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  • Essay / Rhetorical Analysis of the Perils of Indifference

    People choose to ignore injustice and tragedies, but Elie Wiesel takes a stand to give a speech emphasizing that people simply look the other way. It can be difficult to give a speech to people trying to persuade them to take action against inhumane events; Elie Wiesel uses emotional appeals to gain the audience's trust and make them care about these injustices. Elie Wiesel wants people to act for the good of people and humanity. Elie Wiesel giving this speech to an audience of political leaders and people who follow these political leaders. The speech was delivered in front of Bill and Hillary Clinton, Ambassador Richard Holbrooke and other politicians. Wiesel, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and political activist, spoke about his views on people's indifference and explained how indifference affected the nation. “Perils of Indifference” successfully used ethos and pathos to inform, persuade, and motivate audiences to act against injustices. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay. Elie uses pathos with his experience of being freed from the inhumane acts of World War II. By using this memory, the audience feels sympathy towards his upbringing and attracts his attention. “There was no joy in his heart.” This quote is worthy of the fact that he would not be the man he was then without the tragedy, but he gained strength in some way. Elie then goes on to complement Bill Clinton “Commander and leader of the army that freed me and tens of thousands of others” and Mrs. Clinton is thanked for her efforts to help (Wiesel).” However, Elie then goes on and puts the government on the spot (and therefore denounces them) for their indifference during World War II. Saying: “We think Auschwitz and Treblinka were closely guarded secrets…but we found out…”. (Wiesel). Elie says that even when the United States found out about the camps, it did nothing. Causing the audience to feel guilty but equal because they use the word “we”. Elie Wiesel states that our suffering and hurt are compared to the indifference to which we did not protest. The way we choose to ignore the misery of others shows that the problem of indifference will never end. The horrible injustices that Wiesel faced as a child inspired him not only to educate indifferent people, but also to show them the dangerous plight and despair of indifference. "Indifference, after all, is more dangerous than anger or hatred. (Wiesel)" This quote is significant for Wiesel using ethos as it is credited by his personal experience with the fact that he was personally targeted because of hatred and anger. This quote also reinforces his sense of indifference because he uses words such as "hate" to make his audience feel hurt in some way because no one likes being a target. Wiesel decided to ask rhetorical questions and construct these allusions so that his argument was accessible to each individual in his audience, making his speech understandable, reliable and, most importantly, he made his speech enjoyable by putting the audience at ease. place and in the shoes of others who suffer because of indifference. Elie Wiesel has a history of tragic events. And knowing that his audience is informed about this gives him a form of credibility because it is his own personal experience. Many people don't listen to what others have to say.