Poverty essay
Why "What is Poverty?" Makes the Reader UncomfortableWhat does it mean to be poor? Jo Goodwin Parker's article, "What is Poverty?", summarizes her ideas of the true definition of poverty. The article is harsh and direct and can actually make the reader uncomfortable while reading it. Parker's stern and caustic tone throughout the article makes her seem angry at the reader. Parker's content is extremely graphic and too personal for the reader. Though her ethical appeal and logical appeal are extremely weak, her emotional appeal is excessively strong. Parker directs this article at the reader and attacks the reader's emotions through her harsh tone, graphic content, and lack of rhetorical appeal. Parker's tone throughout the article causes the reader to feel many different emotions. She begins the article with a stern, harsh tone by demanding, "You ask me what is poverty? Listen to me"(467). The tone is too direct to the reader, causing the reader to feel uncomfortable from the very beginning. Then, her tone starts making the reader feel guilty. Parker uses the phrase, "You say in your clean clothes coming from your clean house, 'Anybody can be clean'"(468). This phrase not only is too direct, but it makes the reader f
She utilizes so much emotional appeal that it actually makes the reader angry. A lot of Parker's content is extremely graphic for the reader. Instead of trying to turn her life around, she complains about her entire life. Parker's article makes the reader feel guilty and makes one almost wonder if she is telling the entire truth. She begins every paragraph with a different image of poverty such as "Poverty is dirt"(468), "poverty is living in a smell that never leaves"(467), and "poverty is looking into a black future"(469). Her content creates too many harsh images of her experience in a life of poverty. Parker might not be telling the whole picture. She begins the article by complaining "Here I am, dirty, smelly, and with no 'proper' underwear on and with the stench of my rotting teeth near you" (467). Everyone in life has a series of choices, but through this article one can tell that Parker did not think that to be true. Parker lacks on her ethical appeal which makes the article seem one-sided. The excessive amount of emotional appeal also makes the reader uncomfortable. This constant complaining annoys the reader and makes the reader even more uncomfortable. "(468) The reader cannot help but to feel guilty for her children because most people have all of these commodities. The reader begins to get to know Parker too well and starts invading her personal space.
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