3. "You Are Not Special" David McCullough Jr. Graduation Speech

We were asked to do a rhetorical analysis on a speech. I chose to analyze a graduation speech that was given by David McCullough Jr. that was titled, "You Are Not Special". This speech is definitely unusual, and it is something you would never think you would hear to be given at your high school graduation. I picked it without much thought, and I was surprised with what I found. I was able to find many ways in which he was able to successfully sell the points he was trying to make. He used statistics, overstatements, imagery, and repetition to really captivate the audience and communicate what he wanted to. I realized that in this speech he wanted to be blunt and shocking, and he really used a lot of rhetoric to accomplish that. Without learning about all the different kinds of rhetoric, I don't think I would have realized just how influential and talented he is as a writer and speaker. Doing this analysis really helped me see all the different ways in which I can personally use rhetoric better to become a convincing and effective writer. Rhetoric goes a long way!