#2: Rhetorical Analysis: Chapter 4-Chapter 6

 Just Mercy

Welcome back readers! I've read further into Just Mercy and I can't say I'm disappointed. This book continues to amaze me. I never thought I could get so dragged into a non-fiction book; yet, I have. I'm through chapter six right now and so much is going on. Stevenson wants to help each person he mentions. Multiple people contacted him in hopes of receiving his help for people of all ages. As I read on, he mentioned multiple cases of children under the age of eighteen being put on death row after the judge decided to count the murder as a capital case instead of a juvenile case. 

Bryan Stevenson

Besides the intriguing stories, what's even more interesting is the style of order in which he puts the chapters in. As I left off in chapter three, it was covering the case of Walter McMillian soon. Once I started reading chapter four, it changed dramatically. After pronouncing McMillian guilty by the end of chapter three, it left off as sort of a cliff hanger. It was obvious that the story of McMillian would be continued and it did; however, it wasn't until chapter five where they started talking about his case again. He organizes the chapters in a way where he keeps you thinking and keeps you interested in what's to come. In chapter four it talks about a case unrelated to McMillians about a man for whom was executed because "the trial judge found he had "mental retardation"(71)." Only after many years was this type of execution banned, all too late for many lost souls. Another man he talked about in chapter four was Herbert Richardson, a man who accidently killed a infant with a bomb that was meant to kill no one. He was a Vietnam War veteran and came back traumatized. Stevenson was there when he was electrified and exclaimed it as one of the hardest things he's ever experienced. The chapter ended with Herbert's execution, then, in chapter five, he transferred back over to the case of McMillian. I like the style for how he writes his chapters but it also annoys me to some extent. It can be hard at times to follow along without getting lost in each case he takes on. 

In the last chapter I read, chapter six, transferred over again from the McMillian case to a case about a fourteen year old boy who was sent to an adult prison for the murder of his mother's abusive boyfriend. So far, this has to be the case that I got super invested in. Not to say the other cases didn't get me interested because they did; but, this one was different. I think it was different from the others because it went to the actual point of view of the fourteen year old boy. He killed his mother's boyfriend because one night he came home drunk and punched his mom in the face. His mother fell to the floor in a pool of blood and the young boy shot his mother's boyfriend in the head because he thought he had killed his mom. I felt more personally connected to the case because of the amount of detail that was given. His mother's boyfriend was a officer so that made matters worse for the little boy because his co-workers wanted the worse punishment for the boy. They did get him put into a normal prison for people over eighteen. However, he was sexually abused during his three day time there. Thankfully by the end of the chapter, he got moved to to a juvenile detention center until he turned eighteen. This just made me think of how unfair the system is. This young boy who was a great student and never got in trouble made the mistake of letting his built up rage take over. Charlie was the little boys name. He was about to be put on death row, as such a young helpless child. I was amazed by the things people would do to someone so young. Not only has this book shown that the judicial system is corrupt for putting innocent people, such as Walter McMillian on death row; but, putting children, like Charlie, on it as young as fourteen. I'm excited to keep reading and expand my knowledge of more cases and flaws among the system. 

Works Cited

McCauley, Mary. "Lawyer and activist Bryan Stevenson calls for markers to be erected at lynching sites." The Baltimore Sun, 25 Feb. 2015, www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/arts/bs-ae-author-stevenson-20150225-story.html. Accessed 10 Mar. 2021.

Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption. New York, Spiegel & Grau, 2014.