Rhetorical Analysis: Michael Bloomberg Speech

Student’s Name
Instructor
Course
Date
Rhetorical Analysis of Michael Bloomberg Speech
Introduction
One of the most iconic speeches made by Michael Bloomberg is the “Address in Support of Religious Tolerance and New York City Mosque," which focused on the issue of religious tolerance in New York and the United States of America (U.S.). The speech was made on August 3, 2010, by Mayor Bloomberg (then Mayor of New York) in the presence of religious leaders from the city. Apart from being a mayor, Bloomberg is also a renowned business entrepreneur, politician, and philanthropist. He made the speech to give his opinion and stand on the heated debate over the construction of a mosque in New York. The issue of constructing the mosque in the city was controversial as some people felt it was unacceptable for Muslims to build a mosque in New York since they were responsible for the September 11 attack. However, Mayor Bloomberg is against this stand because he believes that Muslims, like all Americans, had the freedom of religion. Based on the speech, some of the audiences who Bloomberg addressed were New Yorkers, Muslims, and Americans as a whole.
Thesis
The purpose of the essay is to analyze the rhetorical appeals used by Michael Bloomberg in his speech. Notably, the speech is characterized by the use of rhetorical appeals and incorporates several aspects like pathos, logos, ethos, and several tone settings. This essay will illustrate the use of pathos, logos, ethos, tone, and settings and also some of the specific words from the speech which illustrate the rhetorical appeals.
Analysis of Pathos
Pathos is the rhetorical appeal that focuses on the emotional content of a speech. In this case, Bloomberg uses pathos to convince his audience to agree on his stand since several emotions characterize it. Notably, the aim of the speech was to urge New Yorkers and Americans to accept the construction of the mosque in New York. He begins by reminding people that all Americans, including Muslims, have a right to religion despite irrespective of their backgrounds. Bloomberg tries to bring out the emotions and remind the audience of the role played by Muslims in saving many lives of victims of the 9/11 Attack. The emotional appeal or pathos in his speech grows stronger when Bloomberg states that the mosque is a private property owned by Muslims (people with right to use the building) and therefore the government did not have powers to deny them their right of worship. He also invokes emotions by reminding people that those who went to respond to the attack did not help people based on their religion or beliefs; rather they did it to protect the city, country, and constitution. This is illustrated in the document when Bloomberg states “More than 400 of those first responders did not make it out alive. In rushing into those burning buildings, not one of them asked, "What God do you pray to?" "What beliefs do you hold?" As such, the use of pathos or emotional appeal is a significant component in the speech.
Analysis of Logos
Logos is the rhetorical appeal that aims to persuade (appeal) the audience by use of reason, facts, figures, and logic. In the speech, Bloomberg uses logic and reasoning to persuade New Yorke...