Inspirational Disruption: A Comparative Analysis

Evelya Palomino

Nevada State University

English 101

Mrs. Arroyo

October 7, 2025

Inspirational Disruption: A Comparative Analysis

        Disruption is primarily defined as a disturbance that interrupts a certain process, notion, or event. Oftentimes, disruption is thought to cause problems because it breaks what is expected, which can lead to a certain frustration; however, there is a second definition of disruption that is to be considered: a radical change to a preexisting industry due to innovation. This form of disruption can still be seen as problematic to the skeptics who fear fundamental change—social, mental, political, economic, societal or otherwise—but, what if such disruption had the capability of bringing others together; what if such problematic behavior was able to invoke hope and determination to those searching for it? It can, and it does. This form of interruption is known as inspirational disruption: an existing concept, notion, or situation being broken by actions motivated by a shared passion. This is not merely a concept; in fact, America was built on inspirational disruption—from the Boston Tea Party to the Declaration of Independence, to the Underground Railroad to the Civil Rights Movement, to the Black Lives Matter protests to No Kings Day. Inspirational disruption is not only a change in what is conventional or imposed, but it is a crucial step forward to the development of a society, industry, or system—that is what separates it from typical disruption. Disruption is chaos, it is a senseless rebellion that lacks a true purpose; inspirational disruption addresses an issue and tactfully communicates a desire for change and seeks out those who are willing to accept it and join the cause.

        Inspirational disruption can be expressed in many ways; throughout this unit on inspirational disruption, several authors were observed and analyzed on how they utilized certain rhetorical elements to express their purpose. This aided in illuminating the different strategies and rhetorical combinations one can use to break norms. There are three particular authors from this unit that will be in focus: troubled teen turned successful athlete Demario Davis, American poet Camille Rankine, and civil rights activist Martin Luther King Junior. Each author has their own collection of works, so it's important to specify which are to be compared, contrasted, and analyzed: King’s I Have a Dream civil rights speech, Rankine’s Self-Portrait as Out-Fighter feminist poem, and Davis’s video about the Devoted Dreamers Academy. Camille Rankine, Demario Davis, and Martin Luther King Jr. all demonstrate inspirational disruption through their different genres and stances, as well as their shared purpose.

The Genres and Messages of Inspirational Disruption

Inspirational disruption has no bounds in terms of the genres it can be expressed; it can be found in fiction storytelling, in poems, in social media posts, in news outlets, and in oneself. This also applies to the specific ideologies or situations that one wishes to disrupt: inspirational disruption is the breaking of any existing notion or condition, there are no specific expectations to break or causes to support. Each of these works from the chosen authors all embody inspirational disruption, and they each are of different genres, and stances expressed through those genres. Camille Rankine’s Self-Portrait as Out-Fighter is a poem that expresses the dodging and weaving it takes to defy the conventional image of what is considered a woman. Rankine does this by using an extended metaphor of a flower forming a shape of a fist rather than blooming. A man I’ve never met tells me to open like a flower/but a flower cut too soon won’t soften into bloom…I unsettle I blemish I bloody…(Rankine, 2023). She uses visceral diction and abstract language within a poem to upset the preconceived daintiness that is expected of women.

Meanwhile, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. shook the world with a speech; one of hope, unity, and a demand for civil rights. Since he was a strong orator, Dr. King’s speech was not only impactful during the civil rights movement, but it’s also one of the most memorable speeches in American history. King had a background as an influential baptist minister as well as civil rights activist; these strengths contributed to his skill and passion in public speaking, as he managed to express his words with intensity while remaining civil and uplifting. All in all, Martin Luther King utilized verbal rhetorical elements in the form of a speech to call attention to the fact that America was in desperate need of change.

Conversely to the previous two authors, Demario Davis conveyed his disruption through a Youtube video. A video provides the audience with visual stimulation and allows the author to visually highlight their most impactful quotes or ideas. For example, Davis asks: was it the student failing the system, or was it the system failing the students? (Davis, 2024, 1:03). His question was presented in large white text beside him as he spoke. This directs the audience to this specific question and invites them to think further on it. Davis also includes a clip of a student in the classroom sharing his goal to start a business, this draws in the audience by showing the kind of environment the academy harbors and the type of students it supports. Demario Davis uses a video format to remind the youth that as long as they invest in themselves and others, as well as nurture their passion, they can change the trajectory of this country as well as the trajectory of their generation; education does define how you should function as an individual.

The Purpose of Inspirational Disruption

        While each of these authors have their own specific stances and ways of communicating their beliefs, they are all connected with one purpose: breaking away from the traditional conventions of society. This is pretty conspicuous in Martin Luther King’s I Have a Dream speech due to the historical context and setting at the time: during the civil rights movement on the 100th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, in front of the Lincoln Memorial. It’s also clear in King’s language and diction—he uses impactful refrains and diction to convey his determined and passionate insistence for the end of segregation and racism in America. This can be seen in King’s (1963) “We can never be satisfied…" refrain: We can never be satisfied as long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their selfhood and robbed of their dignity…Dr. King’s choice of diction develops his pathos within this speech; words like “unspeakable horrors,” “stripped,” and “robbed,” express violence and forcefulness, representing the oppression and abuse African-Americans were facing during that time.  It was clear that Martin Luther King Jr. wanted the nation to break away from the racism that was so normalized and engrained into it at that time, which would ultimately shatter America’s norms at that time.

        While segregation is a thing of America’s past, racism is still present in our modern society—much like how even though women have substantially more rights today than one century ago, they still face systematic oppression, societal pressures, and discrimination. Camille Rankine’s poem was written in the 21st century—in 2023, to further highlight modern relevance—and she utilized a unique design and an extended metaphor to disrupt the cultural standards of women. Expanding on the unique layout of this piece: Rankine replaces periods with spaces. A bigger space in between words signifies a complete thought, the next word marking the beginning of a new sentence. Her unique formatting forces the audience to get out of their comfort zone and think critically while reading the poem, opening their minds to a new perspective. Rankine draws attention to her attitude on the subject of women’s cultural norms by breaking the conventions of a typical poem. In addition, Rankine uses a flower as a metaphor for womanhood, this is made clear in the beginning: A man I’ve never met tells me to open like a flower/but a flower cut too soon won’t soften into bloom (Rankine, 2023). This metaphor reflects how a woman is expected to ‘bloom’ and submit herself to the standards men have put in place; however, Rankine does not bloom, she remains closed—resembling a passionate fist. Manipulating her language and design, Camille Rankine tears apart the ‘perfect’ image of a woman and expresses a desire to change these societal norms.

        The norms that are forced onto women can severely damage their success and dreams, similarly to how a harsh and unforgiving education system can squash a student’s potential. This issue is the reason Demario Davis founded the Devoted Dreamers Academy. He wanted to give students who learn differently a chance to flourish and explore their interests in the sports field. Davis’s purpose in the video is to get the audience to believe that investing in themselves and others and nurturing passion and creativity will benefit the future of the nation, and that education should not define how you function as an individual. To illustrate, Davis (2023, 0:12) states that disrupting is sometimes important because it’s necessary. This position may be a new perspective for viewers who typically oppose change, or some may not have realized the power they have over their lives. This statement reflects Davis’s attitude towards the school system due to the fact that it did not benefit him as a teen, and it took him going to jail to realize that he must be an example to those who will also fall victim to an insufficient school environment. The Devoted Dreamers Academy caters to each student’s learning style, they are given the resources to pursue their ambitions, and creativity as well as individuality is encouraged. The very existence of this academy breaks the expectations of the school system by actually being flexible and considerate of each student, it does not aim to shape them into a specific person, but rather encourages them to choose who they want to be.

A Final Summary

With just three examples of how authors have chosen to express their individual desires for change, it can be deduced that there is no specific recipe or format to incite inspirational disruption. Camille Rankine chose to address her stance on the cultural standards of women with a written poem, utilizing artful figurative language to represent the struggle and defiance of these standards; while Dr. Martin Luther King gave a speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial to declare that America was in dire need of change and that in order for the nation to be truly virtuous, segregation and racism needed to come to an end; Demario Davis displayed how the Devoted Dreamers Academy subverts the normal expectations of the school system by creating a video.

While each of these authors used different genres and had different particular stances, they all each aimed to defy a standard in American society that did not benefit marginalized groups. Whether it be systematic racism and segregation, societal standards and sexism, or a flawed education system—these authors actively expressed their resistance to the limits of their conventional society. These authors did not act with only their benefit in mind; in fact, each issue they addressed is one that many fall victim to daily. Inspirational disruption is not caused to separate people or promote individual spite, it is meant to bring people together through a shared issue or idea and give space for change.

References

Davis, D. (2024, October 24). Demario Davis is nurturing today’s young athletes into tomorrow’s leaders. YouTube. https://youtu.be/fKAzM-l9lPM?si=jxNVdCC0dKjkjI3F

King, M. L. (2024, November 1). I Have a Dream. Martin Luther King I have a dream speech - american rhetoric. https://www.americanrhetoric.com/speeches/mlkihaveadream.html

Rankine, C. (2023, September). Self-portrait as out-fighter | the poetry foundation. Poetry Foundation. https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poetrymagazine/poems/160836/self-portrait-as-out-fighter