Rhetorical Analysis Of Jason Reynolds's Speech

It is important not to let your fortunes make you lose perspective. Author Jason Reynolds feels passionate about this subject. In his moving and wittily made speech presented to the Lesley University Commencement address in 2018, Jason Reynolds cleverly articulates and effectively gets to the audience’s emotions through his use of an anecdote and symbolism to remind the audience to stay grounded and not lose their perspective of the less fortunate. Reynolds brilliantly appeals to the audience’s emotions by grabbing their attention with a riveting anecdote about an eccentric teacher he had in high school. The teacher, Mr.Williams, wore abnormal clothing and had a pet fish in his classroom. The only rule with the fish was under no circumstances were

He first creates a humorous bond with the audience by poking fun at the overused message in graduation speeches, “And, honestly, all these speeches can be boiled down to a simple cliché: Get out there, spread your wings, and change the world.” By doing this, he subtly sets the foundation of his creatively used symbolism of wings. Because the quote “spread your wings” is a universal saying that everyone has heard, Reynolds is able to connect with everyone in the audience. He uses wings to symbolize privilege, “what good is it for me to fly so far above them, when they’ll only look smaller to me the higher I go? And how exactly will my grossly distorted perspective change the world…for the better?” The flying, winged people represent people with privilege who let it boost their egos, and the people below, people without wings, represent ones who have less privilege. The symbolization of people with wings flying above people without wings provides great imagery for the audience and captivates them through Reynold’s words. His creative use of symbolism appeals to the audience’s feelings and keeps them engaged throughout his