Rhetorical Analysis Of Origin Of Species By Charles Darwin

Origen Essay

In 1859 Charles Darwin shocked the world as he wrote about Natural selection and his theory of evolution in his book Origin of Species. To convince people of his points, Darwin used the audience to his advantage. By writing in first person, Darwin included the reader in his work. This was accompanied by a logical analysis of the world around him and a tone of extreme confidence to solidify Darwin's work to be held in the reader's mind as fact. Darwin's rhetorical skills are what has made his theory so popular and one of the reasons his work is highly read today.

In Darwin's conclusion, he heavily uses his rhetorical tools in order to give the reader confidence in his theory. In the last paragraph on Page 456, he starts right off

While this allows the reader to be more personal with Darwin as they hear his ideas from his perspective and point of view, the use of first person benefits Darwin even more as he can use it to pull the audience into his work. On his 457 page, in his second paragraph, Darwin pulls his audience in by not using the "I" pronoun, but the "we" pronoun. When talking about similarities in species he says that “we can feel assured” in the factuality of evolution and that animals have originated from the same species. (italics added) Darwin could have used the I pronoun, but instead chooses to use the we pronoun because it involves the reader in his idea. Not only is Darwin supporting his ideas, but the reader is now supporting the idea as well because they are included in “we”. Darwin mixes his first person with pathos as seen above in the lines “we shall surely be enabled to trace in an admirable manner” the roots of parent species. (italics added) Darwin is pushing the reader that it is not just him finding his theory to be correct, but the reader also will “surely” be able to support Darwin's theory. This writing style adds to Darwin's tone of confidence, as without any research done by others, he fully believes all the answers to his theory will be discovered. Darwin does give a logical reasoning for his confidence, however. In the third paragraph, on page 457, Darwin logically sets up the needed research that

Darwin’s final words are “whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.” This does a lot for supporting his idea. It first creates ethos with Darwin’s theory as evolution is just like gravity, as it has been continuing since the beginning of the world. Gravity is an undisputed law of science, and by Darwin using gravity in comparison to evolution, he makes evolution appear as a scientific law just like gravity. Adding on to this, Darwin's word choice of “beautiful” and “wonderful” create images of beautiful animals and life all inspired by evolution. It is a powerful ending to a highly controversial book. Darwin’s ending paints an image and creates an idea that no one would want to