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Rhetorical Devices Used By Nas

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“Black Zombie” by the rapper Nas is the tenth song on the 2002 album, The Lost Tapes. The song features smooth rapping from Nas, matched with a beat, and soul singers in the background. The song immediately dives into rapping channeling pathos by saying, “All we are Is dope dealers, and gastas and hoes?” The constant reference of “black zombie” is recalled many times as the author explains the social injustice of African Americans in this day. The rest of the song features many examples of pathos and logos to try and reach the targeted audience. Even though the song is sung by Nas, the writers are Nasir Jones and Tommie Spearman. The main rhetorical device used to try and get the argument across in the song is pathos, the appeal to emotion. The song tries to appeal to emotions like fear and anger. Through some of the lines, the author is trying to rally up people similar to them. “So stop being controlled, we black zombies.” Is a line in the song that tries to get people to realize that they’re being controlled. This controller could be America in general, all having a certain expectation for how people should act. When people hear this line they will come to the realization that …show more content…

Just the hook itself has the phrase “black zombie,” which makes it an epistrophe. But what is the author trying to say with “black zombie?” The author is comparing African Americans people to zombies, which are living dead creatures that tend to act out of zero intention. These creatures go through their daily lives not wondering who they are, or what they are doing. To further establish their point the writers say, “You scared to be yourself, 'cause you in a trance.” They’re being held down by the stereotype and systems of America that hold them in place. Once again this is channeling pathos which tries to get people realize and use their emotions for the better, and not let the world take advantage of

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