To: Professor Laura Wilson

From: Shannon Rischar

Date: 31 January 2021
Subject: Rhetorical Analysis of Pixar’s “Bao”

Intro:

Disney Pixar’s short film “Bao,” released in 2018, was widely received by adult and adolescent

audiences, as it preluded the movie Incredibles 2. Directed by Domee Shi, the film explores the

concepts of loneliness, parenthood, and parent-child relationships, while making use of

rhetorical appeals to grasp the audience in only eight minutes.

Description:

The short film begins with a Chinese-Canadian mother cooking a meal of baozi for herself and

her husband. After her husband hurriedly finishes his meal and leaves for work, the mother

goes to take a bite of her last dumpling, only to realize the dumpling has come to life. She raises

the dumpling as her own child, taking it with her everywhere as they enjoy spending time

together.

Eventually, the dumpling child wants to grow, make friends, and generally do things other kids

do. However, he is easily damaged, and the mother is very protective of her new child. The

dumpling goes through all the phases of adolescence, all the while pushing his mother away.

Eventually, he comes home with a girlfriend he intends to move out with. In a final effort to

keep her child from leaving, she eats him, and breaks down after realizing that she will now

never have a relationship with him.

It is then revealed that her relationship with her dumpling child was a dream, as her real-life

son has returned home to reconcile with his mother. The father urges him into the room to

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console the mother, resulting in them sitting on the edge of the bed together, to share treats

they used to share together in his childhood.

Analysis

The short film utilizes multiple rhetorical appeals, but specifically heavily relies on ethos and

pathos to convey its message. Logos is utilized throughout the film, however it is not as strongly

represented

Pathos

The short film is effective in evoking an emotional response from its audience. Throughout the

film one feels for the mother character, and wishes for her loneliness to subside and for her to

find happiness. One of the main components the director uses is music. While the mother is

enjoying her time with her dumpling child, and the two are building a relationship together, the

music is loud and jovial. The robust and gleeful tones allow the audience to enjoy that time as

well. Oppositely, while the son is growing and pushing the mother away, the music is quirky and

awkward sounding. Then, as their relationship is failing and the dumpling intends to move out,

it is soft and sad, as the mother feels.

One of the few times that music is not narrating the film, is when the mother sobs after

consuming the dumpling. This moment is very powerful and pivotal to the emotional path of

the movie. It shows vulnerability and sadness in its purest form and evokes the strongest sense

of emotion from the audience. After the mother and son are reunited, however, the music

begins again. It gradually crescendos back to the jovial tone it was before, as the family mends

itself again.

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Ethos

The director is specific in their use of animation, color, and music in this film. They had a

message to convey to their audience about relationships and family, and carefully chose the

best means of doing so. The director’s outlook on family life, specifically Chinese family values,

stemmed from her own upbringing, and her mother’s inability to let go as she grew up. 1 Her

real-life experience reinforces the meaning of this film, and the importance of not only family

relationships but family values as well.

The exploration of this tedious parent-child relationship from a real perspective allows the

audience to really immerse themselves in the story, and understand what both the mother and

child are feeling and experiencing.

Evaluation

This film is effective in its point to convey the tumultuous relationship between a parent and a

child. Through the director’s use of music and her own life experience, the emotions conveyed

are exceptionally clear and immersive for the audience. Although the film is short and preluded

a larger film, I believe the message of the film was clear to the audience and something other

audiences, and myself have held with them since then.

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1. McDonald, Brooke. “Why Pixar's 'Bao' Is Such a Significant Oscar Nominee
This Year,” May 9, 2019. https://better.net/arts-events/movies-tv/why-pixar-bao-is-
an-important-oscar-nominee-this-year/.