Rhetoric in Susan B. Anthony's "Women's Right to Vote" Speech
This paper analyzes the rhetorical strategies Susan B. Anthony employed in her 1873 speech "Women's Right to Vote," delivered after her arrest for voting in the 1872 presidential election. The paper examines how Anthony combines ethos, pathos, and logos to build a legally grounded and emotionally resonant argument for women's suffrage. It traces her use of the U.S. Constitution's preamble, her critique of sex oligarchy, and her concluding definitional argument about citizenship to demonstrate that women, as full citizens, possessed the constitutional right to vote. The analysis highlights how Anthony's careful word choice and rhetorical structure made the speech a landmark moment in the women's suffrage movement.
- Introduction: Anthony's Arrest and Rhetorical Purpose: Context of Anthony's arrest and speech goals
- Establishing Connection: Ethos and Pathos in the Opening: How Anthony bonds with her audience rhetorically
- Constitutional Logic: The Appeal to the Preamble: Anthony's use of the Constitution to argue for women's suffrage
- Sex Oligarchy and the Logos-to-Pathos Shift: Attack on sex oligarchy blending logic and emotion
- Citizenship, Personhood, and the Concluding Argument: Definitional argument linking personhood to voting rights
- Conclusion: The Speech's Legacy and Significance: Speech's lasting impact on women's suffrage movement
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper consistently ties rhetorical devices (ethos, pathos, logos) back to specific lines from the speech, grounding claims in textual evidence rather than general assertion.
- It follows Anthony's argument in sequence, allowing the reader to understand how the speech's persuasive structure unfolds and builds toward its conclusion.
- The use of direct quotation from Anthony's speech gives the analysis credibility and illustrates each rhetorical move concretely.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates classical rhetorical analysis by identifying and explaining the three Aristotelian appeals — ethos, pathos, and logos — as they appear across discrete sections of a primary text. This approach shows how a speaker constructs a layered argument, moving from emotional connection to logical evidence to ethical challenge, rather than relying on a single persuasive mode.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens with historical context establishing why the speech mattered, then proceeds paragraph by paragraph through Anthony's speech, analyzing each rhetorical move in turn. It covers her opening appeal to audience solidarity, her constitutional argument, her attack on sex oligarchy, and her definitional closing argument about citizenship and personhood. A brief conclusion assesses the speech's broader significance for the women's suffrage movement.
Introduction: Anthony's Arrest and Rhetorical Purpose
The 1870s went down in history as the decade when the women's movement stood strongly against oppression, demanding that women be given the same rights as men. In 1873, Susan B. Anthony was arrested and later released on a $100 fine, all because she had voted in the presidential election the previous year. In her mind, this amounted to oppression and was an injustice not only to her, but to all American women. She took her stand, arguing that if African Americans — who prior to 1865 were not considered U.S. citizens — could vote, then women, who were citizens by every technical definition, had every right to vote as well.
Anthony's speech "Women's Right to Vote" successfully combines pathos, logos, and ethos, using both facts and personal testimony to create emotional resonance with her audience. Although this speech alone was not sufficient to grant women the right to vote, it effectively demonstrated that a woman is more than just a housekeeper and a figurehead. Women in the past were treated harshly by their male counterparts, but thanks to Anthony's resolve, and the resolve of others like her, women today enjoy many opportunities that were once denied to them.
Works Cited
Halsall, Paul. "Modern History Sourcebook: Susan B. Anthony: Women's Right to Vote." Fordham University, 1997. Web. 31 May 2014. http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1873anthony.asp
Miraglia, Ann. "Susan B. Anthony: The Rhetorical Strategy of Her Constitutional Argument (1872)." The College at Brockport Library, State University of New York, 1989. Web. 31 May 2014. http://digitalcommons.brockport.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1003&context=cmc_theses
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