You guessed it... A THON Reflection Post

Due to the class speeches this week, I decided to write a personal blog post about something related to a rhetoric technique. Speakers employ pathos to draw emotional responses from their audience. Mr. Rupp, a speaker during Family Hour at THON 2011, crafted a beautiful speech that left the 13,000 spectators in the BJC speechless and in tears. His speech is an excellent example of pathos.

Mr. Rupp may have spoken for ten minutes, or fifty minutes. I was too entranced by his words to notice any passing of time. His daughter, Felicia, lost the battle against cancer over 10 years ago. Yet he still returns to THON with his family because Felicia cherished THON weekend. His return to THON 2011 was accompanied by a speech that had a major impact on my life perspective.

He began his speech with stories about his daughter's friendship with another cancer patient. The story took me back to memories of my own childhood, evoking laughter over ridiculous memories of sleeping in my dog's crate with my own best friend of 13 years. Mr. Rupp's explanation of Felicia’s friendship with another cancer patient reminded me of my own childhood friendships, and how lucky I am to still hold these friendships close to my heart. Felicia's friend lost the battle to cancer when she was 8 years old. Mr. Rupp's daughter battled pediatric Cancer while combating the grief of losing her best friend.

I think you can see how pathos applies to this aspect of Mr. Rupp's speech. This intricate story of friendship and loss paralleled every single spectator of the BJC's own childhood friendships. The emotional appeal was overwhelming and incredibly effective. I stood in the stands next to my best friends at THON (my Rules & Regulations committee); our arms wrapped around each other, tears sliding silently down our cheeks. Mr. Rupp's entire speech was rich with elements of pathos, but especially the story about his daughter's childhood best friend.

His speech ended with a statement that reached every individual listening; i was so raw and eye opening that it undoubtedly inspired all of us. "I want you to dance, I want you to THON, and I want you to do this because I don’t want you to ever have your child die in your arms.” These words reminded me of why I THON. Sure, my feet ached and my headache was near unbearable. However, my minor pains were nothing in comparison to the suffering faced by Mr. Rupp.He lost his own daughter, but still finds the strength to empower thousands with his story.

I consider myself lucky to have heard Mr. Rupp's speech during Family Hour. I believe that Mr. Rupp's words will stick with me for the rest of my life. His anecdotes and advice enriched the elements of pathos in his speech. Mr. Rupp’s words motivated me to think through every challenge I face in my day to day life and put the challenge into a greater perspective. Mr. Rupp’s daughter died in his own arms. My own personal battles are minuscule compared to this. FTK!

Thank you for this perspective, Mr. Rupp.

The Art of Asking for Money

 As a part of Penn State Dance MaraTHON, I actively participate in fundraising. I am a member of an organization called Domani THON. Each year, students address THONvelopes to family and friends, asking for donations. I fell a bit behind and missed the deadline to send out THONvelopes. However, I can still reach out to family and friends via online donations. The operative phrase in that sentence is reach out. I have to decide what the best approach is to writing an email that will motivate my family and friends to make a donation online.

 This experience is reminding me of rhetoric's ethos and pathos. I am writing many drafts of this email that will reach dozens of loved ones; asking myself which method of rhetoric is more appropriate: ethos or pathos. If I employ ethos, I will focus mainly on the credibility and character of THON. I will explain its financial success, the overall mission, my personal involvement, and the practical need for fundraising support. If I employ pathos, I will focus mainly on the emotional appeal of THON. I will explain the grueling treatment of pediatric cancer, the overwhelming statistics for victims, and some of the individual stories of a Four Diamonds Family. Which rhetoric is more effective? Which rhetoric is more appropriate? Is a combination of ethos and pathos the best approach? It is surprising how complicated a simple plea for money can become. I am struggling to decide which is the best rhetoric approach. I do not want the email to be an inexpressive, boring plea for donations if I lean too heavily on ethos. In contrast, I do not want the email to be an overemotional, zealous plea for donations if I lean too heavily on pathos. My ultimate goal is to reach out to the my loved ones in the most effective way so that they can help me in my fundraising goals for THON.

 It boils down to this: Will my family and friends be more affected by an email that is sprinkled with ethos, or freckled with pathos?