Rhetorical devices

References and allusions

Malala Yousafzai’s speech contains several allusions and references which help her give context to her speech and enhance her message.

References to Allah, Mohammad and the Quran help Yousafzai affirm her Muslim faith and suggest that the Taliban goes against Islam ’s core teachings (p. 483, ll. 9-15). Allusions to the Taliban help give the audience the necessary context to understand how Yousafzai’s life changed after Taliban occupation: “When I was in Swat, which was a place of tourism and beauty, it suddenly changed into a place of terrorism” (p. 483, ll. 34-35). Yousafzai names the Taliban only once in her speech (p. 482, l. 15), suggesting that she does not want to audience to focus on the terrorist group. 

Yousafzai also alludes to the refugee crisis and terrorist attacks in Afghanistan (p...