Rhetorical devices

In the article “My Best Friend Died by Suicide. I Wish I Had Seen the Warning Signs”, Daniel Magruder uses rhetorical questions and direct references to present his guilt about Neil Landsberg’s suicide and raise awareness about the effects of PTSD. 

Direct references

The article makes direct references to a number of military events. For example, Magruder makes references to the plane crash that killed five soldiers outside Baghdad, Iraq (ll. 23-26) and to the 2006 ambush in Uruzgan Province, Afghanistan (ll. 34-37). By presenting these events, Magruder’s purpose is to inform readers of the reality of working in the military. Moreover, these references help readers better understand how Landsberg came to be affected by the tragic events and develop PTSD as a result. 

The article also references the American film “300...