The Rhetorical Analysis Of Quit India By Mahatma Gandhi

Ahimsa, according to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, is the belief of nonviolence toward any living being. On August 8th, 1942 Mahatma Gandhi gave his “Quit India” speech, which called on India to exercise his belief in Ahimsa. The speech was also significant because it established Gandhi’s dedication to the concept of non-violence in order to achieve India’s independence from Great Britain. This speech was particularly important compared to Gandhi’s other speeches because the All-India Congress Committee had decided on a policy to end the British rule in India immediately, and Gandhi was recognized as the leader in the campaign. This paper will analyze evidence that Gandhi displayed in his “Quit India” speech through the interpretation and …show more content…
In the “Quit India” speech Gandhi uses an arrangement of ethos, pathos, and logos to create deep features in his speech. Through the use of ethos, pathos and logos Gandhi was able to portray himself as a religious, peaceful man throughout his speech. He was able to create ethos through repetition and religious undertones. Gandhi stated at the beginning of his speech, “God has vouchsafed to me a priceless gift in the weapon of Ahisma… God will not forgive me and I shall be judged unworthy of the great gift” (Gandhi, 1). Gandhi used religious connotations to appeal to the common beliefs of the India population. By stating that if failing to be nonviolent he will have failed God, which makes his audience feel a sense of guilt and guides them to sympathize with him as a rhetor. Gandhi also fosters feelings and emotional impact in his speech through his use of pathos. He is able to use metaphors and imagery in order to achieve a fear in the audience. Gandhi used personification in his Quit India speech to present an image of the world to show the effect of violence and suffering on a more personal level for his audience by stating “In the present crisis, when the earth is scored by the flames of Hisma and crying out for deliverance” (Gandhi, 1). By reflecting the suffering people in this personified way he was able to warn his audience in a very effective and real way that if they continue on the path of violence it won’t lead to anything besides more suffering and destruction. Gandhi also portrayed the use of logos in the artifact, in an effective way with the purpose of influencing the colonized Indians towards his goal of passive resistance. He began his speech by presenting his goal through the use of Ahimsa, and then backs it up in paragraphs later in the speech to explain why that is so. Each paragraph provides different evidence to justify why his initial claim, the