The Destructive Male - Essay Example

Lecturer: Speech analysis This is the analysis of the speech delivered by Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815-1902) at the Women’s SuffrageConvention in Washington, D.C in 1868. This speech intended to show the need for gender equality in the society. The speech proves this, with the claim that the male gender is responsible for the violence and disorganization experienced in the world.
According to the speech, men are a destructive force and suppression of women has led to more destruction. Men continue to take control over everything in the society including women, who are the other half of human nature. This suppressed half of the human nature is the reason for the disorganization experienced in the world. However, women’s empowerment would be the first step in curbing the destruction and disorganization experienced in the world. The speech claims if women’s empowerment would free their love, which would be very efficient in keeping the destructive forces of men in check (DuBois & Smith, 2007).
The opposing side in this speech is the male gender, which is responsible for suppression of the female gender. The method of argumentation used in this speech is Rogerian; this is because it entails the four stages identified by Young, Becker, and Pike (Kennedy, 2006, pg.264). The speech introduces the problem as man’s suffrage and the speaker indicates that she is against this. The speaker proves her validity by linking the violence experienced in the world to empowerment of only the male gender. She proves the context in which her position is valid and then concludes by proving that gender equality will benefit human nature since the world will be peaceful.
Work cited
DuBois, Ellen C, and Smith R. Candida. Elizabeth Cady Stanton, Feminist As Thinker: A Reader in Documents and Essays. New York: New York University Press, 2007. Print.
Kennedy, Mary L. Theorizing Composition: A Critical Sourcebook of Theory and schorlarship in Contemporary Composition Studies. Charlotte, NC: Information Age Pub, 2006. Print. Read More