Inside The Deadly Rhino Horn Trade Analysis

Most people you'd ask wouldn't understand the strange desire for rhino horn, and even more probably don't know that there is a market for such an item. This is in large part due to the fact that it's not something you'd expect to be valuable like ivory or gold. It's just a dirty old animal horn, but it's still quite valuable being worth "more than $4,500 a pound." In Bryan Christy's article, "Special Investigation: Inside the Deadly Rhino Horn Trade" he discusses the poaching of rhino for their horn, how this is being fought, and some of the people who wish to legalize the trade. It is Christy's use of rhetoric through the arrangement of his article and overall writing style, as well as an appeal to the readers emotions that stems from his
He establishes himself as a credible source for his readers early on in the article by talking about his travels to South Africa, "It was a five-hour drive . . . to Polokwane, home of the world's most wanted man when it comes to rhino horn trafficking: a millionaire safari operator and ex-policeman named Dawie Groenewald." Groenewald owns an exotic game ranch in Africa but is also the center of a "high-stakes legal battle that could land him in prison . . . or create an opening for the legal sale of rhino horn in South Africa." This is a man who has found himself on the wrong side of the law but is hoping that the troubles he endures could lead to a legal trade of rhino horn. Not only did Christy meet with Groenewald, he met another man named John Hume. Christy explains, "John Hume owns more rhinos than anyone in the world. He's been breeding them since 1995, and today he has 1300." Hume supposedly "owns about a fifth of South Africa's privately held rhinos," and hopes that he will be able to legally sell rhino horn in the future. These are two very reliable sources for the topic at hand, seeing as they are both heavily invested, which strengthens the credibility of Christy and his
Christy provides some well-placed photos throughout his article, but his description of what occurs while poaching is what really allows him to reach the reader. He explains, "Rhinos don't roar when they're injured. They keen. A shot mother will cry in pain, sometimes inadvertently causing her frightened baby to return to her. Poachers will sever a baby's spine with a machete to save a bullet, then take its horn too." Through his introduction of baby rhinos, he makes it difficult for the reader not to feel sympathetic towards his cause. Christy then takes that one step further by introducing Markus Hofmeyr, manager of veterinary services, who recalls what he witnessed one day. They emphasize the fact, "Cutting a horn too close to its growing point can cause bleeding and, veterinarians say, can be painful. Hofmeyr speculated that some horns had been removed 'by inserting a knife and separating the attachment area of the horn from the base of the skull or applying a large force and tearing the horn from the base.'" Hofmeyr was describing what he saw at Prachtig, where the bodies of several dead rhinos were uncovered with their horns missing. It is through his recollection of that day, along with Christy's description of the fate of baby rhinos that really close out his argument and leave a lasting impression on the