The London of V for Vendetta is a place marked by limited freedoms and an overly oppressive dictator. Because of this, V, a masked vigilante who models himself after Guy Fawkes, seeks violent means to end the totalitarian regime. Near the beginning of the movie, V makes a speech in attempt to get the people of London to act with him and destroy the Parliament building in order to send a message to their oppressive government. He uses all three of Aristotle's modes of persuasion as well as all three types of argumentation to try and meet his final goal-the destruction of Parliament.
V’s speech opens by attempting to break the people of London out of their every day routines. He first establishes his own credibility by likening himself to his audience, using a calm voice to relate to them. He tells them that he loves the rigidity of routine just as much as they do. However, he appreciates the fact that in order to change things on a large scale, the people of London must first change things on a smaller scale. He takes the initiative to change that routine by interrupting their every day lives with a simple message.
Soon after beginning his address to the people, V hits the people with the reality of their oppressive situation. “There are those who do not wish us to speak,” he says, indicating the fact that those in power realize that what they are doing is wrong and that the authorities do not want the common people to understand this fact. V states, “…the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation...” A truncheon is a club carried by police. Therefore, V means that the authorities would rather use force than listen to the people. According to V, words hold power that even the truncheons of the authorities can not take away. Words hold the power the power to investigate the truth, “And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?”
As the speech continues, V becomes extremely candid with the people of London. He tells the people that they are being oppressed. Worse yet, he places the blame of the constant oppression on the people themselves. “But again, truth be told…if you’re looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror,” V tells them. This shocking statement expresses V’s belief that the oppression placed upon the people of London was self-inflicted. He uses their guilt to make them understand the way things are as well as to make them understand what they need to do to change.
Although V blames much of the oppression that the British are living on the people themselves, he also proves his understanding of them by letting him know the reasons behind their own guilt. He recognizes the fact that fear was used to manipulate them, through none other than their own High Chancellor Adam Sutler.
V’s speech opens by attempting to break the people of London out of their every day routines. He first establishes his own credibility by likening himself to his audience, using a calm voice to relate to them. He tells them that he loves the rigidity of routine just as much as they do. However, he appreciates the fact that in order to change things on a large scale, the people of London must first change things on a smaller scale. He takes the initiative to change that routine by interrupting their every day lives with a simple message.
Soon after beginning his address to the people, V hits the people with the reality of their oppressive situation. “There are those who do not wish us to speak,” he says, indicating the fact that those in power realize that what they are doing is wrong and that the authorities do not want the common people to understand this fact. V states, “…the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation...” A truncheon is a club carried by police. Therefore, V means that the authorities would rather use force than listen to the people. According to V, words hold power that even the truncheons of the authorities can not take away. Words hold the power the power to investigate the truth, “And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn’t there?”
As the speech continues, V becomes extremely candid with the people of London. He tells the people that they are being oppressed. Worse yet, he places the blame of the constant oppression on the people themselves. “But again, truth be told…if you’re looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror,” V tells them. This shocking statement expresses V’s belief that the oppression placed upon the people of London was self-inflicted. He uses their guilt to make them understand the way things are as well as to make them understand what they need to do to change.
Although V blames much of the oppression that the British are living on the people themselves, he also proves his understanding of them by letting him know the reasons behind their own guilt. He recognizes the fact that fear was used to manipulate them, through none other than their own High Chancellor Adam Sutler.
Finally, V gets to the purpose behind his entire speech. His main objective with the whole speech is not to simply make the public aware of what is going on. His primary objective is to get them to act with him. He wants to destroy Parliament, a symbol of English history that Guy Fawkes had attempted to destroy 400 years prior. His speech was dedicated to that sole purpose. By being open with the people and using logic to appeal to them, he makes his case to get them to act. As a matter a fact, later on in the movie, although the government makes an effort to get rid of V entirely, his speech is shown to have achieved its final end.
1 comments:
P1:
--your thesis sentence does what it should; it details the strategies you plan to discuss; however, avoid the phrase "three types of argumentation," for some AP readers (AP teachers who will grade your AP exam) may not know exactly what you are talking about. different teachers use different terminology to teach these three types. for instance, i was taught this terminology (1. justice/injustice; 2. praise/blame; and 3. means to an end). other teachers use the phrase "the three special topics" and refer to them as 1. judicial; 2. deliberative; and 3. ceremonial). hope this makes sense. use these types as a framework to understand the argument
--great introduction by the way
P2:
--great discussion of ethos and tone; by limiting your discussion to one or two elements per para., you are making this analysis very cohesiveness
P3:
--never end a para. with a quotation; all quotations should be analyzed
P4:
--once again, you limit the discussion in this para. to pathos and tone--beautiful!!
P5:
--develop this para. more fully; para. should never consist of only two sentences (aim for 5-10)
P6:
--great conclusion
FINAL THOUGHTS: you are obviously a strong writer. you know how to write a rhetorical analysis. i can't wait to see how well you analyze once I equip you with the other half of the ammunition (the most important weaponry). with the exception of the suggestion on the thesis sentence, i have no major qualms here. also, i love your aesthetic awareness as communicated in your blog layout.
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