Introduction
The relationships between media and politics are never simple, and many debates and concerns regularly emerge. On the one hand, people believe that access to media resources is a unique opportunity to learn facts and improve their awareness about the current state of affairs in the country and abroad. On the other hand, there are no guarantees about the quality of information online and in printed media. Therefore, the book United States of Distraction about media manipulations and political players is worth recognition as a chance to analyze post-truth America and data credibility. Its authors, Mickey Huff and Nolan Higdon define the issues of media, news, education, and truth and share their objectives to produce knowledge and reliable information. In the third chapter, “The Truth Is the Greatest Enemy of the State,” attention is paid to Trump’s speeches and promises. This reading contains multiple examples of logos and pathos, the rhetorical appeals that strengthen the authors’ message. Despite different goals and characteristics of pathos and logos, Huff and Higdon show how these literary devices may convince, motivate, and challenge the audience, depending on the context and the environment.
Main Themes of the Chapter
United States of Distraction is a story of one powerful nation where citizens develop their truths and lies and base relationships on their assumptions. Huff and Higdon chose the quote for the chapter’s title, introduced by Joseph Goebbels a century ago, about how people may be affected by big and constantly repeating lies and begin believing them (95). They address Donald Trump as the source of lies and compare his words and ideas with the events that actually happened in the United States. There is no clear intention to blame or support the politician and his administration. The goal is to show how truth becomes subjective without proper guidelines and control and discuss the opportunities for propaganda and information wars (Huff and Higdon 143). It does not take much time and effort to disinform citizens and create an environment favorable for a particular leader’s activities. The challenge is dealing with outcomes and finding enough reasons for the already-made choices and propositions. The chapter is a solid combination of facts, personal judgments, and assumptions about how politicians’ words are related to real-life situations.
Importance of Literary Devices in Writing
Regarding the complex and effective purposes identified by the authors in the chosen chapter, the use of specific literary devices is a necessary solution. The world of politics is hardly stable, and people want to promote honest and fair information. Unfortunately, it is not always easy to achieve the desired purposes because of poor management, lack of control, or the development of fractions with different opinions. According to Janezic and Gallego, honesty is one of the most valued political characteristics, but dishonesty is always present and distorts political accountability (5). Rhetoric appeals help authors manipulate the language and persuade the reader, focusing on their knowledge, emotions, and experiences (Gagich and Zickel). It is not enough for Huff and Higdon to demonstrate their attitudes toward Trump and his obsession with Twitter posts as a means of informing people. They want to compare what he said and what he did with the outcomes that touched the lives of ordinary Americans. This approach is a good example of how pathos and logos can be applied to the same reading.
Writers prefer three appeals types: logos, pathos, and ethos. To avoid the promotion of subjective thoughts, ethos is excluded from this rhetorical analysis. This literary device appeals to the reader’s values and authorial credibility (Gagich and Zickel). There is no need to learn what is right or wrong in the context but concentrate on details that reveal the effects of truths and lies in media and politics. In the chapter, the story is described by the two authors about the truth that people can use differently. Although the name of Trump is frequent in the chapter, he is not the major character. He is a doer of actions that affect the main idea of truth. Thus, logos and pathos are the most appropriate elements for evaluation.
It is possible to explain why logos are a vital device in any literary work. It appeals to reason and logic in a discussion when authors use intellectual, cool, and collected facts (Gagich and Zickel). People want to possess some facts and real information to understand the story and build their opinions about everything mentioned in the reading. The authors who choose logos for their statements introduce logical and careful structures and evidence that is objective by nature (Gagich and Zickel). There are many approaches to developing logos through comparing different subjects or objects, discussing causes and effects, giving examples, and elaborating on facts.
Pathos is opposite to logos because this rhetorical appeal allows authors to address various emotional aspects of the reading. When people see what is presented through pathos, they can develop emotions. This technique aims at persuading the audience and evoking feelings about the topic (Gagich and Zickel). Authors need to understand that every reader is unique, and it is hard to predict what kind of emotion may be observed. The same sentence or idea can have equal supporters and opponents. However, emotional appeal is never ignored because it motivates and increases the chances of a better understanding of points and acceptance of arguments. Considering the expected benefits and improvements associated with pathos and logos, these rhetorical appeals effectively contribute to all chapters in the United States of Distraction.
The conviction with Logos and Pathos
The chapter under this rhetorical analysis proves that trust and honesty play an important role in the world of American politics. With the help of logos, Huff and Higdon show how dishonesty is created: Trump’s “administration had created 2.4 million new jobs since… when half a million of those were actually created under Obama” 96). The contradictions between facts and empty phrases are numerous: planned increased wages that had been on their rise during the last two decades or the denunciation of automobile companies and the expansion of automobile services (Huff and Higdon 96). They also use pathos like “empty boasts,” countless acts, “specious statements,” and the “easily disprovable nature” to make the reader understand Trump’s absurdness (Huff and Higdon 96-97). In this chapter, logos supports pathos, convinces, and specifically influences the reader by showing how irrational and dishonest Trump’s words and actions were. There is no need to add other literary devices to prove the urgency of the theme that truth damages the nation. The reader has enough facts to be convinced that leaders, including Trump and his followers, like to exaggerate and confuse the country.
Motivation Through Logos and Pathos
Among various rhetorical appeals’ functions, the audience’s motivation is of great importance. In fiction stories, it is easy to choose characters, create their stories, and add elements that strengthen the motif or explain the event. In the United States of Distraction and the third chapter, American history and real facts are mentioned. A logos example is the description of the situation when Trump supported racism and Islamophobia and banned immigration because of false threats due to poor education or inappropriate history (Huff and Higdon 106). Pathos underlines the necessity to create some emotions, relying on facts and real-life situations. Huff and Higdon successfully use the terms “alternative facts” in brackets and lies to show the reader that all attempts and activities are questionable and ambiguous (106). These illustrative means provoke the reader to think about the political environment as something unreliable and unclear. Instead of making precise decisions to improve the state’s well-being, frustration with injustice and unreasonable fears occupies human minds. Motivation not to trust the media may not be the goal of the book or the chapter, but this outcome may arise.
Challenges Because of Logos and Pathos
Finally, a successful application of rhetorical appeals helps the authors direct the reader and challenge the question of the truth in media and politics. In this chapter, the facts explain why a variety of forms of that fake news can make not just a statement but an idea supported by facts. For example, some journalists might manufacture stories: Jayson Blair was blamed for plagiarism and the use of false evidence, and Brian Williams lied about his experience (Huff and Higdon 140). To explain the conditions under which lies emerge in the media and on TV, the authors mention “the culture of deception, aggression, and self-interest” (Huff and Higdon 137). Such phrases challenge the reader because instead of trusting in the power of journalism, people have more questions in mind. Most of the public remains unprotected and exposed to lies that have no control from credible and professional resources. Pathos and logos, in this case, are the options to raise some burning topics and demonstrate how one book can touch upon political and social questions.
Conclusion
In general, this rhetorical analysis aims to explore the topic of truth in the media and its impact on the state through logos and pathos. Some people like to believe that their politicians and leaders do everything possible to protect and improve the quality of human lives. However, Huff and Higdon prove that the situation is not as promising and stable as expected. Lies have different forms and come from multiple sources, putting the safety of Americans under threat. It is hard to observe all events directly, and people have to surf the web, listen to speeches and news, and base their opinions on the statements offered by others. The content is unpredictable and usually unreliable, and the task of writers is to shed light upon the existing challenges. The readers of the United States of Distraction and its third chapter see how pathos and logos should be combined to strengthen the message. This reading motivates and convinces us that some challenges are inevitable, and some of them may be solved if control is promoted.
Works Cited
Gagich, Melani, and Emilie Zickel. A Guide to Rhetoric, Genre, and Success in First-Year Writing. MSL Academic Endeavors, 2018. Pressbooks.
Huff, Mickey, and Nolan Higdon. United States of Distraction: Media Manipulation in Post-Truth America (And What We Can Do About It). City Lights Publishers, 2019.
Janezic, Katharina A., and Aina Gallego. “Eliciting Preferences for Truth-Telling in a Survey of Politicians.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, vol. 117, no. 36, 2020, pp. 1-7. PNAS, doi:10.1073/pnas.2008144117.