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Cierra D. Taylor
Professor Jamie Burgess
UWRT 1100
17 October 2014
Rhetorical Analysis: Where Is The Love?
In todays world we see a lot of terrorism, discrimination, homicides etc. These
issues have been reoccurring for decades now, and have even gotten worse. All we can
do now is hope and pray that change comes soon. Where Is The Love? by the Black
Eyed Peas was released in 2003, but still relates to issues going on today. This song made
it to the top charts in several different countries and had a major impact on the world. The
Black Eyed Peas have scattered several different purposes and messages throughout this
song. Through the use of logos and symbols, the use of pathos, and the use of ethos, the
song does a great job of proving a point. One of the main purposes for writing this song is
to persuade people from all around the world to stand up and make a change, and in this
paper I will prove how the Black Eyed Peas to do just that.
Most people never really pay attention to the meaning or what an artist is trying to
say when it comes to song lyrics. People tend to only pay attention to the beats and the
flow of the song. There are a lot of elements of song lyrics. Such as an original thought,
lyrics that people can relate to, an amazing hook, a story, and a catchy melody. The Black
Eyed Peas used almost all of the different elements of song lyrics to effectively persuade
people. They tied the song together extremely well by using these elements to their
advantage. All around this song has an amazing story, but the thought was not original.
There are several songs that have had the same message as this one. For example We

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Are the World. The text does not lose much because of this convention, but repeating
similar messages can be very annoying. On the other hand the text gains a lot from
having most of the elements present. This song gains recognition from a wide rage
audience, gains love, and support. The text and genre work together as one to create
meaning, not alone, but influenced by settings, world events, audiences, and personal
interpretation. All of these elements are key factors for song lyrics. These elements help
grab the audiences attention and help to make the song make sense. The Black Eyed
Peas use these elements effectively.
A logo is an appeal to logic and is used to persuade an audience by reason. An
example of logo in this song is Negative images is the main criteria/ Infecting the young
minds faster than bacteria/ Kids wanna act like what they see in the cinema (Lines 6869). The logic behind this is that children do not think for themselves at young ages. They
want to do what they see others doing and majority of the time the things that they are
mocking are bad things. It is important that we set good examples for children because
children symbolize the future. If we continue putting negative images in front of children,
then they will never learn to do good things. And most importantly change will never
come if we do not stop and reevaluate the things we do in life. In addition to that
example, another example of logos in this song is It just aint the same, old ways have
changed/ New days are strange, is the world insane (29-30). This line gets people to
think and question why we are doing some of these things. It also makes people think
about does any of this makes sense and is it all worth it? We are one world and we need
to come together to find a resolution for all of these issues.

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Pathos is an appeal to emotion and is used to convince an audience by creating
that emotional response. Pathos is seen in this song the most out of ethos and logos, and
seems to be the easiest way to give a valid argument when trying to persuade tons of
people. For example People killin, people dyin/ Children hurt and you hear them
crying (18-19). For a lot of parents this hurts them the most. Parents never want to see
their children suffering and in pain. Parents are willing to do and give anything for their
children, but the sad thing is people are dying all over the world and children are in pain
and are suffering everywhere. So this is definitely something that would persuade people
to make a change. Another great example of pathos in this song is Whatever happened
to the fairness and equality/ Instead of spreading love were spreading animosity (7172). The United States of America is supposed to be a place where people come to escape
there troubles and create a better life for themselves and their families. It is extremely sad
for those who pack up and move away from their hometowns to come here and things
turn out to be worse than before. This persuades people also because no one wants to live
this way, so many people have put their lives on the line to give us all the freedom we
have we still take it for granted. The Black Eyed Peas did a great job of getting the
audiences emotions involved and making people want to do something about these
issues.
Ethos is an appeal to ethics and is normally used by to show credibility of the
persuader. The Black Eyed Peas do give an example of ethos in this song. Though it is
not directly stated, one can assume that this line in the song is an example of an ethos. I
feel the weight of the world on my shoulder/ As Im gettin older, yall, people gets
colder/ Most of us only care about money makin (67-69). Most celebrities dont seem

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like they would care for issues going on in the world. The author gains trust and respect
from the different audiences because he is a celebrity. Celebrities are known worldwide
and people look up to them. Even though celebrities have busy schedules, it is comforting
to know that they are knowledgeable and aware of issues and problems in the world aside
from their own. If popular celebrities and music groups (such as the Black Eyed Peas)
write songs about these issues then they must be important, and these issues are. Another
example that gives this author credibility is Father, Father, Father help us/ Send some
guidance from above (22-23). Everyone doesnt have the same religious beliefs, but for
those who do believe that there is a God, then this is also very comforting. It shows that
this author is religious and looks to God when he is in need of help. But I think this could
also apply to all different religions, no matter which God you praise. I also think that
some people could be talking about an actual father that has passed away. Especially
when times are hard, its nice to try and reach out to your dad.
In conclusion ethos, pathos, and logos are all important in this song. They are the
factors that allow the author to effectively get his message and purposes across to his
audience. A purpose for this song was to make people aware of the problems in the world
and use these problems as example to persuade them to make a change. This song also
shows how music can transcend time and how change can happen only if we want it to
happen. All songs give a message and feelings that come from the authors experiences
and sights. The Black Eyed Peas were successful at persuading and it definitely touched
thousands of peoples hearts.
Works Cited
Adams et al., William. Where Is The Love. Lyrics. Elephunk. Will.I.Am Music, 2003