Florence Kelley Rhetorical Strategies Analysis (Question 2)

Florence Kelley's powerful speech piques the emotional and rational centers of our minds. The structural organization of her speech allows for a clear progression in thought and forms an effective cascade of ideas. In addition, Kelley masterfully wields the rhetorical tools to draw in and captivate her listeners. But perhaps the most significant aspect of the speech is the appeal to emotion. Kelley is cognizant that the brief time that is allotted to her must be utilized to its full effect, and what better way to convince an audience then to pick the strings of pathos. Kelley effectively transitions from different titles of inclusion, starting from "mothers" and proceeding to "women", a strategy that offers a much more immersive and inclusive experience. The author also includes a call to action, a calling that invokes the audience's measures of hope and compassion. By utilizing all the devices presented, Kelly weaves together the apathetic and empathetic components of rhetoric to create a cogent address to the public.

The author uses a clear narrative structure, connecting the status quo with a hopeful change of existing circumstances. Kelley's first strategy is exposition; she describes the rapidly increasing "contingent" of child laborers. However, she not only exposes, but also contrasts. Kelley juxtaposes the adult's conditions of relative leisure and the wretched working conditions of the children, throwing the children's predicament in sharp relief; "while we sleep, little girls will be working(29)". Kelley establishes the status quo as deplorable, "evil(65", and in desperate need of change. She does this with a consistent sentence. "Last year, New Jersey took (40", "A good law was repealed(41)" and the rest of her introductory paragraphs impart to the listeners an apathetic tone, void of any florid emotions. The motif of kelley's speech, the little girl toiling at night, consistently proves the necessity of change of the existing circumstances.

Kelley's second half includes the emotional component of the speech. One of her strategies is the transition of titles. She positions the same audience under different names, "mothers(55)", "teachers(55)" and finally, "women(79)" and the conflates all these titles under "we(78)", This transition from separate to all-inclusive titles captures the entire audience. The author also includes the final calling. She exposes the small light at the end of the tunnel  and latches onto it as a beacon of hope and change. She admits the slim chances of their success, but claims that they aren't "wholly powerless". This injects the element of hopefulness and transforms her expository speech into a powerful calling