David SolimanProfessor Jane MacLennanENG 20121 February 2022Rhetorical AnalysisLucianne Walkowicz wrote an article, “They Say I Say blog website is Billionaires in space: Lucianne Walkowicz on making space exploration more accessible “. The issue that is being discussed is how these billionaires going on private exploration reflect current inequities here on earth, including rising income inequality exacerbated by the pandemic. It is believed the argument Walkowicz is stating of how space isn't really accessible to all of us and only the “privileged billionaires” is very false and isn't really an argument. For example, she states how the parents of Jeff Bezos donated 250,000 dollars to the start of Amazon, but does not really mention how he took that money and became the world's richest man. Most people don’t think space should be as accessible as it is to these billionaires because it is a luxury. Luxuries are luxuries because they aren't a need or necessity but an option to those who have that extra moneyto use.The audience that Walkowicz is talking to is the entirety of humanity but more specifically the “average person”. She believes that the billionaires taking a first dive or first step into the “average” human that is not an astronaut or trained to get into space is bogus. For example, she says “For space to become more accessible in a meaningful sense, we must embrace a broader definition of who can become an astronaut—without requiring that access to space be mediated by people with extreme privilege.” She is stating that these billionaires are just a small part ofwho actually can go into space and not the actual average person. Walkowicz’s audience can be identified within that quote of not requiring space to be accessed by people with extreme privilege.The questions of if the writer could be biased if very prominent in this piece or argument. Walkowicz is closely related as shown, “my husband and I watched it together, and though I have seen a number of launches in my life, including those carrying precious cargo I’d worked on, seeing a launch carrying someone I know—Dr. Proctor—into orbit was an entirely different cocktail of joy and trepidation.”. She somewhat disregards her argument completely for this specific launch as she knows one of the people on board. Walkowicz also seems to not quantify the billionares as normal people or humans that arent astronauts “A gatekeeper lifting the velvet rope for outstanding individuals might create amazing experiences for those people but doesn’t remove the barrier itself. In a larger sense, today’s billionaires not only inherited but continue to actively create a world rife with inequity—including barriers of racism, sexism and ableism that have long barred people like Funk, Proctor, and Arceneaux from the astronaut corps. A world with billionaires in it—or orbiting it—is not an equitable one by definition.”. She states here that it isn't equitable or fair and that all the obstacles that would block a normal or average person from entering space is removed because they have money. This argument isn't as valid due to the billionaires being the normal or average person before they were rich. These billionaires started their companies in garages or basements, but she says “ Not only are the basements and garages of the wealthy not the same as the rest of ours, in much of the country, you have to be doing pretty well to have a basement or garage in the first place.”. This statement that you have to be doing pretty well in the first place to have a basement or garage, meaning it isn’t theaverage is not true, as 66% of American's own a garage, therefore, proving that it is indeed the standard or average. Walkowicz uses pathos in her argument when saying “Despite my critiques, the launch was definitely affecting on an emotional level: my husband and I watched it together, and though I have seen a number of launches in my life, including those carrying precious cargo I’d worked on, seeing a launch carrying someone I know”. She lets emotion contradict her argument by saying despite her critiques and literally says how it affected her on an emotional level. I think that the pathos presented here also allows for a large amount of bias as she completely lets go of her argument.Walkowicz uses a large amount lot of logos throughout the entirety if the article. For example, Walkowicz states “While Isaacman hasn’t disclosed what he paid Musk’s SpaceX for his trip into orbit, $200 million or more is a reasonable estimate. And though Musk’s $50-million donation sounds enormously generous for most of us, recall that his net worth is currently around$194 billion. So if you scale his donation to the median American’s net worth (around $97,680 on average, not accounting for the racial wealth gap or age differences), Musk gave the equivalent of about $25.”. Although she does state the actual donation amount, she contradicts her use of actual facts by saying it is the equivalent of 25 dollars. This is misinformation as the donation is still the same value as Musk still worked to get this money. Logos was used once again saying “Sian Proctor, the accomplished geoscientist and educator who piloted the Inspiration4 mission, was previously a finalist for NASA’s astronaut corps. Wally Funk, whofinally reached space at the age of 82 alongside Bezos, had excelled at the battery of tests administered to astronaut candidates during the Mercury program in the 1960s. At the time, however, astronauts were also required to have been military test pilots, which effectively barred women from the job.”. Logos was used here effectively stating only the facts without any bias at all.In conclusion, Lucianne Walkowicz effectively argues to not count on billionaires to get humanity into space. She uses logos and ethos effectively throughout the essay. Although throughout a bit of the essay there is a small amount of bias. Walkowicz keeps the same tone throughout the entire essay which allows for no bias and helps her argument.Work Cited“They Say / I Blog.” They Say / I Blog, https://www.theysayiblog.com/. Walkowicz, Lucianne. “Don't Count on Billionaires to Get Humanity into Space.” Scientific American, Scientific American, 23 Sept. 2021,