opens their hearts to the idea of doing something to help

them as opposed to just eliminate them.(9)

These kinds of emotional appeals alone, however, are likely insufficient to

change minds on their own, which is why it is so important that Morales backs

her arguments with specific claims and research, falling finally to logic to sway

her audience.(6) Morales shares a number of statistics about the bears

themselves and their favorite food sources, fish, berries, and freshwater crabs,

called Chinese Mitten Crabs. She goes on to share a number of studies that

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have been done on other species of bear who have invaded campsites or local

towns, and she is able to expertly discuss the reasons — largely food scarcity or

an over reliance on humans — that such events happen. She further explains

that Purple Polar Bears got their name from the cold weather regions where

they originated, but that food scarcity has pushed them further south each year

(3:00). Morales then cites a very recent study done by Jack Smith and Omir

Mohad where they discovered that given the choice between a large mammal or

a pile of crustaceans to feast on, that the bears “chose the crustaceans 85% of

the time” (3:10). This percentage increased if the mammal was particularly large

or seemed able to defend themselves with objects or weapons (qtd in Morales

3:20). (7) While these specifics continue to contribute to ethos, or Morales’

credibility, they set her up beautifully to make a strong appeal to logic,(8) or to

use logos. (6) “If the bears overwhelming prefer crustaceans and cold weather,”

says Morales, “and largely only enter populated areas in search of food, then

we can easily redirect the bears back north by increasing the fresh water

crustacean population” (3:33). Morales then goes on to cite examples of where

similar methods have worked to redirect other species, and reminds the

audience of her own years studying animal behavior. (7) By showing through

research and examples that animals can and have been moved before by their

desire for food and that we know what food the bears desire, Morales effetely

delivers a logical solution to a frightening problem that seems completely

possible. (8) Listeners begin to realize they can be rid of the bears from their

yards, without hurting them.(9)

At the end of the recorded speech, you can hear the audience begin to give

quite a large applause. Morales is deserving of such a reception because she

was able to effectively connect with her audience’s feelings and experiences,

building trust and credibility. (10)She also was able to build pity, or sympathy, for

the bears themselves. These rhetorical strategies allowed the audience to be

receptive to her research and ideas about solving the problem. (11)Leading up

to this forum, there were many reports of citizens trying to attack the bears, and

getting injured in the process. Yet, Morales’ ability to shift the conversation

toward a logical and safe solution to the problem is vital, not just for the safety of

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these new creatures, but for everyone. There is much to be learned from

Morales, as these rhetorical strategies can be employed for many important

topics which our society hopes to solve, but may still experience division

because of fear or misunderstanding.(12)

Works Cited

Morales, Ava. “Feeding the Problem of the Purple Poplar Bear.” Maryland

Tribute Video Collection, Edited by Jeff Goldman, 11 May 2018.

Opposing Views Database,

https:opposingviews.db.org/speeches/nature/wild_life/bears/Maryland/Morales_Ava.inf

Accessed 8 Oct. 2021.

1. Context of speech

2. Rhetorical situation of speech

3. Speech's purpose

4. Thesis main claim

5. Thesis supporting/reasoning

6. Defines rhetorical strategy

7. Examples of strategy

8. Explanation of how example works

9. Explanation of how strategy

contributes to purpose

10. Reiteration of thesis

11. Summary of main ideas

12. Explanation of significance of

analysis

Last modi�ed: Tuesday, June 7, 2022, 2:12 PM

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