Death Of A Soldier Rhetorical Analysis

“Every breath he draws is like a stab; for the ball pierced the left lung and broke a rib” (1), is a quote within the excerpt “Death of a Soldier” from Louisa May Alcott’s Hospital Sketches. “Death of a Soldier” is about a blacksmith injured from the Civil War that is assisted by Alcott, a volunteered nurse for the Civil War. As Alcott progresses in “Death of a Soldier,” she uses the selection of details, diction, and imagery as a way to create a sorrowful, sympathetic tone for her audience.

Alcott’s use of diction allows the readers to recognize John’s brave,and compassionate personality. “The army needed men like John, earnest, brave, and faithful, fighting for liberty and justice with both heart and hand” (1). With Alcott’s description of

Alcott reminds “For hours he suffered dumbly, without a moment’s murmuring: his limbs grew cold, his face damp, his lips white, and again and again he tore the covering off his breast, as if the lightest weight added to his agony” (2). By specifically stating John’s progression of death, the audience is able to get a vivid visualization and empathize with the loss of many others during the war. As Alcott assists the audience into realizing the cold truth behind the war, she is able to express her message through her sorrowful, sympathetic tone. By continuing on with the tone throughout the excerpt, Alcott can create a robust message towards the audience. Alcott’s story makes the audience come into a realization of the suffering soldiers and people during the war. People who should not die in vain but be recognized for their effort and hard work. With her tone, she relays her message and allows her audience to come to the realization on the suffering hard workers of the war. Overall, in the excerpt “Death of a Soldier”, Alcott brings the audience back to the time of when she was once a Civil War nurse and tells the story of a blacksmith reaching inexorable death. Within the excerpt, she creates a empathic tone for the audience using details, diction, and imagery. She is able to convey her message of dying soldiers using her tone and altogether create a piece of writing that can stimulate her audience into understanding the hardships of the