Analyzing Rhetorical Strategies in "The Unregulated Sperm Industry"

In this blog post, I will be analyzing the rhetorical strategies of ethos, pathos, and logos found within Rene Almeling's "The Unregulated Sperm Industry."

Ethos:

• Credible references:
• The Journal of the American Medical Association
• The American Society for Reproductive Medicine
• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• offers critique and suggestions
• The Food and Drug Administration
• offers critique and suggestions 
• Background about the author
• educated in the field
• Yale education
• Tone and word choice
• comfortably uses jargon without coming across as "doublespeak" 
• a little sneaky about how she delivers information though 
• 'midcentury' does not specify the year

These strategies affect the bias presented in the text, which can sway a reader's opinion for or against the author's stance about the subject. The ethos present lends credibility to the author, but is subtle enough that the reader does not necessarily recognize it. 

Pathos:

• personal vignettes are used frequently to portray the idea that sperm donation is not all happy-go-lucky
• uncomfortable forced insemination 
• reference to Hollywood makes everything relatable 
• AIDS
• Shocking stuff
• doctors chose sperm donors based on appearance
• Repetition of key words

The author appears to be intending to make the audience uncomfortable. As a reader, I personally became uncomfortable with the text. For that reason, I would argue that Almeling was successful. The emotions enhance the author's subtle messages against reproductive technology without overtly stating them. In this way, the author appears more credible because she is less aggressive about her stance.

"Political and Rhetorical Analysis" Anonymous

Logos:

• Statistical analysis
• mentions specific numbers of donations
• statistics appear likely and credible, nothing appears to be an anomaly
• Historical records
• Take the form of personal vignettes, but are still present

The author is clearly making an attempt to gain the audience's trust when she brings up statistics. The statistics make her appear more credible. The audience is more likely to respect her stance if the statistics hold and are valid, which they are. For this reason, they were very effective.