Rhetorical Analysis of the Three Narratives, Essay Sample for Students

Sophisticated, Adventurous Version

"From this point, every direction around you is to the south" commented our travel guide Mark Aksel. We were standing on the North Pole after a long but informative journey. The trip began at Longyearbyen in Norway from where we took a flight to the Arctic. We departed mid-morning, and by evening, we adjourned at Barneo Ice Camp to spend the night. On alighting, the first part of my body to register the temperature change was my lungs as they took in the cold crisp air. Aside from the occasional gust which assailed our faces with cold, I was more comfortable than I expected to be. The camp itself was only one degree from the North Pole which was the furthest north I had ever been. We spent the night in tents.

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We boarded helicopters the next morning to begin the final stretch of our journey. Our experienced guide managed to sport a polar bear, but we did not get too close, so I managed to see just a bit of it. It was hard to spot through the snow and ice, but the travel guide could even identify that it was a male. We viewed vast sheets of ice and the occasional iceberg for the rest of the journey which took around four hours. On arrival at the North Pole, we found some commuters taking pictures and we took one while circling the sign for the northernmost point of the earth. We shuttled back to the camp after a couple of hours and took a flight back the next day. The journey was an informative expedition and provided firsthand experience of one of the unique features of the earth. The trip was primarily educational.

Rude, Insensitive Version

I could not hear what the travel guide was rumbling about as my ears were frozen and the wind was fierce. It was probably some overused catchphrase. We were standing on the North Pole; which looked like any other surface with ice except for a signpost. We had a long flight from Longyearbyen, Norway on the previous day to the Barneo Ice Camp where we landed to spend the night. Despite overprotecting myself, the biting wind still attacked my cheeks. We were taken to a tent to spend the night, and despite its acceptable temperatures, the howling wind was a barrier to any sleep. Furthermore, we had to wake up in the morning in this miserable weather to see the North Pole which was not moving anywhere. You would think that with all the money spent on this trip, you would get better treatment.

We departed for the North Pole in a helicopter in the morning. The travel guide allegedly spotted a polar bear, but all I could see was a lump of ice. I suspect he was trying to salvage a disastrous trip. Ice was our companion for the rest of the journey to the North Pole. A disappointing sight awaited us at arrival. I did not expect much from the North Pole, but anything would be better than a red signpost marked the North Pole. I still had to wait two hours before another difficult journey back to the camp. The trip which was meant to be a relaxing experience was full of hardships and disappointments. It was pointless and watching a video would have been better.

Carefree, Fun-loving Version

I literary stood on top of the world. After an exciting journey, we had arrived at the North Pole. Our informative travel guide Mark Aksel shared facts about the North Pole with us as we took in the beautiful scenery of the sun kissing the ice. The North Pole mark was an anticlimactic red sign, but that did not take any thrill out of the experience. We had traveled from the beautiful town of Longyearbyen, Norway the day before. The flight was a day long, but anticipation kept me occupied. We arrived at Barneo Ice Camp in the evening where we spent the night in tents with the sounds of the icy winds lulling us to sleep. Early in the morning, we took a helicopter to our actual destination; the North Pole.

Along the way, Mark spotted a polar bear, and it was a majestic sight to behold. We appreciated the spectacle from a distance as the helicopter did not approach the creature. The rest of the journey was full of sites of beautiful ice reflecting sunlight. We found other travelers on arrival, and we bonded while appreciating nature at its best. We took a lot of pictures at the North Pole and enjoyed the experience for two hours before flying back to the camp. The journey was meant to be a fun experience, and it lived up to expectation. It was also a spiritual journey as I got to appreciate the best and worst of nature.

Rhetorical Analysis

All three narratives start at the final destination before recapping the journey from the beginning. This arrangement is to immediately portray the perspective and attitude of the narrator to the trip because it is likely that opinions on the tour would form at this point. In the sophisticated version, the narrator includes informative data such as time estimates and specific sights viewed to demonstrate the learning experience. In the rude and insensitive perspective, the narrator adds the negative emotions during the journey and omits informative data to show a lack of concern for the experience and rudeness. The narrator includes a vivid description of sights in the fun-loving version to show appreciation. The sophisticated perspective also used complex words to give an impression of a knowledgeable person. The language used in the fun-loving attitude was poetic to show attraction while the rude aspect used strong words to register dissatisfaction. Also, the sophisticated perspective adopted a neutral tone communicated by non-subjective descriptions while the rude perspective took a negative tone using words with strong negative connotations. The fun-loving outlook adopted a positive tone portrayed by poetic words with positive connotations in the descriptions. The narrative appealed to logic by including factual data and to emotions by providing vivid descriptions. Credibility was established by the first-hand experience.