Visual Rhetorical Analysis
Animal testing is a very discussed topic or theme in these days, because there are so many people against it, as well as supporting it. There are many people in society concerned about what happens to the animals when they are used for experimentation, but this topic is an unbiased theme. Just for the reason that it involves very difficult ethical judgment. So it really depends on each person’s morals. However there is a YouTube video were Dr. Simon Festing is been asked specific questions about the topic, which are very helpful in the manner of informing the public. Even though, the video is a little bit biased towards supporting the animal testing, it also informs the viewer about some consequences of practicing animal experimentation. Also the video provides a very understandable rhetorical analysis, by using ethos, pathos, and logos. Being very simple to understand and letting you decide which side to pick.
In this video the intended audience are future doctors, current doctors, scientists, patients with genetic diseases, and the public in general, who are interested in learning more about animal testing. In order for the audience to acknowledge the information in the video, they will have to watch the video twice, which means spending just 7 minutes with 20 seconds. This is in order for them to notice every detail that it is shown in the video. The main purpose of the video is to inform people of how important the animal testing is for the development of medicine and treatments. The language used in the video is formal due to the fact that is an actual interview, and the person answering the questions is a doctor, so professional or formal language is expected.
Ethos
The main thing that is giving much credibility to this video is the fact that the person answering the questions and providing information about the topic is a doctor named Dr. Simon Festing. Also the way it presented the information is very specific, because the interviewer is asking very direct and specific questions, which are being answered with facts, details, and experience of Dr. Festing. Therefore the information is giving in a very understandable manner, because the viewer is receiving this information step by step, by focusing only on the specific question that was asked, rather than giving much information in a short period of time. Making the viewer to get lost throughout the video. But since the video is kind of bias, because it supports animal testing, giving much more pros and very few consequences of practicing this experimentation, it may loose credibility. Afterwards when Dr. Festing provides very exact examples he is gaining credibility by the usage of facts and percentages. Such as that “the human body and a mouse body are 90 percent similar; many of the major biological systems, from digestion to cardiovascular system works the same way for animals and humans” (Dr. F. Simon, September 12, 2010). Also another fact that he provides is that “over 70 percent of Nobel prizes in medicine and physiology have depended on the use of animals” (Dr. F. Simon, September 12, 2010). So these examples help the viewer to have more interest on the topic.
Pathos
This video does not really provoke much emotion, because it is not showing any images related to the topic, it is just transmitting information. But since for this topic very difficult ethical judgment has to be made, there is many emotions involves when talking about the morality of each person. Some people can misunderstand the purpose of doing animal testing and that is why Dr. Festing tells us, “is wrong to say that animals suffer for the good of people” (Dr. F. Simon, September 12, 2010). But the emotion involve in this video can vary for each viewer, such that one can say that it is good to do animal testing because it saves human lives and it helps developing new medications and treatments. While another viewer after watching this video can believe completely the opposite as the other viewer, because animal testing may involve cruelty, causing the animals to suffer. For example a person can become mad or upset when hearing Dr. Feting telling us, “many drugs that are successful in animals go on to fail in human trials” (Dr. F. Simon, September 12, 2010). But in the other part he is saying, “with any ban on the use of animals would be disastrous for biomedical research; it would grind gradually to a holt” (Dr. F. Simon, September 12, 2010). So it makes the argument neutral, so the decision involves the morality of each person.
Logos
There is a lot of logos in this video, because firstly it is giving many percentages and arguments of a doctor with experience and recognition in the field of animal experimentation. For example when he tells us, “over 70 percent of Nobel prizes in medicine and physiology have depended on the use of animals” (Dr. F. Simon, September 12, 2010). Also it is giving the viewer very straightforward information, due to the fact of how the information has been set. Also Dr. Festing is providing easy examples on order for the public to understand it, such as when he tells us that many of the discomfort of the animals is taken away, and he is comparing it to taking an animal to the veterinarian. And by answering these specific questions it may be answering any viewer doubts related to the topic. And because of all these facts and percentages he is giving us, automatically he is proving right his arguments.
Overall, the video does provides many information regarding animal testing, in order for the viewer to decide whether he is against or supports the cause. The doctor is presenting facts and percentages that help in many ways as to decide which side to pick. Even though the video is presenting bias towards supporting animal experimentation, it is also giving some consequences of practicing this experiments. The video was very effective because the information is credible due to the fact that a specialized doctor gives it; so all the information has strong bases. And it really depends on each person’s morals to decide if it is wrong or right keep doing these kinds of experiments.