Change The Date Of Australia Day By Peter Moore

Change the date of Australia Day issue – Language Analysis

Controversy surrounds the issue of whether Australia Day’s date should be changed to a day with historical value that also includes Indigenous people. As Australia day is on the 26th of January, it is associated with the day that Captain Cook landed in 1788, which to those of Indigenous origin, can be known as Invasion Day. Two articles published on the 26th of January 2017, with opposing views ‘January 26th is the birth of modern Australia – deal with it’ written by Peter Moore and ‘Australia Day/Invasion Day debate: #ChangeTheDate – But not right now’ by Natalie Cromb, express their views on the date of Australia Day potentially being changed. In Peter Moore’s opinion piece, published

Cromb forcefully implements personal language such as ‘I am a vocal advocate of progressing this nation and relations with Indigenous people through Treaty,’ to indicate that she is actively involved in supporting those of Indigenous origin and, therefore, has a convincing argument. Her involvement in Indigenous relations emphasises her support for changing the date of Australia Day as it shows her physical contributions within the Indigenous community and allows the reader to understand why she is so passionate about the issue. Similarly, Moore says ‘I was alerted to this significant and hugely symbolic occasion by the entirely predictable bleatings of discord from indigenous representatives’. This demonstrates that he is accustomed to the annual bickering that takes place on January 26th about how the date is insensitive to those of Indigenous background. His annoyed and frustrated tone reveals that he is sick of the repeated talk over changing the date. Both authors use personal language to ensure that the reader feels secure about the argument that the writer is trying to

The heavy use of persuasive techniques including expert opinion, personal and inclusive language, and evidence, facts and statistics create strong arguments for opposing views on the issue. While Australians are already well versed and have more than likely already created an opinion on the issue, the authors of both articles attempt to persuade the reader to accept their personal view and see it as a valid opinion. They both use an annoyed tone to show their stance and passionately express their opinions to show that thy care about the issue which helps to convince the reader that their argument is valid. The opposing texts present their views on the ‘change the date of Australia Day’ argument and by using persuasive techniques, create a structured opinion on the issue and attempt to convince the reader that their view is