TOW #3 - "We’re Working Harder Than Ever, So Why Is Productivity Plummeting?”

Rana Foroohar, an economics journalist for Time and Global Economic Analyst for CNN (“About.”), comments on the apparent lack of productivity that exists in the United States in her article “We’re Working Harder Than Ever, So Why Is Productivity Plummeting?” (Foroohar). In an age of countless technological advancements, this editorial serves as an in-depth look at the current state of the United States of America’s economy given the amount of work being completed. Foroohar transitions into potential reasons for a loss of productivity using synecdoche: “With birth­rates falling and immigration down, productivity needs to go up—or we’ll soon be worse off economically than our parents” (Foroohar). As commonly used when describing the economy, Foroohar uses the term “parents” to distinguish between two distinct generations and identify her audience as young American workers. This establishment of the audience is essential to the purpose of the editorial, which is to identify and suggest ways to resolve potential reasons for a decline in America’s productivity. Additionally, Foroohar alludes to a time when the United States flourished economically, which “happened from 1945 to 1973, when there were major public and private investments in education, infrastructure, and worker training” (Foroohar). This contributes to the editorial’s purpose of identifying potential solutions to resolve a dip in productivity, as she claims this same practice today “would bolster demand, … creating a virtuous cycle of productivity growth, wage growth and economic growth” (Foroohar). Foroohar’s argument focuses around that final statement; governmental and private advancements in education offer more opportunity for the economy to strengthen, allowing citizens to usefully focus their efforts. While identifying the purpose of this editorial is straightforward, it was slightly lacking in data and statistics to back up claims, including education’s impact on the economy. Foroohar could have included specific governmental investments in education that helped to raise the economy after 1945, but because this significant portion of the editorial was unsubstantiated, her purpose of determining ways to increase productivity was left uncompleted.

Works Cited

“About.” RanaForoohar.com, http://www.ranaforoohar.com/about/.

Foroohar, Rana. “We're Working Harder Than Ever, So Why Is Productivity Plummeting?” Time, Time, 24 Aug. 2016, http://time.com/4464743/productivity-decline/.

TOW #2 - Calvin and Hobbes Comic Strip

A Calvin and Hobbes comic strip showing a phone conversation. This comic strip was produced by Bill Watterson and was found at http://i1.nyt.com/images/2014/04/13/education/413/413-articleLarge-v2.jpg (Watterson)

This comic strip is from Calvin and Hobbes, a comic strip produced by Bill Watterson, who had much success on a national level during the years he produced the comic strips (Editors). Within this text, a young boy named Calvin picks up his home telephone only to deny taking a message for his dad, claiming that he is not concerned with others’ wellbeing. This comic strip satirizes the polite way children are taught to talk on the phone, as Calvin is very upfront about having no interest in taking any message. As this comic was produced to be placed in a newspaper or in a dedicated Calvin and Hobbes book, Watterson’s primary audience is ordinary people who seek humor from comic strips. To effectively establish this scenario, Watterson uses three rhetorical devices: onomatopoeia, hypophora, and hyperbole. Via the alarming “RRIINGG RRINGG” (Watterson 1) in the first box, the situation is created as the reader becomes aware that the phone is ringing, establishing a sense of urgency to pick the phone up. Calvin then continued, politely, to answer the phone, letting the caller know that his father is unavailable to speak. Watterson then uses hypophora to continue a two-way conversation, even though the reader only views the event from Calvin’s perspective: “Will I take a message? I don’t know – what’s in it for me?” (Watterson 3). While it is understood that Calvin himself is not using hypophora in this situation, the writer Bill Watterson tactically provided the readers with this question for the conversation to move forward. If he were to remove this question from the text, the context of Calvin’s statements would be illogical and unintelligible, ruining the flow of the short comic strip. Lastly, hyperbole is used when Calvin says, “People always assume you’re some kind of altruist” (Watterson 4). Calvin takes the commonly known scenario of being asked to take a message and compares it to a humanitarian deed, largely exaggerating the scale by which he is helping the caller. Relatedly, Calvin claims that everyone “always” (Watterson 4) asks him for a favor, further satirizing the scale of this ordinary exchange via the use of a hyperbole. Watterson intended to make his audience laugh by having Calvin refuse to do a simple task that only poses a minor inconvenience; with the help of several rhetorical devices that contribute emotion and context, Watterson produced a humorous comic strip that contrasts the different scale of duties in childhood and adulthood.

Works Cited

Editors, Biography.com. "Bill Watterson Biography." The Biography.com Website. A&E Networks Television, 2 Jan. 2015. Web. 18 Sept. 2016.

Watterson, Bill. "Calvin and Hobbes." The New York Times. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Sept. 2016.

TOW #1 - James Garfield’s Inaugural Address

James A. Garfield was elected president in 1881, less than 20 years after the Civil War in the United States (Editors and McPherson). In his inaugural address, Garfield recognized the importance of addressing the segregation that remained in society. Because there was still great tension between the North and the South, due in part to the abolition of slavery and also due to the growth of a strong central government (McPherson), Garfield had to find a balance between emphasizing both local and central rights. Though both parts of the country still held different beliefs, Garfield remained optimistic while also encouraging equality and a strong central government via the use of several rhetorical devices. Garfield used an allusion to a quote by Abraham Lincoln to emphasize the value of equality: “The elevation of the negro race from slavery to the full rights of citizenship is the most important political change we have known since the adoption of the Constitution of 1787. […] The influence of this force will grow greater and bear richer fruit with the coming years” (James). As Lincoln’s original use of the expression was, “I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice” (Lincoln), Garfield extended it to deliver the message that people should be more compassionate and stop continuing prejudice. Additionally, Garfield addressed his duties in the executive position using synecdoche: “And now, fellow-citizens, I am about to assume the great trust which you have committed to my hands” (James). While Garfield is formally accepting the position of President of the United States, he states “my hands” to detach his own bias from the position, further emphasizing that he stands only as an elected national representative to serve others. Garfield, a firm believer in equality, had unfortunately limited time in office; in July of 1881, he was shot and killed (Editors). This does not, however, affect the value of Garfield’s inaugural address, as he purposefully and tactically brought attention to several of the largest issues existing in the country at the time with encouraging words to proactively fix them.

Works Cited

Editors, Biography.com. "James Garfield Biography." The Biography.com Website. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

James A. Garfield: "Inaugural Address," March 4, 1881. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project. http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=25823.

Lincoln, Abraham. "Abraham Lincoln Quotes." BrainyQuote. N.p., n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

McPherson, James, Dr. "A Brief Overview of the American Civil War." Civilwar.com. History.com, n.d. Web. 11 Sept. 2016.

IRB Intro Post #1

During the first quarter of school, I will be reading Killing Lincoln: The Shocking Assassination That Changed America Forever by Bill O’Reilly and Martin Dugard. I have a particular interest in reading this book due to my curiosity in politics and history, and I also recently began researching Andrew Johnson, who was Vice President with Lincoln and later became president following Lincoln’s assassination. I understand that John Wilkes Booth is the murderer of Lincoln, but I do not currently know the specific policies that he disagreed with. I know that this will be an emotional description of the events that took place leading up to and after Lincoln’s assassination, and I hope to gain more knowledge about one of America’s most famous presidents.