Rhetorical Devices In Alfred M Green Speech

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The Civil War was a fundamental time in the shaping our our nation. The United States was divided, brawling over the topic of slavery. Our country was split into 2 sides: North and South. Alfred M. Green, an African American Abolitionist, delivered a speech in April 1861, shortly after the onset of the war. The Union Army had prohibited African Americans from enlisting. As a result, Green wanted to persuade fellow African Americans to prepare to join the fight. He used a variety of tactics to deliver a convincing and heartfelt speech. Green uses motivational words and phrases in his speech that show how strongly he feels about the fight, and also about the mistreatment of African Americans in the North. The audience was mainly black. The goal of the speech was to convince them to attempt joining the ranks. Green illustrates the need for hope for a better future, and the need to erase the past in order to move on. Green maintains an upbeat tone to encourage the recipients of the speech. While his passion is obvious, Green focuses on rallying the listeners, instead of using harsh diction to anger the people. To support the message, Green uses his education to improve his speech in multiple ways. As mentioned in the paragraph above, Green chose his words carefully and let them work to his advantage. For example, he uses words …show more content…

Green’s final persuasion tactic was to end with a powerful summary that echoed the main ideas stated throughout the speech. Green reminded the African American people once again that they must be the ones to have faith, forgive wrongdoings and rise up to end this