But Not at This Cost
Dinesh Singh
English 11
Article Title: ...But Not at This Cost Author: Armstrong Williams 1. Speaker: The producer of this piece is Armstrong Williams, an African American male who is trying to prove with his points that African Americans are labeling themselves as victims to give themselves easier pathways. The bias is that Williams’s feels that African Americans are letting themselves be specially treated and given certain advantages because of their pasts. In the text Williams states, “Because of this victim status, the logic goes, they are owed special treatment. But that isn't progress, its inertia.” The quote shows that African Americans are looking to be treated specially and like they are owed the treatment, which is why Williams is stating the reasons he is disappointed in his people. 2. Occasion: This piece was written in 1977 during the time Williams was a senior in High School. Williams was prompted to write this piece after he had begun to receive scholarships from prestige colleges. These scholarships had prompted him to write this piece because he was not receiving these scholarships due to his great academic scores but because schools were encouraging more African American students to enroll. William’s piece he states, “The schools wanted me in part because of my good academic record--but also because affirmative action mandates required them to encourage more black students to enroll.” This quote shows that William’s was basically receiving special treatment due to his race. 3. Audience: The audience for Williams’s piece is directed towards one specific group of people, African American males and females. You can tell the document was created for this group of people because in the piece William’s states, “it pains me to see my peers rest their heads upon the warm pillow of victim status.” The quote shows that William’s is saying this directly to his race, and that he is disappointed in seeing his people taking the status of being
English 11
Article Title: ...But Not at This Cost Author: Armstrong Williams 1. Speaker: The producer of this piece is Armstrong Williams, an African American male who is trying to prove with his points that African Americans are labeling themselves as victims to give themselves easier pathways. The bias is that Williams’s feels that African Americans are letting themselves be specially treated and given certain advantages because of their pasts. In the text Williams states, “Because of this victim status, the logic goes, they are owed special treatment. But that isn't progress, its inertia.” The quote shows that African Americans are looking to be treated specially and like they are owed the treatment, which is why Williams is stating the reasons he is disappointed in his people. 2. Occasion: This piece was written in 1977 during the time Williams was a senior in High School. Williams was prompted to write this piece after he had begun to receive scholarships from prestige colleges. These scholarships had prompted him to write this piece because he was not receiving these scholarships due to his great academic scores but because schools were encouraging more African American students to enroll. William’s piece he states, “The schools wanted me in part because of my good academic record--but also because affirmative action mandates required them to encourage more black students to enroll.” This quote shows that William’s was basically receiving special treatment due to his race. 3. Audience: The audience for Williams’s piece is directed towards one specific group of people, African American males and females. You can tell the document was created for this group of people because in the piece William’s states, “it pains me to see my peers rest their heads upon the warm pillow of victim status.” The quote shows that William’s is saying this directly to his race, and that he is disappointed in seeing his people taking the status of being