Whitney Houston's ‘Greatest Love of All’, Rhetorical Artifact Analysis by Enyjé Sandoz

The melodic tune of “Greatest Love of All” by Whitney Houston is one of my most cherished songs. Whitney Houston instills in her listeners the necessity of self-love and how to empower oneself through self-love during a stasis of loneliness. Based on the lyrics, one can assume that the inspiration for this song is from Whitney Houston’s personal childhood experience as she sings, “I never found anyone who fulfill my needs / A lonely place to be / And so I learned to depend on me." Also, the opening lyrics to the song consist of the importance of pouring into children. Not only is this song sonically beautiful, but it is also rich in powerful rhetoric.

Houston urges her fans to nurture children. She states, “I believe the children are our future / Teach them well and let them lead the way / Show them all the beauty they possess inside / Give them a sense of pride to make it easier / Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be.” This portion of the song is an example of rhetoric being advisory, “it tells us what we should do” (Swett). Additionally, this lyric incorporates Aristotle's proof of logos, "the use of rhetoric to help the audience see the rationale for a particular conclusion" (Alberts et. al 294). Whitney does not plainly state how to nurture a child but instead provides specific examples of how people should cultivate confidence, dignity, and respect within children. She also highlights the necessity of valuing children.

To continue, Houston uses the pronoun: we. Though she does not explicitly state her audience, the implication is that she is speaking to the adults about the children she previously mentioned, which encompasses the idea that rhetoric is addressed, "It is directed to some, and not others" (Swett). Houston insinuates the future lies in the hands of adults (we) as they are responsible for raising children and instilling these values.

Moreover, in the music video for Greatest Love Of All, there are flashbacks of a little girl. The little girl is assumed to be a younger version of Whitney Houston. Towards the end of the video, Whitney Houston and her younger self face one another to signify the timelines merging. The depiction of timeline merging is an example of rhetoric is situational, "This message was crafted in a specific time and place when it was communicated/created" (Swett). The flashbacks serve as insight for viewers as Whitney Houston reflects on the journey that led her to state, "Because the greatest love of all / Is happening to me / I found the greatest love of all / Inside of me / The greatest love of all / Is easy to achieve / Learning to love yourself / It is the greatest love of all." The progression arc of her journey contributes to her ethos, "a sense of their character, by displaying to their audience good sense, moral character, and goodwill" (Alberts et. al 293). Her journey validates her credibility in sharing this message because she has experienced this moment of self-actualization or the greatest love of all.

Finally, the song and video comprised the notion that rhetoric is stylized, "A rhetorical artifact has a specific look or "feel" to it that is tied to communicative meaning" (Swett). As Whitney Houston invites listeners to travel back in time to their childhoods through her words, "Let the children's laughter remind us how we used to be", she visually conceives this idea by utilizing a sepia filter for flashbacks in the video. Imploring listeners to allow children to spark their inner child and apply a specific filter for certain parts of the video appeals to the proof of pathos, "the rhetorical use of emotions to affect audience decision making" (Alberts et. al 293). Childhoods tend to symbolize unbridled joy and innocence for people. Therefore, reverting to those times can evoke a sense of happiness and achieve the necessary perspective to support children.

Rhetoric shapes the world; it is used in literary and academic pieces and everyday life, such as music. Greatest Love Of All by Whitney Houston touches on the four characteristics of rhetoric (rhetoric is advisory, rhetoric is addressed, rhetoric is situational, and rhetoric is stylized) and the three proofs of Aristotle (logos, ethos, and pathos). Analyzing music in the context of rhetoric makes me further appreciate the art of storytelling through lyrics and music videos.