Niti Romeri

Professor Ayodime

ENC2135-0051

3 March 2024

Rhetorical Analysis of artifacts

In recent years, there has been a resurgence in interest among researchers and clinicians

in the potential therapeutic benefits of psychedelic drugs for various mental health disorders.

However, these psychedelic compounds, like psilocybin and LSD, are still illegal under federal

law as they are classified as Schedule 1 substances. Schedule 1 drugs are drugs with “no

currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse” (DEA, 2023). Despite this, the

increasing mental health crisis and the shortcomings of traditional mental health treatment have

motivated researchers to reevaluate psychedelics and their therapeutic potential. To look deeper

into this issue, I have found two artifacts relating to this issue, one text-based and one

non-text-based. My text-based artifact is a scholarly article presenting two researchers' opinions.

My non-text-based artifact is a TED talk by Roland Griffiths showcasing his opinion on how

psychedelics can be a useful tool in mental health treatments.

First, I am going to analyze the text-based artifact rhetorically. This article “Psychedelic

Therapy—A New Paradigm of Care for Mental Health” utilizes a few different rhetorical

techniques. First, the purpose of this article is abundantly clear. The purpose is to advocate for a

reconsideration of the therapeutic potential of psychedelics in treating mental health disorders. It

also attempts to inform readers about new research, the underlying workings of psychedelic

therapy, and the possible benefits of combining psychedelic drugs with psychotherapy. The

audience for this article is likely mental health professionals, researchers, policymakers, and
anyone else interested in the new advancements in mental health treatment. The psychiatric

terminology and concepts seem to imply the main target audience is people within the medical

field. Although, the terminology and concepts are explained to people less familiar with the

topics.

The context of this article falls within the current mental health treatments, which have

faced challenges that include the limited effectiveness of traditional treatments and a growing

demand for alternative options. The exigence directly applies to this. The exigence stems from

the increasing need for more effective and accessible treatments for mental health disorders,

given the mentioned struggles of traditional treatment. The author advocates for more research

and investment into this area as it has the potential to help many people. To get the information

across effectively, the authors use a specific tone that encourages a reader to trust the author. The

author’s tone is informative, persuasive, and cautiously optimistic. They present complex

information and ideas in a clear and digestible manner to educate the audience on the potential

benefits of psychedelic therapies. While doing so, the speaker also acknowledges the need for

further research and careful implementation. This balanced tone conveys enthusiasm about the

potential therapeutic uses of psychedelics while still recognizing the challenges and limitations

of using them. Using this tone, the information presented is more trustworthy.

The speaker also uses ethos, pathos, and logos to convey their message. First, the speaker

establishes ethos by presenting themselves as a knowledgeable authority in mental health care.

For example, he establishes himself as an authority in the field by saying “Psychedelic therapies

necessitate a rethinking of mental health care delivery in which medication is integrally paired

with psychotherapy and delivered in a novel setting and framework.” Additionally, the speaker

further established his credibility by acknowledging the limitations and uncertainties regarding
psychedelic therapies. He says, “However, it is clear that despite the enthusiasm, psychedelic

therapies do not represent a panacea for every patient. There are no silver bullets in psychiatry."

By doing this, it demonstrates their honesty and integrity in analyzing the potential uses of

psychedelics in mental health treatments.

The speaker also utilizes pathos to get their point across. They emphasize the urgency of

finding effective alternative treatments for mental health disorders. For example, they say “The

social, economic, and public health impacts of untreated mental disorders demand solutions”.

This appeals to the audience’s empathy and concern for people suffering from various mental

health disorders.

Lastly, the speaker uses logos as their strongest rhetorical appeal in this article. They do

this by presenting logical arguments supported by scientific evidence. For example, they cite a

specific study referencing the effectiveness of psilocybin in treating depression. Furthermore,

they use logic to compare the traditional approaches to treating mental health disorders with

psychedelic therapies. They say “psychedelic therapies address the cause of symptoms rather

than merely suppressing them." This appeals to the audience’s logic as it would seem much more

effective for people to address the causes of their mental health disorders rather than just

suppressing the effects of them. Using these appeals and rhetorical strategies, the speaker

effectively advocate for the furthering of research of the therapeutic potential of psychadelic

drugs.

The next artifact that I am rhetorically analyzing is the non-text-based artifact. This

artifact is a TED Talk by leading psychopharmacologist Roland Griffiths. This speaker is a

scientist with extensive experience in researching mood-altering drugs, especially psilocybin. He

discusses the ways that psychedelic drugs can be used to create meaningful spiritual experiences
that have an array of benefits. There is more than one purpose Griffiths had in giving this TED

Talk. First, to simply present the scientific findings of this speaker’s research on psilocybin,

covering its apparent therapeutic benefits for many conditions like depression, anxiety, and

addiction. Additionally, Griffiths aims to challenge the stereotypes of the relationship between

science and spirituality. He advocates for a new understanding that can include both

perspectives.

The audience is likely people interested in scientific research, psychology, or spirituality.

They also may include other researchers, policymakers, doctors/clinicians, and anyone interested

in the potential of psychedelics for therapeutic uses. The exigence for this speech comes from the

need to disperse the speaker’s research findings and advocate for further research on the

therapeutic potential of psilocybin. He also addresses the stigma surrounding psychedelic

substances and challenges the misconceptions with scientific evidence. Griffiths also chooses to

use a conversational and informative tone. He uses clear and simple language that is accessible to

a large audience to convey complex scientific concepts. Griffiths briefly provided the history of

psilocybin and why psychadelics were banned. This provides fuller context to those that may not

be very informed about psychedelic drugs like psilocybin. He also uses visual aids and graphics

that include statistics to fully engage the audience.

Griffiths also employs all of the main rhetorical appeals to convey his message about the

therapeutic potential of psychedelics. First, he establishes ethos by mentioning his long history of

researching mood-altering drugs for over 40 years. He also references the rigorous methodology

used in his studies to further establish credibility in himself and his findings.

Next, he heavily relies on logos to logically convince the audience of the therapeutic

potential of psychedelics. For example, when he was discussing the long-term effects of
psilocybin, he presented a graph and stated, “The blue bar shows that the effects of this high dose

of psilocybin are sustained out to 6 months, so about 80% are continuing to show clinically

significant improvement.” This statistic shows empirical evidence of psilocybin's therapeutic

benefits. This appeals to the audience’s logic and rational thinking.

Finally, pathos is used throughout the speech by the use of personal stories and

descriptions of the profound experiences people have had in psilocybin studies. For example,

when discussing the impact of psilocybin experiences on studies’ participants, the speaker states,

"Eighty percent of the volunteers in that study, after having one or two high doses of psilocybin,

reported that the experience was among the five most personally meaningful and spiritually

significant experiences of their lives." This statement taps into the audience's emotions by

suggesting that experiencing psilocybin is profound enough to compare to the most meaningful

experiences in one's life. This can influence the audience to consider the implications of

psilocybin. Using these rhetorical strategies, he successfully conveyed his argument.

To conclude, the text-based scholarly article and the non-text-based TED Talk both

effectively utilize rhetorical strategies to advocate for the therapeutic potential of psychedelic

drugs in treating various mental health disorders. With a clear purpose, targeted audience

engagement, and a balanced tone, the scholarly article persuasively conveys complex

information while acknowledging the need for further research and caution. Similarly, the TED

Talk by Roland Griffiths employs ethos, logos, and pathos to establish credibility, present logical

arguments supported by scientific evidence, and appeal to the audience's emotions. Together,

these artifacts contribute to the ongoing dialogue surrounding the increased interest of

psychedelic therapies. They offer insights into psychedelics’ potential to address the challenges

of traditional mental health treatment. As research in this field progresses, it becomes

increasingly evident that a comprehensive understanding of psychedelic drugs' therapeutic

benefits could pave the way for innovative and more effective approaches to mental health care.
 Works Cited

Drug scheduling. DEA. (2023).

https://www.dea.gov/drug-information/drug-scheduling#:~:text=Schedule%20I%20drugs

%2C%20substances%2C%20or,)%2C%20methaqualone%2C%20and%20peyote.

Yehuda, R., & Lehrner, A. (2023). Psychedelic therapy—a new paradigm of care for mental

health. JAMA, 330(9), 813. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2023.12900

YouTube. (2016, April 20). The science of psilocybin and its use to relieve suffering. YouTube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81-v8ePXPd4