Rhetorical Analysis - How Plagues Really Work

SNF- 220

Essay 1: Rhetorical Analysis, “How Plagues Really Work”

         Where do people in the Western world obtain information regarding news and current events? Before the 1940’s, the main source of information was through the daily newspaper, and then came news broadcasts through television. Now in the twenty-first century, technology has made the search for information virtually limitless. Today, current events throughout the world can be spread from person to person in a matter of seconds. The news concerning the 2014 Ebola outbreak did just that and spread like wildfire. News reports flooded the televisions, cellphones, and computers of Western individuals and fear of a pandemic ensued. “Yet no logic can quell our pandemic paranoia”, says Wendy Orent. In her article, “How Plagues Really Work”, published in 2014 in Aeon Magazine, Orent aims to educate readers and put an end to the alleged “pandemic paranoia”. Her attempts to appeal to the readers’ sense of emotion with the support of credibility and logical reasoning formulate a persuasive argument and thought-provoking read.

        In the article, Orent explains why the Ebola virus will not turn into a worldwide epidemic – despite what “alarmists” think. She discusses the history of diseases, such as the H5N1 virus, the Black Death, and the Great Plague of Athens, which end up supporting her argument. In her conclusion, Orent reflects back to the history of the Great Plague, which explains why the Western world should focus on eliminating “disease factories” rather than being distracted by “pandemic paranoia”.

        Orent sets the stage by using pathos with words, such as “terrify” and “murderous”, to describe the Ebola outbreak. Orent’s use of these dramatic terms catches the readers’ attention. She also asks a rhetorical question and then deviates from that to reveal her point; which is, “Ebola, murderous though it is, doesn’t have what it takes to produce a pandemic”. Her ability to pull the reader in with effective word usage, and then shift directions in a very articulate way is makes for an appealing introduction. Furthermore, Orent purposely overstates the situation, which adds humor to a rather serious subject. For example, the last sentence of her introduction reads, “to avoid Ebola, just refrain from touching sweat, blood or the bodies of the sick or dead”. Here, the reader gets a sense of Orent’s tone, which varies from sarcastic, like in this example, to serious. Orent’s serious tone is apparent when she uses descriptive words to add emphasis to certain topics. As mentioned previously, she uses dramatic words such as “murderous” and “evil” to describe Ebola and other diseases, which draw emotion from the reader. For example, she uses the word “evil” to make the reader feel a sense of anger towards the United States for “pumping billions of dollars in worldwide government funding to fight, evil lab-made disease” during the “biological weapons scare”. Additionally, Orent uses effective figures of speech to add emphasis and clarity to her ideas. An example of this is when she says, “after all, plagues have killed a lot of people, and deadly diseases litter history like black confetti”.

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