Rhetorical Analysis To “Next To Of Course God Amer

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Daisy-Nelly Nji AP Language Period 4 Rhetorical Analysis to “next to of course god America i…” Would you let your sons or daughters die for someone else’s cause? In this poem e.e. cumming in an acidly sardonic tone answers this question with a yes; it is what Americans do when they listen to politicians’ barren words. He expresses how politicians create nationalism by using their audience’s ethics and emotions as the foundation of persuasion. Their purpose is to convince all Americans that dying in battle is an honorable death that should be recognized instead of being condemned. He uses patriotic allusion, folksy diction, juxtaposition and rhetorical questions in the speech to show the manipulation of conniving politicians. In the beginning of the sonnet cummings employs an obvious allusion to spur a sense of patriotism in the audience. The speaker calls out “i love you land of the pilgrims’…say can you see by the dawn’s early…” The use of patriotic songs that most Americans are familiar with is intended to remind Americans about their history and how their ancestors fought for this country which is why they should do the same. Cummings makes a flippant comment when the speaker says “and so forth” which is to express in reality that the speaker somewhat does not really care about those songs and only uses them to create ethos and pathos in the heart of Americans. He then uses folksy diction “your name by gorry by jingo by gee by gosh by gum…” to demonstrate the attempt of politicians to make themselves seem like the common man to their audience. The deceitful strategy they plan is, instead of being big shot politician that people are likely to not trust they try to become more approachable. With this their audience will feel a false sense of protection and a limited sense of hope. The speaker becomes a chameleon, camouflaging his skin

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