The story “Unexpected Love” is a story that focuses on an unlikely romantic couple and the story of how they fall in love over the course of three days. Written by four anonymous authors, the piece is well put together and demonstrates character development while maintaining the pace of plot development. The authors make effective rhetorical choices when writing the story, and it is shown through pathos as well as effective word choice and description. This can especially be seen in the very beginning of the story, in Act I, Scene I.
The first show of effective rhetorical choices is shown through the use of pathos towards the end of the introduction. We see how three brothers come together to verbally assault the fourth brother, Dexter, even when such behavior is not necessary. “‘Park our car loser!’ … The three’s verbal assault is cut off,” (TheArtist14 et al) the authors wrote, to demonstrate the degree to which Dexter is abused. Such actions and behavior can trigger an emotional response from the reader, by causing them to feel pity on an innocent student simply trying to enjoy himself on a big night. Through this articulate demonstration of such actions, the author invokes pity from the reader, causing them to read further in hopes of a resolution to Dexter’s problems.
The second show of effective rhetorical choice can be seen through the word choice the authors used to express certain aspects of the setting. In the beginning, the authors start by illustrating the manner in which “limousines and cars pull up one by one” (TheArtist14 et al) while “others greet their friends with laughs” (TheArtist14 et al). It sets the action occurring at the scene, without describing the setting itself. The current mood is left ambiguous, so as to not reveal what is coming ahead in the story. Obviously, this was done for a particular reason, to leave some parts of the setting to the reader’s imagination. Yet, the concise and articulate way in which the scene was portrayed paints a clear image in the reader’s mind.
The third way in which “Unexpected Love” shows effective rhetorical choice is through the level of detail and description used to illustrate the setting of the scene. For example, TheArtist14 writes that “the flowers, the setting sun, the warm summer breeze, come together and paint a scene with delicate perfection” (TheArtist14 et al). The use of detail and descriptive phrases is clear and paints a vivid picture that flows as the story unfolds. Although it may seem similar to the previous example of effective rhetoric choice, description and articulate word choice both impact the meaning of the story.
Ultimately, “Unexpected Love” is a well-written piece that immerses the reader into the experience the authors are trying to portray. It can be felt through the appeal to pathos, the precise word choice, and the level of detail used in the story.
Source: “Unexpected Love.” Storium, Scene 1, https://storium.com/game/cinderella-game/act-1/scene-1