Rhetorical Analysis

Rhetoric was first brought about by a widely known philosopher; Aristotle and now (centuries after Aristotle) rhetoric is still used by many students, scholars, teachers, etc. In the article, “7 Ways Milk and Dairy Products are Making You Sick” by Sofia Peneda; the author clearly uses logos throughout the article because she (the author) uses real facts/ examples to prove her idea that milk/ dairy products make people sick while trying to persuade the those who consume dairy to believe that idea. However, the author’s cautious/ disapproving tone towards dairy products and persuasive writing style definitely convinces the audience/ reader to avoid these products which is the objective that the author hopes to achieve in the article.

There are many ways the author uses facts to prove that milk/ dairy products can make people sick in the article. To begin, the author’s first point talks about how all milk still has hormones, proving her point with facts while using a disapproving tone. For example, as the author describes how even organic milk has hormones (which are potentially harmful) she states, “commercial cow’s milk contains large amounts of estrogen and progesterone, which is a serious concern…” This shows that the author uses a disapproving tone by telling the reader that hormones in all types of milk are harmful. Also, the author uses the fact that dairy products accumulate pesticides in a disapproving/ cautious tone.To demonstrate, as the author describes how easily pesticides accumulate in dairy products she states, “even pesticides that have long been banned still show up when dairy products are tested…” This shows that the author uses the fact that pesticides accumulate in dairy products to persuade the reader to not consume any dairy products while using a cautious yet disapproving tone.

There are many ways that the author uses her persuasive writing style to convince the reader to not consume any dairy products. To begin, the author uses persuasive writing to warn people not to drink milk. To prove, as the author continues on about the dangers of consuming dairy products she states, “when we think about it, the health problems associated with consuming the milk and dairy products of other species should not come as any surprise…” This shows that the author uses persuasive writing to convince the reader that consuming dairy (especially from other species) is associated with health problems. Lastly, the author uses persuasive writing to convince the reader to find other sources of calcium besides milk/ dairy products.To show, as the author talks about calcium in milk and plants she states, “dairy’s high calcium content, which can cause vitamin D dysregulation and therefore disrupt bone homeostasis…calcium is abundant in plant foods…” This shows that the author uses persuasive writing to convince the reader to get calcium from plants and not from milk/ dairy. As you can see, in the article, “7 Ways Milk and Dairy Products are Making You Sick” by Sofia Peneda uses a cautious/ disapproving tone towards dairy products and a persuasive writing style to convince the reader to avoid consuming these products; the objective that the author achieved in this article. Print