INTRODUCTION
Fatal car accidents are going to disappear in a few years because the zero-death car may be invented. In the article ”Volvo Works to Scale ‘Death-Proof’ Car Effort Using IT,” writer by Kim S. Nash indicates that the future plan of Volvo is to make sure that all of their vehicles that travel on the road never cause fatal accidents, and what efforts Volvo is making to reach that goal. Nash shows why this innovation is important and describes in detail just what Volvo is doing. Nash tries to tell the readers about this death-proof car by just giving some information. He uses logos and ethos, and by choosing comfortable words he simultaneously creates credibility and clarity. Overall, the writer is aiming to be understood easily by the general audience who would read this article. This analysis will show how each rhetorical strategy, pathos, logos, ethos, and finally word choice operates to create a reliable, unambiguous and informative document.
ANALYSIS OF RHETORICAL STRATEGIES
Pathos
Nash does not use pathos in this article. Since the topic is centered on technical information about what Volvo is doing, the writer knows that being emotional is not an appropriate way in which to inform readers. If the writer was to put any personal emotion into the article, it might be construed to be a criticism or compliment, which may lend color to the contents but would cloud particular facts about Volvo. Of course, Nash could include some criticism or compliments in his sentences, but he chose to just stick to the facts about Volvo. Accordingly, the article is written using logos and ethos because the writer wants the readers to avoid being confused by any possible uncertainties in the document.
Logos
Nash uses logos to inform readers about the results of past work done by Volvo and the current, relevant circumstances in the U.S. One of the statements was that Volvo’s XC90 SUV is a model of their cars that has never been involved in a fatal accident, as per current records provided by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Providing accurate data from a reliable source helps the reader place more trust in the contents. If Nash did not provide such data from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, the information about the XC90 SUV’s overall safety would seem just like an opinion and astute readers might find that a little suspicious. This use of logos would certainly go a long way towards convincing readers.
He also provided a comparison of how many car accidents occur in the United States concerning the data. In one of the paragraphs, it was stated that in 2009, 32,000 people died in car accidents in that country and that 90 percent of traffic accidents were caused by human error, according to National Highway Transportation Safety Administration. Nash provided accurate numerical data with a source, and this methodology is good practice for the writer trying to gain the trust of the readers. Quoting statistics makes it a little easier for Nash because when doing this he doesn’t have to be creative while writing simple sentences. If what the writer is saying makes sense, if it is based on statistics, facts or evidence, he can construct a reasoned and logical argument.In this case, using logos to show the comparison to accident statistics in the USA and the non–appearance of Volvo in those figures, it gives the reader a base on which to justify statements made by the writer.
Ethos
Nash also uses ethos to raise credibility in Volvo’s plan. One of the sentences is the future plan of Volvo to expand their work by 2020 by combining predictive analytics, cloud computing, and autonomous driving technologies. He attempts to describe what Volvo will do by using Big Data to improve research in that area. But, before that, Nash inserted a sentence about the manufacturer’s reputation with,”Volvo, which has stated its brand on safety,” to bring some ethos into play. He takes a logical step, which reinforces the reason why readers should trust Volvo before he describes the company’s future plan. If Nash did not iterate the company’s reputation, the reader might not have easily been convinced about what Volvo is going to do. Thus, the writer tries to say that the future plan of Volvo has a credibility because Volvo has staked its brand on safety.
Nash also quotes statements from employees of Volvo to help build trust from the reader. Jonas Ronnkvist, Director of Business Development and Strategy at Volvo Cars, is referenced three times in this article. Within sections of that report about what Volvo is exactly doing with regards to Big Data, there are quotes from Ronnkvist in a few instances and these have been included in the article by the writer. For example, in one of the paragraphs, it says that the data from the cloud, which collects road conditions in Sweden, is shared with engineer groups, dealers, and customers from an analytics system built by Teradata Corp. There is a supporting quote from an employee which lends that information a certain amount of credibility and certainly makes it stronger rather than if it was just an individual piece of information. Furthermore, in the middle of the paragraph he adds this, “Mr. Ronnkvist said, the data warehouse also includes information from internal engineering groups, external dealerships that service Volvo cars and customer interactions with onboard systems.” This quote by a senior manager gives that statement better reliability. He also indicates employee enthusiasm with this quote, again from Ronnkvist: “We are quite confident that the technology will reach that 2020 target.” Nobody knows what is going to happen in the future, so adding those credible quotes is a good way to raise the readers’ trust. As a result, Nash increases the credibility and confidence by helping the reader visualize the logical evidence within the statement.
Word Choice
Since the article is about a complex, technical theme, Business Analysis, and Big Data, the writer chose his words carefully to ensure that readers of all ages and gender would understand what Volvo was all about regarding this research. The word choice indicates that Nash adopted a positive attitude when writing this article. If vocabulary can be used to make an article polite and friendly, then Nash has succeeded in delivering that style. The reporting article has lists of facts about Volvo rather than appealing directly to any reader emotion, and he does not use exclamation or question marks at all. In other words, Nash eliminates unnecessary things and just expresses relevant facts and items to make his article easier to understand. Moreover, Nash’s formal writing style probably makes the readers imagine that the writer of the article might be reasonably smart and well informed because of the atmosphere of importance. If the reader can assume that an author knows what he is talking about it certainly helps to lend a certain amount of trust and credibility to the article. It would be safe to assume that Nash gets this confidence from the audiences with his formal style of the writing.
Nash was able to achieve this by making sure he did not use sophisticated vocabularies, such as academic or overly technical words or terms in the article. Even though he creates the image of being smart with his formal style, he avoids making the material too difficult to read and understand. The article is all about information, so the primary focus is on helping people understand the contents. People, that is readers, need to be able to comprehend precisely what is being said without trying to interpret difficult technical jargon. For example, if the morning news used difficult to understand academic or technical vocabulary while they report the news, nobody would want to watch. Nash systematically loads those short paragraphs up logically to help the readers into a gradual and natural understanding. As a result, he enabled his document to gain credibility, and it was easy to understand at the same time.
Comment critically on author’s use of evidence
Sometimes, Nash utilizes some small, unsubstantiated data when referring to some specific automobile safety improvements Volvo will have in place by 2020, such as its goal for “death-proof” vehicles. While he makes a strong use of certain terminology to convey his points, unfortunately, many of these terms may be unintelligible to the average reader. For example, Nash mentions the “Internet of Things”, but fails to define this term for his readers. Moreover, as the author’s purpose is to inform his reader about Volvo’s goals for 2020, he tends to skip important details for an exhaustive list that only tech-savvy readers will understand. Also, based on the evidence presented, it is unclear exactly why Volvo execs think they can achieve a “death-proof” vehicle by 2020. There is no mention of changes to the frame and/or body of their cars, regarding materials, design, or manufacturing processes. Understandably, this, too, could be worded in a complex manner, but it is Nash’s responsibility to make the reader comfortable, and his writing equally comprehensible. However, he does not succeed on this one account.
Conclusion
