As British rule grasped the national throat of India the people progressively became more and more leery of English control. With the blood of many Indian citizens on the hands of British citizens due to the Jallianwala Bagh Massacre and increasing economic hardships among the common man many citizens of Indian became opposed to English rule. Emerging as a proponent for a better life, Gandhi proposed a solution that would sever England’s control over the people of India. Although Gandhi’s proposal of non-violence eventually digressed into violence, he was ultimately successful in motivating the people of India to act through his logical appeal to seek a better life.
Gandhi masterfully structures his argument by stating the problem at hand. He then proceeds to explore the implications that his plan would have on the people. It all comes back to the fact that people should act based on what they believe to be right. Gandhi helps the the citizens of India see that if they continue to participate in programs endorsed by the English government they are in reality giving support to the current type of rule. His argument consists of the fact that those who know what the truth is have a duty to live up to that standard.
Near the end of his argument Gandhi takes the framework he has built out of logos and uses it to motivate others through pathos. He effectively does such by using the word “remember.” Gandhi asked the people to remember that it doesn’t matter if we choose to be violent or nonviolent in our lives, either way we will have to live the doctrine of sacrifice. He pleads with the common man to follow the gospel of sacrifice because ultimately it is required by every man that all adhere to this doctrine in the end.
Through effectively imploring a logical argument intended to motivate others to stand up for what which they believe to be true, Gandhi is successful in convincing his audience to join the cause. Although the results of his assertion were not exactly what he initially had in mind, great change was brought to India. Gandhi did motivate the people of India to stand up for what they believed in, to take action and form a better system of government. While the process may not have progressed in the way he initially expected, the people of India did eventually defy the British government and thwarted English control.
How did Ghandi rise to a position where people would listen to him in the first place? He became very influential, especially for a man who did not have a military past. Do you think that his arguments about sacrifice and resistance were novel and awoke the people of India to their current situation or were the people of India just all waiting for someone to take the lead?
ReplyDeleteI am curious about that too, charles. I wonder how Ghandi came to power. I wonder how he could have so much influence for someone who uses no violence. I thought of a revolution as bloody battles, but I suppose that it can mean much more than that. The Scientific Revolution is an example of that. Perhaps it is because of how radical the idea was-revolt without any violence.
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