Rhetorical Analysis Esaay

Summitted by

Submitted to

Assignment

Date

Is Google making us Stupid?

`Nicholas Carr is the author of the article. In his article, "Is Google Making us Stupid?" Carr states her point of view that people are becoming slow-witted due to information consumed by the internet. General people are the audience of this essay, and the purpose of this essay is to inform and persuade the audience. It is not necessary that every audience may completely agree with Carr, but he presented his point of view in a very healthy manner with facts and evidence. This article is for the young generation, who are raised in the era of technology. When everyone has a cell phone, and anyone can get information on some clicks. Carr asks the question to his readers that reading online and using the internet to get all information is useful in the real sense, or it is the worst use of technology that is making our youth stupid.

`Carr use the different rhetorical device to make this essay persuasive. The two essential methods are allusion and ethos. Allusions is a direct or indirect reference that is generally known as myth, event, ceremony. Book or place or art etc. However, ethos appeal audience by presenting the credible source so that the audience can trust them. Carr's use of allusions, logos, Pathos and ethos successfully inform the reader that the excessive consumption on the internet may affect the reading and writing skills. As well as it provides advice to his audience to limit the use of the internet overwriting or reading.

Carr's claim that the internet is also decreasing human concentration powers as the brain is changing in away. And to prove this point of view he presented his example from, "The Web has been a godsend". Carr says that it is not just searching or getting information through the internet, but it is making our youth slow and lazy. The article preset many types of research that increase its reliability. The examples of ethos in this work including the studies of s computer scientist Joseph Weizenbaum, media theorist Marshall McLuhan, Bruce Friedman etc.

To appeal to logos, Carr added many studies and experiments. E.g., in one study conducted by UCL (University College London researchers related to online research habits. And support Carr's argument by stating that people are developing the practice of skim sources. Carr also uses historical incidences to present logos as powerful tools. Like he says that human obey clocks because we have stopped listening to senses and resulting machines are becoming more valuable. This support Carr's argument as he says that watch is not internet or source of information, but it can change mind. However, it is a strength of the internet that it can put an effect on the thinking of people. Or in other words, the internet may alter the way people think and then behave.

Carr practices Pathos very effectively, and he uses the concept of fear in the form of Pathos. Pathos is another important rhetorical device to make writing practical and worthy. Carr introduces the fear in the mind of his audience by saying that Google is trying to attach or link between the human mind and artificial intelligence. Carr applied the term "unsettling ", and it is connotation which is built on the bases of fear or behind unsettling achieves the purpose of using Pathos. Carr considers our mind as an obsolete computer that requires a better hard drive and a fast processor to work efficiently. Then he compares the human brain with computers. The comparison between the human mind and computer allow readers to frightened them that machines are much better than the human mind. He further explains that this comparison shows the human brain is inferior to a computer as it creates a sense of fear and inferiority complex.

Moreover, Carr uses some historical references for logos and provide counter argument or refutation to increase rhetoric devices. The press and the way writing developed, and it put strong effects on human knowledge and thinking. For him, the writing process may help to increase human intelligence. Carr also uses some striking terms like; myriad of blessings or expand human knowledge. These terms played throughout this article. By adding refutation, Carr increases the reliability of his work. For refutation, he says that people are getting much useful and valuable from the internet then what they are losing from leaving behind writing and printing press. This refutation enhances his efforts to persuade his audience through logos.

Additionally, ethos is necessary rhetoric devices, and Carr uses it by calling himself, worrywart. Carr was trying to tell his audience that he may be wrong but later on negating that he cannot be illegal increases the ethos appeal. Carr also wants to advise his audience that they don't need to rely on their computers or the internet entirely. His use of instilling fear develops Pathos, but he also suggests that there are possibly many negatives outs come of using the internet. He advises his readers that for any internet without using books. This internet can affect the human brain by making it slow and stupid.

Concludingly, Carr depend on ethos, pathos and logos to persuade his audience, and he uses them very frequently in this essay. For ethos, he applied the concept of fear to create emotional appeal and relating peoples a fellow human. By refereeing innovations and quoting experiments, Carr presented his logos. And for Pathos, he introduced the concept of fear from technology.

Work cited

Carr, Nicholas. "Is Google making us stupid?" https://wwnorton.com