Logos in "I'm a Feminist" by Emma Watson

          Emma Watson uses the logos appeal in several instances throughout her speech. At the very beginning of the speech, she addresses the audience and tells them that the assumption that feminism has to do with “man-hating” is totally wrong. She debunks this belief by providing the audience with the book definition of what feminism means. She notes, “Feminism by definition is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities.” That is an effective means of logos because she proved that the protesters of the movement were logically wrong because their belief of feminism did not match what feminism actually is.

          Another example of her use of logos is when she referred to Hillary Clinton’s 1997 “Women Rights are Human Rights” speech. Watson says that “the things she [Clinton] wanted to change are still true today.”  She knows that some people in the audience might not  think the movement is necessary anymore as she even points out that the word feminism is losing popularity. But stating that since 1997 not much has been done for progress, she appeals to the audience’s reasoning to support the movement today as the audience realizes that there is still work to be done to reach gender equality.

           In addition, she provides statistics to make some of her most important arguments. As we know, statistics are linked to logos, so her use of them functions as a logical appeal. As Goodwill Ambassador for UN women, she knows and has done her research about problems affecting women. So she states, “At current rates, 5.5 million girls will be married in 16 years as children and it won’t be until 2086 before all little African girls have a secondary education.” This also appeals to the audience’s logical thoughts and reasoning as they might realize that if more people do not join the movement to fight against these issues, then little or no progress will be made in the next few decades.

The Stasis in "Respect" by Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin's song enforced stasis theory through its explicit call to action which demanded respect. Stasis theory is used to build a stable foundation for an argument or statement. Franklin mastered Otis Redding's original song into an empowering one for women everywhere. She adds in lyrics that emphasize giving respect to women because they are worthy of it and they have the power to leave their husband should they be treated unfairly. Franklin writes the lyrics that the lover might find the woman gone when he comes home because he did not respect her enough to warrant her to stay in that relationship. This is a blatant demand for action of men everywhere to treat women fairly and equally as how men would like to be treated by their women as well. Given that "Respect" was released in 1967 when there were still lots of progress to be made, Franklin offers a solution to the systemic prejudice that is inflicted upon women. The way she released it as a pop song also helped deliver the message across because people would be singing it and spreading this call to action.

Stasis in "I'm a Feminist" by Emma Watson

Emma Watson uses the definition stasis in her speech. There is a lot of confusion with the definition of the word "feminism" or a "feminist". As Watson mentions, fighting for women’s rights has too often become synonymous with man-hating". First, the word feminist is automatically associated with females. If the only thing you know about a person is that they are a feminist, you're very likely to assume they are female. This is one of the biggest problems that Watson is trying to battle. She mentions that only 30 percent of the audience in Hillary Clinton's Beijing women's rights speech were men. Watson defines feminism as, "The belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. It is the theory of the political, economic and social equality of the sexes". She goes on to talk about the negative connotation of the word feminism and how the word is not what is important; it's the message behind it. Therefore, on behalf of the UN women, she introduces the HeForShe campaign. This way both genders are included in the name. This name also emphasizes gender equality more.

Logos in Aretha Franklin's "Respect"

Franklin’s version of Respect includes aspects that are different from Otis Redding’s version of the song. The changes that she has made to the song create a whole new dimension that stresses the power behind the choices that a woman has. Hidden within the lyrics of the song Respect there is a clear message that Franklin is able to send her audience. Often one does not think of lyrics as the source for logical arguments, but the order that Franklin follows is nothing but logical. The song begins with a request for respect; however, as the song progresses she explains why she is someone who deserves this respect. She starts with explaining her faithfulness, “I ain't gonna do you wrong, while you're gone…. Cause I don't want to (ooh).” Here one can understand that even though she believes in making her own choices she has not gone against the expectation of loyalty in a relationship. In Redding’s version he explains that he doesn’t mind if the woman goes around behind his back. By putting these two lyrics alongside each other it is easy to see why Franklin’s version shows the power within a woman’s choices. Another why she justifies the respect she needs is by saying “I’m about to give you all my money.” This same lyric is used in the older version of the song. However, in Franklin’s version of the song it serves a new purpose. It shows that Franklin treats her man well. Thus, it is only logical if her lover does the same for her. One of the most significant and arguably the most powerful changes in the song pertais to the last few lines. She sings, “Or you might walk in and find out I’m gone.” Here she wants her lover to realize that she’s not the type of woman to stay with someone who doesn’t treat her right- she is not afraid to walk away. This gives the need for respect a sense of urgency because she can leave if she does not receive it. Franklin skillfully crafts her argument for respect by emphasizing how she is deserving of it rather than blatantly saying she needs it.  

Kairos in "Respect" by Aretha Franklin

            Aretha Franklin’s singing career became victorious after choosing the best kairotic moment to release her version of the song “Respect.” It is fair to say that this was a triumphant moment for her because this song led her to be at the top of the music charts during the 1960’s, taking the number one spot in the R&B Singles Chart and the Billboard Hot 100. Her version of the song is still very well known to this day. Regarding her rhetorical appeal of kairos, she made an effective use of them. Kairos refers to the context, background, events, timing, appropriateness and opportunity preceding the creating of a work of art in any of its forms. The release of Franklin’s song happened during a kairotic period in the sense that several of the most historic feminist movements were going on at the time (1960’s) and women who were part of these movements identified so much with the lyrics of the song that it became like a feminist anthem for them. The Women’s Liberation Movement, for example, was already taking place before the song was released. By 1967, millions of women were taking action by joining the feminist movement, aggressively fighting for equality and against oppression and discrimination through several marches and protests. What a better way to address the issue of gender discrimination than demanding men to give women the respect they deserve? And that’s exactly what Aretha Franklin did with her song. She literally asks for respect when she sings, “All I’m askin’ is for a little respect...” She even spells it, in case someone did not get what she was clearly asking for in her song. She demands “R-E-S-P-E-C-T.”

            The recording artist, Franklin, was motivated to compose or rearrange this song by the thousands of women joining the street marches to fight gender inequality. In her song, following the word respect, she makes a command by singing “find out what it means to me.” As a woman, this was a very important topic for her. This song was originally composed by a man named Otis Redding. But the context and the timing in which Aretha Franklin released her own version with some changes to the original one gave a whole new meaning to the song. As it has been stated on the National Public Radio website, “’Respect’ wasn’t a feminist anthem until Aretha Franklin made it one.” This means that after the success of her song, Aretha Franklin was automatically becoming part of the struggle for gender equality because that was the main purpose of the feminist movements at the time.

The Kairos in "I'm a Feminist" by Emma Watson

It is important when composing speeches to recognize if it is the right time and occasion to talk about a certain topic. Emma Watson's speech presented to the UN successfully uses kairos to deliver her ideas. Kairos is a rhetorical concept that represents the timing and opportunity in a given moment. This takes into account the total context of a situation and by her giving this speech to the UN, it is the perfect platform. The issue she brings attention to is not out of the line at this platform because the UN deals with issues about human rights.  Watson took advantage of the moment to promote the campaign HeForShe so that there could be a uniting movement for gender equality since she pointed out that feminism is still an unpopular word. The timing is perfect because our current society right now still has many inequalities between women and men.Watson pointed out that women are still not paid the same amount for the same work after all these years. When she mentioned that it won't be until 2086 that African girls will get secondary education, that is when the audience is alerted to the urgency of the issue. "If not me, who? If not now, when?" are very good questions to end on and these bring in kairos because it is mentioning that the time to act is now. An effective use of kairos allows for the audience to be more receptive to the piece of rhetoric presented before them.

Transcript of Emma Watson's Speech

Ethos in "I'm a Feminist" by Emma Watson

Ethos are very important in a speech. In order to get the audience to listen to the speaker and take their message into consideration, the speaker must have credibility and needs to establish this credibility through out the speech. Emma Watson establishes her ethos at many points throughout her speech. First, when she says, "I was appointed six months ago and the more I have spoken about feminism the more I have realized..." she establishes some credibility with the fact that she is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and that she has spoken about feminism several times before. Watson is one of the key people in the HeForShe campaign. Another way Watson establishes ethos is through her personal experiences with gender inequality. When she was eight she was called "bossy" for wanting to direct a play while the boys were not. She also talks about her female friends who "started dropping out of their sports teams because they didn't want to appear 'muscly'" and her male friends who "were unable to express their feelings. As a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador and a feminist who has experienced sexism since the age of eight, Watson is able to establish valid ethos and make a stronger impact through her speech.

Ethos in "Respect" by Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin's song Respect is very influential due to the fact that she was knowledgeable about gender inequality and had to face it. The main reason her song is powerful is because of Franklin's personal background. Her background has to do with her extrinsic ethos. Franklin joined her father, a pastor, on gospel tours when she was just 14 years old( Aretha Franklin Biography). She was a black female participating in a difficult career when inequality was the norm. Given the fact that she was active in the field of music when individuals were discriminated based on gender and race makes her the perfect person to sing about how equality is needed. Moreover, Franklin had connections with influential figures such as Dr. Martin L. King who fought inequality(Aretha Franklin on Feminism, Beyonce and who should star in her Biopic). As a result, she was able to see how others fought inequality and find her own way to create a change. A perfect example of how her message influenced many individuals can be seen here. In this reflection a young black girl talks about how it was empowering to see someone who was a black female sing about gender inequality. She mentions that although there were powerful female figures often their efforts were not noticed because of the male individuals who fought inequality this was especially true in the black community. She brings up an important point in this reflection that no matter what type of community one is in, males received some sort of "preference". The logical idea that everyone should be treated with respect is the theme of the song and while listening to it people are able to make this conclusion which speaks to her intrinsic ethos. Overall with the help of ethos she is able to make a convincing statement. 

Sources:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/features/aretha-franklin-on-feminism-beyonce-and-who-should-star-in-her-biopic-20141211

http://www.biography.com/people/aretha-franklin-9301157

The Pathos in "I’m A Feminist" Speech by Emma Watson

           Emma Watson successfully persuaded her audience with an emotional appeal through her moving anecdotes, impassioned tone, and precise diction. Watson attempted to draw empathy from the audience, so that they could understand why she is a feminist. She did this by remarking on personal stories that led her to support the feminist movement. She said that when she was eight, she’d be called “bossy” at school for being a responsible leader. As a teenager, she then felt “sexualized by the media.” And when she became a young woman, she noticed that her male friends wouldn’t express their feelings. This is an effective strategy because it makes her audience think about what it might have been like for her to grow up in that kind of environment where everyone has to adhere to strict gender norms and kids can’t be what they want to be without being treated differently by society. In the case of her anecdotes, the boys could not cry because they would have been made fun of or looked down upon as not man enough. In her case, she just had to be a girl to feel sexualized and if she wanted to be a strong girl, she’d be called names. The narration of these experiences also touched her audience to be empathetic with her because they would not want their kids to feel the same way she did growing up. Her speech was directed at a general audience, but the specific audience present during the deliverance of the speech were adults who were part of the United States. So it if safe to assume that several of them might have children.
          The pace of her speech was very slow and it sounded like she was emotional about what she was talking about. Her heartfelt remarks included her talking about little girls in Africa who don’t get an education and underage girls who will be forced to get married in some places around the world. Her “impassioned” tone helped her audience understand that she wasn’t doing that just for her, but she was speaking up for all those girls and women --who face inequalities and injustices around the world-- that she cares about.  
          Watson also used very precise diction which helped get her an empathetic reaction from the audience. She uses words that are often associated with the movement. An example of how precise her language was is when she provided her audience with an exact book definition of what feminism means. That makes it clear for the audience that feminism does not equal “men-hating.” When she talked about guys not being able to show their feelings, she asked the audience to let their sons be “humans.” When she invited men to join the movement, she referred to it as the “struggle.” She also incentivizes men to join the movement by saying they can save their “daughters, sisters and mothers from prejudice.” Many of the terms that she used throughout the speech were related to the rhetoric of feminism and that helped her get some emotional reaction and understanding from her audience.


Justin Trudeau joins the movement https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2016/03/16/i-am-a-feminist-trudeau-tells-un-crowd.html

Audience Analysis for "Respect" by Aretha Franklin

With the song "Respect" Franklin is able to send a message that resonates with all individuals who hear it. The song was a single from her album "I Never Loved a Man the Way I love You."  During this time many women participated in the sexual revolution and challenged traditional views. The new freedom for women gave members of society the idea that it was acceptable to discriminate against these women. However, Franklin's song challenges this stigma and directly addresses this problem. She includes lines such as " I ain't gonna do you wrong while you're gone....cause I don't wanna" which  challenges the idea that a woman will go behind a man's back just because she has more freedom.  The emphasis on  "I don't wanna" gives the woman a powerful aura because she has the choice to make her own actions. By including lines that adhere to traditional values like faithfulness she is able to show her partner that she is worthy of respect and moreover deserves it. The audience that the song seems to be reaching out to is a lover; however, by reading between the lyrics it is easy to see one of the underlying messages that she included for the general public to notice and understand.  She ultimately wants individuals to realize that just because women get more rights it does not mean that they are going to "run wild" and forget about self respect.

Audience Analysis for "I'm a Feminist" by Emma Watson

Emma Watson gave her speech at the United Nations Headquarters in New York. Although the speech was given to UN members, Watson’s speech was directed towards basically everyone. Watson is one of the UN Women’s Goodwill Ambassadors who are tasked with highlighting and drawing attention to key issues on behalf of the United Nations. The most important part of the HeForShe campaign is that it calls women and men to action. Watson’s central message was that gender equality is not just women’s problems. Therefore, she made sure to get men’s attention by shaping her speech to list how gender equality affects men. She talked about how her male friends were unable to express their emotions and how men who suffer from mental illnesses are likely to hide it so that they wouldn’t seem less “macho”. She also calls men to action so that, “their daughters, sisters, and mothers can be free from prejudice but also so that their sons have permission to be vulnerable and human too”. Watson's message was not just for women and men of America. By stating that, "no country in the world can yet say they have achieved gender equality", Watson made her message international. 

The Pathos in "Respect" by Aretha Franklin

Aretha Franklin successfully incorporated pathos in her version of the song "Respect" originally written by Otis Redding to further the rhetoric for gender equality. Pathos is an emotional appeal to the audience to invoke feelings and imagination. It is important to note the difference between the original and the altered versions to see the way pathos is used to invoke pride in ones' womanhood in this particular text. Franklin's version boasted of a woman's confidence and worth when she changed Redding's lyrics from: "What you want, honey you got it/ And what you need, baby you got it" to "What you want/ Baby, I got/ What you need/ Do you know I got it?" She affirmed that she has what her lover needs and she knew it. There was also a clear shift of point of view between the two versions. Redding's version featured a man that pleaded for his lover's respect alluding to the lover's infidelity with the lyrics: "You can do me wrong, honey while I'm gone/ But all I'm askin' is for a little respect when I come home." Franklin's version was from the view of a woman who demanded respect from her lover because she knew she deserved better: "You might walk in/ And find out I'm gone/ I got to have/ A little respect." This clear portrayal of a proud woman declared to society that women must be treated with respect too. Franklin even showed the woman as the primary breadwinner in the song: "I'm about to give you all of my money/ And all I'm askin'/ Is for a little respect." Women were often seen as the happy little homemaker and were expected to go along with the whims of their husband but the fact that Franklin's version deliberately changed the lyrics to illustrate a strong woman was a stand against prejudiced thinking.

Link to Otis Redding's version.
Link to Aretha Franklin's version.