Introduction
The issue of natural hair versus sleek and straight hair continues to affect the way people perceive the appearance of others. Both Rice’s “I’m A Black Woman And Yes This Is All Of My Hair!” and “Why I Refuse to Straighten my Hair” by Rodov focus on the topic of natural hair, and the authors introduce their arguments through ethos and pathos. The use of rhetorical devices helps the writer find arguments suitable for the given audience. Both Rodov’s and Rice’s speeches established credibility and aim to evoke emotions.
Rhetorical Strategies
Rodov masterfully applies ethos and pathos to discuss her experience with curvy hair. First, her credibility as a speaker on the topic of natural hair is established after she mentions that she is Jewish, and curly hair is a traditional feature for this population. Hence, she has the necessary qualifications to speak on the topic of natural and straightened hair because Rodov herself faced discrimination from her students. As she mentioned at the beginning of the text, her students often confronted her about the need to straighten her hair and even gave her a flat iron (Rodov). Therefore, the evidence that the author of “Why I Refuse to Straighten my Hair” is her personal experiences.
Pathos’s intent is to evoke feelings from the audience, and Rodov achieves this by helping her audience experience the confusion she felt like a woman with curly hair. For example, Rodov discusses how she used generic excuses to justify why she did not straighten her hair when her students asked (Rodov). She has done this instead of pointing to the fact that the style of her hair should not concern these students. This situation, in particular, helps the reader understand and feel the emotions that the author experienced.
The similarity between the two speeches is linked to both authors using ethos. Rice begins by explaining the specifics of her hairstyle and adds that she is often stopped on the street by strangers asking questions about her hair (Rice). Similar to Rodov, this argument shows that this speechwriter has struggled with being judged due to her natural hair. Next, in terms of kairos, the text by Rice was published in 2016, and Rodov published her article in 2014. The timing is similar and supports the arguments since, within modern society, conversations about appearance and a natural look are commonplace. Rice uses emotions to communicate the experience of being forced to wear unnatural hair. For example, Rice states that this social standard has caused the author’s community to feel a lot of pain. Hence, the reader can experience the same emotions when looking through this text.
The main idea of both texts is the adverse perceptions of natural hair, which is not straight. The primary audience of both texts are people with curly hair and society in general. Although the second category is broad, these texts help understand the stereotype that continues to thrive within the society, which is that there is the perfect type of hair. Both speeches are equally persuasive since they use the same rhetorical devices because these authors use personal credibility to support their claims.
Conclusion
In summary, both Rodov and Rice use personal experience to establish credibility. Additionally, these authors’ goal is to ensure that the intended reader experiences emotions, such as anger and confusion. Both authors provide sound arguments and explain why their analysis is valid. The main theme of these works is the viewpoints regarding natural or virgin hair. Both texts are sufficiently convincing for a potential reader.
References
Rice, Anita. “I’m A Black Woman And Yes This Is All Of My Hair!” HuffPost. n.d. Web.
Rodov, Florida. “Why I Refuse to Straighten my Hair. Kveller. n.d. Web.