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Abigail Adams Advice Rhetorical Devices

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The meaning behind a mother’s advice to her children should be taken to heart. Despite John Quincy Adams’ young age, Abigail Adams presents him didactic advice to assist him in his future endeavors. Abigail Adams employs various rhetorical devices to support and expound on her advice; she tells John Quincy Adams to not waste the advantages he was doled in life and mentions how wisdom lies in experience thought the implementation of personification, extended metaphor, maternalistic diction, and allusion. Abigail Adams advice focused on John Quincy Adams applying himself and emphasized how he must take advantage of the privileges he has received. For example, Abigail Adams states, “nature has not been deficient,” to personify the advantages
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293 Words | 2 Pages

Abigail Adams is the wife of John Adams who was a United States diplomat and the second president. On January 12, 1780 Abigail Adams wrote a letter to her son, John Quincy Adams. Abigail Adams exemplifies pathos and introduces connections to tell him she has high expectations as he embarks on his voyage. Abigail Adams amplifies pathos to relate to her son’s emotions. “Your knowledge of the language must give you greater advantage now than you could possibly have reaped whilst ignorant of it; and as you increase in years, you will find your understanding opening and daily improving.”

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615 Words | 3 Pages

Abigail Adams writes to her son, John Quincy Adams, informing him of lessons to learn from and experiences to cherish. She implements metaphorical language, contrasting connotative word choices and structurally repetitive phrases into her letter to evoke an encouraging attitude toward John Quincy Adams during his trip with his father in order to express her hopes for a safe voyage. Mrs. Adams mentions an author telling her about how John was the “judicious traveller” running through a stream going “through rich veins of mineral” (Adams 3). She highlights his strengths by comparing him to nature, portraying him as the stream that gathers minerals, in which the minerals represent John improving his character through tribulations, opportunities, mistakes, and learning experiences.

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1018 Words | 5 Pages

To show her son that she is knowledgeable of these topics, Abigail uses the appeal of ethos. Adams does this by referencing

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440 Words | 2 Pages

Adams uses an abundance rhetorical devices in her letter to her son. The strong diction illustrates what challenges must be faced to become a hero. This tells John Quincy Adams that it will not be easy, but it is worth it. The analogies compare a traveler to a river and wisdom (or fruit) to experience and laziness.

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491 Words | 2 Pages

In this letter, it talks about John Quincy Adams in his journey to becoming president. His mother Abigail Adams personally writes this letter to him whiles he's on his trip with his father. Abigail Adams wrote this letter employing pathos, asking rhetorical questions and presenting personal comparisons to extend the idea of following his fathers footsteps in becoming president of the U.S. Adams changes her sons attitude by speaking in to him and appealing to pathos, identifying with him on a personal level. "It will be expected of you my son that as you..." By using "my son" Adams presents a motherly tone of concern to grab his attention.

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446 Words | 2 Pages

In 1780, eight years before the creation of the Constitution, Abigail Adams writes to her son John Quincy Adams, using many different rhetorical devices to advise him throughout his voyage across seas. As a mother, Adams’s concerns and prospects for the future are expressed to her son, who is growing old enough to begin to apply his own intelligence to the world. Mothers have always shared a similarity that is rooted in their compassion and tendencies to protect their children, and Adams is no different. Adams encourages her son through a series of rhetorical techniques. First, she displays her absolute love for him, using the phrase “my dear son” throughout the letter to continually show him that she is not scolding him; rather, she is trying to exhibit to him how much he means to her.

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812 Words | 4 Pages

Every mother wants what the best for her child, even if that child may not believe so. In her letter to her son, John Quincy Adams, Abigail Adams addresses him during his travels in France and defends the rationale of her previous advice while providing her new advice, and partly demands, on the subjects of honor and duty. Abigail Adams uses emotional appeals in the form of personal repetition, flattering metaphors, and prideful personification in order to advise and persuade her son in his personal growth and appeal to his personal qualities, such as pride of honesty and knowledge, to spur his ambitions and actions. To start off the letter, after greeting him and explaining the occasion of her writing, Abigail uses personal repetition with the word “your,” before qualities and events with a positive connotation to appeal to John’s pride and leave him open to listen to more of her her advice, as she already successfully advised him in his trip to France. In only the second sentence of the letter, Abigail already throws in that her advice is, to John, “for your own benefit,” (5) later she speaks of, once again to John, “your knowledge,” (11) and finally, “your understanding,” (14).

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408 Words | 2 Pages

Abigail Adams is writing to her son who is voyaging with his father. At this time her son, John Quincy Adams, is a U.S. diplomat headed to France. In this letter she is telling him to be careful and do good work. To be good man and make his family proud and bring honor to his country. She uses very high level of words to help set the tone of a stern, concerned mother.

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612 Words | 3 Pages

Jordan McNeill Period 2 October 25, 2015 In 1588 the troops of England gathered at Tilbury. Preparing themselves to repel an expected invasion by the King of Spain’s army. Queen Elizabeth I of England delivered a passionate speech encouraging her men to risk their lives in battle. In her, albeit short, speech the Queen deftly uses different rhetorical strategies.

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596 Words | 3 Pages

To start off, Abigail Adams appeals to her son’s emotions by starting off the letter with “my dear son.” By using this introduction, it informs her son that she is being sincere and affectionate towards him. She, also, uses the power of ethos by flattering him with the talents and triumphs he is set with. This is exhibited in the third paragraph when she insists that he is bestowed with “superior advantages.” This flattery persuades and encourages him into continuing his use of the set of advantages he has received.

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515 Words | 3 Pages

She asks her son rhetorically if Cicero would have been such a great leader had he not been "roused, kindled and inflamed. " Here, Adams is explaining that to become a great leader, one must go through great trials. Also, Adams compares her son to

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664 Words | 3 Pages

Abigail Adams in the letter to her son, John Quincy Adams, suggests that he be brave and a great man. Adams supports her suggestion to John by explaining what he should do and that he should be strong, mentally, on the trip. The authors purpose is to encourage the son to be a strong man in order to last on the trip, do honor to their country, and become a great man in the future. The author writes in an inspirational tone for her son John Quincy Adams. She incorporates many different literary techniques in order to get the mood and tone across to her son.

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678 Words | 3 Pages

Abigail employs strategies of emotionally charged words and phrases that only a mother can say to her son. In her letter she opens the letter with the phrase, “MY DEAR SON”. This phrase is notable because of the effects that it is intended to give to the audience, her son John Quincy Adams, she is setting a mood and tone of a loving and compassionate mother. She is using the position of her authority as his mother to push him her love for him is why she knows this trip is great thing for him.

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452 Words | 2 Pages

Abagail Adams wrote a letter to her son, John Adams, who is traveling abroad with his father. Abigail Adams, who was a women back then during the Revolutionary War, didn’t have much political rights. Adams was huge in politics and so was her son, second president of the United States. Adam's uses rhetorical devices to advice her son that he is the only person that can control his future and he must know how to pull through difficulty when it's being tested. To advice her son about this, she uses many rhetorical strategies.

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991 Words | 4 Pages

For a very long time, the voting rights of the citizens have been a problem in the US. It started out with only men with land being able to vote, and then expanded to white men, and then to all men. However, women were never in the situation, they were disregarded and believed to not be worthy enough to have the same rights as men. They were essentially being treated as property, therefore having no rights. But, in Susan B. Anthony’s speech, she hits upon the point that women are just as righteous as men.

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