Historical Background: Writers of the Revolution English II Ms. Skeenes

The Right to Be Free The Conflict with England -Unlawful Taxation The idea that taxes should not be levied (imposed or enforced) without the consent of the taxpayers is a principle of English Law since Many colonists in America still strongly believed in this idea. Philosophy in America -Mental Preparedness and strength came from the writings of John Locke and the Bible

John Locke “Natural Rights” -Right to Own Property -If any government threatened that right, the people were entitled to organize a new government -Locke’s ideals are reflected in The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution -The influential writers of this time, especially Patrick Henry, Phillis Wheatley, Abigail Adams, and Michel Guillaume Jean de Crevecoeur, were inspired by Locke’s ideas.

The Bible The “ordinary people” -Used the Bible to make the hard decisions about their county and their lives. -Pilgrims to Puritans to Protestant Ministers proclaimed that no man should obey a government that violated the “will of God” as defined by the Bible. -Patrick Henry’s “Speech to the Virginia Convention” there are more references to God and the Bible than to Locke’s ideas of “natural rights.”

Persuasive Rhetoric Rhetoric is the art of communicating ideas. Persuasive Rhetoric consists of reasoned arguments in favor of or against a particular belief or course of action. Rhetoric can be used to create oral or written pieces that can be full of insincere exaggerations but also for important valid arguments

Parts of an Argument -To persuade someone effectively, the piece needs to engage the mind and the emotions. -The writer or the speaker needs to demonstrate that his or her position has a firm moral basis. Logical Appeal Rational arguments that are supported with objective evidence -Deductive reasoning uses generalizations with examples of facts -Inductive reasoning uses facts first then draw a conclusion from them - - e

Parts of an Argument Emotional Appeal -Examples of suffering or threats -loaded language (connotations and vivid images) Ethical Appeals -Shared moral values -Calls for the audiences sense of rights, justice, and virtues

Styles of Persuasion Elevated Language -Formal words or phrases for a serious tone Rhetorical Questions -Questions that do not require answers -Writers and speakers use this to demonstrate that their argument make answers obvious Repetition -Repeating a point tells the audience that it is important -Repeating an expression tells the audience that the ideas are related Parallelism -Repeated clauses or phrases

“We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.” --Thomas Jefferson