David Kupelian has quite a few things to say about this generation. I believe his passion for his studies and the love of his son are what stir such an emotional response through his writing. In the first few pages alone, Kupelian uses a number of rhetorical devices to prove his point and reach out to his audience. While I believe his opinion is slightly misguided and a little biased. The points he makes are no less valid.
In the first paragraph describes his situation with his son. The situation being the once independent boy scout falling victim to peer influence and current social trends. He uses this entire scenario to exemplify what he believes is happening to the vast majority of today's youth. He believes much of the blame lies in the media of today and rap music. Using cause and effect, he explains how the culture of rap music affected the kids and their "hard" attitudes were emulated, creating a "gangsta nation." While I agreed with his argument for the most part, there was no part that I agreed with more than the corporates trying to capture the spirit of the youth and reflect it back as paid advertising. I watched the Disney channel the other day and was disgusted at the amount of adverting and messages that were being thrown tossed around. I believe he illustrated his point beautifully buy using the exemplification of sprite.It was unpopular until it started funding hip hop shows and made itself to be the drink of that generation. Something Kupelian called a "Brilliant marketing Scheme"
In short, Kupelian uses several (if not all) listed rhetorical devices in his persuasive argument. While I don't agree with his ideals of a "home schooled" generation for several reasons, I believe he comes from a place of caring whose writing only furthers my trust in his argument. He may be misinformed about all of today's generation, and a little biased, but his examples and arguments are strong and give a good amount of information. The use of all of his rhetorical devices only strengthen his writing and the amount of persuasion in the information presented.
Monday, April 29, 2013
Sunday, April 21, 2013
If I had the ability to change my society, it would probably be something along the lines of massive social reform, not something as simple as what I'm discussing here. However, due to the fact that this exercise is limited to one particular choice, I would have to choose the currently trending topic that is very controversial in the United States today. The topic of gun control has been discussed and worked over in the media what seems like every day since the tragic Newtown Connecticut incident. People arguing for and against gun control, background checks, and regulation. My first order of business, would be to implement a gun regulation law, that would require all assault weapons to be banned for all citizens who do not possess the required permit. Only certain citizens would able to obtain this permit after mandatory instructional classes, and basic psychic exam. Background checks are mandatory for all gun owners. New guns (non assault) may be obtained without a license, after a 14 day waiting period. All guns are to be registered with the ATF.
A common argument I hear against the illegalization of assault weapons is something along the lines of "Making them illegal wont take them off the street, meth is illegal, and its still on the street." While this is true, its an awful argument because methamphetamines were made legal, the amount of meth users would increase. Making it illegal severely cuts down the amount on the street.
In short, if I were to construct an entire gun regulation proposition, I would probably have to spend a bit more time considering all the factors, like the one that making assult weapons ilegal would also take them out of the hands of well adjusted citizens. And making them illegal would create the daunting task of removing them from the hands of current gun owning citizens. Good luck in the deep south.
A common argument I hear against the illegalization of assault weapons is something along the lines of "Making them illegal wont take them off the street, meth is illegal, and its still on the street." While this is true, its an awful argument because methamphetamines were made legal, the amount of meth users would increase. Making it illegal severely cuts down the amount on the street.
In short, if I were to construct an entire gun regulation proposition, I would probably have to spend a bit more time considering all the factors, like the one that making assult weapons ilegal would also take them out of the hands of well adjusted citizens. And making them illegal would create the daunting task of removing them from the hands of current gun owning citizens. Good luck in the deep south.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Personal Reflection
What I've learned in English 1A
Although Persepolis was the feature of my last semester's history class, the book and continuing issues that surround the US and Middle East remain as pertinent as always. What was fascinating to me was the amount of detail and information that the small groups presented. Last semester I was given the historical background and key events surrounding Persepolis, however what I lacked was the cultural ties and traditions that gives the book context. This class provided a much needed amount of background information, that brings the story together, and sheds more light on the conflicts of the Middle East.
Along with the cultural analysis of persepolis, I learned valuable skills including the proper usage of MLA format, and the formation of a TEA paragraph. Most of the time I assumed that quotes speak for themselves. However in light of recent teachings I've learned that not only do I need to backup my quotes with an explanation, I need to introduce them as well, giving the paper a smoother transaction from statement to quote to explanation to analysis.
MLA was a writing style I was always been using, however the finite details of citing sources and proper layout escaped me in the time between college and high school. It was a much needed review to work in MLA and implement it into our papers and paragraphs.
Although Persepolis was the feature of my last semester's history class, the book and continuing issues that surround the US and Middle East remain as pertinent as always. What was fascinating to me was the amount of detail and information that the small groups presented. Last semester I was given the historical background and key events surrounding Persepolis, however what I lacked was the cultural ties and traditions that gives the book context. This class provided a much needed amount of background information, that brings the story together, and sheds more light on the conflicts of the Middle East.
Along with the cultural analysis of persepolis, I learned valuable skills including the proper usage of MLA format, and the formation of a TEA paragraph. Most of the time I assumed that quotes speak for themselves. However in light of recent teachings I've learned that not only do I need to backup my quotes with an explanation, I need to introduce them as well, giving the paper a smoother transaction from statement to quote to explanation to analysis.
MLA was a writing style I was always been using, however the finite details of citing sources and proper layout escaped me in the time between college and high school. It was a much needed review to work in MLA and implement it into our papers and paragraphs.
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