Rhetorical Devices In Declaration Of Independence

By using emotionally charged words, Jefferson’s attitude toward the situation, which is negative, is to be revealed. He lists, “he has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.” The words ‘plundered’, ‘ravaged’, and ‘destroyed’ represent his frustration and anger among the king. It shows his resentment of the British crown and how well the colonists would do without King George III’s authority. Along with connotative diction, the use of parallelism created a rhythm in the text. He says, “…to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed; that whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute a new government.” This quote clearly demonstrates the emphasis of “government” and “rights”. Jefferson explains how natural, born given rights, should never be violated by anyone, but if it is violated, the people have the right to overthrow the government and replace them with

Although their cause was the same, their tactics and audience differed. Jefferson was able to use his claim of tyranny against the king, and Dr. King was able to use his humble approach and his comparisons to other men and organizations, to gain a worldwide audience in order to advance their causes. For example, Jefferson was able to rally support from the colonists and sympathy from other countries by placing the blame on King George. Jefferson justified his blame of King George by listing the king's many injustices, as well as the attempts that the colonial leaders made to communicate with King George. Using this tactic Jefferson was able to provoke the tyrant to war, prepare the colonists for war, and eventually gain an alliance with the French who helped them win the war. However, the Declaration was only targeted to the audience that would be critical in helping the colonies gain their independence. For instance, the slaves were

Founding Father, Patrick Henry, in his “Speech at the Virginia Convention” emphasizes the necessity to take a stance against Britain by waging War in the name of freedom. He creates a compelling and provocative tone in order to communicate the message of taking up arms and to fighting for what is right. Henry’s purpose is to display the American’s strength and power to embolden American colonists in their renouncement of the British tyranny.

Some of the abuses he describes are shutting off trade with other parts of the world, quartering troops within the colonies, and forcing colonists to be tried in England. Jefferson and others saw these as a violation the people’s right to choose. It was his dream that men should be able to appoint their own government and vote on all decisions that would affect them.

The Boston Tea Party, unreasonably high tax rates, and the quartering of soldiers provoked the creation of a compelling and monumental document: The Declaration of Independence. In 1778, representatives from all 13 colonies assembled to divulge a plan that would free them from Great Britain’s tyrannical ruler King George III. In order to establish an effective and convincing plan, the colonial delegates needed to produce a testimony that would thoroughly persuade its audience to comply with their efforts to disband from the British. Founding father Thomas Jefferson utilizes pathos to assert his objective as well as employes a dramatic tone shift which keeps the audience engaged and emotionally connected to the document’s ambition.

Although the Declaration of Independence was read by both the colonies and Great Britain, the intended audience were the surrounding countries. It was written in the hopes of persuading the countries to stand with the colonies, and to provide them with war support.

Not only is this document well known, but also reads powerful and stirring words. These words were used to declare independence for America but also show the King and the world why they needed their freedom. Jefferson throughout the document lists many reasons why the colonies want to break away from Britain, using a combination of Ethos, Pathos, and Logos to persuade its audience. First when Jefferson uses Logos, he adds to his list facts of the wrongs the King has done to solidly support why the colonies should break away and appeals to people’s reason. Jefferson the King won’t agree to laws to keep the colonists safe; he won’t let the colonist establish courts of law; he determines how long judges will stay in office and how much they will get paid; he makes the colonists keep British soldiers in our homes and the list goes on. Jefferson also uses Pathos to appeal to people’s emotion by using several negative words throughout to emphasize the wrongs the King has done; “[He has shown] cruelty & perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages…" and he is "totally unworthy [to be] the Head of a civilized nation." Jefferson finally uses Ethos to show the credibility of the colonists and why they are right. Jefferson writes; “When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another, and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.” This establishes the colonist’s ethical standing; that they are men of good sense, good character, and good will which then Jefferson acknowledges that they need to explain to the world the

In the Declaration Of Independence, Thomas Jefferson condones rebellion when a leader's power is being used in a way that is harmful to the people. He believes that the government has a responsibility to it’s people. He is justifying rebellious actions against the abuse of the King of Great Britain, and removing the negative connotation associated with it. He addresses this through logos, negative diction, and ethos.

In “The Declaration of Independence” by Thomas Jefferson, Jefferson displays why the colonies should gain sovereignty through rhetorical appeals, harsh diction, and complicated syntax.

Thomas Jefferson, a lawyer and advocate of revolution, declares freedom from Britain in The Declaration of Independence. He persuades his audience, the American colonists and other nations, to understand why they decided to break free from Britain. He takes on an authoritative stance to persuade them. The zeugma he uses emphasizes the colonists' need to gain liberty from Britain. Jefferson describes the numerous ways England has violated the colonists' rights so he is able to easily persuade his audience that their actions are warranted and that they must do everything they can to attain independence. He points out that they must protect "[their] lives, [their] fortunes, and [their] sacred honor" because each of these words hold value to the

This document served as an overall reaction of the Americans against the clutches of Great Britain. Thomas Jefferson used distinctive words to outline the causes and reasons of independence, and even took advantage of several rhetorical strategies, mainly anaphoras. The middle of the declaration is filled with a list of everything King George III has ever done against the colonies. Each injury that the king made on the American’s begins with the phrase “He has”. Jefferson wrote, “He has refused his assent to laws the most wholesome and necessary for the public good. He has forbidden his governors...He has refused to pass other laws…”. The use of anaphora allows for a deeper impact and understanding of why America should break away from Britain. The constant repetitiveness of “He has” makes the injuries sound extremely significant and point out that King George III is the one to blame for the current atmosphere. These anaphoras emphasize the list of complaints but make them more believable . This rhetorical strategy gives the American people a reason to fight because they have been enslaved for so long. There's no doubt that all Americans feel the same about the king as expressed in the Declaration of Independence, but Jefferson gives everyone the common ground everyone needs to fight back. Jefferson expressed his ideas in the Declaration of Independence using anaphoras to create a powerful message that would unite the colonists and make them want to

At the time of the American Revolution, Jefferson was actively involved in legislation and that he hoped would result in slaverys abolition. A number of the enslaved community at Monticello gained thier freedom freedom by different methods. During Jefferson's lifetime he freed two enslaved men. At the time of his death Jefferson gave freedom to five of his men in his will. Jefferson sought to pass the states slavery laws to make it easier to free slaves. The state legislature went the oppposite and passed laws making it more difficult to free slaves . His view was that "there could be an emancipation but then there would be repararion, there would be colonization". He didnt forsee a biracial society which is very ironic but also created a biracial

Before proposing the Declaration of Independence, American citizens were being governed by Britain. During the era, the belief that the British protected them remained amongst the people. Through the taboo ideals of five educated men, the foundation of America was born. Through his previous writings and by drafting the Declaration of Independence, Jefferson gained approval from the nation. The Declaration of Independence opens up with various promises and and regulations the citizens previously did not have. It states that if the new government created is to abuse its power, then it is in the hands of the people to eradicate it. It smoothly transitions into a “list of grievances,” explaining King George III’s wrongdoings and why his crimes

“Jefferson’s ideals came from a hypothetical yeoman farmer, whose hard labour on the land will offer the best judgment on the rights of people.” (Sturgis, pg 7) At times, Jefferson had made uncomfortable decisions that opposed his ideals and beliefs, such as the Louisiana Purchase from Napoleon. This forced a removal of the

Thomas Jefferson played a key and influential role in the American Revolution by putting his thoughts on paper. Before the Declaration of Independence was imagined, discussed, or signed, Jefferson was publishing works to promote his vision. He unknowingly used the Transformational Leadership and developed a plan that was broken down into three steps. First, in 1774, he published the Summary View of the Rights of British America, which was a pamphlet used to inform the Continental Congress of their standing with the British Crown. The goal of the pamphlet was to intellectually stimulate Colonial leaders and appeal to their emotions. (www.loc.gov, 2014) Jefferson’s saw the inequality in a special way and he wanted the Colonial leaders to fully understand their plight. Step two came a year later in 1775 when Jefferson wrote the Declaration of the Causes and Necessity of Taking Up Arms. (www.loc.gov, 2014) This time Jefferson’s intent was to start a fire within the Colonists and he achieved this through Inspirational Motivation and Idealized Influence. (CF02, FRLD, p. 22, 2012) Finally, Jefferson was able to bring the Colonial leaders on board with revolution and step three was to write the Declaration of Independence and rally the public.