Rhetorical Analysis Of Loren Eisley's The Bird And The Machine

Loren Eisley’s “The Bird and the Machine” takes a deeper look at the gap between rapidly developing technology, and the subsequent place that it’s taking in the world, as compared to the natural order of things. He expresses his opinion passionately and portrays the urgency of what he is saying using several effective rhetorical strategies. Though this essay includes strong appeals to pathos and is based on an interesting juxtaposition, he has created an overall weak piece because of an extremely lack-luster pattern of development, as well as a glaring absence of an appeal to logos or ethos. Though the content is strong, it lacks credibility and the reader quickly loses interest, and feels unsatisfied by the ending. That is not to discredit the content itself. The anecdotal aspect offers a new level to the emotional appeals Eisley …show more content…
Eisley opens with a memory of birds he saw long ago whilst reading a morning newspaper that is regaling the further development of machines. While later this strengthens his opinion and adds depth to the point it is making, its use as an introduction is disappointing. The reader doesn’t know where he is going with these ideas and is immediately turned off to the idea of an old man complaining about “kids these days.” Additionally, his strengths end up becoming his weaknesses. While one or two stories can help build an argument, his essays is composed almost entirely of them. This leaves little to no room for actual credibility to be added. There is an extreme appeal to pathos, but almost no appeal to logos. This is surprising coming from an author that is highly educated and has contributed much to the science community. Lastly, one of the biggest flaws of this piece comes into play at the conclusion. As Eisley tries to tie his writing back to his introduction, he chooses one of the weakest aspects, again citing a memory not many others can relate