Language - a Powerful Tool

Language is a powerful tool. The artful manipulation of language has sparked countless revolutions and has continuously fueled social progression over the course of human history. In Carmen Vаzquez’s “Appearances,” Vаzquez argues that homophobia is a serious concern in society. She rallies for all people, regardless of sexual orientation, to challenge society’s unyielding gender roles and homophobia. Through the art of persuasion, Carmen Vаzquez blended careful diction, emotional stories, and persuasive structure to aggressively address the problem of homophobia both coherently and effectively.

Although language manipulation can be broken into countless categories and sub-categories, diction is arguably the common denominator. When one conducts an analysis of another’s words, it is both logical and necessary for one to address the author’s word choice. Vаzquez’s essay is full of strategically placed adjectives and transitions to pull the reader to her message. She refers to society’s gender roles as being a “straitjacket” that “suffocates” (p. 493, 3rd paragraph). Both of the words “straitjacket” and “suffocates” not only embody the frustration felt by homosexuals, but also suggest that society is bound by its own unreasonable expectations. The author’s metaphorical suffocating straightjacket serves as a signal to the reader that society’s treatment of gender roles is in dire need of reform.

Throughout “Appearances,” Vаzquez strategically crafted words to persuade the reader to recognize the problem and to support her cause. A stark example of this is “It is a frightening reality” (p. 494, 1st paragraph). Instead of writing: “I find this reality frightening,” the author decided to write: “It is a frightening reality.” She clearly expresses not only how she feels, but suggests that it is reasonable for everyone to feel the same way. The words, “Sadly, it is on every level,” (p. 495, 2nd paragraph) are not only an indication that Vаzquez agrees with the statements made in the 20/20 interview, but “Sadly” serves as an indicator that she finds social progression necessary. Although Vаzquez could have simply stated her agreement with the interview, she left no room for misunderstanding when she suggested that the reader should not only agree with, but be saddened by such a truth. It is evident from these examples, that the author strategically used diction to lead the reader to her argument.

Carmen Vаzquez wasted no time in establishing an emotional connection between her argument and the reader. In her opening paragraphs, she set the scene with graphic depictions of the oppression of two men, who were mistakenly labeled as homosexuals. The image of a defenseless man after being severely beaten is meant to stir feelings of anger and compassion in the reader. Although the author could have provided examples of actual homosexual oppression, these examples supported Vаzquez’s explanation that homophobia stems from a greater problem in society, the unyielding gender roles. These stories do not form a logical foundation for such an argument, but rather, they appeal to the emotions of the reader. Such pathos is frequent in “Appearances,” and is used to rally support for Vаzquez’s cause. After reading her introductory paragraphs, one might be prompted ask the question “how do these instances speak for society?”

To give society a voice, the author cited a statement made by Doug Barr “We hate homosexuals. They degrade our manhood…I’d rather be seen as a football player” (p. 492, 4th paragraph). It does not take a sociologist to understand that his statements are at the extreme end of the spectrum. Vаzquez cited Doug Barr to give yet another example to the reader of how far society’s problem of homophobia has gone. The disagreement between the opinions of the reader and the words of Mr.