Rhetorical Analysis Summary

Hansiler Poviz

Dr. Tony Russell

WR 121

12/1/2019

Rhetorical Analysis: Euro-American Names and the Immigrants Dilemma

Introduction

This paper will rhetorically analyze the article written about the dilemma of American immigrants regarding the names common for Euro-Americans. Joe Pinsker wrote it in The Atlantic in the issue of January 3, 2019. The author of this article works as a staff writer in the respective news agency and write on the problems related to education and families. Therefore, he seems qualified to write on this dilemma as the topic is linked with American immigrant families.

Discussion

The author highlighted in his article about how immigrants face discrimination upon names which are not Anglo-American. He gave evidence through different research studies and experiments that how American immigrants experience difficulties to be recognized by the society by their native name (Pinsker, n.p). They are forced by the norms of the American nation to adopt a name which is more Euro-American instead of a name which suits their cultural identity. This appeals to the US audience, especially the immigrants that after targeting the age, gender, religion, race, and color; the name becomes a new source of discrimination for the conservatives.

The dilemma here to study in this article is those immigrants who don’t have Euro-American names, are neither given admissions in academic institutes nor provided with excellent employment opportunities (Pinsker, n.p). The discrimination continues unless they change their names to the one which is more common among the White Americans. This highlights that how stereotypical the minds of the people have become regarding any name that does not feel like to be American (Sadeghi, n.p). It conveys the message that American society and culture needs to modify their mindset regarding minorities and stop considering them and their culture inferior to the White-Americans.

The majority cannot influence the minorities to adopt the culture of Euro-Americans forcefully. The American people need to realize that every culture of the world and its traditions are unique in their way. All cultures should be respected and given space in society. Therefore, the author wants the reader to launch a movement to preserve the names of the minorities and pressurize the government to make legislation regarding the protection of the names of the immigrants. If any individual or institution tries to change the name of any immigrant student or employee by force, that person should be severely punished.

This affects the reader to feel sympathetic towards American immigrants. Some may name their children on the names which historically belong to minorities of America. This may be in support of immigrants so that their native names get a special place in American culture. Therefore, after reading this article, the minorities may allow themselves to raise voice for their legitimate rights regarding the preservation of their historical and cultural names.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the author stated comprehensive and logical solutions for what the immigrants and other minorities could do to preserve their culture – specifically their cultural names. He addressed the minorities and said that they should make efforts to relocate themselves to those countries who are not as intolerant as the American society. He gave logical reasoning in this regard that once the immigrants relocate, they revert to their traditional names. This shows how much eager these people were to change their names.

Therefore, these solutions were directed towards one conclusion – to make American immigrants realize that if they are living in America, it doesn’t mean that they live while compromising their native identity. It doesn't mean that for getting a good education or job, they sacrifice everything in their life, even their name. Preserving identity should be a top priority for the immigrants, and that should be only possible if they raise active voice against the current injustice being committed against them.

Works Cited

Pinsker, Joe. American Immigrants And The Dilemma Of ‘White-Sounding’ Names. The Atlantic. N. p., (2019). Web. 12 Jan. 2019.

Sadeghi, Shirin. America Fears your Non-Anglicized Name. Huff Post. N.p., (2012). Web. 13 Jan. 2019.