“But at the end of her essay, she said, I did have -- "I do have a chosen sister, Maya Angelou, who makes me laugh even when I don't want to” (Angelou). This was a statement made by King, which showcased just how close Angelou and King’s relationship was. Unfortunately, King passed away later and on the 7th of February in 2006, infamous writer Maya Angelou delivered an oration in occasion of Coretta Scott King’s funeral. It was an unusual speech delivered because it departed from other typical funeral orations. Not only did the speech commemorate King and her image, but Angelou used the speech to spark up her audience in the goal of creating a better world. This can be interpreted by the type of rhetoric choices she makes
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There are various tropes that can be interpreted differently in Angelou’s eulogy. “In times of interior violent storms she sat, her hands resting in her lap calmly, like good children sleeping”(Angelou). This simile comparing King to good children sleeping shows that King was tranquil even when chaos surrounded her and gives the audience a great sense of what King was like. Angelou’s figurative language of what King was like was an effective way of evoking pathos and a compassionate response from the audience. It also helps the audience picture King in their minds. “Born of flesh and destined to become iron, born—born a cornflower and destined to become a steel magnolia” (Angelou). Angelou’s assertion that King was “born of flesh and became iron”, as well as “born a cornflower and became a steel magnolia” are both metaphors in the sense that both statements carries a figurative meaning beside its literal one. Angelou did not mean that king was born flesh and cornflower and became iron and a steel magnolia; she rather figuratively meant that King was always destined for greatness as she grew stronger. With tropes like these in her essay claims, Angelou pulls her audience more in as she creates associations to make her words persuasive in emotional and aesthetic methods. Angelou carefully incorporates rhetorical language into her diction as well so her audience can rightfully infer her …show more content…
“She believed religiously in non-violent protest. She believed it could heal a nation mired in a history of slavery and all its excesses. She believed non-violent protest religiously could lift up a nation rife with racial prejudices and racial bias” (Angelou). Angelou repeats an anaphora “she believed” to emphasize to the audience of what good morals King had advocated for. “Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated on my birthday” (Angelou). Angelou’s statement is an allusion because it references the event of Dr. Martin Luther King’s assassination. The use of allusions gives impact and meaning to her speech. “We called ourselves "chosen sisters" and when we traveled to South Africa or to the Caribbean or when she came to visit me in North Carolina or in New York, we sat into the late evening hours, calling each other "girl." It's a black woman thing, you know. And even as we reached well into our 70th decade, we still said "girl.”(Angelou) Angelou enlists the help of a personal anecdote with humor to showcase just how close her and King was, to release tensions for the audience, and to keep the audience engaged during the solemn event. Angelou’s use of personal anecdotes appeal to logos in which it evokes a rational response from the audience-they “On those late nights when Coretta and I would talk, I would make her laugh. And she said that Martin King used to tell her, "You
There are various tropes that can be interpreted differently in Angelou’s eulogy. “In times of interior violent storms she sat, her hands resting in her lap calmly, like good children sleeping”(Angelou). This simile comparing King to good children sleeping shows that King was tranquil even when chaos surrounded her and gives the audience a great sense of what King was like. Angelou’s figurative language of what King was like was an effective way of evoking pathos and a compassionate response from the audience. It also helps the audience picture King in their minds. “Born of flesh and destined to become iron, born—born a cornflower and destined to become a steel magnolia” (Angelou). Angelou’s assertion that King was “born of flesh and became iron”, as well as “born a cornflower and became a steel magnolia” are both metaphors in the sense that both statements carries a figurative meaning beside its literal one. Angelou did not mean that king was born flesh and cornflower and became iron and a steel magnolia; she rather figuratively meant that King was always destined for greatness as she grew stronger. With tropes like these in her essay claims, Angelou pulls her audience more in as she creates associations to make her words persuasive in emotional and aesthetic methods. Angelou carefully incorporates rhetorical language into her diction as well so her audience can rightfully infer her …show more content…
“She believed religiously in non-violent protest. She believed it could heal a nation mired in a history of slavery and all its excesses. She believed non-violent protest religiously could lift up a nation rife with racial prejudices and racial bias” (Angelou). Angelou repeats an anaphora “she believed” to emphasize to the audience of what good morals King had advocated for. “Dr. Martin Luther King was assassinated on my birthday” (Angelou). Angelou’s statement is an allusion because it references the event of Dr. Martin Luther King’s assassination. The use of allusions gives impact and meaning to her speech. “We called ourselves "chosen sisters" and when we traveled to South Africa or to the Caribbean or when she came to visit me in North Carolina or in New York, we sat into the late evening hours, calling each other "girl." It's a black woman thing, you know. And even as we reached well into our 70th decade, we still said "girl.”(Angelou) Angelou enlists the help of a personal anecdote with humor to showcase just how close her and King was, to release tensions for the audience, and to keep the audience engaged during the solemn event. Angelou’s use of personal anecdotes appeal to logos in which it evokes a rational response from the audience-they “On those late nights when Coretta and I would talk, I would make her laugh. And she said that Martin King used to tell her, "You