Corrin Motyka

Professor Ferrara

ENW 100

November 15, 2019

A Country in Crisis

The opioid epidemic is one of the greatest issues our nation faces today. According to

USA Mental Health First Aid, “each day, 140 individuals in the United States die of a drug

overdose, 91 specifically due to opioids.” It is also noted that the average life expectancy of

Americans has declined as a result of the opioid crisis (Kapil, "5 Surprising Facts About Opioid

Use"). While Americans all over the country suffer from opioid overuse and addiction, it is

primarily the poor rural communities of Appalachia and the surrounding areas that have fallen

victim to this disease. Places such as these are more underdeveloped, undereducated, and under

resourced which makes escaping life’s difficulties through opioid use more appealing and more

common. In a TED Talk given on January 2, 2019, Fire Chief and nurse Jean Rader discusses the

dangers the opioid crisis poses to her community of Huntington, West Virginia, and argues for a

different approach and a different mindset in order to improve the situation. The talk is an urgent,

yet positive, call for help to anyone who can make a difference. Although this particular TED

audience is unknown, Rader’s speech is suitable for a broad range of listeners. In her speech,

Rader implements the rhetorical strategies of pathos, ethos and logos in order to make her

argument more effective and to build a personal connection with the audience.

Rader’s background is a key reason why her argument is so effective. She begins her talk

by providing background on herself and her community. She is a long time firefighter with over
24 years of experience who also gained a nursing degree in order to increase her medical

knowledge. She points out that as a woman, she has been able to succeed in what is mainly a

man’s profession and rise to the rank of Fire Chief. Although she doesn’t specifically state it, it

is clear that she was only able to do so through competence and leadership. As a way of

underlining this point and conveying authority, she wears her neatly pressed official uniform. She

lives in a city in West Virginia where opioid overdoses are very frequent and have devastated the

community with no regard for race or gender. She knows first hand what opioid addiction does to

human beings and their families and therefore her argument has greater meaning (Rader,

00:00:04 - 00:01:21). She acknowledges that there are flaws in the existing system, but she has

implemented innovative ideas to address the problem. She mentions that often times there is a

difficult victim-First Responder dynamic that can sometimes prevent the victim from properly

being treated. Thus, Rader developed several different programs, one of which is the Quick

Response Team, which provides long term aid and services to those who have suffered an

overdose (Rader, 00:07:15 - 00:08: 19). She saw a problem and did what should could to find a

solution. As a result, the audience should be impressed with Rader’s credibility, or Ethos. She is

able to convincingly demonstrate that she has the appropriate experience, background, and

objectivity to speak with authority on the opioid crisis.

Rader also makes frequent use of statistics in her argument as a way of employing Logos.

She mentions that in 2017, in her county of 95,000 people, 1831 suffered from overdoses with

183 people dying as a result (Rader, 00:01:21 - 00:01:49). By mentioning these facts, she brings

her argument to life, making it something people can distinctly envision and think about. Also,

by including these statistics, she draws attention to how big of a problem the opioid crisis
actually is and how many people it truly affects. Rader includes positive statistics as well. She

mentions that due to the work of her Quick Response Teams current overdoses are down 40%

and overdose deaths are down an astonishing 50% (Rader, 00:07:15 - 00:08:19). This proves to

the audience in a concrete way that her methods work and that something can be done to affect

this crisis.

Rader uses deliberate diction and anecdotes in order to make the audience feel emotions

of sympathy and horror. Rader continuously uses words such as “disaster,” “disease,” “disorder,”

and a “lethal threat” when referring to the opioid epidemic. At first glance, many people would

not label opioid addiction as a disease and possibly not even as a major threat to our country.

However, Rader’s continuous use of these words reinforces how significant of a problem opioids

pose to people’s health and survival. People generally associate a disease or disorder as

something that can be treated. By referring to the over use of opioids as a disease/disorder, Rader

is telling her audience that something can be done to help. Rader also explains what happens

when someone suffers an overdose. She explains that the victim wakes up to a bunch of strangers

who are giving the victim the anti-opioid drug Narcan, which can be very painful and nauseating

(00:03:09 - 00:04:13). Rader also gives the perspective of the First Responders who want to do

everything they can to save the victim, but who sometimes feel useless or underappreciated

(Rader, 00:05:19 - 00:05:54). This is important for the development of her argument, because her

audience will feel sorry for both those suffering from the overdoses as well as those trying to

save those who overdose. This will make them more likely to want to find a suitable solution,

especially if they know the horrible effects an overdose can bring. Rader also provides a very

personal dimension to her argument, when she temporarily breaks down when discussing the
PTSD syndrome suffered by many First Responders who have witnessed so much death and

devastation. This is a highly effective application of Pathos, or emotional appeal to the audience

as part of Rader’s rhetorical strategy.

Lastly, Rader uses a direct tone in order to urge her audience to act quickly to confront

this crisis. The opioid epidemic is one of the biggest problems facing our country and thus

Rader’s Talk and proposed solutions are equally important and potentially impactful. The opioid

epidemic is only going to get worse if we as Americans don’t try to find immediate solutions.

Rader explains that her small city in West Virginia was able to create positive change, which

means anyone can. Throughout her TED Talk, Rader also uses a very conversational tone. In this

way, she is able to connect with her audience and create a comfortable environment. At the end

of her talk she speaks directly to the audience. She doesn’t ask her listeners to create a

superhuman vaccine or to even create an innovative program like she did. She merely asks them

to provide hope and that “just by listening to, being kind to somebody” they have the ability to

make positive change (Rader 00:13:57 - 00:14:13).

While Rader provides a very compelling argument which is hard to oppose, she neglects

certain topics which could have made her message even clearer and stronger. In order to enhance

her credibility even further, Rader could have remained even more objective. She neglects to

mention that opioids have a place in modern medicine and that, prescribed properly, they share a

wide range of benefits. For example, opioids are necessary when treating cancer patients (Doyle,

"The Great Opioid Debate: Treating Cancer Pain Safely"). Additionally, her program does not

address the supply aspect of the opioid epidemic which is the over prescription of drugs by

doctors and pharmacies. Rader also could have pointed out the effect opioids have beyond the
borders of her small city in West Virginia. It is clear that the heart of the problem lies in

Appalachia where she lives, but in order to make her message more applicable and dire, she

should have addressed opioid abuse in other areas of the country. In this way, the audience could

relate more to the cause if they see it directly affecting their community. On balance, however,

Rader’s presentation is highly effective, not only because it gives a necessary human dimension

to the problem, but also because it offers hope in the form of practical and proven solutions.

Works Cited

Doyle, Chase. “The Great Opioid Debate: Treating Cancer Pain Safely.” The Great

Opioid Debate - The ASCO Post, The ASCO Post , 25 Dec. 2018, https://www.ascopost.com/

issues/december-25-2018/the-great-opioid-debate/…

Kapil , Rubina. “5 Surprising Facts About Opioid Use.” Mental Health First Aid, 20 Mar.

2019, https://www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org/2019/03/5-surprising-facts-about-opioid-use/…

Rader, J. (2018, November). In the Opioid Crisis, Here’s What is Takes to Save a Life.

[Video File]. Retrieved from https://www.ted.com/talks/

jan_rader_in_the_opioid_crisis_here_s_what_it_takes_to_save_a_life