Alejandro Guerrero
English 3.5
12 April 2015

Rhetorical Analysis Essay

In the early twentieth century, America was plagued with the disease of child labor, a work force that was marred with kids of all ages, from ages two to twelve that inhabited nearly every facet of the new industrial age that had grasped hold of post Civil War America. Throughout the masterfully crafted essay, Kelley emphasizes the need to radically reform the corporate system in which the helpless young are being coerced into a childhood spoiled by the capitalist desires of an ever-evolving country. Kelley uses an arsenal of rhetorical devices to heighten her points and explain the severity of the economic and social travesty that was sweeping the country during the era. Among the ranks are the uses of logical claims, emotional appeal, and skillful imagery that help Kelley develop her argument into one that is masterful and effective in its conviction. At its core, the argument is geared to be its most compelling through Kelley’s assimilation of logical assertions based solely on the premise of immoral and unrighteous exploitation of children. In her piece, Kelley equips a barrage of specific and convincing examples to explicate her reasons on why she believes the employment of underage individuals is not only illegal, but devalues the very morals and principles that human civilization is built upon, an unwritten rule of ethical code that no individual human nor all encompassing society may ever violate or tarnish. In the selection, the author readily describes the situation of children employment through the context of many parts of the country, from Alabama to New Jersey in which Kelley uses each and every example to help shed light to such a darkened topic. For example, she carefully contrasts the legislation of two distinct places, Alabama and the southeastern part of the United States, North and South Carolina and Georgia. She goes on by saying how glaringly different the regulation dealing with child unemployment can be within our own country, with “Alabama [placing restrictions on the time a child may spend working]” while the others place no such restrictions at all, thereby showcasing the deregulation and lack of governmental oversight that encompasses the topic of child employment and the growing need to have reform in our country in order to remedy this societal disease. Moreover, Kelly portrays plausible situations through her writing to help clarify her case, such as when she describes how “a little girl, on her thirteenth birthday, could work from [half past five until six the next day] and not violate a single law of the commonwealth.” Kelley explicitly uses this to draw a logical appeal from the audience, as a way for her listeners to imagine the audacities society was putting these children under in exchange for the all-mighty dollar. By exploiting the horrors of these employed children through the use examples and situations, Kelley brilliantly taps at the door of the audience’s brain, compelling them to think reasonably about the harsh reality of childhood exploitation. Alternatively, Kelley also employs an armory of emotional assets to attest to her convincing case. In her argument, Kelley implicitly utilizes the word “we” in the beginning of almost every one of her claims that are used to illustrate her point. The reason for this was never supposed to be coincidental but merely a earnest attempt to come across not as accusatory or matter-of-fact but rather to employ a tone of togetherness and a sense of goodwill. In this way, Kelley effectively fences with the minds of her audience, carefully and purposely attacking only the points of interests and by doing this, succeeds in swaying public opinion on the issue. Additionally, Kelley undertakes the role of a sagacious mother rather than pretentious politician as a way to form a deeper connection with her audience. In doing this, Kelley skillfully puts her audience in the context of the children, for she describes how while “[they sleep soundly in their beds tonight,] there will be children toiling throughout the night,” who are yearning to breathe and yearning to leave. Through this use of effective rhetoric, Kelley makes a much profounder appeal to her listeners, showcasing the stark contrast between a good night’s sleep and a hard night’s work. And once again, the author decisively uses phrases such as “our children” and “our work” to bring forth an emotional appeal from the public in order to strengthen her points and, as a whole, her entire argument. In addition, she heightens the level of her argument by engaging in the uses of descriptive imagery as a way to help paint a richer painting of the situation. In the selection, Kelley brilliantly describes how during the night “several thousand little girls will be working in the textile mills, in the deafening noise of the spindles while spinning the loons and weaving the cotton [for us to buy].” Here is just a small morsel of Kelley’s imaginative description of an ordinary day in the horrors of a mere textile factory, a place where no man, no less a child, should be strong-armed to work in. Likewise, Ms. Kelley furthers her argument by vividly conveying an eye-opening image of just how prevalent the problem really is, for it is the children who are crafters of our own commodities. The “[belts, shoes, stockings, and hats]” that the majority of Americans take for granted are ours to embellish only because of the hard-working children that work monotonously both under the sun and the moon. In any case, the author perfectly depicts the true abomination of childhood labor by saying how they “carry bundles of garments from the factories to the tenements,” or how they “spin and weave the silk and velvet wherewith we trim our hats.” Through this, Kelley portrays the image of the toil of these young individuals into the minds of the public and thereby, setting the wheels of reform in motion. All in all, the prevailing utilization of advanced rhetorical techniques was the foundation to an effective and cogent piece. In each and every way, Kelley masterfully combines the use of ethos and logos as the weight of the argument and then exceptionally depicts as real as she could through her own version of imagery and creative details. Through this, Ms. Kelley advocates for the welfare of these helpless children and strongly makes a case for that they may not to suffer in silence.