Rhetorical Analysis Essay On Benjamin Banneker

Slavery was a hard topic in America. Still is. Benjamin Banneker a decedent of former slaves,a farmer,mathematician, astronomer, author, and surveyor, was brave enough to write to Thomas Jefferson about his views on slavery. Banneker uses various rhetorical and literary techniques throughout his letter to persuade Jefferson to his own views.

The quote also appeals to Jefferson’s emotions because Banneker makes him feel guilty about slavery. Jefferson

As the son of two former slaves, Benjamin Banneker wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson to end slavery in the United States. The letter was written in 1791 and argues that his “brethren” need to be freed just like Jefferson and the other founding fathers envisioned for the rest of the country. Banneker shows that he will provide any argument, and expose every angle he possibly can to extinguish slavery. He uses a plethora of rhetorical devices to achieve this goal, such as allusion and analogy.

Benjamin Banneker had ancestors that were slaves, so he felt he needed to show how cruel slavery is. Banneker wrote this letter to convey his message to Thomas Jefferson, secretary of state. Banneker utilizes rhetorical devices and rhetorical appeals to argue against slavery. Banneker presents repetition when saying, "Sir” to show respect toward Jefferson, despite disagreeing with the secretary of state’s views. "You" is repeated to keep the matters personal.

Benjamin Banneker uses many rhetorical strategies in his letter to Thomas Jefferson and George Washington to argue against slavery. Banneker employs repetition to create polite diction, ethos, logos, and an allusion to the Bible and passages from the Declaration of Independence to convey his ideas that slavery is at its roots against the idea that all men are created equal, opposing the ideas in the Declaration of Independence. Banneker uses repetition to keep a respectful tone throughout his letter. In repeating “sir” before each addition to his argument, Banneker has a formal and polite tone. This helps argue against slavery because he is not blaming the reader, but respectfully presenting the facts.

In the letter to Thomas Jefferson from Benjamin Banneker, it is evident that Banneker uses the rhetorical strategies of humility, religious references, and historical references to create a foundation for a rational and favorable argument against slavery. Banneker is clearly a well-educated man with a background of respectable talents (“…farmer, astronomer, mathematician…” etc.). However, he does not allow his knowledge to condescend towards the white man to whom he is writing. Banneker’s humility is a rhetorical device that contributes to the argument against slavery. Never in the letter does Banneker refer to Jefferson by name.

Banneker directly references the Declaration of Independence in his letter to Jefferson and Washington. He also specifically mentions a portion of the Preamble of the Constitution that states “We hold these truths to be self evident…” This allows him to make a direct comparison to his thoughts and what the Constitution states. In doing this, his point in arguing against slavery is strengthened because there is a reference. This strategy is also essential because it allows the reader to grasp a better understanding of what the letter is trying to

Benjamin Bannecker in this excerpt eloquently uses a fine-tuned balance of Pathos, Logos and Ethos to mould a thought-provoking argument to Thomas Jefferson against slavery. Banneker uses Pathos and emotional appeal consistently throughout his writing by attempting to draw parallels between the subjugation of Jefferson under the British Crown (lines 1-5) and the oppression of slaves by their masters (lines 45-47) to communicate the feelings of his persecuted brothers which Jefferson might sympathize with having experienced oppression by an outsider himself. Moreover, he strives to establish a sentiment of love and empathy towards one another and for Jefferson’s heart to be “enlarged with kindness and benevolence towards them”, referring to

Benjamin Banneker in his letter to Thomas Jefferson pitches a series of arguments against the institution of slavery through a series of rhetorical devices. Banneker’s respectful tone shows his maturity and sincerity for the subject at hand. Banneker manipulated Jefferson’s own words against him. In the Declaration, Jefferson stipulated that “all men are created equal” which Banneker then turned against him by hinting that slaves were not given the same freedoms that white men had. While Banneker attempted to degrade Jefferson, he remained respectful throughout the letter.

Benjamin Bannecker, a son of former slaves and educated scholar, angered about the mistreatment of slaves wrote a letter to the author of the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson. He assumes a knowledgeable and matter-of fact persona in order to challenge Jefferson’s loyalty Christian faith and urge him to abolish/ condemn slavery. Bannecker organizes his speech in a cause and effect manner by demonstrating Jefferson hypocrisy towards slavery; he emphasizes his purpose by utilizing negative diction, historical allusions, and juxtaposition in order to illustrate the injustice of slavery and justify why it should be abolished. Bannecker begins his letter by comparing British rule to slavery and establishes that Jefferson was once a strong

Slavery has sadly been in America from the start. Many have different opinions about slavery whether it should stay or be abandoned and forgotten. Although one person has written to Thomas Jefferson about one of history’s most important subject. Banneker starts it off by writing his strong views on how wrong slavery is not just listing all the problems, but in a letter that he uses strategies to make his view convincing. Benjamin Banneker uses rhetorical strategies such as ethos, logos, and various style elements to argue against slavery.

Benjamin Banneker, in his letter to Thomas Jefferson, offers a series of arguments against the institution of slavery through a respectful tone, references to history, and the Bible. As a son of former slaves, Banneker is seeking justice for the black population and uses Jefferson’s own words against him as he speaks on behalf of “Black America.” He shares his opinions with Jefferson, who is higher authority, in a respectful manner while still managing to criticize him. Banneker starts off his letter to Jefferson by calling his “Sir.” He refers to Jefferson this way because he wants to be respectful to this man who exists as a higher authority as a politician.

In 1791, Benjamin Banneker wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson addressing the practice of his slavery. Through his letter, Banneker recalls the time when the British had oppressed them, suggests to Jefferson that he empathizes with slaves who were being oppressed by institution of slavery, and uses elaborate tone to challenge Jefferson. Banneker starts off his letter by recalling the time when “the arms and tyranny of the British crown were exerted with every powerful effort in order to reduce [Jefferson] to a state of Servitude.” He wants Jefferson to recall the pain and suffering of the time when Great Britain oppressed them by violating their rights. He asks Jefferson to reflect on the American Revolution, and thinks about the slaves.

Hypocrisy is one of the worst moral crimes someone can commit. Benjamin Banneker's letter to Thomas Jefferson explains that he has committed this crime. He has gone back on his morale of everyone having unalienable rights by letting slavery continue to happen, and Banneker believes he is the prime contender in allowing this crime to happen and that he should be the start and make the move to stop slavery. Banneker explains this to Jefferson in such a way that the letter is both respectful and thoughtful while also being rude due to the use of how he phrases his sentences, that his argument can not be questioned because of his use of ‘Sir’ to show his respect, and his ardent choice of words which are all collectively used to explain how Jefferson is being hypocritical and show him why he should fix this.

Benjamin Banneker writes to George Washington about how he feels about the situation of slavery and what George Washington has done to make this situation end. Benjamin Banneker's letter to George Washington uses a variety of rhetorical devices to express how he feels about being mistreated during slavery and how George Washington didn't do much to end slavery. At the outset of the passage, Banneker uses personification in "which even hope and fortitude wore the aspect of inability to the conflict". He's stating that the people were losing hope in becoming free and for slavery to end. That they became "powerless" and were being used more and hurt more.