BURNING MONKVisual Rhetoric Project By: Nick Cairo

Burning Monk

Background Information On June 11, 1963 a South Vietnamese Buddhist monk named Thich

Quang Duc set himself on fire in the middle of a busy Saigon intersection in protest of the Diem Regime’s oppressive sanctions against Buddhist followers.

The photograph was taken by American news correspondent Malcolm Browne.

The shot won a Pulitzer prize and a World Press Photo of the Year award.

Witnesses claim that “as he burned he never moved a muscle, never uttered a sound.”

Focal point What is the first thing you notice when

viewing the picture?

Focal point The first thing I noticed was the monk on

fire because that is something that you just don’t see very often.

Background What do you notice in the background?

Background I see pedestrians gathered around

watching with other Buddhist protestors. Also a car and a gas can.

Purpose What is the purpose of the photo? What

argument is it making?

Purpose I believe that it’s purpose is to get people’s

attention and to tell them to be aware of the injustices of governments around the world.

Pathos What is the emotional appeal of this

picture?

Pathos It makes me feel sad for the Buddhists because

this is how for they had to for their message to be heard. Also angry with the government for pushing them to this extreme.

Logos What is the logical appeal of the photo?

Logos The monk is immolating himself to draw

attention to and protest the Vietnamese government’s oppression of Buddhists.

Ethos Why is it credible?

Ethos It is a very famous photograph. It has also won numerous awards

including the Pulitzer Prize.

BibliographyBrowne, Malcolm. Burning Monk. Quarterly Journal of Speech 97.1 (2011): p.10. Academic

Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 30 Oct. 2011. Photograph.

Murray Yang, Michelle. "Still Burning: Self-Immolation as Photographic Protest." Quarterly Journal of Speech 97.1 (2011): 1-25. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 30 Oct. 2011.