A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS of the Declaration of Sentiments

The author begins her text by drawing women out of the margin by placing
them as part of “the course of human events” and along “the people of the
earth”. She then borrows from “the declaration of independence” the precept
that all people are created “equal” and have the same rights to “life, liberty and
the pursuit of happiness”. Through these parallels, the author reestablishes
women’s position in history and in the American society and prepares the
ground for claiming women’s rights . More significantly , borrowing from “the
Declaration of independence ” alludes to the latter’s exclusion of women from
its guarantee of civil rights ,therefore , the present “ Declaration ” announces
that it will suggest amendments to Thomas Jefferson’s historical document.
The problem she identifies is inequality between men and women in the
American society, she clearly states that “the history of mankind is a history of
repeated injuries and usurpations on the part of man toward woman, having in
direct object the establishment of an absolute tyranny over her”. Accordingly,
we understand that the author is not only claiming for equality, but she also
denounces man’s exploitation of women through her use of strong words like
“repeated injuries” and “tyranny”. She then lists the legal, the conjugal, and the
public and religious rights from which women are deprived. The author makes
it clear that in all cases man made governmental rules in a way to deprive
woman from her rights and to ensure his own supremacy.
The author assumes her readers are both women and men who are
sympathetic to women’s plight. Yet, the beginning of the declaration make us
suppose she is being very cautious with the opponents of the cause and tries to
win their approval. Indeed, she starts by identifying women as “part of the
family of man” which implies an acknowledged subordinate position to man
and makes it clear that she owes them an explanation by “decent respect to
the opinions of mankind”. While she draws a comparison between oppressed
peoples who need to overthrow their tyrannical governments and
subordinated women, she is careful to mention that women need only “to
demand the equal station to which they are entitled”.
Her purpose in this declaration is to demand for equal rights between men
and women in the United States and to denounce women’s subordination .In
order to accomplish this purpose, she appeals mainly to Logos when
structuring and presenting her arguments. First , it is noticed that the whole
text is based on deductive reasoning by referencing to “ god’s nature” and the
“ declaration of independence” in the beginning of the text which help the
author defend her argument that women need equal rights guaranteed by
these two authorities. Next, she uses inductive reasoning when listing facts
proving women’s deprivation in the legal, conjugal, public and religious
spheres. The results she arrives at after each listing adds to the overall
conclusion that women are exploited and their condition requires immediate
action. Hence, the “declaration of sentiments” takes significance.
She also appeals to pathos when using emotionally loaded words like “
usurpations” , “abuses”, “absolute despotism”, “ the patient sufferance” ,
“aggrieved” , “oppressed” , and “fraudulently deprived” in order to make
women identify with the cause and win men’s sympathy. What is noticeable
through all these words is that they not only describe women’s subordination,
but they also focus on their suffering, suggesting thus their status as second-
class citizens.
In her essay, the author addresses the main argument against her thesis, the
idea “of the supremacy of man, and giving all power into his hands”. She
refutes this argument by evaluating this idea as a “false supposition” and using
religious beliefs that men and women’s equality are “the laws of nature and of
nature's God” to underpin her arguments.
Finally, she concludes by reiterating the point of “the disfranchisement of
one-half of the people” of the United States and calls for immediate action and
the use of different means to achieve equality between men and women. She
also uses the words “ self-evident” , “ right” and “true” to give her claim a
logical and acceptable support .
Overall, the argument the author makes is effective because she uses a
variety of strategies to achieve her aim. First through the well-organized
structure of the text and the reliance on deductive and inductive reasoning in
proving women’s deprivation and need for change. Then, through her appeal to
both logos and pathos to make the reader convinced about the cause she is
defending. Finally, through the borrowing from the “declaration of
independence” which guaranteed to U.S. citizens their civil rights and which
offered ,thus, the possibility of expanding these privileges to American women.