De La Lima 1

Maria De La Lima

Professor Tarnoff

LEAD CTW1

15 October 2018

Getting Close

In his book, Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, Bryan Stevenson

voices the effect incarceration has on juveniles through the powerful appeal to pathos.

Although many consider the incarcerated to be hardened criminals deserving of

punishment, they are people with feelings and emotions just like the rest of us. Sadly,

juveniles offenders are the ones most affected by this viewpoint. Consequently, in order

to understand the reasoning behind why Stevenson presents these stories of juveniles

throughout his book, we have to examine the effect their stories have. Stevenson’s book

perceives children as being vulnerable which appeals to the emotions of others. It allows

this idea that they shouldn’t be treated or sentenced as adults to be brought up. For

example, Stevenson expresses hesitation and reluctance to take Charlie’s case; however,

through the use of emotion, he gets close to Charlie and changes his perspective. He uses

himself as an example of what happens when you get close.

Through his own process of getting close, Stevenson tries to ignite feelings within

the reader. He accomplishes this, in part, through the use of physical description, such as

when he details his physical interactions with Charlie. He explains, “I took a chance and

put my arm around him, and he immediately began to shake. His trembling intensified

before he finally leaned completely into me and started crying…It didn’t take me long to
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realize that he wasn’t talking about what had happened with George or with his mom but

about what had happened at the jail” (123). His process of getting close is seen not only

literally through physical description, but figuratively. Stevenson utilizes storytelling as a

means to convey a message. He presents both sides of the story to let his audience

understand why he tries to view the situation from Charlie’s perspective to convey a more

emotional approach that influences others to take action. In a similar manner, after

leaving from his meeting with Charlie, Stevenson expresses, “When I left the jail, I was

more angry than sad. I kept asking myself, ‘Who is responsible for this? How could we

ever allow this?’” (124). Through his questioning and emotions, Stevenson engages his

readers in a conversation to grapple with these eye-opening questions and challenge the

stereotypes society has.

Similarly, we see Stevenson deploying similar strategies as he presents a narrative

that stirs the reader to take this responsibility upon them and take action. In the chapter,

“Surely Doomed,” Mr. and Mrs. Jennings’s story is introduced through their grandson’s

suicide and mental health problems. Their own experience of trauma and brokenness

helps them connect with Charlie on a deeper level. They not only sit back and listen to

Charlie’s story, but are compelled to take action and help Charlie economically and

emotionally with a permanent, loving home. The Jennings’s use their brokenness to heal

not only them, but others like Charlie. Stevenson’s retelling of the Jennings’s narrative

provides an example of how others should respond to these type of injustices. For Mrs.

Jennings highlights, “‘We’ve all been through a lot, Bryan, all of us. I know that some

have been through more than others. But if we don’t expect more from each other, hope
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better for one another, and recover from the hurt we experience, we are surely doomed’”

(126). Mrs. Jennings’s response calls attention to what I believe is Stevenson’s call to

action in that she doesn’t let stereotypes make her put down people, but acts upon them

by actively helping others and bringing encouragement to take action.

In short, Stevenson focuses on this theme of “getting closer to mass incarceration

and extreme punishment in America” (14) throughout his book in order to really unmask

the secrets behind the justice system. He highlights, “It is about how easily we condemn

people in this country and the injustice we create when we allow fear, anger, and distance

to shape the way we treat the most vulnerable among us” (14). This stereotype that

society has of the incarcerated needs to change and Stevenson demonstrates this call to

action through the use of pathos and narratives.

Work Cited

Stevenson, Bryan. Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption, Spiegel & Grau, 2015.