“Nobody Knows”

By: Viviana Schroeder and Aubrey Piwowar

Paragraph 10 Main Idea
-People in power will go to extreme lengths to maintain their
status in society without having any remorse for the women they
are exploiting.
-In this paragraph it gives the famous movie producer, Harvey
Weinstein, as an example of how he was able to use his power to
exploit women and it also shows how his affluence in high
society was able to influence other people to become complicit
in his crimes
Rhetorical Strategies in Paragraph 10
1. Anecdote of Harvey Weinstein- By providing a real life
example, Solnit shows how these acts are happening all
around us.
2. Enumeration- Solnit includes this to convey how there is not
only one type of abuse since it is a culmination of different
forms of sexual harassment and assault that cause these
women to stay quiet
3. Metaphor of Machine- Solnit compares these actions to a
machine to show it is a complex system of multiple people
allowing these crimes to happen and go unnoticed.
Paragraph 11 Main Idea
- Although women’s voices are becoming more prevalent, the
issue still remains that nobody takes action until the public is
aware.
- Companies and individuals with power often protect their
own reputation and will only help those who are marginalized
if it’s in their best interest.
Rhetorical Strategies in Paragraph 11
1. Enumeration- In the second sentence enumeration is used to
highlight the several injustices that people were allowing to
happening in the film industry.
Paragraph 12 Main Idea
- People are often aware of the injustices going on around
them, but do not speak up.
- Figures of power will use their arrogance to try and avoid the
consequences of their actions.
- As women start to develop equal value in the workplace then
it can further allow their stories to be heard
Rhetorical Strategies in Paragraph 12
1. Metaphor of Dots- The isolated dots that Solnit mentions
represent all of the women who have been affected by sexual
abuse, that come togther to create a powerful force that
cannot go unnoticed.
2. Metaphor of Dam- Solnit includes this metaphor of the dam
to demonstrate how people of power utilize their status to
avoid the consequences of their actions.
Global Issues
-Corporations and businesses often don’t come forward with
allegations until a victim comes forward and exposes the
misconduct or lack of action toward perpetrators within the
industry.
- The public in general does not speak up against oppression out
of fear for not maintaining a good public appearance.
Global Issue
James Charles is an example of a man who
took advantage of his power and status as a
makeup star, and admitted to sending
sexually explicit messages to underage boys.
Although he apologized for his actions
publicly, this is not the first allegation towards
him for using fame and money to influence
sexuality. This is a perfect example of people
in power not taking responsibility for their
actions until the public has been made aware,
followed by these celebrities creating
apology videos of them crying which they
post on social media thinking it is all fixed.