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Cindy Ruz
Mr.Goldman
English 10A
11 September, 2019
The Uses of Rhetorical Devices
In Herbert’s article “The Rising Tides” he makes and effective argument because he uses
the right forms of rhetoric he also made some really good notes when it came to global warming
he wants everyone to know that global warming isn’t a joke and that we don’t have to worry
about global warming coming because it already here which is his whole claim. His style when it
came to writing his article was very unique it hit you in the right spots with the right rhetoric.
There are three forms of rhetoric which involves pathos which is the emotional aspect, ethos
which is accountable for the writer's credibility, and logos which involves logical appeals. The
thing that is special about Bob Herbert’s style is that he used all three forms of rhetoric which
gave his article more depth and made it more elaborate.

When it came to pathos for Bob Herbert it was one of the main forms of rhetoric, and his
most passionate forms because it was emotionally driven. He would contradict himself by
making the reader have a connection to what he was saying but would bringing them down
because what they were connecting with was wrong and not ethical. This made the reader believe
that they have to change their ways even if it is only little things. An example of the way that
Bob Herbert used pathos was “The easiest approach for the time being is to pretend it’s not
happening. It’s better for the long nerves in the short run…” (Herbert, 8). He makes the reader
think about themselves and reflect on their actions and choices. Bob Herbert also make the
reader think about why they aren’t doing anything to help solve this problem. Another way that
Bob Herbert used pathos was by using some loaded words with negative connotation. He made
sure that what he was saying would have an impact on how readers would view his story. An
example of how Bob Herbert used this is “But over all, the effects of this sharp and accelerating
and largely artificial warming of the planet, including the consequences of such extreme events
as droughts, floods, heat waves, avalanches, and tropical storms are potentially catastrophic”
(Herbert, 9). Catastrophic, instead of using basic words like these storms can get worse or bad he
used some loaded words with lots of depth and gives the whole paragraph a negative
connotation. Moving forward we can talk about the other forms of rhetoric like ethos.

Bob Herbert used ethos which is credibility. What makes this article so authentic when
Bob Herbert mentioned Kilimanjaro and how the permafrost (permanently frozen subsoil) was
slowly melting away. “But the snows are disappearing from Kilimanjaro…”(Herbert, 8) he is
showing that even at 19,340 feet tall the permafrost was still melting this can make the reader
think about how these changes affect everything. If your were to search up Kilimanjaro you
would see that now only comes during the winter season showing that the permafrost did melt.
This makes Bob Herbert even more credible. Just by being right this can change the reader's
point of view when it comes to believing what Bob Herbert has to say. This also makes his other
articles and himself more credible since when he writes he doesn't try to fake anything but is
being realistic. He also tries to be honest when it comes to who is actually going to be affected
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by global warming. He does this by saying that yeah older people aren't really going to be
affected by this change but the younger generations are going to feel it and they are going to feel
it hard. “The worst effects of global warming will probably not felt by those most responsible for
the pollution of the atmosphere by heat-trapping greenhouse gases” (Herbert, 9) although you
may not see it Bob Herbert is saying what most people that believe in Global warming would say
that the younger generations are left with the problem and that the older generation don't really
care since he is credible enough now maybe people will listen to him instead of ignoring him. It
also forms a connection with the younger readers and wants influences that as the younger
generation you should try to help the world are you and try to make a difference. Another form
of rhetoric that Bob Herbert used was logos which is a logical appeal.

When it came to logical appeals Bob Herbert made sure that he wasn't just stating
opinions but also backing them up with evidence this is important because if his whole article
was based on opinions and no facts were to be given than you wouldn’t be able to believe him as
much. The way he added data in his article was very subtle but the reader would still be able to
comprehend what was going on. He would bring in other sources for example “The
intergovernmental panel on climate change, in a report released Tuesday in Geneva, said , ‘More
people are projected to be harmed than benefited by climate change, even for global mean
temperature increases of less than a few degrees centigrade” (Herbert, 9). Bob Herbert cited
textual evidence himself because as a writer you have to have evidence when you're trying to
change someone's point of view. Another rwy that logos was used is when Bob Herbert would
mention something that although was a very small detail you would get something bigger out of
what was given. For example “ The seasons are changing, rainstorms are becoming more intense,
sea levels are rising, mighty glaciers are receding, the permafrost is thawing, trees are flowering
earlier, insects are emerging sooner, and so on” (Herbert, 8).Although this might not seem like
logos if you take this and analyze it you can see why this is so bad. I personally feel that Bob
Herbert should've been more elaborate when it came to this because many wouldn't see this in a
bad way. If you still don't let me tell you why tree flowering earlier is such a bad thing, the
animals that eat this fruit or tree won't have anything to eat if trees are flowering earlier although
this might not seem bad it actually ruins the whole food pyramid. That's why I feel that Bob
Herbert should've added more depth.

In Herbert’s article “The Rising Tides” he makes and effective argument because he uses
the right forms of rhetoric he also made some really good notes when it came to global
warming. He used his rhetorical devices in the best way possible. His intent was mostly to have
people believe in global warming which he was very successful. I personally feel that his style of
using rhetoric made his article better because without the forms of rhetoric many readers won't
be interested in what he was saying or the point he was trying to make. I also feel that rhetoric
is very important because it wouldn't be an interesting article or hit the main points when you are
trying to send a message through with just your words.Lastly I would like to say that it's
important to use rhetoric in the correct way also that it's important to try to make a connection
with the reader themselves.
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Works Cited

Herbert, Bob. “Rising Tides.” ​The New York Times,​ 22 Feb. 2001, pp. 8–10.