Malcolm Harris’s “When a Child Goes to War” focuses on the contrasting views of Western foreign policy and the hypocritical way the West envisions the use of child soldiers. Harris boldly directs his ire at the first world empires and shows his distaste for the grotesque way in which childhood is simultaneously revered and exploited. He utilizes logos, ethos, and pathos to convey just how naïve developed countries are to the plight of youth. The first rhetorical device Harris uses is his choice of audience, the United States and other first-world countries. This is made abundantly clear in Harris’s repetition of the words “us,” “we,” and “our.” He’s writing from the perspective of a middle class New Yorker, which is obvious by his own inclusion…show more content… He names heroes of antiquity, such as Alexander the Great (age 16) and Joan of Arc (age 17), that are given an almost god-like reverence by both the history books and the film industry. He cites both Claudette Colvin, who was just 15 when she sparked the civil rights movement by refusing to give up her seat on the bus (nine months before Rosa Parks), and 17 year old Samuel Maverick who was murdered in the Boston Massacre of 1770. These adolescents are glorified by Western culture because they are in a land where they are “free to choose.” They are seen as heroes and not victims, which can be widely attributed to the Eurocentric nature of the…show more content… He states that the United Nations made laws prohibiting children below the age of 15 from entering the military, then raised the age to 18 in 2002. As of 1998, eight NGOs (non-government organizations) formed the Coalition to Stop the Use of Child Soldiers. “Red Hand Day” was established by Amnesty International and The Human Rights Watch to raise awareness for child soldiers. Harris goes on to mention the uproar of Kony 2012, which fought for the “child soldier…forced to commit atrocities until you, the Western donor, do something to stop the tragedy” (Harris
