Timed Writing: Rhetorical Analysis


Read the prompt carefully. Craft a strong thesis that fully responds to the prompt. Write full body paragraphs (6-10 sentences) that contain direct quotes and commentary that develops and expands your argument about the rhetorical choices and message of the author.

The following passage is excerpted from the 1990 newspaper article “America Needs Its Nerds” by Leonid Fridman. At the time of the article’s publication, Fridman was a graduate student at Harvard University and a member of Harvard’s Society of Nerds and Geeks. Read the passage carefully. Write an essay that analyzes the rhetorical choices Fridman makes to develop his argument.
In your response you should do the following:
Respond to the prompt with a thesis that analyzes the writer’s rhetorical choices.
Select and use evidence to support your line of reasoning.
Explain how the evidence supports your line of reasoning.
Demonstrate an understanding of the rhetorical situation.
Use appropriate grammar and punctuation in communicating your argument.

There is something very wrong with the system of values in a society that has only derogatory terms like nerd and geek for the intellectually curious and academically serious.
A geek, according to Webster’s New World Dictionary, is a street performer who shocks the public by biting off heads of live chickens. It is a telling fact about our language and our culture that someone dedicated to pursuit of knowledge is compared to a freak biting the head off a live chicken.
Even at a prestigious academic institution like Harvard, anti-intellectualism is rampant: Many students are ashamed to admit, even to their friends, how much they study. Although most students try to keep up their grades, there is a minority of undergraduates for whom pursuing knowledge is the top priority during their years at Harvard. Nerds are ostracized while athletes are idolized.
The same thing happens in U.S. elementary and high schools. Children who prefer to read books rather than play football, prefer to build model airplanes rather than get wasted at parties with their classmates, become social outcasts. Ostracized for their intelligence and refusal to conform to society’s anti-intellectual values, many are deprived of a chance to learn adequate social skills and acquire good communication tools.
Enough is enough.
Nerds and geeks must stop being ashamed of who they are. It is high time to face the persecutors who haunt the bright kid with thick glasses from kindergarten to the grave. For America’s sake, the anti-intellectual values that pervade our society must be fought.
There are very few countries in the world where anti-intellectualism runs as high in popular culture as it does in the U.S. In most industrialized nations, not least of all our economic rivals in East Asia, a kid who studies hard is lauded and held up as an example to other students.
In many parts of the world, university professorships are the most prestigious and materially rewarding positions. But not in America, where average professional ballplayers are much more respected and better paid than faculty members of the best universities.
How can a country where typical parents are ashamed of their daughter studying mathematics instead of going dancing, or of their son reading Weber* while his friends play baseball, be expected to compete in the technology race with Japan or remain a leading political and cultural force in Europe? How long can America remain a world-class power if we constantly emphasize social skills and physical prowess over academic achievement and intellectual ability?

Answer:

Explanation:

In the passage from “America Needs Its Nerds” by Leonid Fridman, he is informing the public about America’s lack of support for the highly intelligent and those who seek knowledge instead of having it forced upon them. This is causing America to fall behind other countries academically. Fridman develops this argument through his creation of parallel sentence structure and the language within them, and comparing the people within society.

           Fridman’s main purpose is to emphasize how tragic it is that most people do not wish to be educated in America. Throughout the passage Fridman uses small segments of colloquial language that have a powerful impact. He mainly uses the colloquial language to describe the majority of people who do not seek knowledge and value education. In the second paragraph Fridman wrote, “a freak biting the head off a live chicken” (10). That was referencing how Americans have changed the meaning of the word “geek” to make fun of someone who is intelligent. This could also represent the irony through which the uneducated American may not know what certain words mean, therefore making up their own definitions and create offensive slang terms from those words. When Fridman is giving the true definition of the word “geek” he uses the word “freak” to define it. The word “freak” stands out and will stick with the reader and by making the comparison between those who are smart to freaks it represents how they are perceived. They seem as though they are outcasts. He wants to make it clear that it should not be this way. Those who are smart are not outcasts and should not be treated as such; instead they should be valued and respected.

           The seventh through ninth paragraphs have many comparisons that not only force the reader to think but also enhance Fridman’s argument that American society is slipping from an intellectual standpoint. He compares the US to East Asia (35-40) and baseball players to college professors (41-46). This highlights his idea that as a society it is vital to change our views and morals. America is supposed to be the best of the best, but it will not stay that way if its people do not value education like its competitors. Americans look up to baseball players as idols instead of college professors. Fridman is pushing for a change and ending the passage with the comparisons is important because the reader begins to make their own connections within their own mind and examples, therefore believing Fridman is correct in his reasoning.

           The first, third, and fifth paragraphs are three examples of parallel sentence structure which compare the minority of those valuing education and the majority of those who do not. The first paragraph has the phrase, “intellectually curious and academically serious” (4). It is important to note the parallelism is at the end of the paragraph verses the beginning. Having the parallelism at the end adds greater emphasis to the phrase as the reader transitions into the next paragraph. It is the final idea the reader reads as they conclude that paragraph. The parallelism adds a smooth transition into the next idea and paragraph. In the third paragraph there is a comparison of nerds and athletes, it says “nerds are ostracized while athletes are idolized” (17-18). Again, this sentence comes at the end of the paragraph which emphasizes Fridman’s point that those with intellectual ability are ignored while those with athletic ability are praised. The emphasis demonstrates how prominent this issue is in American society. At the end of the fifth paragraph there is an example of a parallel sentence that offers a problem and solution. It states, “Enough is enough” (28). It is brief and to the point which is Fridman’s purpose in writing it. He is stressing the importance that society needs to stop shaming its wise minority. This furthers his argument that a change is necessary.

           Throughout the passage, Fridman uses colloquial language within parallelism and comparisons to persuade his audience that “nerds” are essential to society and that more people should strive towards being one or else America will no longer be a great academic nation.

Why did Maheo ask the animals for help?

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What sorts of things/ideas are valued in Henry's world? How are his values different from those of his society

Complete the chart. Which of these
clues helps you understand what
"object" means?
Please help

if your good at poetry and english langauge pls help

Imagine your a reporter.. Write a News Paper Article on The Outsiders Chapter 6 fire. What happened? Include what, when, who, where, and how. At least 5 paragraphs. Be descriptive and catch the reader’s attention. Have an introduction. Here is the example outline. I have to include the name and date-of the publication.

Which topic sentence best supports the following thesis statement?
When it comes to bringing or buying lunch, personal preference should
be the most important deciding factor.
A. Bringing lunch takes time, but it is a good way to enjoy your
favorite foods.
B. Buying a school lunch costs 50 cents, and you get a free ice
cream ticket if you buy five lunches.
C. As you can see, there are pros and cons to both bringing and
buying lunch.
D. Some people prefer to bring their lunch, while others prefer
buying.

Use the Pythagorean Theorem to find the distance between the given points. Round to the nearest tenth when necessary.

What is the central idea of page 47? world without fish

What is King's purpose in calling the clergymen "men of genuine good will"?

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Many children now insist on owning a mobile phone. I do not believe that buying a mobile phone to children is a good idea for three reasons. The mobile phone negatively affects children's social life, it distracts them, and they may get abused.

First of all, the mobile phone negatively affects children's social lives. They might spend all their time playing on the phone and neglecting to spend time with their family and friends. 2 Moreover, they might even hate going out to the park and prefer to stay home, playing video games on their phones. For all that , mobile phones are not good for children's social life.

Secondly, mobile phones might distract children from studying. They spend all their time playing on the mobile phone without studying. Moreover, many children get addicted to mobile phones and then neglect everything else in their life. Mobile phones are very distracting to children.

Thirdly, children may get abused. They might get calls and messages from older people who abuse them. Added to that, they can connect to the internet and view websites that are not suitable for their age. We should protect our children both from the internet and from getting abused.

To sum up, I think that we should not buy mobile phones for children. They are young and need to be active and play around instead of playing on a mobile phone all the time.​

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What is the meaning of the word notorious in the sentence?
Los Angelos is notorious for its pollution problem, so tourists and residents are not surprised when there is smog
O well-known
O important
O popular
O significant

Does writing change you?  How can writing make you a better person?​

Based on the article, what generalization can you make about the
relationships among the Tracks family members?

A)
They have awkward relationships.

B)
They have supportive relationships.

C)They have contentious relationships.

D) They have competitive relationships.

_____means the writer's personality expressed through words.

Read the excerpts from Ovid’s "Pyramus and Thisbe" and Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.

"Pyramus and Thisbe"

"Now this same night
will see two lovers lose their lives: she was
the one more worthy of long life: it's I
who bear the guilt for this. O my poor girl,
it's I who led you to your death; I said
you were to reach this fearful place by night;
I let you be the first who would arrive.
O all you lions with your lairs beneath
this cliff, come now, and with your fierce jaws feast
upon my wretched guts! But cowards talk
as I do—longing for their death but not
prepared to act.” At that, he gathered up
the bloody tatters of his Thisbe's shawl
and set them underneath the shady tree
where he and she had planned to meet.

He wept

and cried out as he held that dear shawl fast:
"Now drink from my blood, too!” And then he drew
his dagger from his belt and thrust it hard
into his guts.

Romeo and Juliet

Romeo: O my love! my wife!
Death, that hath suck'd the honey of thy breath,
Hath had no power yet upon thy beauty:
Thou art not conquer'd; beauty's ensign yet
Is crimson in thy lips and in thy cheeks,
And death's pale flag is not advanced there.
Tybalt, liest thou there in thy bloody sheet?
O, what more favor can I do to thee,
Than with that hand that cut thy youth in twain
To sunder his that was thine enemy?
Forgive me, cousin! Ah, dear Juliet,
Why art thou yet so fair? shall I believe
That unsubstantial death is amorous,
And that the lean abhorred monster keeps
Thee here in dark to be his paramour?
For fear of that, I still will stay with thee;
And never from this palace of dim night
Depart again: here, here will I remain
With worms that are thy chamber-maids; O, here
Will I set up my everlasting rest,
And shake the yoke of inauspicious stars
From this world-wearied flesh. Eyes, look your last!
Arms, take your last embrace! and, lips, O you
The doors of breath, seal with a righteous kiss
A dateless bargain to engrossing death!
Come, bitter conduct, come, unsavory guide!
Thou desperate pilot, now at once run on
The dashing rocks thy sea-sick weary bark!
Here's to my love! [Drinks.] O, true apothecary!
Thy drugs are quick. Thus with a kiss, I die. [Dies.]

Which statement best describes the similarity between these excerpts?

Both men place blame upon the women they love.
Both men express hope that the women will recover.
Both men give dying tributes to the women they love.
Both men criticize society for denying them their love.

the children ............ fish. A, doesn't like B, don't like C, does like​

Use the drop down menus to analyze how this essay addresses the same topic as Bruchac's poem. How does Keeler's overall content differ from Bruchac's? How does Keeler's general approach to the subject differ from Bruchac's? How does Keeler's ending differ from Bruchac's?

I think my answers are right but I wanted to make sure.

Read the sentence.
Even historians argue over what these ancient tablets contain in its inscriptions.
Which answer shows the correct way to write this sentence?
Even historians argue over what these ancient tablets contain in it's inscriptions.
Even historians argue over what these ancient tablets contain in their inscriptions.
Correct as is.
Even historians argue over what these ancient tablets contain in they're inscriptions.

How is enthusiasm related to your ability to learn from failure?

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If someone were to ask you who you are, how would you describe yourself? Pick 3 symbols that represent you.

tell me a list of animes u think i should watch

which one of these sentences says arrogance?


A. that ain’t my style
B. and they knew casey wouldn’t let that ball go by again


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Usually, an author does not state a theme _____.

directly
early in a work
in the middle of a work
at all

Read this excerpt from Anne Frank Remembered.

Jo Koophuis and I remained seated as we'd been ordered for perhaps three-quarters of an hour. Then another man came through the door into our room and called to Koophuis to come inside with him, and they went into Mr. Kraler's office. I continued to sit there, not knowing what was going on anywhere else in the building, too afraid to imagine what might be happening.

How does Miep build suspense in this passage?

by telling events without revealing the outcome
by describing the specific details about the passing of time
by revealing the names of all the people involved
by explaining her thought process throughout the ordeal

Which of the following best describes the tone of the poem below?
Musee des Beaux Arts
W. H. Auden

About suffering they were never wrong,
The old Masters: how well they understood
Its human position: how it takes place
While someone else is eating or opening a window or just walking dully along;
How, when the aged are reverently, passionately waiting
For the miraculous birth, there always must be
Children who did not specially want it to happen, skating
On a pond at the edge of the wood:
They never forgot
That even the dreadful martyrdom must run its course
Anyhow in a corner, some untidy spot
Where the dogs go on with their doggy life and the torturer's horse
Scratches its innocent behind on a tree.

In Breughel's Icarus, for instance: how everything turns away
Quite leisurely from the disaster; the ploughman may
Have heard the splash, the forsaken cry,
But for him it was not an important failure; the sun shone
As it had to on the white legs disappearing into the green
Water, and the expensive delicate ship that must have seen
Something amazing, a boy falling out of the sky,
Had somewhere to get to and sailed calmly on.

a) detached in the face of suffering
b) enraged at injustice
c) saddened at human indifference

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Aggressive driving should be avoided because...

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If your target audience was only your teacher, which of the following technologies would you share your presentation?
your blog
your email
your class website

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