Rhetorical Analysis

Today in America many people question whether or not college is truly worth the stress, time, and cost it throws on an individual. With these “burdens” comes alienation from the outside world with little fun and fulfilling experiences. Some people even say that many college students have zero creativity, and are proud of it. This idea of self-growth and freedom along with a diverting experience, while going through college, is something that Rick Perlstein himself has had the opportunity to do. Unfortunately, Perlstein experienced this in his days, and has come to realization that, “College as America used to understand it, is coming to an end” (Perlstein). With this article being published in the liberal magazine, New York Times, many people, mostly ones who have gone through college, completely disagreed with his opinion. One of those insulted people being Liz Addison. Addison’s claim argues that college is yes, much different, but in a positive way, especially in the community colleges. All together in her one sided- argument, she includes several rhetorical devices to persuade, inform, and emotionally prove her claim. These devices being ethos, and pathos, gives her a strong foundation and effective argument to the liberal audience she is writing her article to.

In the very beginning of Liz Addison’s article, a current student at Southern Maine community college, you automatically get the sense that she strongly disagrees with how Mr. Perlstein, a journalist who is stuck in the 60’s, and how he perceives college campuses today. Her bitter tone from the start belittles Mr. Perlstein’s idea of how college really mattered when he experienced it in his days. She sarcastically states, “When a pretentious reading list was all it took to a lift a child from suburbia. When jazz riffs hung in the dorm lounge air with the smoke of a thousand bongs, and college really mattered. Really Mattered?” (Addison). This statement unquestionably lets the audience know that...