Rhetorical Analysis Of 'Riding OD Road'

Carrick, Pennsylvania is the drug overdose capital of the region. The article featured in the New York Times, “Riding OD Road” by Rich Lord is a powerful multimedia article which examines the underlying causes of the several overdoses that occur in Carrick, Pennsylvania. In order to get a better understanding of why people resort to drugs in this city, the article focuses on a number of individuals who have suffered from drug overdoses and those who have witnessed drug abuse in the neighborhood. Lord successfully utilizes rhetorical appeals such as pathos and logos, and several forms of interactive multimedia to draw the reader into the article and spread awareness of the serious concerns for the town of Carrick. The article “Riding

She explains Kirk Avenue as “opioid heaven,” and claims that the street used to be beautiful. Williams states that when she was a kid that everyone on the street used to be a family and care for each other, while today, nobody cares for each other. Lord includes a video of Ms. Williams explaining how she used to enjoy her neighborhood, however, now it is not the same as it used to be. The reader watching a video of an individual who has dealt with the neighborhood changing from being peaceful to “opioid heaven” gives the reader hope that if it was once peaceful, that in time, it can be peaceful again. Lord includes another video of a family living in a Carrick apartment and the horrible situations that they have had to deal with. The author includes these videos of families living in this area in order for the reader to fully grasp what it is like living with neighbors who frequently abuse drugs and overdose. Providing real stories from real people living in these situations establish both pathos and logos. The author is using logical evidence by interviewing individuals that experience the harsh reality first hand. Watching people having to deal with being frightened to just leave their house makes the reader feel mixed emotions about the situation. The use of videos to appeal to emotions and logical evidence is an effective tactic to make the reader want to continue

Lord’s extensive use of multimedia to appeal to logos and pathos keeps the reader absorbed in the text. The topic of drugs may not be every audiences cup of tea, and in order to spread awareness of the situation, Lord decides to employ several different techniques to keep the reader engrossed in the text and fully grasp the information. The writer includes quotes and videos from real families and individuals who experience drug overdoses happening in Carrick to provide logical evidence and to evoke a series of emotions in the reader. Lord also includes maps and statistics from reliable sources throughout the entire text which gives the reader a wake-up call of how serious of an issue drug usage is in Carrick. Rich Lord successfully utilizes multimedia to appeal to logos and pathos to grasp the reader's attention and keep them engrossed in the