Arrogance of Power Review
English 102
2 July 2014
A Favorable Evaluation
William J. Fulbright, a democratic Senator from Arkansas, was Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1966 when The Arrogance of Power was published. In an excerpt from Fulbright’s book, he analyzes the misguided thinking behind America's global interventionism and its delusion of righteous all-powerfulness. These symptoms are a confusion of power and virtue. Fulbright defines the arrogance of power as, “a psychological need that nations seem to have in order to prove that they are bigger, better, or stronger than other nations” (2). William J. Fulbright uses persuasive appeals in his well structured book, The Arrogance of Power to help convey his views on U.S. war strategies.
From the introduction to the conclusion, Fulbright has great use of persuasive appeals. Most of his work uses pathos or emotional appeals. In the introduction he depicts America not as a country, but as a woman. By describing America as a person, the beginning hooks the readers by boasting about America, “America is the most fortunate of nations” (Fulbright 1). This is a great use of pathos to draw in an audience. Fulbright states, “We seem to feel somehow that because the hydrogen bomb has not killed us yet, it is never going to kill us” (2). He is appealing to the reader's emotions by planting a seed of fear in their minds. Fulbright uses the survival of the human race to embark fear as well. “Man … for the first time, is in a situation in which the survival of his species is in jeopardy,” is one of many sentences aimed at the readers sentimental sides. This same root of fear is used throughout most of the essay and thus is quite helpful in swaying the reader. Often Fulbright reflects back on past situations that have occurred, such as the Holocaust and the Cuban Missile Affair. By doing so the reader is reminded of how they were affected by that situation. Whether the reader was just a child watching the television and
2 July 2014
A Favorable Evaluation
William J. Fulbright, a democratic Senator from Arkansas, was Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in 1966 when The Arrogance of Power was published. In an excerpt from Fulbright’s book, he analyzes the misguided thinking behind America's global interventionism and its delusion of righteous all-powerfulness. These symptoms are a confusion of power and virtue. Fulbright defines the arrogance of power as, “a psychological need that nations seem to have in order to prove that they are bigger, better, or stronger than other nations” (2). William J. Fulbright uses persuasive appeals in his well structured book, The Arrogance of Power to help convey his views on U.S. war strategies.
From the introduction to the conclusion, Fulbright has great use of persuasive appeals. Most of his work uses pathos or emotional appeals. In the introduction he depicts America not as a country, but as a woman. By describing America as a person, the beginning hooks the readers by boasting about America, “America is the most fortunate of nations” (Fulbright 1). This is a great use of pathos to draw in an audience. Fulbright states, “We seem to feel somehow that because the hydrogen bomb has not killed us yet, it is never going to kill us” (2). He is appealing to the reader's emotions by planting a seed of fear in their minds. Fulbright uses the survival of the human race to embark fear as well. “Man … for the first time, is in a situation in which the survival of his species is in jeopardy,” is one of many sentences aimed at the readers sentimental sides. This same root of fear is used throughout most of the essay and thus is quite helpful in swaying the reader. Often Fulbright reflects back on past situations that have occurred, such as the Holocaust and the Cuban Missile Affair. By doing so the reader is reminded of how they were affected by that situation. Whether the reader was just a child watching the television and