This essay was painful to read! I started the essay with an open mind, but the first four pages were enough to get under my skin. I was open to the idea being presented, which was that our nation by majority is illiterate. However, this essay wasn't an argument. It was more like, listening to a teenager go off for eighteen pages about how much smarter he is than the rest of the nation--without having earned a college degree--and then go on complaining about the educational system, and politics, anything he could find to complain about. Furthermore, he didn't offer any solutions, or locate the the real source of the so called problem. Instead he offers advice on how to undermine authorities, or how to be as disruptive as possible in in school, as if that will help to raise the average IQ rating. The entire essay is like he wants to sit on a bench complaining about anything that he comes in contact with, and then expect the people around him to fix things to his satisfaction just because he says there wrong. I think this essay says more about Michael Moore than the so called purpose of the essay, which was the literacy of our nation.
Throughout the majority of the essay Mr. Moore fails to offer any valuable sources to back up his claims, at one point he supports his study by saying, "how do I know this? Because I read it thats how". Which left me asking, read it where? The enquire? or wikepedia? This essay has logical fallacy written all over it! Starting off strongly with hasty generalization, sarcasm, playing on emotions of his readers, and on people's standard of no tolerance of racism, or sexism.
Eventually this essay does touch on some viable argument, which had to do with corporations marketing within our schools nation wide. There is also an underlying point about questioning information we're given, and thinking for ourselves. However, he fails to back up much of this with good sources. It leaves me asking what are his facts based on? Where did this information come from? Its difficult to have any respect for the essay when its all unsubstantiated, and based on simply Michael Moore's opinions, and very limited scope of things. People gain their education based on information that their interested in, and is pertinent to their survival. We don't all have to have Michael Moore's standard of literacy in order to be intelligent.
Jarom,
ReplyDeleteBill Gates didn't earn a college degree either and is pretty dang bright. I don't think a college degree has anything to do with the amount of knowledge you can accumulated throughout real life. Check out http://www.college-startup.com/college/15-successful-entrepreneurs-who-didnt-need-college/ for other successful bright people that do not have a college degree.
I saw how he did offer solutions. Question authority, challenge those in charge. In the book, which wasn't in the excerpt we read, on page 98 he also tells students to know their Student Rights. He takes up 2 pages talking about The First Amendment, Supreme Court rulings, and how to get in touch with the ACLU to learn more. Further he talks about "How to Be a Student Subversive Instead of A Student Subservient". Even if you don't agree with those solutions, or how-to's, he does offer several.
Also, I posted a link on our class home page with all the references he used for this excerpt. Check them out at http://2010thursdaynights.blogspot.com/2009/02/lets-talk-rhetoric.html#comments if you want.
See ya in class Jarom!
Michael Hepworth