Focus on ethos pathos or logos Unit 1 Essay Assignment: The Risk of Words Background So far this semester, we have studied how authors use language to claim power or fight for justice from oppression. Language is never neutral. Depending on an author’s identity and position in society, speaking out can bring serious physical or political danger. In other cases, speaking out is protected by social power and privilege. This assignment asks. You to analyze how freedom is defined and experienced across our Unit 1 texts. Essay Prompt In a four page essay, select three Unit 1 excerpts. Rank these three texts on a scale from Most Protected/Privileged based on each author’s position in society. Then, argue how an author’s level of risk and audience affected their rhetorical choices. How did their safety or vulnerability force them to frame their arguement, shape their phrasing, or choose specific rhetorical appeals (ethos pathos and logos)? Use direct evidence from all three texts to justify your ranking and support your argument. Specific requirements Your essay must include all four of the following elements: 1. Diction Focus: Select exactly one short phrase ( 1 to 3 words ) from each text. Use these specific phrases as evidence to explain your ranking. 2. Rhetorical Analysis: Explain how each selected phrase functions. Describe how the phrase builds credibility (ethos), appeals to emotion (pathos), or uses logic(logos). 3. The Voice Remix: In your conclusion, rewrite Thomas Jefferson’s sentence, “all men are created equal.” Rewrite this sentence using the style,tone, and perspective of one of your other chosen authors. 4. Writing Process Packet: Submit your complete writing process packet alongside your final paper. Your packet must include: - Brainstorming note - Essay outline - Rough draft/ final draft - Peer conference/ teacher conference notes - Completed self evqaluation Formatting and Submission Guidelines - Length: 4 full pages - Format: MLA - Citations: Include a correctly formatted MLA works Cited page at the end of your essay. The works cited page does not count toward the 4-page requirement. Part 1; Evidence & Diction focus Select exactly one phrase (1 to 3 words only) from each of your chosen Unit 1 texts. Choose phrases that show the author’s level of risk, power or authority. Text 1 Title & Author: Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words):”” Why did you choose this phrase? Text 2 Title & Author: Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words):”” Why did you choose this phrase? Text 3 Title & Author: Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words):”” Why did you choose this phrase? Part 2: RANKING & Rhetorical analysis Text 1 Author’s Societal status & target audience: How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals (ethos, pathos, logos); Text 2 Author’s Societal status & target audience: How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals (ethos, pathos, logos); Text 3 Author’s Societal status & target audience: How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals (ethos, pathos, logos); Part 3: Thesis Statement construction A strong statement must name your three texts, state your ranking, and explain how social risks or privilege forced the authors to frame their arguments using specific rhetorical appeals. Thesis brainstorming & drafting (workshop area) Step 1: State your text ranking (most risky to most protected): Step 2: State how risk and audience forced them to frame their message: Complete final thesis Statement Combine step 1 and step 2 into one clear, arguable sentence: Part 4: Body Paragraph Topic sentences Write the topic sentence for each body paragraph. Each topic sentence must state the text’s rank and main rhetorical Body paragraph 1 Topic sentence (most vulnerable / risky text) Body Paragraph 2 topic sentence (moderate risk / middle rank text) Body Paragraph 3 topic sentence (most protected / privileged text) PART 5A: QUOTE SANDWICH - BODY PARAGRAPH 1 Focus on your Most Vulnerable / Risky Text. Complete the three layers of the quote sandwich below. 1. TOP SLICE: INTRODUCE THE QUOTE (CONTEXT & SPEAKER) Set up the historical context, speaker identity, and situation: 2. THE MEAT: THE DIRECT QUOTE & LOADED PHRASE Write the quote including your loaded phrase and correct MLA citation: 3. BOTTOM SLICE: EXPLANATION & RHETORICAL ANALYSIS (LONGEST SECTION) Paraphrase the quote in your own words: Explain how social vulnerability/risk forced the author to use this specific phrase: Analyze the rhetorical appeal (ethos, pathos, or logos) created by this choice: make sure to humanize this and make it sound like a 10th grader wrote it keep it simple

Select exactly one phrase (1 to 3 words only) from each of your chosen Unit 1 texts. Choose phrases that show the author’s level of risk, power or authority.

Text 1 Title & Author:
Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words):””
Why did you choose this phrase?

Text 2 Title & Author:
Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words):””
Why did you choose this phrase?

Text 3 Title & Author:
Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words):””
Why did you choose this phrase?

Text 1 Title & Author: "A Plea for Freedom" by Enslaved Speaker (Hypothetical)
Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words): "our chains"
Why did you choose this phrase? I chose this phrase because it directly shows the extreme physical and emotional bondage of the speaker. It highlights their complete lack of freedom and immense personal risk, as even speaking about chains could be dangerous.

Text 2 Title & Author: "Chains of Injustice" by Civil Rights Poet (Hypothetical)
Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words): "silent screams"
Why did you choose this phrase? This phrase captures the suppressed suffering and injustice faced by a community. It shows that while the author might have a platform to speak, there's still a risk, and many voices are still unheard or silenced, making the suffering feel hidden but intense.

Text 3 Title & Author: "Declaration of Independence" by Thomas Jefferson
Loaded Phrase(1 - 3 words): "self-evident"
Why did you choose this phrase? This phrase implies that the truths being stated are so obvious and universally accepted that they don't need proof. It reflects the author's position of authority and privilege, allowing him to declare fundamental rights as undeniable facts without fear of immediate personal reprisal.

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Text 1
Author’s Societal status & target audience:
How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals (ethos, pathos, logos);

Text 2
Author’s Societal status & target audience:
How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals (ethos, pathos, logos);

Text 3
Author’s Societal status & target audience:
How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals (ethos, pathos, logos);

Text 1: "A Plea for Freedom" by Enslaved Speaker
Author’s Societal status & target audience: The author is an enslaved person, holding the lowest societal status with no rights or protections. Their target audience would likely be abolitionists, sympathetic individuals, or even other enslaved people, seeking empathy and action.
How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals: Facing extreme personal danger and potential violence for speaking out, the author's choices are shaped by urgency and desperation. They would heavily rely on pathos by sharing raw, personal experiences of suffering to evoke strong emotions like pity and outrage. Their ethos would come from their lived experience as a witness to injustice, making their words credible because they are living the reality. They would use simple, direct language because complex arguments might be inaccessible or too risky.

Text 2: "Chains of Injustice" by Civil Rights Poet
Author’s Societal status & target audience: The author is a Black civil rights activist and poet during a time of significant racial unrest. While they have some community support and a platform, they still face discrimination, threats, and societal opposition. Their target audience is broader, including both supporters of the movement and those who need to be convinced of the injustice.
How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals: The author operates with moderate risk; they can speak out, but face backlash. This allows for more metaphorical and evocative language. They primarily use pathos to stir emotion, anger, and solidarity against systemic injustice, often through vivid imagery. They build ethos through their shared identity and moral authority within the movement. They might also use some logos by pointing out the hypocrisy or illogical nature of discriminatory laws, but often wrapped in emotional appeals.

Text 3: "Declaration of Independence" by Thomas Jefferson
Author’s Societal status & target audience: Thomas Jefferson was a wealthy, educated white landowner and a prominent political leader. He held a high societal status and significant privilege. His target audience was King George III, the British Parliament, the American colonists, and other nations, aiming to justify the colonies' separation.
How Risk/ Privilege Shapes their rhetorical choices & appeals: Jefferson's position of privilege allowed him to use formal, legalistic, and philosophical language. He heavily relies on logos by presenting a logical sequence of arguments about natural rights and a detailed list of grievances against the King. His ethos is established through his position as a representative of the colonies and by appealing to universal principles and reason. While there's an underlying sense of injustice, the primary appeal is to rational thought and established political theory, rather than raw emotion, because his status allowed for a more formal, less personally vulnerable approach.

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Body paragraph 1 Topic sentence (most vulnerable / risky text)
Body Paragraph 2 topic sentence (moderate risk / middle rank text)
Body Paragraph 3 topic sentence (most protected / privileged text)

Body paragraph 1 Topic sentence (most vulnerable / risky text)
The enslaved speaker in "A Plea for Freedom," facing extreme personal danger, powerfully uses pathos through phrases like "our chains" to evoke immediate empathy and highlight the brutal reality of their oppression.

Body Paragraph 2 topic sentence (moderate risk / middle rank text)
In "Chains of Injustice," the civil rights poet, navigating a society resistant to change, employs evocative pathos with phrases like "silent screams" to expose hidden suffering and rally a collective emotional response against systemic injustice.

Body Paragraph 3 topic sentence (most protected / privileged text)
Thomas Jefferson, writing from a position of relative privilege in the "Declaration of Independence," strategically uses logos through phrases like "self-evident" to establish universal truths and logically justify the colonies' pursuit of independence.

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1. TOP SLICE: INTRODUCE THE QUOTE (CONTEXT & SPEAKER) Set up the historical context, speaker identity, and situation:

2. THE MEAT: THE DIRECT QUOTE & LOADED PHRASE Write the quote including your loaded phrase and correct MLA citation:

3. BOTTOM SLICE: EXPLANATION & RHETORICAL ANALYSIS (LONGEST SECTION) Paraphrase the quote in your own words: Explain how social vulnerability/risk forced the author to use this specific phrase: Analyze the rhetorical appeal (ethos, pathos, or logos) created by this choice:

4. TOP SLICE: INTRODUCE THE QUOTE (CONTEXT & SPEAKER) Imagine a time before the Civil War, when enslaved people were denied basic human rights and risked severe punishment, even death, for speaking out against their condition. In such a desperate and dangerous situation, an enslaved speaker might have delivered a powerful, heartfelt plea to an audience, perhaps abolitionists or sympathetic individuals, hoping to awaken their conscience and inspire action.

5. THE MEAT: THE DIRECT QUOTE & LOADED PHRASE "We toil from dawn till dusk, our bodies weary, our spirits crushed, and yet we are told this is our lot. But I tell you, look at our chains and tell me, is this justice?" (Enslaved Speaker, "A Plea for Freedom," p. X)

6. BOTTOM SLICE: EXPLANATION & RHETORICAL ANALYSIS (LONGEST SECTION) Paraphrase the quote in your own words: The speaker is saying that despite all their hard work and the immense suffering they endure, they are still trapped and treated unfairly. They challenge anyone to look at the physical symbols of their bondage—the actual chains—and honestly claim that such a system is just or right.

Explain how social vulnerability/risk forced the author to use this specific phrase: As an enslaved person, the speaker had almost no power, no legal rights, and faced constant threats of violence. They couldn't rely on complex legal arguments or philosophical ideas because their audience might not listen, or they might not have the education or safety to present them. Instead, they had to use very direct, undeniable evidence of their suffering. The phrase "our chains" is a raw, undeniable truth that cuts through any excuses or justifications for slavery. It's a desperate cry for recognition of their basic humanity, using the most tangible and brutal symbol of their oppression. Their extreme vulnerability forced them to be incredibly direct and to appeal to the most basic human emotions.

Analyze the rhetorical appeal (ethos, pathos, or logos) created by this choice: This choice primarily builds pathos. By saying "our chains," the speaker immediately creates a vivid, painful image that makes the audience feel the physical and emotional suffering of slavery. It evokes strong emotions like sympathy, horror, and a deep sense of injustice. The phrase forces the audience to confront the brutal reality of the speaker's situation, making them feel the speaker's suffering directly and personally. It's an appeal to the heart, designed to shock and move the audience to action by making them feel the weight of the injustice.