People are prone to overlook Injustice and tragic events. Elie Wesel is bold enough to stand up and give a speech that demonstrates how people ignore injustices. It can be hard for people to listen to a speech and convince them to do something about inhumane situations. Elie uses emotional appeals to build trust with the audience and encourage them to care. Elie Wiesel encourages people to act for the benefit of humanity and the common good. Elie Wiesel speaks to political leaders and followers. The speech was made in front Bill and Hillary Clinton as well Ambassador Richard Holbrooke. Wiesel, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and activist, shared his view of indifferent people and how it had affected the nation. The “Perils of Indifference”, which successfully combined ethos with pathos, was able to persuade, motivate and inform the audience about the injustices. Elie draws inspiration from his experiences of being freed of the inhumane actions of WWII in order to use pathos. The audience feels sympathetic towards Elie’s childhood and is drawn to his memory. “There wasn’t joy in his heart.” It is important to note that Elie wouldn’t be as strong if he hadn’t experienced the tragedy. Elie says that Bill Clinton was “Commander & Chief of Army that Freed Me, Tens of Thousand of Others” and Mrs. Clinton is then thanked for her help (Wiesel). Elie then calls out the government and accuses them of being indifferent during WWII. “We believe Auschwitz was secretly guarded…but we discovered ….”” (Wiesel). Elie says that the United States didn’t do anything when they found out about these camps. Elie Wiesel is telling the audience that their suffering and their hurt can be compared with the indifference that they have not objected. We can choose to ignore others’ misery, which is a sign that our indifference is not going to stop. Wiesel’s childhood experiences with terrible injustices inspired him to help others learn about indifference. “Indifference” is worse than hatred and anger. (Wiesel). Wiesel uses this quote to illustrate his ethos. He is credited for his personal experience, which he had as a result of being personally targeted by hatred and anger. Because he uses words like “hatred” to make his audience feel hurt, he also creates his sense of indifference. This is because no one loves being a target. Wiesel approached the problem by asking rhetorical queries and making allusions that made his argument more relatable to the audience. His speech was easy to understand and reliable. Elie Wiesel’s life is full of tragic stories. He is able to be credible because he has personal experience with the subject. If they don’t know what the speaker is talking about, many people won’t listen. Elie Wiesel uses words that start with “our” as a way to draw the audience and set the stage. Wiesel understands that the audience will feel more comfortable if they are equal to him. Wiesel’s speech, in which he uses “our”, builds trust and a relationship with his audience. He acknowledges the mistakes of others and admits that he has made them. The cheese makes political people equal with the rest of the community. Wiesel makes it clear that everyone should be open-minded about the current world affairs. He grabs the attention of the audience emotionally by pointing out many Injustices that were taking place at the time he gave the speech. Wiesel admits that many people have heard his story, but may not be aware of one of the many horrific acts happening around the globe. These are used by Wiesel to illustrate injustices and highlight what was overlooked. “The bloodbath at Cambodia in Nigeria, India & Pakistan, Eritrea & Ethiopia and Sarajevo; the inhumanity and tragedy of Hiroshima. Treblinka and Auschwitz are also on another level. (Wiesel). This quote causes the audience to feel guilty for not intervening or helping with these horrific events. Instead, our nation has been ignoring these situations because it doesn’t want us to. Wiesel is not just successful at reminding the world of the tragedy, but he also gains credibility for his involvement in the Auschwitz tragedy. Wiesel conveys his message using humor and ethos in order to address the issue of indifference. Elie Wiesel does it in many ways. His audience and he are equals, and his past experience lends him credibility before he talks about indifference. Elie Wiesel encourages his audience members to fight indifference between nations and society. This speech will open others’ eyes and give them knowledge about his views on indifference as well as his views on how Nations respond to tragedies.
Rhetorical Analysis Of The Perils Of Indifference
