Rhetorical Analysis of 6b: We Need Sincere Free Trade
Authors background / political affiliation:
Johan Norberg was born in Sweden in 1973 and devotes his life to promoting economic globalization and libertarian ideas. He very much considers himself a liberal, and writes many books and articles with his liberal opinions, mostly free trade, in mind. On his website, he quotes, “I believe that we should have individual rights and liberties because man needs to live by his individual reason and strive for self-realization. I am passionate about the Enlightenment ideals of reason, secularization, education and liberty.”
Occupation:
After graduation from Stockholm University, where he studied philosophy, the theory of literature and political science, Norberg was hired to write essays and edit a journal called Nyliberalen (a journal which combined political philosophy with activism). In 1997, Norberg was commissioned to write a book on his interpretations of Vilhelm Moberg (a Swedish author). This book lead the way for more, including Liberal Ideas and Pioneers in 200 years of Swedish history, and then became the editor-in-chief for a web magazine, and now works for the Cato Institute in Washington D.C. (a non-profit research organization designed to increase understanding on policies such as limited government, free markets, individual liberty, and peace.
How this influences his article:
Norberg says that the EU’s protection of importations hurt developing countries, and the “Western duties on manufactured goods are 30% above the global average.” Because Norberg is completely pro free trade, everything he says in the article is influenced by his opinion (of course supported by facts). He then goes on to say that protectionism in the West may lead to greater problems. If Norberg didn’t have a free-trade view point, he probably wouldn’t say that Western countries are “hypocrites”, and wouldn’t later use an active voice and calls for free-trade incentives.
