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Ted Talk Rhetorical Analysis

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The Pillars Of Persuasive Power Rhetoric is the arts of using language to inform and advocate for the truth, to connect ideas, and to develop arguments in particular situations. Aristotle, a well-respected Greek philosopher, considers rhetoric as a means of persuasion. He defines ethos, logos, and pathos as the three essential ingredients to a successful appeal. These three interconnected components are the backbone for the persuasive power inside the TED Talk titled “What Really Happens When You Mix Medications?”. Russ Altman, the speaker of this TED Talk, harnesses different dimensions of each persuasive power to explain to the audience that taking two or more medications can lead to a drug–drug interaction that can either amplify or block …show more content…
When Altman begins telling the story of a patient who has been on a high-cholesterol medication visiting a doctor’s office, he pulls out a pill container. At the point where the patient is given an anti-depressant prescription, a different pill container is shown. While Altman reveals to the audience that it is very hard to study what happens when medications are mixed and how it has never been done before, he hits the pill containers against each other. This action accentuates the fact that drugs are lifesavers but putting multiple drugs together in one body can be a recipe for lethality. Many people need medications daily for rest of their lives. Sometimes, they end up taking potentially dangerous combinations of medications because multiple doctors are prescribing drugs without being aware of what other doctors are prescribing. The doctors may not closely monitor the patients who are taking several drugs at once. Unless a problem is detected, doctors and patients may not consciously think about the threats of taking medications in combination. Consequently, drug interactions have long been a neglected field of study in healthcare. The container pills, in addition with the story, effectively reinforces Altman’s argument. The audience members perceive the necessity of being informed about drug interactions. Likewise, they are encouraged to use the information that is available to them to minimize the risk of such interactions and to improve the success of their

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