Literary Analysis Of Nelson Mandela's Eulogy For Mahatma Gandhi

Mahatma Gandhi, a highly influential man, was one of the world’s most well-known fighters for equal rights. Gandhi saw and experienced discrimination, for instance, “At the time Gandhi was there, South Africa was not a friendly place for non-whites. . . . Gandhi believed that this was wrong” (Satyagraha: Gandhi’s Legacy). Gandhi’s interest in human rights was born when he moved to South America and saw the way non-whites were treated. “Satyagraha: Gandhi’s Legacy” states, “Practices of Satyagraha included boycotts, protest marches, and fasts.” Gandhi stood up proud for what he believed in, and because of this he was able to fight for his beliefs. Gandhi did many generous, righteous actions in his lifetime, but the real impact happened after he died, including stimulating Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and Nelson Mandela (“Satyagraha: Gandhi's Legacy”). Gandhi inspired others to speak up and change the world forever.

“Hundreds and thousands of Africans are thrown into jail each year under pass laws. Even worse than this is the fact that pass laws keep husband and wife apart and lead to the breakdown of family life.”(Nelson Mandela- April 20,1964 “An Ideal in Which I Am Prepared to Die) This quote comes from a well known African leader Nelson Mandela who fought to help his people in South Africa against apartheid, A set of laws which allowed whites to have all the power in South Africa from 1948 to 1991. He explains in the quote the mistreatment of his fellow Black, Native Africans forced out of homes and jobs due to the white government. Nelson Mandela and many other great leaders used certain rhetorical techniques to convince their people that apartheid is negatively affecting their country. The rhetorical techniques used by Nelson Mandela, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Steve Biko help to persuade their audiences of their messages of the negative effects of apartheid in South Africa. Nelson Mandela and Steve Biko were both activists in the fight against apartheid in South Africa, while Desmond Tutu is an Archbishop who created TRC (Truth and Reconciliation Commission). Nelson Mandela soon became the president of Africa, Steve Biko was murdered by police, Archbishop Desmond Tutu continued helping the truth behind apartheid get out so South Africans can have peace. The rhetorical techniques used in Nelson Mandela’s “An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die” were pathos which is used to persuade a reader by making them feel emotional for the cause as if it is important to them as well which is an appeal to emotion, ethos to credit himself for his hard work which is the appeal to credibility , and logos a logical apply which is using facts about how it’s affecting them, Archbishop Desmond Tutu’s “Forgiveness is Liberating” also uses pathos while applying repetition, the technique of repeating a phrase to persuade the reader that what they are saying is correct and anecdote which is to tell the reader a story of the event to convince them, while Steve Biko’s “Black Consciousness and the Quest for True Humanity” also as Nelson Mandela’s “An Ideal for Which I Am Prepared to Die” applied to logic and used the appeal to credibility.

Nelson Mandela was an amazing person because he gave every human of color their freedom back. He believed that everyone should have freedom and those who take it away from someone is full of hatred. He once said, “A man who takes away another man’s freedom is a prisoner of hatred, his is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness.”. He also

6) however, like Gandhi, he encouraged the volunteers not to retaliate. Mandela spent 26 years and 8 months in jail as punishment for his protesting however, he felt that “no sacrifice was too great in the struggle for freedom” (Doc. 9). He spent time in jail with other protesters that all felt that “whatever sentences [they] received, even the death sentence… [their] deaths would not be in vain” (Doc. 9). Freedom for the South African people from apartheid finally came in 1993. To Mandela this was not just the freedom of his people but “the freedom of all people, black and white” (Doc. 12). “South Africa’s New Democracy” rose after years of continuous nonviolence from the populace.

Mandela once told the court he hoped to live in a free society and was willing to die for it. The author of “Death of an Icon Mandela” quotes Nelson Mandela in court saying “I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons will live together in harmony and with equal opportunities… it is an ideal for which I hope to live for and to see realized. But my lord, if it needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.” (Polgreen). This proves that Mandela was very selfless because he always thought of others before himself. He wanted to free those who were practically prisoners in their own land and he put his own life on the line while fighting for them. Mandela showed how altruistic he was in many ways. He had taken his 27-year prison experience and made it his goal to protest for the freedom of his country. The author states, “Mandela said he regarded his prison experience as a major factor in his ability to lead a divided nation forward.” (Polgreen). This shows that Mandela is incredibly unselfish because he could have easily left prison and given up to let the rest of South Africa deal with their own problems, but instead he continued to rebel. Nelson Mandela was such an altruistic man and it is just one of his many traits that make him a

Through his whole lifetime he was an inspiration to many people and became a worldwide role model for many people across the world. In fact, the text states “Nelson Mandela never wavered in his devotion to democracy, equality and learning. Despite terrible provocation, he never answered racism with racism. His life is an inspiration to all who are oppressed and deprived; and to all who are opposed to oppression and deprivation” (Nelson Mandela Foundation “Biography of Nelson Mandela.” Nelsonmandela.org). Mandela’s efforts to fight for social justice were never broken and he stayed true to his goals of kindness and peace through his work. Nelson Mandela will forever be a true source of peace, and a model of fighting for social justice and civil rights everywhere.

“To deny people their right to human rights is to challenge their very humanity. To impose on them a wretched life of hunger and deprivation is to dehumanize them. But such has been the terrible fate of all black persons in our country under the system of apartheid (“In Nelson Mandela’s own words”). Nelson Mandela was a moral compass symbolizing the struggle against racial oppression. Nelson Mandela emerged from prison after twenty-seven years to lead his country to justice. For twenty-seven years he sat in a cell because he believed in a country without apartheid, a country with freedom and human rights. He fought for a country where all people were equal, treated with respect and given equal opportunity. Nelson Mandela looms large in the

Mahatma Gandhi is renowned all over the world for his nonviolent philosophies and impact upon civil rights. He was the primary leader of India’s move towards independence. Gandhi engineered a form of non-violent protest that would influence the world. He was born on 2nd October, 1869, in Porbandar, India. Gandhi studied law and advocated for the civil rights of Indians, and influenced many civil rights movements. Even after his death, Gandhi’s actions inspired future civil rights movements around the globe. He most notably impacted, civil rights movements in three regions of the world; South Africa, India and America.

The life story of Nelson Mandela has long become a legend, a story that transcends race, borders, culture, or language. He is one of the greatest leaders to ever step foot on this Earth. He was willing to give up his own personal freedoms for the good of his people. Still, his decisions at major points in his lifetime hold lessons for individuals who are inspired of becoming good leaders. Many leaders are inspired by the actions and decision-makings abilities of Mandela. He kept the interest of others before his own. This is what made Nelson Mandela a great leader, and worthy of winning a Nobel Prize. From the decisions he made, and his life experiences while fighting for human rights, one can conclude that Mandela is truly

On April 20, 1964, Nelson Mandela delivered a speech to the Supreme Court of South Africa. Mandela was being tried for sabotage, high treason, and a conspiracy to take over the established government; these charges were brought forth during a time a great discrimination against Africans, by whites. Mandela was a strong leader in the drive towards unification and equality, and to this very day is still acknowledged as a driving force to the end of the apartheid in South Africa. Like many great leaders before him Mandela relied greatly on political movement rather than rebellions or any other means of violence, as he described in more detail in this speech. The purpose of this

Nelson Mandela expresses his ideas on equality to the social group of South Africans to try and get them to act upon discrimination through his inaugurate speech. He does this by reminding the black South Africans how badly they face prejudice, and that marginalisation for the rest of society is necessary.

Nelson Mandela’s Long Walk to Freedom is an autobiography about his life trying to abolish segregation in South Africa. But in the Study Sync exert Mandela hardly talks about how much he did to support human rights and it mostly talks about what state the country was in and what he thinks about more than what he did. But from what we can get from the excerpt there is great information about what he did to defend human right and how he did it. Mandela writes, “I knew as well as I knew anything that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed.” This reaches out to all people not just black people and shows that Mandela wants to help everyone not just the people who have been enslaved or oppressed. Mandela also shares that, “...I joined the African National Congress, and that is when the hunger for my own freedom became the greater hunger for the freedom of my people to live their lives with dignity and self-respect that animated my life, that transformed a frightened young man into a bold one, that drove a law abiding attorney to become a criminal…” This shows that Mandela was politically active in trying to stop segregation for a

Nelson Mandela was a man who learned from his previously violent ways and thoroughly used peace to his advantage in his fight against apartheid, and in the leading of South Africa. Nelson Mandela grew up as a peaceful person and in 1943 went to law school for his degree. While in law school, he got very interested in politics and joined a radical protest group, the African National Congress (The ANC). The ANC got into a lot of trouble with the government for their ideas about a place without apartheid. Mandela was arrested in 1963 and sentenced to life in prison. The government let him out of

Nelson Mandela devoted his life advocating for human rights. He served 27 years in prison but thrived following his release. Mandela became the first black president of South Africa and proceeded to inspire thousands with his speeches. During this time South Africa faced the challenges of overcoming the legacy of the Apartheid. Inequality, racism, and poverty would have to end in order for the country to prevail. He made people realize, “Dealing with these challenges also means accepting the facts of our history” (Mandela 3). Mandela faced the problems within his society head-on. In addition to this, he was willing to accept the country's flaws and the country was far from reaching its fullest potential. He was able to help his country gain a safe water

Another prisoner noted of Mandela, "It doesn't matter if you differ, he is always polite. He never gets angry. All he will do is try to have the discussion as amicable as possible" (Liberfield 1).