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Rhetorical Analysis Of Benjamin Banneker Letter

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In 1791, a son of former slaves by the name of Benjamin Banneker, wrote a letter to Thomas Jefferson about his belief and standpoint on slavery with major rhetorical responses backing his standpoint up. Banneker starts off his letter and continues throughout it by stating “sir.” He does this knowingly as it is a sign of respect and the fact Jefferson has more authority than him, as Jefferson was the Secretary of State at the time under President George Washington, and hoping to have Jefferson and other high and powerful men consider his point of view. Predating back to the early 1700’s, slaves were merely legal property in the United States, meaning the slaves had no rights. Free black men and women had no rights either. As a result of this, sir and ma’am were often used during this time. This was just the beginning of Banneker’s letter. …show more content…

Banneker backs this up with another rhetorical device as he references the Bible. He uses Job, a man in the Bible who goes through much suffering, as an example as he quotes from Job, “put your souls in their souls [in]stead.” To put it simply, be a Mike Rowe and feel what it’s like to live in someone else’s life, especially during 1791. No voice to express ideas and opinions, no rights, and no

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