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Speaker: Pharrell Williams
Receiver: Black Americans (Uses the pronoun "we")
Circumstances: Black Lives Matter protests all over the USA after the killing of George Floyd
Topic: The future for black Americans - what can be done to secure equality?
Language: Formal

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Appeal to widespread belief: s. 2, ll. 18-19

Comparison: s.3 l.37-39

(Irony and sarcasm): s. 1-2, ll. 14-16, s. 1, l 2

(indirect) Slippery slope fallacy: s. 3, ll. 50-51

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 Point these out in the text. What is the effect, and how does he link these to the present?

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 Point these out in the text. What is the effect, and how does he link these to the present?

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What is Williams’ message, and do you think he succeeds in doing what he set out to do with this speech? Give your reasons why/why not

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What is Williams’ message, and do you think he succeeds in doing what he set out to do with this speech? Give your reasons why/why not

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List: “torture, murder and unabashed evil” (p. 2, l. 16)

List: “Wealth, prosperity and success”

Repetition: “all” (p. 2, l. 27)

Repetition: “We deserve/We want” (

Personifications: “The rugged spot jutting out from America’s mainland that birthed this nation… It birthed me too.” (p. 2, l. 23-24)

Personifications/metaphor: “being raised in the literal womb of America” (p. 2 l. 24)

Antithesis: “I am both the promise of America and product of its shameful past” (p. 2, l. 25)

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Kers, Martin og Christian

Lists: Line 16: torture, murder and unabashed evil of human slavery.

Allitteration + antithesis: line 25: I am both the promise of America and a product of its shameful past

Repetition: Line 42-44 - We want the return….. We want actual liberty

Personification: Line 23-24 - The rugged spot jutting out from America’s mainland that birthed this nation has since been named Virginia Beach. It birthed me to

Repetition: Page 3, L 27-29: All 4x

Metaphor : Page 3, L 29-31: I understand that all exists only in augmented-reality goggles available to shareholders, power brokers and those lucky enough to get in on the initial public offering.

Antithesis: Page 3, l 43-44:

Metaphor: Page 2, L 24: Being raised in the literal womb of America

Rhetorical question“Amid so much injury, how do we begin to heal?”

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Pathos examples:

line 16 - "This is the place I call “home.”"

line 25-26 - "I am both the promise of America and a product of its shameful past."
(The promise of America= the American dream,
It's shameful past= slavery,
The product= himself being a black man who is a billionaire)

line 42-44 - "We want the return on our investment from when our local tax dollars funded schools our children couldn’t attend. We want actual liberty and justice not just for some Americans, but for all."

line 47-48 - "Black Americans have never been free to harvest the fruit of America’s bounty, even though we were forced to do the field work."
line 50 - “no taxation without representation.” It is the only way to guarantee life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.

line 52-53 - "America’s wealth was built on the slave labor of Black people: this is our past. To live up to America’s ideals, we must trust in a Black vision of the future."

Ethos examples:
line 25-26 - "I am both the promise of America and a product of its shameful past."
line 50 - “no taxation without representation.” It is the only way to guarantee life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.

Being able to write about the blacks past, shows us something about himself, that he is very clever and knows what he is talking about.

Logos examples:
line 1-2 - "On April 26, 1607, three ships carrying 105 men and boys landed on the eastern shore of what would come to be called America."

section 2, line 7-11

line 50 - “no taxation without representation.” It is the only way to guarantee life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.

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Logos: Dates, facts and history → ll. 12: “By 1860, Virginia would house roughly 1 of every 8 enslaved persons in America”. → Appeals to our logic, makes us understand the issue better and shows that he can look at the issue from a logical standpoint.

Ethos: Reliable personality → Competent → ll. 24-25: “Being raised in the literal womb of America and the origin of this country’s oppression left an indelible impression on me” → He grew up in America and therefore he knows what it’s like.

Pathos: Disappointment → ll 25-26: “I am both the promise of America and a product of its shameful past”.

He includes the audience → by saying “we”, “our” etc.

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ll. 43: “We want actual liberty and justice not just for some Americans, but for all.”

He gets his message out because of his language, which is very formal and he uses all forms of appeal. He also wrote this text under the Black Lives Matter movement which affected a lot of people.

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Tricks of argumentation - Bitten, Marie, Asmus

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Tricks of argumentation - Bitten, Marie, Asmus

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Work questions for ”We deserve a black future” by Pharrell Williams

1. Rhetorical pentagram

Speaker: Pharrell Williams

Receiver: Black Americans (specifically those reading TIME magazine)

Circumstances: It was written after the murder of George Floyd

Topic: America being racist in the past and the present

Language: Formal but demanding

2. Find examples of tricks of argumentation, rhetorical devices and appeal forms

For each example, you must try and describe what effect it has

Pharrell uses a lot of ethos, and logos, when he talks about the past.

He uses a lot of generalization throughout his speech. He also uses indirective comparison whenever he talks about how the black Americans should be treated. There is also some appeal to widespread belief “Many Americans assume…” (p. 2, l. 18)

3. Pharrell Williams draws on many historical references and intertextual references.

Point these out in the text. What is the effect, and how does he link these to the present?

He starts the article with drawing a historical reference to the discovery of America. He uses historical events to underline his arguments, saying that black people were sold as products.

4. What seems to be Pharrell Williams’ central argument? Find lines where you believe

his message is clear

That black people are owed equity.

“America’s wealth was built on the slave labor of Black people: this is our past. To live up to America’s ideals, we must trust in a Black vision of the future.” (p. 3, l. 52)

“We want the return on our investment from when our local tax dollars funded schools our children couldn’t attend. We want actual liberty and justice not just for some Americans, but for all.” (p. 2, ll. 42-44)

5. Sum up: What is Williams’ message, and do you think he succeeds in doing what he

set out to do with this speech? Give your reasons why/why not.

Williams accurately presents his arguments using historical backing, and then slams down on

the system with accuracy and makes his demands.

The tone fits pretty well with his message.

It’s not really appropriate to speak in an informal language, when you look at the place it was published.

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Declaration of independence: It’s very important for all Americans, but he makes it clear that it’s not actually all people that have “liberty and justice” even though it’s supposed to be for all Americans. The foundation of the country is not accurate, and it has never been.

The history of slaves: Shows that it was always the white that controlled the black, and the way they treated the slaves was brought into the modernised world. The money the black people earned back then but went to the whites, they want it back now. (justice but not realistic)

White Lion: Brought the first african slaves to the english colony in Virginia in 1619.

1773, “no taxation without representation”: People didn’t want to pay taxes if they didn’t have a representative person in the parliament → he tells us that the message today is just as patriotic and important

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S. 1, ll. 1-14: Pharrel explains parts of black history in the first part of the speech, so he can refer back to it, later on in the speech. To compare the past to the present, to state that, this is what it was like way back in time, but we haven’t gotten any further because in some cases the world still looks like this, for people of color. It leaves the audience thinking about what kind of society they live in, and convinces people that we need to do something about the situation.

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“Ensuring that every citizen has the same opportunity to succeed and flourish”

“America was founded on a dream of a land where all men were created equal, that contained the promise of liberty and justice for all. But all has never meant Black people. Like most Black Americans, I understand that all exists only in the augmented-reality goggles  available to shareholders, power brokers and those lucky enough to get in on the initial public offering” - Repetition and intertextual references

“I understand that all exists only in the augmented-reality goggles available to shareholders” - metaphor

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“On April 26, 1607, three ships carrying 105 men and boys landed on the eastern shore of what would come to be called America” (Page 1, line 1-2)

English settlers come to America

The White Lion (Page 1, line 7-8)

The American Civil War (Page 2, line 15-16)

“The New Deal” (Page 3, line 41)

Economic aid during the economic crisis in the 1930’

It is the only way to guarantee life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”.

From The declaration of independence

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Historical references and intertextual references + (effect + link to present):

Page 2, L 16: Southern states, decided it would rather fight what remains the bloodiest war in American history than end the torture, murder and unabashed evil of hum slavery. → Civil war of America 1861-1865

Page 2, L 20: Those first 220 and odd” Negroes – as Jamestown colonist John Rolfe wrote in a letter → Intertextual reference to white man with power idk

Page 3, L 27-28: America was founded on a dream of a land where all men were created equal, that contained the promise of liberty and justice for all → The declaration of independence 1776

They called themselves adventures.

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Sum-up:

He wants to increase the black influence and representation in the society

He wants to obtain equality

He wants to inform the black people