'Advice to Graduates', written by George Saunders, may seem like an ordinary
graduation speech. Saunders pulls from his past, telling the audience about a neighbor from his
childhood. He recalls standing by while an awkward girl was teased and did not defend her.
Saunders also asks his audience engaging questions. He asks them about kind people they have
met and how the audience themselves struggle with kindness. All of these contribute to the main
theme Saunders is speaking about, a need for more kindness. This type of format, pulling past
experiences, asking questions, and giving a message, is seen across the board in graduation
speeches. Unlike some of his fellow commencement speakers, Saunders is very successful in
getting his message across. His use of different rhetorical aspects, kairos and stasis theory,
contribute to the speech's success. Having a rhetorically strong argument helps convince the
audience of Saunders point and helps them see his perspective. In terms of kairos, Saunders is
very aware of his audience of college students and that their graduation is the venue that he is
speaking at. Saunders also uses aspects of the stasis theory by engaging his audience in implicit,
direct questions to enforce the argument and make it personal. The success of George Saunders
argument for kindness in 'Advice to Graduates' is due to his use of kairos and stasis theory to
convince the audience of his point and bring them to his perspective.

The first rhetorical facet Saunders utilizes is kairos. Kairos is a special meaning of time,
referring to the perfect moment. There are many factors that lead to the perfect moment. Part of
kairos is the awareness of the audience and the situation. Saunders starts off his speech by
acknowledging that his audience is one 'with their best years ahead of them' (Saunders 19).
With that in mind, he starts giving the graduates advice from the years he has lived. Through
stories of his past experiences and observations, he tells the audience about kindness. Saunders
encourages the audience to become kinder and less self-centered sooner rather than later. He uses
an example that parents are less selfish after having a child, because when you have a child, you
no longer care about yourself as much. He is not only speaking to the graduates, but also to the
other group of people in attendance, their parents. This is another instance of how Saunders is
aware of his audience. He also acknowledges the situation by saying the graduates have,
'accomplished something difficult and tangible that has enlarged you as a person and will make
your life better, from here on in, forever.'. He is praising them for what they have
accomplished in order to be sitting at this commencement. 'Congratulations, by the way' he
finally says to the graduates in the middle of his speech. The closure of Saunders speech
takes on another tone. Instead of drawing from experiences with kindness, Saunders ends his
speech by urging the graduates to be kind. He tells them to hurry up and speed the process along
so that one day they will come back and tell him how wonderful their lives has been. To
really speak to an audience, a speaker must understand who the audience is and what situation
they are in in order to get the message across. Saunders accurately uses these features of kairos to
make his argument for more kindness successful.

Another aspect of kairos is the venue in which the argument is being made. By looking at
the title, the reader learns where the speech is being given. Saunders acknowledges the location
in which he is speaking, a graduation, in the beginning of his speech. He mentions the traditional
form of a graduation speech and how he plans to 'respect that tradition'. By showing
respect to traditions commonly found at a commencement ceremony, Saunders receives respect
and attention from the audience. As mentioned previously, he not only speaks to the graduates,
but also to their parents, who are assumed to be in attendance. He is acknowledging the type of
people that are at this venue, and he is speaking directly to all members of the audience. Many
aspects of kairos overlap, such as the venue and the audience. Recognizing the audience may
coincide with the venue in which the argument is being given. When Saunders praises the
graduates for accomplishing 'something difficult and tangible', he is recognizing that the venue
in which he is speaking is a momentous occasion. To get to this point, his audience had to
endure many struggles and he is applauding them for their accomplishments. He is
acknowledging his audience and the venue they are at. Saunders concludes his speech with a
final 'congratulations' and wishes the graduates 'all the luck in the world'. A graduation is
filled with bright, young minds. Saunders capitalizes on this venue and audience to preach his
argument for more kindness. If a speaker does not recognize the venue in which they are
speaking, they will fail to convince the audience of their argument and be unsuccessful in sharing
their perspective. Saunders takes advantage of his venue, a graduation, to speak to every member
of the audience and show them his perspective toward a need for more kindness.

By asking implicit, direct questions Saunders interacts with his audience. These questions
engage not only the audience, but also their values and beliefs. The first questions Saunders asks
the audience are rhetorical and have to do with Saunders's personal story. Even though they do
not make the audience think about themselves, these questions engage them in the speech and
make them think. Saunders then starts asking questions to support his argument. He engages the
audience in the argument by asking them 'Who, in your life, do you remember most fondly, with
the most undeniable feelings of worth?'. Saunders is getting the audience to start thinking
about kindness, and this is how he introduces his argument. This question makes the audience
think about their lives and past experiences. He then asks them the 'million dollar question',
'Why aren't we kinder?'. Saunders shares his point of view on the question and how he
thinks we can become more kind. These questions presented the argument for more kindness by
asking the audience to think about their own lives. Then, Saunders explained to the audience his
point of view. This technique lets the audience hear Saunders' perspective while they are trying
to develop their own, hopefully adapting what he says into their thinking. He also relates to the
audience by asking them 'can we succeed?', something all graduates wonder at this moment in
their lives. Saunders understands the position that his audience is in and is using that to
convey his argument to them. He tells them that while success is important and something they
have been working toward for their whole lives, being more kind will have a greater impact on
them. To convey an argument successfully, a speaker must engage the audience by asking
questions that make them think about their morals and beliefs. These questions serve to make the
audience come to the same terms about the argument that the speaker is trying to convey.
Saunders asks his audience implicit questions which serve to bring them into agreement with him
about the need for more kindness in the world.

A successful argument is due to many aspects, all which can be related back to how
rhetorically strong the argument is. A rhetorically strong argument uses kairos and stasis theory
to bring the audience to the speaker's perspective and convince them of the argument at hand.
George Saunders successfully uses elements of both kairos and stasis theory to make his
argument for more kindness successful. Saunders is aware of his audience and the situation they
are in. He uses the venue, a commencement, to speak to a young crowd who hopefully has many
years ahead of them to embrace what he is saying. Lastly, Saunders asks his audience questions
which engage them in his speech and make them think about the argument. These rhetorical
elements come together to make George Saunders argument for more kindness in 'Advice to
Graduates' strong and successful.

