Rhetorical Analysis Of Ain T I A Woman

Baym, Nina, and Robert S. Levine. "Sojourner Truth." The Norton Anthology of American Literature. New York: W.W. Norton, 2013. 775-76. Print.

In the edited version of Sojourner Truth's speech, “Ain’t I a Woman” the writer Frances Gage really enhances the rhetorical appeal by changing some things. Firstly, she changes the way she started it. In the original she said, “May I say a few words? I want to say a few words about this matter.”

During the Abolitionist Movement, many speakers stood before crowds to express messages of hope, inspiration, and change. Some of these speakers had years of experience in public speaking and communication. Others, particularly slaves speaking about their own experiences, were notably less eloquent. Despite this, they are often able to craft logically and emotionally persuasive messages. Sojourner Truth, perhaps without knowing, uses erotema, polysyndeton, dialogismus, and anthypophora in her speech “Ain’t I a Woman?” in order to instill passion in her audience while simultaneously advocating for both the rights of women and the rights of African Americans.

The speech by Sojourner Truth, which is called "AIN'T I A WOMAN?", is a powerful speech held in 1851 at the Women's Convention in Akron, Ohio. Truth is a former female slave and she expresses her views on woman's rights in a very persuasive way. This analysis is going to include rhetoric devises used in this speech. In addition, links to other persuasive speeches will be written.

To start with in the speech, “Ain’t I a Woman” spoke by Sojourner Truth she exclaims how the negro women are treated differently. The men in the town say that men started it all and women have nothing to do with the world. In Source A Truth speaks, “That man over there says that women need to be helped into

Sojourner Truth, a former slave, and a woman, gave a powerful, stirring speech at the Women’s Convention in Akron, Ohio during 1851. She engages with the audience at the Women’s Convention emotionally and personally through references to her life as an African American female slave and a mother. Sojourner Truth’s great speech “Ain’t I a Woman” displays ethos, pathos, and logos. In Sojourner Truth’s speech she states, “If my cup won’t hold but a pint, and yours hold a quart, wouldn’t you be mean not to let me have my little half measure full?”

In Sojourner Truth’s most famous speech Ain’t I a Woman follows a story of an African American woman speaking at a Women’s Convention at Akron, Ohio in 1851. However at that time, African Americans had no right to speak to an audience, let alone women themselves. Sojourner uses the three rhetorical devices: ethos, pathos and logos in order for the participants of the women’s convention to have the feeling that they are not alone thinking that women should be treated as a human. When Truth uses her own experiences as evidence of social injustice, the audience automatically knows that she is an African American slave. Sojourner states out “ I have borne thirteen children, and seen them most sold off to slavery–”(Truth).

To begin with, the largest difference between Ain’t I a Woman and Time and Distance Overcome was the types of evidence stated to support the point: that inequality accounts for discrimination and unjust treatment. Truth utilized the Bible as her main piece of backing. Most Americans have heard of the Bible or are aware of Adam and Eve; therefore, the biblical stories cited were expected to be known. Truth mentions, “I have heard the Bible and have learned that Eve caused Truth did not explain how Eve brought sin into the world, which was a flaw because it limits the scope of readers. Non-religious audience members would simply skip over the unfamiliar reference and not understand a key part in the piece. Biss added real examples of hanging and brutality, with the locations of each happening accompanying them. The piece transformed into a list of incidents proving discrimination over race, since blacks were seen as insignificant and inferior. Biss also included quotes from noteworthy people, such as

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men and women are created equal;” this quote is from the Declaration of Sentiments written by Elizabeth Cady Stanton for the Seneca Falls Convention held on July 19th and 20th of 1848. This convention was the first to be organized by women for women’s rights and Frederick Douglass was the only African-American in attendance. Because of his attendance, one would assume that he supports women’s rights, but based on his portrayal of his female characters in his autobiography, Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass An American Slave, he may have a view of women that sees them as secondary to men through his underdeveloped female characters, also he finds it shocking that they can be capable

In 1851 at the Ohio Women’s Rights Convention a once slave by the name of Sojourner Truth gave a speech “Ain’t I a Women” a very popular speech. The main reasons this speech is so effective is from the use of ethos, pathos, and logos. Her being a black slave gives her the credibility to give this talk because she had most of her rights taken away. She uses her own experiences a slave to appeal to the emotions of the other women there. Then her ability to explain why women deserve the same rights as men is a logical appeal.

In Sojourner Truth “Ain’t I a Woman?” speech she uses a well strategic plan to defend women’s position during the 1850s. Truth, could have made a speech that just talked about how women could help this country or do the same work men can do. Instead Truth gave her speech in a more conversational way or a storytelling matter to grab the attention of her audience. She incorporated examples of how men speak of women-how according to men that makes women less. With the examples she gave she also added her option and fired back by saying that women do not get picked up or women can eat as much as a man can. By her doing that in her speech she doing exactly what women do not do and that is standing up for one another and defending each other. Truth

Equality has been an issue for women for an extensive time and even in 1851 they were trying to achieve it. “Ain’t I a woman,” is one of the numerous questions asked by Sojourner Truth in 1851 at a women’s right convention in Akron, Ohio. The woman who raised up that day was a black woman who was trying to make a change and debate the thinking of the statute of men that thought women don’t deserve human rights. While also talking about their thinking she makes a good job at also clapping back to their unlawful judgement with no struggle, not even a paper to look at while speaking.

Truth spoke at the convention, and today the speech she gave is one of the most popular women’s rights speeches ever in American history. Twelve years after the speech was given, it was printed on the Southern-tinged version of speeches. The most surprising thing to everyone is that a woman that lived in New York and the first language was Dutch would have spoken at the Southern idiom. The best part about Truth is that she cared about everyone, not just African-American women she fought for white women's rights too.

In the speech, “Ain’t I a Woman?”, was a speech that was held at a Woman’s Convention in Akron, Ohio. This speech was told to inform men who all see a difference in the rights of a woman. Sojourner Truth, said this speech to focus on any anti-feminist and those who said that woman shouldn’t have the same equal rights as men. As Truth spoke at the convention she touched points on her logic, emotion, and ethical beliefs on woman’s rights. During the speech, she spoke to both sexes of her views on Woman’s rights. However, Truth’s primary audience was to reach out and inform all males who sought that men rights were inferior to women’s.

Barack Obama, Martin Luther King Jr. and Fannie Lou Hamer all delivered powerful, persuasive speeches that will go down in history. The use of these creative individuals’ language and persuasion played a pivotal role within the civil rights movement. We can observe this in the speakers’ rhetoric devices like ethos, logos and pathos.