David Uto

Professor Rebecca Agosta

UWRT 1101

2 March 2017

Analyzing a Civic Text on Climate Change

As human society has progressed we have formulated a way to govern ourselves to

ensure citizen needs are acknowledged and can be solved. Producing civic texts that provide the

facts on an issue and invite the citizens to take action can bring about awareness. An example of

a civic text is a video produced by National Geographic on climate change where the problems

that we as humans can face are acknowledged. They provide an informed message to the public

that is meant to persuade change by using the elements of the rhetorical situation and also by

using ethos, logos, and pathos. This video will be analyzed in relation to the terms previously

mentioned and will also be analyzed by the ways of design used.

In this video Bill Nye serves as the spokesperson in advocating climate change

awareness. Bill Nye encourages exigency for change in human habits by sharing facts and small

solutions with the viewer of the video, and then encourages the viewer to make an impact by

sharing the message with all others who could also make a change. Bill Nye addresses the viewer

of the video that can induce change in their self or another individual as the audience. The viewer

is made aware of the climate change problem by being presented with statistics and how the

overall population will be affected. This puts in place a constraint that then compels people to

adopt positive habits and discard the negative polluting habits.

This civic text is also analyzed in the terms of logos, ethos and pathos. This video

emphasizes the use of logos by Bill. Bill uses logos multiple times throughout the video.
Examples of this include when Bill gives an exact definition of climate change, when he presents

the fact that 10 of the last 13 years are the warmest in recorded history, when he presents that

97% of the world's scientist agree that climate change has been triggered by human activity, and

lastly when he displays a chart showing the percentage of greenhouse gases produced by burned

fossil fuels. Bill uses pathos when he speaks about the victims of our actions. This induces an

emotional reaction on the audience. He speaks about marine life, specifically the coral reefs. As

the concentration of carbon dioxide increases in the atmosphere, it reacts with the salt water and

acidifies it more than usual. This in turn calcifies the reefs to the point where they die and can no

longer support the vast species of marine life that depend on it. This is very emotional if you care

about animals. Ethos is also used by the National Geographic Company by hiring Bill Nye as

their spokesperson. Bill is a renowned scientist who studied at Cornell University and has

produced instruments used on Mars exploration missions. He is also the CEO of the Planetary

Society, who is focused on space science research. This gives the video and the message it

promotes more credibility by using a respected individual within the scientific community.

This civic text can also be analyzed by its ways of design. The ways of design include

linguistic mode, visual mode, aural mode, spatial mode, and gestural mode. In terms of linguistic

mode, Bill delivers his message in a clear and organized fashion that gives the audience the facts

outright. The tone behind the message is one that emphasizes urgency to change. Visually, the

flow of the video allows Bill to be on the screen most of the video to mimic a direct conversation

with the viewer, while also presenting facts and diagrams. The video audio consists of an

orchestral piece that intensifies when Bill is making a point or presenting an alarming fact. This

can go by unnoticed by the viewer, however it does subliminally add intensity to the message.

The spatial arrangement of the video is modified for smooth transitions between tables of
statistics and other facts presented. This results in a very concise and organized flow of

information. Bill's gestures include hand movement whenever he speaks. This can add emphasis

to a point he is making.

This text proves to be very effective in presenting its message because I personally felt

motivated to go out and make a difference within my community to help decrease the effects of

climate change. Bill induces exigency by using logos, which results in a very effective use of

communication. He intertwines the elements of pathos with constraints in order to compel to

change their actions so the rest of the environment does not suffer due to our selfish actions.

http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/news/101-videos/151201-climate-change-bill-nye-

news