Analysis Of A Stolen Life By Jaycee Dugard

In The Rhetorical Situation, Lloyd F. Bitzer argues that what makes a situation rhetorical is similar to that which constitutes a moral action as he writes that, “an act is moral because it is an act performed in a situation of a certain kind; similarly, a work is rhetorical because it is a response to a situation of a certain kind”.(3) By defining the rhetorical situation in this way, Bitzer further contends that rhetoric is a means to altering reality. (4) It is through the use of discourse that one is capable of changing reality through thought and action. (4) Bitzer then elaborates upon the nature of a rhetorical situation by explaining that rhetorical discourse enters a situation when: providing a response to its state of affairs;

There were many times where Jaycee and her girls were openly walking around the main house next to Philip’s parole officers. Too afraid to speak up, Dugard silently hoped they would recognize her and free her from the prison that she was in, but any questions that they had Philip would answer and they didn’t probe him further. This led Dugard to develop a mistrust with law enforcement that she is still battling to get over, because of the eighteen miserable birthdays she spent with two criminals and her children in a hidden backyard.

The rhetorical situation helps the audience understand all aspects of which the rhetor writes. When an audience understands the rhetorical situation, they are able to make a judgment on whether they believe the author to be credible or not, or their writing to be effective or not. Mary Crow Dog and Maya Angelou are both effective rhetors because their rhetorical situations work together to make their essays compelling. “Civilize Them with a Stick” by Mary Crow Dog and “Graduation” by Maya Angelou each introduce effective rhetorical situations as they establish their individual identity through their educational experiences.

The type of rhetorical text that I decided to analyze is a television ad. This ad is an anti-smoking ad titled “Last Dance”. This commercial features a family consisting of a mother, father, and son. It shows a family who has come to accept the tragic circumstances of not quitting smoking. In this case,

In the article from Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv the use of rhetorical strategies happens with small stories. Louv tells stories in his article to develop his argument. The use of these

This book is a chapter book that contains appropriate age fitting vocabulary for children aged 8 to 12 year olds. Stolen Children contained no illustrations, having pictures throughout the book would have helped me understand the story line better. This book was very interesting and lead the reader to stay on their toes. There were 5 main characters in this book they were Amy who was the babysitter, Kendra the 3 year old girl, Smokey one of the kidnappers and Hugh another kidnapper. The main conflict of this book was when the girls (Amy and Kendra) had gotten kidnapped and were missing for a week. the setting of this book takes place in an old run down cabin that is in the middle of the woods. In the book, Peg Kehert wrote clues that Amy the character who plays the role as the babysitter gives off throughout the story.

Rhetorical devices are structures used in literature, to convey ideas to an audience. Such devices can be used to appeal to a group logically, emotionally, and ethically. Yet, how people incorporate rhetoric into a form of literature can differ. George W. Bush and Patrick Henry, have both given speeches using rhetorical devices. Henry’s and Bush’s speeches were different in style because of the differences in how Bush and Henry argued, how they used allusions, and how pathos was applied into the speeches.

Rhetoric is the study of how writers and speakers use words to influence an audience. Pathos, Logos, and Ethos are examples of rhetorical devices, where the rhetorician would appeal to an audience to prove a point. In both the Declaration of Independence and The American Crisis #1, the authors use several examples of rhetoric to persuade their audience in the 1700s, to separate themselves from England.

Over the summer, we were asked to write a rhetorical analysis essay. I vividly remember reading the prompt and having no idea what to do. At the time, I had only a limited understanding of the words ethos, pathos, and logos, but somehow I managed to write a three page essay on the rhetoric of Cesar Chavez’s article. When we got back from summer vacation, we learned more about how to write a rhetorical analysis. We learned about SOAPStone, which stands for speaker, occasion, audience, purpose, subject, and tone. I applied my knowledge of SOAPStone to analyzing “Two Ways of Seeing a River” and “To My Old Master”. Through SOAPStone, I was able to easily develop an introduction to my rhetorical analysis essays. Next up was learning how to identify rhetorical devices. Through reading Robert F. Kennedy’s

Rhetorical strategies are a great way for an author to get their tone and what they want to share to their reader. In Barbara Jordan’s Becoming Educated she uses rhetorical strategies to do just that. Jordan uses repetition and diction to increase her effectiveness of her message. She does so that the reader can also relate to what she is going through. By using repletion and diction she weaves these rhetorical devices throughout her experience to increase its effectiveness to convey her voice and her personal sense of growth.

In Literature, rhetorical devices are often used to place emphasis on certain ideas or descriptions, to make an idea clearer, or to provide insight and to smoothly relate topics. Throughout his collection of essays, Scott Russell Sanders utilizes rhetorical devices in order to make his statements and ideas more vivid and clear for the reader. The rhetorical devices offer a more descriptive and insightful look into Sanders’ thoughts on his childhood, personality, and view of the world around him. Throughout the book, Sanders’ uses rhetorical devices ranging from allusions of events and people from the past to employing a varied tone in order give the audience a clear view into his thoughts

Rhetoric gives you an avenue to tell a story from your perspective in a way that connects with the intended audience without having to be one hundred percent substantiated. This writing style is evident in almost everything we read from billboards to Internet ads and even political speeches.

    The speaker is able to use three rhetorical devices, being ethos, logos, and pathos, when talking to the audience about the time she had spent

The book is divided into five sections, each one being subdivided into different strategies on how to use rhetoric to your advantage, in any given situation.

She was alone, she was scared, she had no idea that her normal life would be taken away for the next eighteen years… and hope is the sole reason that she survived it. For kidnap victim, Jaycee Dugard, the word “hope” brings back a flood of emotions and memories. In her chilling memoir, “A Stolen Life”, she describes a very personal experience in which she encountered at age eleven, where she soon learned just how important hope was. Dugard never saw it coming when a man named Phillip Garrido stole her from that bus stop on just another normal morning… or so she thought. Soon after, he took her away and held her hostage in his backyard for almost two decades. Interestingly enough, she has miraculously turned this cruel situation into a very inspiring story. Therefore, she proves to us that even if you’re living out your worst nightmare, you still have something to live for. For this reason, Dugard puts together a descriptive setting, her absurd relationship with her abductor, and personal symbols to illustrate how just a little hope can be the essence of surviving any situation life throws at you.