Rhetorical Analysis Of Benjamin Banneker

In the second paragraph, Benjamin Banneker alludes to the Declaration of the Independence to note that Jefferson himself wrote “all men are created equal” and have the right to “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” Banneker includes this detail to prove to the audience that Banneker is knowledgeable, and also point out the hypocrisy of the whites. The use of Jefferson’s own words against himself creates a slight shock from the audience, and urges a re-examination of themselves and the principles they claim to hold dearly. Banneker opens the third paragraph with several religious details that criticize Jefferson’s support for slavery. Banneker explains that while Jefferson is “fully convinced of the benevolence of the father” he “counteracts

This is to keep Jefferson in a calm state instead of simply infuriating him. Although Banneker is offended, he keeps his maturity level high. Also, He uses words such as entreat, dangers, exposed, hope, fortitude, inability, abhorrence to maintain his credibility as a professionalist while still keeping the sense of his disagreement of slavery. This makes Jefferson feel as if he is the one who is incorrect, since Banneker is an intellectual writer, and makes him think over his current actions. Then, Banneker’s tone shifts into more emotional and passionate toward his argument of abolishing slavery. Banneker uses words such as liberty, nature, benevolence, mercies, fraud, violence, captivity, cruel, oppression, criminal, detested which causes a powerful effect. Banneker refers to

The repetition of the word “sir” at the beginning of each paragraph in his letter also holds a great weight on Benjamin Banneker’s decision to address Jefferson with his plea. It shows ethos, that he understands his position in comparison to Jefferson and is spoken out of respect. His risky gesture was carefully thought out, shown in the syntax of his sentences, long and carefully attacking the points he means to address. His well-formed sentences disprove the ideas that African Americans are all illiterate and incapable. Throughout the letter strong words such as fortitude, providential, and abhorrence justify that the letter is worth Jefferson’s time, not disdain. Continuously repeating “sir and his suggestions that his own achievements as a freedmen were a contradiction of Jefferson’s belief that blacks lacked intellectual ability and proof of what they could achieve when they were not tied down by slavery. Just like the writing of Fredrick Douglas, his

In Benjamin Banneker’s letter to Thomas Jefferson in 1791, soon after the U.S.’s separation from Britain, he uses allusions and juxtaposition in describing the existence of slavery to show Jefferson that while he claims to follow American values of freedom and equality, he does not believe in allowing those same values to African Americans. Thomas Jefferson, the then secretary of state, is persuaded to put himself in the slaves’ shoes and have more compassion towards their oppression.

The letter does a wonderful job of including allusions in the text in order to get Jefferson thinking about the past and his past experience. Banneker asks Jefferson to recall when the British “enslaved” the colonists and how that made him feel in an effort to make Jefferson imagine how Banneker must feel. Banneker also alludes to the Declaration of Independence, which Jefferson wrote, in order to use his own words to point out his hypocrisy.

Banneker’s letter was primarily written to Jefferson in order to argue against slavery. In doing so, Banneker began each paragraph with “sir”. Not only does this consistently establish whom Banneker is writing to, but it works to create conversation within his letter, the six times “sir” is repeated. “Sir” is stated six times over the course of Banneker’s letter. Each time Jefferson comes across “sir” it grasps his attention, then is followed by a point Banneker makes. In doing so, this describes Banneker’s intelligence which during the late 1700s blacks were seen as uneducated and nothing more than property. This also distinguishes his appreciation towards Jefferson by formally addressing him several times throughout Banneker’s letter. When placing Jefferson on a “pedestal” it creates a tone of respect towards Jefferson, which will result in a more appreciative and impactful reaction to Banneker’s

First, Benjamin Banneker reasons African Americans are equal to white men in order to argue that slavery is morally wrong. For example, through the repetition of the word the ‘Sir’, Banneker not only shows respect towards Thomas Jefferson, but portrays himself as someone knowledgeable. This helps Banneker argue that is slavery is morally wrong because it shatters the notion of African Americans being inferior to white people due to Banneker, who is an African American, writing a letter in a dignified manner. Also, it helps the argument by appealing to Thomas Jefferson’s ego and sense of worth. The repetition of ‘sir’ makes it more difficult for Jefferson to become angry at Banneker for being insolent because it doesn’t antagonize Jefferson, but recognizes the difference in authority and position between Banneker and Jefferson while showing that Banneker himself, who is an African American, is capable and educated. Through sentences “… you have mercifully received and that is the peculiar blessing of heaven”, “blessings to which you were entitled by nature”, and “… benevolence of the Father of mankind and of equal and impartial distribution of those right…” Mr. Banneker appeals to Jefferson through religion. This religious appeal aids the argument that slavery is wrong because it works as the premise to a syllogism; God has made all men equal, African Americans and white people are men, so they are equal. For Jefferson to dispute this argument, he would have to defy the premise of his own Declaration of Independence (“We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are create equal…”) which would mean the loss of the justification Americans had to declare independence from Great Britain. Also, Banneker speaks to Jefferson’s own values as a religious man by arguing that he is opposing God’s goodwill in the

Benjamin Banneker was a free African American who lived during a time when slavery was still prominent in America. As a free African American, Banneker knew the joys of freedom. In 1791 he wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson in which he urged Jefferson to put an end to slavery in America by using his powerful influence in the government. Jefferson, a slave owner himself, was a major supporter for independence during the American Revolution; in this letter to Jefferson, Banneker wants to show him that he is contradicting his previous beliefs by not abolishing slavery. Banneker aims to use Jefferson’s own experiences and principles in order to persuade him to get rid of slavery in the states. Banneker is very passionate in his letter to Jefferson, expressing an intense urge for the abolition of slavery. Banneker mainly integrates the mechanics of appeals to logic and ethics, strong diction and logical rhetorical structure in order to persuade Jefferson.

By varying tones used throughout the letter, Banneker’s letter keeps Jefferson intrigued with what Banneker has to say, thus further developing the argument which Banneker is making. The tone which Banneker uses at the beginning of his essay is much more respectful,

Also, Mr. Banneker used pathos to help argue against slavery, he appealed to Mr. Jefferson’s ego. When Benjamin Banneker was talking about the Declaration of Independence he referred to it as a “valuable doctrine… remembered in all succeeding ages”, this appeals to Thomas Jefferson because he was the principal author of it. Now he has caught Thomas Jefferson attention and has shown his respect towards him and his work. Not only has he shown his respect towards him but Mr. Jefferson can see that they agree on the same concept even if it’s not on the same page. He also used pathos, when reminding Mr.Jefferson about the time the U.S was under British rule. He did this to make a connection between slaves and colonists, he reminds him that they too had no freedom and had little hope of escaping the British crown. All of this helps

Benjamin Banneker was a man who felt very strongly about slavery, considering his parents were former slaves. He wrote a well-composed letter to Thomas Jefferson, who was the framer of the Declaration of Independence and secretary of state to the President of the United States, George Washington. He compiled his thoughts, along with reasons why Jefferson should help to abolish slavery. Through referencing Jefferson’s past work, using the bible as a reference, and maintaining a friendly, but firm tone, Banneker was effectively able to argue against slavery in his letter to Thomas Jefferson.

Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with slavery is a complex one. It is, perhaps, ironic to think that someone who owned slaves would be an advocate to end that very same practice. How can Jefferson be hailed as a champion for slave rights because of his opposition to slavery while, at the same time, using other people as property? Although somewhat contradictory at first, the nature of the relationship between Jefferson’s opinions and his attitudes towards slavery will be thoroughly examined in order to understand the means by which he helped fuel a revolution in the context of a society that was so dependent on slavery. In other words, Jefferson was a significant piece of the abolitionist movement, and so that the seeming differences between what he did and what he preaches can be understood, we must also analyze the historical context. By doing so, we find that Jefferson was indeed ahead of the times, although in his own unique way, and the reason why it might have been significant that he was a slaveowner while trying to end the practice.

The letter from Banneker to Jefferson integrates extremely knowledgeable and formal diction in contention against the issue of slavery. The advanced level of language introduced by Banneker is another contributing component to his believability on his position against subjugation. A few great instances of Banneker's diction are in the words "abhorrence" in line 18, "benevolence" in line 32, and the phrase "professedly detested" in line 40, all of these showing the great knowledge that he carries. Banneker’s education has the potential to prove to Jefferson that black people can be on the same level as white people despite being put below white people as their slaves. In the second paragraph of his writing, Benjamin uses his knowledge of the time period when the United States was under British rule, inviting Jefferson to recall the "injustice" and the "horrors of its condition”. In doing so, he compares this to the slavery of black people during his own current state of life. In lines 35-38 of Banneker’s letter, it is stated, "that you should at the same time counteract his (God's) mercies in detaining by fraud and violence so numerous a part of

Banneker’s word choice takes a large role in his letter as it show his persuasive bold stance and emotional message to Jefferson. Banneker used bold and compelling detailed phrases, in particular “I entreat you… your abhorrence thereof was so excited… how pitiable… groaning captivity and cruel oppression” (Paragraphs 1-3) moves readers of the letter responsively into feeling guilt and grief towards the ones enslaved. His word choice implies formally that Jefferson, the man who wrote the Declaration of Independence who stated “all men are created equal, and that they are endowed by their creator with unalienable rights” (Paragraph 2) contradicted himself “you should at the same

It is said that slavery is a stain on our country’s past. The topic of slavery was and still is a controversy in which equality is a struggle to obtain. However, what occurred in the past created the nation that lives on today. Benjamin Banneker was one man who stood out in the efforts to end slavery. He did so in writing a strongly worded letter to Thomas Jefferson that exclaimed his opinions and feelings. Banneker used an appeal to pathos, repetition, and religious appeals to argue against slavery.