Rhetorical Analysis Of United Nation's Climate Summit

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On September 23rd, world leaders gathered at the United Nation's Climate Summit to discuss the huge issue we face today. Global warming concerned many who attended, including Leonardo DiCaprio, an actor and also the “UN Messenger of Peace”(DiCaprio 2). Most people know Leonardo DiCaprio as an award winning actor, but he has also been a huge advocate for the harming of the environment. At the Climate Summit when Leonardo DiCaprio took the stage, he presented an influential speech. In his speech he avoids stating statistics and instead, includes his own personal experiences, different tones, allusions, logical appeals, and emotional appeals to create a perfect chemistry to move his audience towards his intended direction of making changes and …show more content…

In reference to the beginning of his speech, he does not plan on reaching out to average citizens to take action, but instead people with higher positions who have the power to make a change as he gives “thanks to the distinguished climate leaders assembled [there] who are ready to take action” (2). In addition, he says that “after 21 years of debates and conferences it is time to declare no more talk” (3-4). His use of candid tone touches the viewers logical thinking, informing them that his audience withhold a position where they have given speeches and made comments on global warming but have yet to take action; something most political leaders do. Furthermore to the fact that his audience carries a higher political position, Leonardo DiCaprio’s speech gives the reader an understanding that these world leaders have knowledge about global warming as he states “I do not need to throw statistics at you, you know them better than I do, and more importantly, you know what will happen if this scourge is left unchecked” (2). In this statement, he creates more of a critical tone by using the word “scourge”. Placing …show more content…

In his speech he provides some testimony that brings either an emotional or logical appeal to the audience. He does this when he says that he “[has] seen cities like Beijing choked by industrial pollution” (2). He could have studied and stated facts on the effects that Beijing face, but by simply letting the audience know that he has seen what Beijing goes through brings up a sense of reality to the audience. Also, his use of the word “choked” makes the statement stand out. Pain, suffering, and death are three of the many words that comes to mind for most people. Innocent people of Beijing suffer because of global warming, and he knew placing that in his speech would touch the audience emotions. He then goes on talking about how “in India [he] met farmers whose crops have literally been washed away by historic flooding” (2). this testimony creates a logical appeal because of his use of the word “historic”. By describing the floods as “historic”, the reader then interprets the harsh floodings as being a fact due to Leonardo Dicaprio’s evidence. This crisis plays an effect on every aspect in every location based on what Leonardo DiCaprio says and he wants his audience to know that not through facts but with his first hand experiences. He ends the discussion of what he witnessed with a logical appeal when saying “all that I have seen and

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