Introduction
City officials should be convinced of the necessity of building bicycle lanes and other facilities like bicycle parking and rental. An immediate solution is required, because, even though the bicycle is an eco-friendly and convenient transport, there are few bicycle routes in the area, and cyclists often endanger their lives on the roads.
Purpose
My primary purpose is to convince the city authorities of the need to begin the construction of bicycle lanes. Therefore, I aim to enlist the support of those in charge and insist on allocating budget money to build bicycle lanes in the nearest green areas. I also intend to draw the public and authorities’ attention to a poorly regulated situation on the roads, which endangers the life and health of cyclists. In this regard, I am going to attract the support of the public in need to expand the roadway where possible with the aim of building bicycle lanes. Besides, I want to create a public committee that will help the city authorities with the development of bicycle routes.
Target Audience
The fundamental responsibility for implementing the changes will lay on the mayor, the city council, relevant city committees, and the public committee. If the plan for the construction of new bicycle routes is implemented, many members of the local community will benefit from it. Firstly, the situation on the road will be improved, which is a benefit for most drivers. Secondly, more citizens will use bicycles instead of cars for their daily trips, which will reduce traffic and improve people’s health. Finally, adolescents – schoolchildren and students, will get the opportunity to move around the area safely and gain greater independence.
Setting
I am going to write a speech about my community, where many young families live, as well as single working people, families with older children, and people of retirement age. All these community members are engaged in various jobs, and many will not be able to use bicycles for everyday commuting. Therefore, the public committee intends to develop routes for trips to local shops and green areas. Special attention will be paid to routes connecting residential areas with local schools and other educational institutions. For the construction of these routes, standards with increased safety requirements will be applied. Thus, all members of the local community will be satisfied. Besides, everyone will have the chance to make suggestions through the public committee.
Pathos
To make my arguments more compelling to the audience, I will use the tools of the rhetorical triangle – ethos, pathos, and logos. I will need to determine the values, priorities, and moods of my target audience to use the pathos tool (Crick, 2017). Among the core values and priorities of the community, family values, work ethics, and social values can be singled out, as well as personal and friendly relations. At the same time, the main priority of the community, in this case, is road safety, ease of movement around the city, and the recreational function of bicycle paths in green areas. The emotions of the local community are related to the listed values and priorities.
At the same time, the city council and the mayor have slightly different values and priorities. In particular, their political image – the way they look in the eyes of the community – is of great importance to them. At the same time, the city authorities’ priority is the success of the completed changes, since they are the ones in charge of the consequences. The emotions of this target audience are related to the listed values and priorities. If the creation of new bicycle routes becomes a problem, it will be a severe blow to the reputation of the city authorities. Therefore, I should think through the scheme of executing my plan well and bring it to the target audience so that the result does not disappoint anyone.
Ethos
In my speech, I will also use ethos since I am going to convince the audience that I am competent in the given issue. Mastering the topic suggests that I am ready for questions and disagreements with my speech (Crick, 2017). The main dispute will most likely arise between the unwillingness of the city authorities to make a mistake and the urgent need to solve the problem. City officials are likely to speculate that expanding the roadway for cycling routes will only exacerbate the problem. At the same time, community representatives can voice valid concerns regarding cyclist safety. All these opinions will be based on the misconception that cyclists are not equal participants in road traffic. Therefore, traffic rules and building architectural standards will become common ground, based on which everyone will be able to reach a consensus.
Logos
To justify the proposed solution to the problem, I will use logos as well. I can take examples of solutions to a similar problem in other cities. Traffic accident statistics for the areas where changes were introduced with a low percentage of traffic incidents involving cyclists will be a good argument in favor of the proposed solution. I will also base my message on the logic of laws that define cyclists as equal participants in road traffic. In doing so, I will need to avoid logical fallacies such as incorrect presentation of statistics not to mislead my audience.
Conclusion
Thus, the thesis was evaluated using the rhetorical situation and rhetorical tools. To summarize, the purpose of my appeal to the city authorities and the local community is to build bicycle lanes and to create new bicycle routes. I am going to appeal to the district where people of all ages and social situations live. In my speech, I will use pathos, ethos, and logos rhetoric tools.
Reference
Crick, N. (2017). Rhetorical public speaking: Civic engagement in the digital age. London, UK: Routledge.