Rhetorical Analysis

Freedom of speech can mean many things and cause different outcomes. Every now and then its clarified and sometimes misunderstood. The hanging of the confederate flag by two students at Harvard University mentioned by Derek Bok in Lunsford et al. 2009:123-125 was quite disturbing. In the Bill of rights, the first amendment protects the right of freedom of religion and freedom of expression from government interference. Sometimes people interpret that statement “freedom of expression” in an unjust way. Just because you’re free to do whatever you want doesn’t mean you can do something that’s insensitive and harms more people than it gives satisfaction to others.

When you look at a confederate flag a bunch of words pops into your head slavery, segregation, white supremacy etc. Whether those two students wanted to show pride that they’re from the south, they should’ve been more sensitive to other people’s feelings. I think in this society we live in today, people are losing their character every step along the way. For example, look at rap music and the use of the N-word. Before in the past everyone took the word very seriously and you couldn’t say the word without sparking any type of controversy. Nowadays, you hear it over and over on the radio, everyday life, and in normal conversations. People just don’t care anymore and if Dr. King knew this was happening, he definitely would be turning in his grave. What saddens me even more is that in result of the confederate flag being shown, another student had the audacity to roll up a swastika. Haven’t your mother always told you, “Two wrongs don’t make a right?”

In response to Derek Bok’s article, Milena Ateya analyzed that Bok despised the actions of the three students but he doesn’t believe we should make such actions illegal just because we disagree with them. I like how she pointed out that Bok didn’t make the effort to talk to the students to help them understand the emotional distress they caused others.

Subjected to my believes,freedom of speech is like a double-edged sword. Yes, it’s good to express your feelings for whatever reason but at the same time—your personal satisfaction could be used at another person’s expense. We are all made to think differently so that no matter what topic we talk about, there’s always going to be clash of different opinions.