Every Nook and Cranny

“EVERY NOOK AND CRANNY: THE DANGEROUS SPREAD OF COMMERCIALIZED CULTURE”, by Gary Ruskin and Juliet Schor, stated many ways advertising has negatively affected our country. The authors appealed to pathos by including children in their observations, and how there is an increase in child obesity. This gained the support of many parents and families reading this article. Although this article may have gained support from families, it is not easily readable. The language the authors used can be quite complex for someone who is not very knowledgeable about commercialism. For example, the language included, “commercialism”, “corporate welfare”, “privatization”, “free market ideology”, and “material acquisition” (491-492). Therefore, this article is more directed towards people who are interested in politics and the economy, including professors. In addition, there were many examples to support each claim presented by the authors, but there was not enough reasoning in between each piece of evidence. An example would be in the paragraph named “Government Brought to You by…”(494). This paragraph lists multiple pieces of evidence that supports how local governments use advertisements as a revenue source (494). Although the evidence supports the claim, there is not enough reasoning to make the assertion stronger. Another factor is that the article had a slight slippery slope effect. It discusses the many negative aspects of commercialism from child obesity to global warming. The article tries to link how commercialism leads to many harmful factors, but it continues to jump from one idea to the next without any strong support. Schor, one of the authors, did a study to show how depression is significantly linked to advertisements, but there was no information on what study had been done, or what credentials she has to perform a valid study. It would have significantly increased the strength of their argument, if this information had been provided. Lastly, there was no rebuttal paragraph to state the opposing view. If the authors refuted reasons against commercialism, and they stated a couple reasons in support of it, then their argument would have had a nice concluding stance.

Overall, commercialism has contributed to many positive and negative things in our society. There are always good and bad aspects to advertising. There may be a very good product out there that will help the lives of many people and commercialism can contribute to that. However, there can been greedy advertising companies that only want to make more money. In the end, it is up to the individual. Commercialism is not forcing people to buy a product or telling kids too eat more junk food. People are responsible for themselves, and if a parent allows their child to eat a dozen snickers candy bars because they saw it on their television, then responsibility is on that parent. It is no one else decision on what products an individual should use, other than that person. If the issues are child obesity, self-esteem, and global warming, then the focus needs to be readjusted to society’s mental well being. Commercialism is only one factor out of many that are contributing to these issues. Therefore, commercialism is not significantly harmful to society.

I Need My Space

In Cindy Long’s article, I Need My Space, she explains the use of the networking site, Myspace. Long begins her article by discussing a young girl’s entrance into high school, and the loss of her friends. She uses this story to explain Myspace to her audience members, and eventually leads this to her topic at hand. Long informs her audience of the negative aspects of Myspace, but she neglects to take a stance on whether or not the website is good or bad. Her connection between explaining the website and raising the audience’s concern is good, but she does not make her thesis clear. “Making connections is what powers the popularity of sites like MySpace, but it can also be cause for concern” (408). She brings awareness to her audience, but that is all she does. Her article is not argumentative by any means, and it is more informative. Long gives the audience members information and examples to explain what she is stating, but she never clearly states what she wants the audience to do with this information. For example, she discusses an issue a teacher had with her students creating an imposter account, and the difficulty the teacher had trying to take down the account. She used this example in support for why her audience should be concerned, but she never closed her example with any reasoning as to why the audience should care. Her very next sentence from that example states, “MySpace requires users to be at least 14, and MySpace users under 16 are automatically set to private…”(409). This sentence does not state anything as to why the audience needs to be aware, instead Long informs the audience of Myspace’s current policy. Another criticism is that Long’s article is highly disorganized. She jumps from a teacher informing her students about “the different things that can happen when they use these websites without thinking” (409) to how some senior at Kennedy High School decorates his Myspace page. The last error Long made reoccurred multiple times throughout her article. Long continued to state the website as MySpace, but if you were to research the title on its very own website, it is actually stated as Myspace. When informing an audience on any topic, the author must make sure the information they are providing is correct on all accounts, no matter how tiny the detail.

Overall, I think that Myspace has come a long way from when it first started. I had a Myspace account early on in high school, and the safety policies that are available today were not available then.. I think the media is doing a good job at keeping people aware of online dangers, and Myspace has defiantly taken that into account. As with anything, there is always a chance for modification and change. As much as the Myspace that is currently being used has improved, it is not a polished draft. Further advancement in technology includes new awareness that will require networking sites, such as Myspace, to change even more. I was aware of much of the information Long provided in her article, so I cannot give her much credit towards my observations. It would have been nice if Long focused more on the addicting aspects of Myspace users, since her title is I Need My Space. This point could have strengthened her informative article by presenting a health factor to her audience members. Myspace is one portal to online networking; there are many others that can have the very same issue Long discussed.

Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Kids

Anna Quindlen’s Our Tired, Our Poor, Our Kids, is a short essay that goes in depth about children living in poverty in America. Quindlen provides well researched evidence that supports her essay. She gives statistics such as, “Twenty years ago New York City provided emergency shelter for just under a thousand families a day; last month it had to find spaces for 10,000 children on a given night” (316). Throughout Quindlen’s essay, she compares evidence from twenty years ago to modern day. This supports her essay because she is stressing the importance of the increasing amount of homeless children living in poverty. Another example of Quindlen comparing evidence is when she states, “Twenty years ago, when the story of the homeless in America became a staple of news reporting, the solution was presented as a simple one: affordable housing” (317). Here Quindlen states a possible solution to her essay, but never discusses it further. This weakens her argument because she constantly discusses the issue of homeless children, but she never leaves the audience with a resolution. Quindlen’s entire essay focuses on homeless children in America, but she never comes to a conclusion. She makes statements such as, “So now you know,” and “What would it mean, to spend your childhood drifting from one strange bed to another…” (318). Her sympathetic tone comes off strong towards her audience members, and it weakens her argument because she comes off somewhat forceful.
Quindlen is convincing with all of her supporting evidence towards homeless children. I agree with her essay, although it is not very strong. I was never aware of how severe the poverty level is among children. It would have strengthen Quindlen’s essay if she provided a conclusion and a solution to this issue. Her audience members would probably be more eager to help these children, if a solution was provided. I know that I would be convinced in helping these children, since she provided such a strong sympathetic tone. I feel as though there is not much to say about my opinion of her essay. Since it is basically informative, I feel a simple agree and disagree are the only statements that could be made. If Quindlen provided a resolution then readers could go more in depth about how exactly they would handle this issue. Overall, Quindlen provided good evidence, and forced sympathy on her audience. However, if she wanted her audience to take action towards this issue based on her essay, then she should of included a resolution.

"Grade Inflation: It's Time to Face the Facts"

“Grade Inflation: It’s Time to Face the Facts,” by Harvey Mansfield of Harvard University, is a well written argument that has many strong points. Mansfield includes language that appeals to everyday people which attracts a wide variety of audience members. Mansfield makes a clear stance on his argument by stating, “The grades that faculty members now give—not only at Harvard but at many other elite universities—deserve to be a scandal.” (59). He provides strong credibility by establishing his knowledge about grade inflation, and Harvey states, “I’ve been on the Harvard faculty since 1962…” (61). At one point of Mansfield’s article he makes an analogy between raising standards on student’s education and cars. “Cars are better-made now then they used to be. So when buying a car, would you be satisfied with one that was as good as they used to be?” (60). This is a good point Mansfield makes in his article because he tries to explain himself in terms many people would be familiar with. Once again, this appeals to common people. Lastly, Mansfield provides a background to the issue of grade inflation. He provides a history that supports his argument, and adds to his credibility. “…grade inflation got started, in the late 60’s and early 70’s, white professors, imbibing the spirit of affirmative action…” (61).

Overall, I thought Mansfield’s article was very strong. He provided many strong points throughout his article which gained the trust from his audience. Based on the information Mansfield provided, I would have to agree that grade inflation is a reoccurring issue throughout history. Students should be challenged academically, and they need to earn their grades based on performance. I find it to be slightly unfair that more prestigious schools have an easier academia. When employers view transcripts and resumes, they notice what University you came from. Chances are, employers will pick the candidate with a Harvard background, in oppose to a San Jose State University background. Even though the student from State worked harder, the Harvard student is the one who gets employed based on the name printed on their diploma. Grade inflation needs to stop, and student’s education should not be based on a trend-like tendency.

Can violence be healthy?

I agree with Gerard Jones because violence in the media can be beneficial in ways most parents might not notice. Bloody video games and horror films can be an outlet for young children to explore their natural feelings that are usually suppressed. The need to act violently is a natural feeling in every human being. Suppressing those feelings, especially among children, can be damaging later in life. Children are given the outlet of playing violent video games or reenacting a scene from their favorite action movie so they can learn how to keep those emotions under control. By depriving children the opportunity to control these certain emotions, they will not understand how to regulate them for future development. Emotions of any kind that are being suppressed are unhealthy. By allowing children to view some violence, parents can take the opportunity to teach their children violence can be wrong. Parents should not use violent media as an excuse for their child’s behavior, but as an opportunity to teach their child how to express those emotions in a non-negative way.
Gerard Jones has constructed a well written essay which includes his personal experiences to strengthen his credibility towards his argument. Although Jones argument is well written, he lacks evidence to support his claim that violent media is good for kids. In the beginning of the essay, Jones uses his personal experience as a child to help take the audience back to their own childhood. After reading throughout his essay, it is clear that Jones’ audience is middle class parents. He uses simple language that the average adult can easily comprehend, and discusses childhood action figures that were popular for many of today’s parents. I appreciated how he mentioned the other side of his argument towards the end of his essay. This helped create an inspirational tone for the essay, and may sway his audience towards his side of the argument. Overall, Jones’ argument was very well organized, but it weak from his lack of supporting evidence.