"A Whisper of AIDs"
Andrew T.
Chris Carlson
Communications 110
Nov. 11, 2013
“A Whisper of AIDS” Critical Thinking Essay When you think of ways to die, a person usually thinks of cancer or heart attacks. But what if the 3rd leading cause of death is HIV/AIDS. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, AIDs is “a serious disease of the immune system that is caused by infection with a virus” (AIDS). Mary Fischer informs how HIV/AIDs is a very real and scary disease that affects millions in America, but the general population is not informed about the deadly disease. In her speech, Mary Fisher effectively persuaded and informed viewers to care more about the disease and learning more about it. I will further expand on Fisher’s speech by talking about her tone in the speech, her arrangement of words, and her personal examples she used in the speech.
In Fisher’s speech, she uses a very serious informative tone. Early in the speech she declares, “I want your attention, not your applause” (Whisper of AIDs). She comes out with her own experience not for sympathy with viewers but for them to be informed. She wants people to share her feelings of the danger of HIV/AIDs through her serious tone. Later in the speech when she gets into the issues, her tone switches to an informative and educational voice. She uses these tones to explain facts about aids. For example, she states “AIDs is the thirds leading killer of young adults in America” (Whisper of AIDs). This grabs the attention of both adults with kids and any young adult watching. It almost seems like Fisher wants to slightly scare people into caring. She ends with a heartfelt voice by bringing her two kids into the speech to build pathos. Using her kids connects her with the audience and gives them a final push to care about the devastating disease of HIV/AIDs. The way Fisher switched tones throughout the speech kept the audience’s attention so she could convey her message clearly.
Second, Mary Fisher arranged the speech
Chris Carlson
Communications 110
Nov. 11, 2013
“A Whisper of AIDS” Critical Thinking Essay When you think of ways to die, a person usually thinks of cancer or heart attacks. But what if the 3rd leading cause of death is HIV/AIDS. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, AIDs is “a serious disease of the immune system that is caused by infection with a virus” (AIDS). Mary Fischer informs how HIV/AIDs is a very real and scary disease that affects millions in America, but the general population is not informed about the deadly disease. In her speech, Mary Fisher effectively persuaded and informed viewers to care more about the disease and learning more about it. I will further expand on Fisher’s speech by talking about her tone in the speech, her arrangement of words, and her personal examples she used in the speech.
In Fisher’s speech, she uses a very serious informative tone. Early in the speech she declares, “I want your attention, not your applause” (Whisper of AIDs). She comes out with her own experience not for sympathy with viewers but for them to be informed. She wants people to share her feelings of the danger of HIV/AIDs through her serious tone. Later in the speech when she gets into the issues, her tone switches to an informative and educational voice. She uses these tones to explain facts about aids. For example, she states “AIDs is the thirds leading killer of young adults in America” (Whisper of AIDs). This grabs the attention of both adults with kids and any young adult watching. It almost seems like Fisher wants to slightly scare people into caring. She ends with a heartfelt voice by bringing her two kids into the speech to build pathos. Using her kids connects her with the audience and gives them a final push to care about the devastating disease of HIV/AIDs. The way Fisher switched tones throughout the speech kept the audience’s attention so she could convey her message clearly.
Second, Mary Fisher arranged the speech
References: A Whisper of AIDs. Advo. Mary Fisher. Astrodome, Houston, Texas. 19 Aug. 1992. Speech. "AIDS." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 11 Nov. 2013. "Mary Fisher." The Artist & Her Studio. Mary Fisher Productions Inc., 2013. Web. 10 Nov. 2013.