John Barry The Great Influenza Rhetorical Analysis

Stephen Hawking declared, “Scientists have become the bearers of the torch of discovery in our quest for knowledge.” Since the beginning of time, humans have been searching constantly for answers and knowledge about the world around them. Scientists have brought it upon themselves to be the discoverers of the human race. John Barry wrote his account during The Great Influenza of 1918 when millions of people were dying and solutions to the sickness were being sought out after by the scientific community. In his account of The Great Influenza of 1918, John Barry implements scientific diction, frequent repetition, and unique symbolism to demonstrate the difficult journey of scientific research. First, Barry employs scientific diction to describe the work of scientists and how they function. Scientists often use different tools to do their job and to find answers. Barry states, “There a single step can take them through the looking glass into a world that seems entirely different.” The use of the word looking glass refers to old technology that was commonly used by the scientists giving light to the way scientists function by mentioning their instruments. The scientific method is paramount to scientists and their studies. Barry affirms, “Ultimately a scientist

The rhetorical devices imbue the text with power by describing the intricate parts of the scientific method and how it affects scientists greatly. These rhetorical devices also make the text beautiful and easier to connect with by including imagery of the unknown wilderness and nature, which relates with scientists and their studies. Being a scientists and delving into scientific research is a difficult task and it requires not only scientists, but also the every day person to be the torch bearers of discovery as