To the Public

Allusion is a literary device that calls something to mind without mentioning it explicitly. In such a brief editorial, it behooves Garrison to mention writings and ideas implicitly. Rather than summarize or quote directly even his own writings, he nods to them and moves on with the major thrust of his argument.

He alludes to his “proposals for publishing the ‘Liberator’” (Paragraph 1), but readers may not know what proposals he refers to or what he said in them. He suggests that his audience would know what “the birthplace of liberty” is (Paragraph 2), but he does not elaborate on the reference. Even when he does quote other texts, such as “the fear of man which bringeth a snare” (Paragraph 6), he does not reference or analyze that language.

Garrison uses allusion to build a rapport with his readers, to show they have similar points and references. Allusion is a powerful way of building trust, suggesting that the writer and reader share a common culture and have similar knowledge and beliefs.

One of the most recognizable forms of poetry, the sonnet dates to Renaissance Italy. In English literature, it was common from the 1500s onward and perfected in the poetry of William Shakespeare. A sonnet is marked by its patterned rhymes, tight organization, and regular meter. The traditional form (slightly altered by Garrison) is written in iambic pentameter and comprises three quatrains in an ABAB rhyme pattern followed by a couplet.

To readers today, it may seem odd to mix poetry with prose, as Garrison does at the end of “To the Public” when he writes a sonnet as his “fresh dedication” to the cause of abolition. However, this sort of genre mixing was common in the 19th century. The mixing of poetry and prose demonstrates the writer’s ability to master both “high” art (poetry), with its variety of rules, and the “regular” language of prose. Further, poetry is often associated with the expression of deeply felt emotions, and Garrison seeks to convey his passionate commitment to abolition.

Greek philosopher Aristotle wrote that there are three types of appeal to persuade an audience: The first is ethos, establishing one’s credibility with an audience by demonstrating the background, knowledge, and expertise to speak authoritatively on the issue at hand. The second is pathos, an appeal to the audience’s emotions, to create feelings that will move them toward action. The third is logos, the use of logical reasoning, frequently based on the presentation of facts and statistics, to persuade the audience that the author’s position is true.

Garrison uses all three forms of appeal in “To the Public,” but he makes the most significant use of ethos and pathos. He believes apathy toward the fate of enslaved people is the most pernicious obstacle to abolition. To overcome it, he wants to arouse his readers’ emotions toward a sense of sympathy with, what he calls, “my brethren, the poor slaves” (Paragraph 4). To do that, he also relies on ethos, making sure that his readers know that he has toured the country on behalf of the abolitionist cause and previously published on the subject. Garrison goes so far as to criticize himself, noting that he “unreflectingly assented to the popular but pernicious doctrine of gradual emancipation” (Paragraph 4). In calling attention to his fallibility, he emphasizes his humanity and permits readers to change their minds too.

By laying out his abolitionist principles and implicitly calling upon his readers to join him in upholding them, Garrison’s “To the Public” becomes a manifesto. A manifesto is a literary genre that calls on people to unite and take action to change something. On its face, “To the Public” meets these criteria, and thus is a form of literature that is somewhat rare in American history.

Although the term manifesto sometimes has negative connotations, manifestos can be foundational documents for important historical movements. The Declaration of Independence is a manifesto, and Garrison is aware of that when he cites it. Many scholars consider Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech another example of a manifesto. In contemporary speech, people often use “mission statement” or “creed” in place of “manifesto.”