Rhetorical Analysis – NO PLAGIARISM!!!

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Suicide or Not? A Rhetorical Analysis of Dr. Corey’s “Brittany Maynard Didn’t Commit

Suicide (What We Can Learn From 9-11’s ‘Falling Man’)”

Jennifer Bertlshofer

Arizona College of Nursing – Tempe

ENG 102: First-Year Composition II

Prof. Emily Chaffin

December 15, 2018

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Suicide or not? A Rhetorical Analysis of Dr. Corey’s Brittany Maynard Didn’t Commit

Suicide (What we can learn from 9-11’s ‘Falling Man’)”

Imagine you were diagnosed with a terminal illness. The doctor has given you three

months to live. As the doctor explains what you will be facing in your last days, you realize that

the only sure thing is that this illness will be debilitating and painful. If you were facing certain

death, would you elect to end your life in the way you choose? If you chose to end your life,

would you define that as suicide? Suicide or not? This is the question that is addressed in Dr.

Benjamin Corey’s (2014) article, “Brittany Maynard Didn’t Commit Suicide (What We Can

Learn From 9-11’s ‘Falling Man’).” In the article, Dr. Corey argues that hastening your own

death in light of terminal illness is not the same as committing suicide. He makes a convincing

argument for this by appealing to ethos, logos and pathos.

In his article, Corey contends that people should not be judged for hastening their own

imminent death. He compares Brittany Maynard, a woman who was terminally ill, to the

“Falling Man” in the photograph from the 9-11 tragedy. Corey states that both of these situations

should be judged in the same light. Neither the jumpers nor Maynard should be condemned for

taking their own life or hastening their death when there was “imminent death looming” (para.

4). Corey states that “Brittany didn’t have a choice in dying, she only had a choice in how she

died” (para. 4). He concludes by saying that Brittany died of terminal cancer, not by suicide.

In the article, Corey (2014) successfully builds his integrity using appeals to ethos by his

credentials and by using credible sources. He is a cultural anthropologist and has his doctorate in

Intercultural studies that he received at Fuller. The first example of using credible sources is his

use of the “Falling Man” photo by Richard Drew. This photo is one of the most well-known

photographs from the 9-11 attacks. He also quotes the NY Medical Examiner, who stated,

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“Jumping indicates a choice, and these people did not have that choice. That is why the deaths

were ruled homicide, because the actions of other people caused them to die…”(para. 3). He

clearly makes a successful appeal to ethos.

Next, Corey (2014) effectively shows logic and reason throughout his article by his

appeals to logos. He compares physician-assisted suicide and the 9-11 jumpers to traditional

suicide when he states “Brittany didn’t wake up one morning and say ‘I hate my life and I’m

going to kill myself,” just like those who jumped on 9-11 didn’t step up to the ledge and jump

because they were in debt or trapped in a bad marriage” (para. 4). In the same way, Maynard did

not choose to die; she simply chose the most painless way to die. Corey makes a fair argument

for not considering physician assisted death as suicide when he compares a burning building to

terminal illness. He argues that terminally ill people are like people trapped in a burning

building, and no matter what they do, they will not survive. Corey is successful in appealing to

logos.

Lastly, Corey (2014) effectively appeals to emotions by using the pathos appeal

throughout the article. He uses the photo “The Falling Man” by Richard Drew. The image

evokes feelings of desperation and sadness. He states, “I can’t imagine making that choice. I’ve

tried, but I can’t” (para. 4). This statement makes the reader think and try to imagine being put in

the same situation. He successfully conveys a sense of justice and fairness throughout his article

by pointing out that it is not fair to say the 9-11 jumpers took their own lives, and therefore, it is

not fair to say Maynard committed suicide. He also states that it would not be fair for the

children of the 9-11 jumpers to go through life saying that their parent committed suicide. If

Maynard had children, would they view their mother as having died from a terminal illness or

from taking her own life? Her husband and family members would certainly agree that their

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loved one was taken from them by brain cancer, not suicide. Corey also highlights this concept

when he states “It seems disingenuous to force someone to choose between two ways of dying

and then turn on them in judgement for picking the least painful of the two options” (para. 4). He

also appeals to pathos by appealing to compassion. He states “… the idea of being burned alive

or having to inhale smoke until death overcomes them becomes less appealing than stepping up

to the ledge and accepting a quicker, less painful fate” (para. 4). This sentence evokes many

feelings, as it makes the reader try to imagine how it would feel to die trapped in a fire. All of

these examples prove that the pathos appeal is utilized very well in the article.

This argument succeeds because the author possesses inherent ethos as a well-educated

person, and he uses sources from credible people. He also makes a well-reasoned argument that

is free of logical fallacies, and he evokes just the right amount of emotion to make the reader feel

empathy without manipulation. The question that the reader has to decide is: Did Brittany

Maynard commit suicide or not? After examining this article, I believe Corey makes a successful

argument that does appeal to his audience that choosing to end your life in the wake of imminent

death should not be viewed as suicide.

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References

Corey, B. (2014). Brittany Maynard didn’t commit suicide: (What we can learn from 9-11’s

“Falling Man”) [blog post]. Patheos. http://patheos.com/blogs/formerly fundie/brittany-

maynard-didnt-commit-suicide-what-we-can-learn-from-9-11s-falling-man