The artifact I chose for my rhetorical essay is a political ad in Ireland. Their call to action is focused on the upcoming election and the plea to “Save the 8th”. The ad’s main goal is to argue for the continued support of this article. It pushes for the continued support to ban abortions of babies with Down syndrome. Civic engagement is another key theme of this ad due to the responsibility of the people to vote. I found this artifact particularly interesting because abortion tends to be an incredibly polarizing and often times political topic. I begun researching the advertisement and propaganda surrounding this topic in the United States, then expanded my search internationally. I think the varying viewpoints snd levels of involvement from the government is incredibly interesting. Im not here to argue the debate of pro-choice or pro-life, but rather to dissect the rhetorical appeals of two countries that offer aligning views to both sides of the debate. Elements I have begun to discuss in my essay to compare this ad to one from China offering the support of abortions are as follows. I begin with the visual differences, coors, animations, etc. I then continue to discuss the ethos appeal through religion and governmental backing. Furthermore, I delve into the dissection of each advertisement’s logical appeal. Finally, with my strongest point, I begin to unravel the pathetic appeals each ad has on its directed audience.

Photo curtesy of: https://www.irishcatholic.com/green-party-cllr-tries-censor-pro-life-billboards/