Rhetorical Analysis Of Mary Davis 'Finding Direction In Uncertainty'

Mary Davis gave her devotional address entitled Finding Direction in Uncertainty on April 9, 2024. In this speech directed to college students, she discussed insights on moving forward despite uncertainty. Through stories from her life, she taught principles such as not quitting and trusting God even when lacking knowledge. In addition to the content of her devotional, there is also much to be learned about how she wrote and delivered her speech to create an impactful address. The techniques she uses to make an effective presentation include clear organization, visual elements, and relatable stories. One of the first techniques Mary Davis uses to create a memorable presentation is having a clear organization. She focused on two main points: how to move forward in

Visuals in her presentation took the form of images, paintings, and quotes. The visuals chosen mirrored her words and added rather than detracted from her address. One that was particularly effective was the image of many people climbing a mountain with Christ at the summit. Using the mountain as a metaphor, she described how every person has an individual path back to Christ and one cannot judge the righteousness of another merely by the angle at which they are traveling. The image of various people on the side of a mountain walking in an upwards direction was more effective than if she would have just said that we cannot judge people because we are all different. The painting of a mountain that she used also gave listeners a concrete image that was easy to remember. Using the mountain painting and other visuals, Mary Davis was able to enhance the quality and memorability of her speech. Finally, the last thing that contributed to the effective speech given by Mary Davis was her use of relatable stories. From the beginning, she used examples from her own life to elaborate on her