Rhetorical Analysis Of Gun Violence

In response to the many shootings that have transpired, Barack Obama has been discussing how to prevent them. He claims that signing an action will protect the people from gun violence. Furthermore, he believes that this action will hinder guns from getting into the hands of the men, women, and children that abuse them. In his speech, “Remarks on Signing 23 Executive Actions to Reduce Gun Violence”, Barack Obama applies pathos, logos, and biased language to lure the audience into feeling that the 23 actions are deemed necessary in order to protect those they love.

During Obama's speech, he uses pathos to trigger emotion within the audience. His use of adolescent letters causes parents to feel the need to protect their children. Through the use of their letters, he highlights the idea of protection, which is a prominent role as a parent. One of the letters states, “I’m scared for others. I have four brothers and sisters and I know I would not be able to bear the thought of losing any of them” (Julia). In other words, she

Biased language is twisting and manipulating and Obama uses it in his speech. For example, Obama calls gun violence an “epidemic”. He argues that gun violence is a huge problem and that it is spreading like the flu. To exaggerate the problem and manipulate the minds of the audience, Obama uses the words “military-style assault weapons” to describe the weapons even if they are simple guns. Through doing this, he instills fear within the audience. His use of biased language elaborates on the fact that not all guns in shootings are military style guns. This strategy is effective if someone is not paying close attention to the words that are being read or spoken. By using biased languaging, he is futhering his point that the 23 actions are going to prevent the incedents like the sandy hook shooting and Newtown