Dr. Coyle
Engl-101E
19 Sept. 2014
Rhetorical Analysis of “A Guerilla Gardener in South Central L.A.” In South Central, Los Angeles, there is a food epidemic taking place among the population. For miles and miles, the only easily attainable food source is fast food; causing the overconsumption of un-nutritious, greasy, and fattening food. This is the problem brought to the public’s attention by speaker Ron Finley in his Ted Talks speech, “A Guerilla Gardener in South Central L.A.” Finley explains how everywhere he looks in his native South Central, all he sees are fast food chains and Dialysis clinics opened due to the lack of nutritious food. Finley views the lack of a healthy food source as a serious problem, and brings up his point; there are miles of vacant lots throughout Los Angeles, all of which could be used for the cultivation of healthy fruits and vegetables to better the urban community’s diet and health. Ron Finley was born and raised in South Central, and he now has kids of his own being raised in the same area. After seeing all of the obesity caused by unhealthy eating within his community, Finley began a small garden on the strip of public land in front of his home. Although it is just a tiny piece of land, Finley saw how fast people began using the new healthy food source; inspiring him to expand his operation to provide even more healthy options for more neighborhoods. He views his “guerilla gardening” as a solution to not only the health epidemic, but also as something to take the youth out of the crime and gangs within the area. His expansion was not initially accepted by the city of Los Angeles due to the fact he was planting these gardens on public vacant lots, but Finley is pushing to have his idea accepted in order to continue providing constant healthy food. Finley use of logos, pathos, and ethos throughout his speech captures the audience’s attention. Finley uses pathos throughout the presentation by showing the audience