Storytelling & Abortion

In the TedTalk, "A better way to talk about abortion" by Aspen Baker, Baker argues the importance of transforming topics of conflict, such as abortion, to topics of conversation. With this as the basis of her argument, she proceeds to address other issues such as poverty and sexuality and how people must create empathy regardless of their political stance on such issues. Therefore, through this TedTalk, Baker hoped to alter the perspectives of the audience and have them flee from rigid positions, and merely understand the ideas and stories of every person. 

In order to get her point across, Baker utilized a combination of ethos, logos, and pathos in attempt to fully capture the audience and have them open their minds to the idea of shifting conflict to conversation. 

• Ethos: Baker's credibility is established near the middle of her TedTalk as she discusses how she cofounded an organization nearly 15 years ago called "Exhale". She then proceeds to discuss how this foundation was created in order to give people an outlet to talk about their abortions and other tough issues in a non-bias and non-political environment. In addition to the fact that Baker has her own organization, her credibility also increases with her use of statistics within her presentation. Facts such as, "one in three women in America will have an abortion in their lifetime" strengthens her credibility as it made her seem like more of an expert in her particular field. In all, Baker's use of ethos is relatively effective as it made her seem like a more reliable source considering her role in her organization and knowledge of abortion. 

• Logos: This was an integral tool that Baker utilized as her supporting evidence consisted of basic/logical characteristics such as the need for an increase in listening skills as well as empathy. While there wan't an abundance of evidence, the evidence that was used seemed compelling as it evoked a sort of "aha" moment within the audience considering her suggestions seemed realistic. To further her point of conflict to conversation, she addressed a stance called "provoice" which strips away the political conflict surrounding abortion and other controversial topics, and deals more with listening and storytelling. By elaborating on the importance of listening and informing the audience of ways they can strengthen such skills(ex. asking open ended questions), the audience is able to further see her perspective considering these are quite logical suggestions. As far as bias, Baker had an abortion following graduating from college. This could have hindered her from evaluating the pro-life aspect of abortion but ultimately didn't affect her argument as she never outwardly stated that she was pro-life, or pro-choice.

• Pathos: Baker attempted to create emotion within the audience as she discussed her abortion and how she was conflicted with making the decision. She then proceeded to say how she never had anyone to discuss this with as it is not a topic that people are having or are comfortable with having. This led to her argument pertaining to being "provoice" and how people need an outlet to talk about these events. Overall, this was an effective strategy as it made the audience think critically about differing perspectives and how this idea of people not having an outlet is actually true considering these topics are so politically charged. 

Personally, this TedTalk was really interesting as Baker discussed the topic of abortion in a very non-traditional way. As someone who considers themselves to be on the side of pro-life, I was initially intrigued by the title as I thought it was nearly impossible to have a "better way to talk about abortion". This video way completely different from what I thought it would be, as she discussed a solution or an idea that isn't really talked about. As humans we tend to like controversy and the idea of being on the winning side. However, the way Baker stressed the importance of active listening and empathy, made me alter the way in which I look at such topics.