As a young woman, who has family members who are directly affected by Aids, I choose to focus my rhetorical analysis on a speech given by Mary Fisher, a political activist who contracted the virus from someone who she loved and trusted, her second husband. Mary Fisher gave her speech “A Whisper of Aids” at the Republican national convention in 1992 located in Houston Texas; only a year after finding out that she was HIV positive. Mrs. Fisher being an active member in the Republican Party she wanted to raise awareness of the severity of the Aids epidemic in American. She also wanted her party members to understand that this is a disease that can effect anyone at any given moment, regardless of age, race, gender, or political party. Mary Fisher
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Fisher used the statement “We have killed each other with our ignorance, our prejudice, and our silence,” to elaborate on the detriment the nation has caused through the shroud of silence. This would evoke emotion out of audience due to a person not really knowing the situation at hand when they judge someone based off their illness and the ignorance of the nation for not thinking they contract a disease due to their race or sexual preference. This statement was meant to appeal to the guilty conscience of the listener in hopefulness that the people of America would change their viewpoint on the virus and become more open –minded on the issue and join the movement against …show more content…
She not only made them understand and empathize with her dispute, but she empowered them to have courage to act in a civically respectful manner. One of Fisher’s many vocal points was on the deletion of stereotypes from the disease because ones ignorance could lead them to contracting the virus. She gave everyone the courage to speak out on an issue that was looked at as a punishment for those who had homosexual relations or was a part of the minority party. Mary Fisher’s “A Whisper of Aids” speech was named one of the best speeches of the 20th century and had a grave impact when it came to decreasing the AIDS epidemic. Her speech touched the hearts of millions and informed many of the autoimmune disease that was killing so many loved ones. She gave the HIV/AIDS community some peace to sleep at night knowing that the world finally understood their constant battle against the deadly autoimmune disease
Fisher used the statement “We have killed each other with our ignorance, our prejudice, and our silence,” to elaborate on the detriment the nation has caused through the shroud of silence. This would evoke emotion out of audience due to a person not really knowing the situation at hand when they judge someone based off their illness and the ignorance of the nation for not thinking they contract a disease due to their race or sexual preference. This statement was meant to appeal to the guilty conscience of the listener in hopefulness that the people of America would change their viewpoint on the virus and become more open –minded on the issue and join the movement against …show more content…
She not only made them understand and empathize with her dispute, but she empowered them to have courage to act in a civically respectful manner. One of Fisher’s many vocal points was on the deletion of stereotypes from the disease because ones ignorance could lead them to contracting the virus. She gave everyone the courage to speak out on an issue that was looked at as a punishment for those who had homosexual relations or was a part of the minority party. Mary Fisher’s “A Whisper of Aids” speech was named one of the best speeches of the 20th century and had a grave impact when it came to decreasing the AIDS epidemic. Her speech touched the hearts of millions and informed many of the autoimmune disease that was killing so many loved ones. She gave the HIV/AIDS community some peace to sleep at night knowing that the world finally understood their constant battle against the deadly autoimmune disease