Critical Analyses

Zachary Windsor

Critical Analyses Entry #5

The Rise of The Blended American

By Jeff Jacoby

1.

In the essay “The Rise of The Blended American”, Jeff Jacoby argues against categorising persons by race. Jacoby opens his essay with an example of a person classifying another by race, and them being corrected for it. He states no scientific difference can be drawn amongst the races other than skin color. Jacoby believes purposefully creating these divisions creates race issues, and, by continuing to include race options in the census, the government helps perpetuate these issues. Jacoby mentions the growing of number of persons who answer “‘one or more’ racial categories” on their census. He argues to change the census and exclude the race question, against the wishes of the government and race related interest groups.

2.

The subject is the grouping of persons by race in the United States, and its effects. This limits the audience to persons in the United States, and most directly concerns persons interested in the political and social aspects of race . The author intends to convince the reader that any diving persons into groups by race causes more harm, and the government in particular should avoid doing so. The author achieves this by using a critical, and at some points accusatory, tone.  The author explains the civil rights leader’s stance against the government grouping persons by race, and explains the government still is: “Yet, the government still draws and values those distinctions - more obsessively than ever, to judge from last year’s census questionnaire, which offered 63 racial options.” The author deducts from the stances of civil rights leader and accuses the census itself of perpetuating past vices. This, along with the author’s overall criticism toward both conscious and unconscious grouping of persons by race, intends to cause the same contempt within the reader, and thus agree with the author.

3.

1. “But now racial taxonomy should have been shelved with phlogiston and phrenology as laughably obsolete explanations of the way the world works.” I had to look these words up. Taxonomy is sorting things biologically, while phlogiston and phrenology are outdated science concepts. The author chooses these words to sound more scholarly, and thus make a stronger effect on the reader.
2. “Almost 7 million americans identified themselves as multiracial on last year’s census, proof of any were needed, that love doesn’t stop at the color line.” There isn’t a literal “color line”, he uses it as a metaphor to better explain his point.
3. “And if what was true for couples like the Conerlys or the parents of Tiger Woods, who married and had children at a time when the taboo against interracial families still ran deep, how much more will it be true of those falling in love today?” The author continues to explain and answer his own question, making this question rhetorical. He used the rhetorical question to argue whether or not marrying interracially is taboo today, and advance his argument.
4. “The population of blended citizens is soaring, and with it the realization that racial divisions are only skin deep.” He uses the metaphor “skin deep” to emphasize his point. This one is effective because the term is recognizable (it is today at least, it may have been less so in 2001); it functions almost as an analogy. A recognizable term has connotations of comfort, making the argument more agreeable on the whole.
5. “Tens of millions of Americans have learned to think outside the racial box. It’s time the government followed suit.” He uses another recognizable metaphor, “think outside the box”, but modifies it to expressly follow this topic. This metaphor is used to strengthen his last sentence, a short and powerful call to action.

4.

I appreciate author’s philosophical view of race, and agree with his overall intention, but I think their are some faults in his argument. In an ideal world, we would be better off if our minds ignored race, and only saw each other based on character and the fact we are the same species. But I don’t think the human mind is capable of doing so. We may be completely capable of proactively taking steps to avoid racial bias and treating everyone fairly (and even extend this to loving someone of another race), but we tend to find differences and group things, or better or worse. Trying to solve our race divisions by ignoring the fact race exists would only work if everyone actively ignored the natural urge to see differences in appearance, and if we all forgot the past. American history is scarred with racial division. Many believe that simply ignoring race at this point would make the healing process worse. Eliminating any active racial bias in the government and other institutions is the best start, but I think the author picked a bad target to criticize. The census is more or less just a mass survey, and the race questions are used for demographic purposes, and often very useful for measuring whether or not healing is taking place. Regardless, we can still dream for an era when everyone lives together peacefully, and that era will eventually come.

Zachary Windsor

Critical Analyses Entry #4

What Do You Call A Platypus?

By Isaac Asimov

1.

In the essay “What Do You Call A Platypus?”, Isaac Asimov discusses the oddities of classifying the duckbill platypus and defining animal kingdoms in general. Asimov introduces the platypus, and explains how it sent the 1800 scientific community into an outrage when it was first discovered. The problem was, its features fit no earlier understanding of the animal classes. Asimov describes the various biological features of the animal, and that a new subclass was made because they seemed so unique. Then, Asimov details the bone structures that separate mammals from reptiles. He concludes from this information that there is still confusion on how the platypus should be classified.

2.

Isaac Asimov includes information in his essay that is specific to zoology. However, none of it is technical enough to confuse a person who may not have background knowledge on the subject. In order to peak the interest of this wider audience, Asimov uses an impassioned tone. Consider this quote: “But how far along the pathway are they  For instance did they have hair? It might seem that it would be impossible to tell whether an extinct animal had hair or not just from the bones, but let’s see-” Asimov uses rhetorical questions so that the reader feels excited to know the answer. The third sentence implies doubt and suspense that amplifies the effect. Asimov shows his own enthusiasm, and it has its effect on the reader. Asimov knows the answer to the imposed questions; the information is relayed just after this transition. Any writing about a scientific subject ultimately is relaying some sort of scientific data. The reason Asimov writes with an impassioned tone, in what would otherwise be a dull research paper, is because his purpose is not only to inform, but to intrigue and to entertain the reader as well.

3.

a) “Would that help us decide on the place of the platypus? Would it cause us to confirm our decision - or change it?” A couple more rhetorical questions to rack the reader’s brain.

b) “The bill, ridged with horny plates, is used as a sieve, dredging about sensitively in the mud, filtering out the shrimps, earthworms, tadpoles and other small creatures that serve it as food.” Some light imagery on the appearance of the bill, and how it is used. The affective descriptions engage the reader.

c)“Zoologists stared th the thing in disbelief. Hair like a mammal! Bill and feet like an aquatic bird! Poison spurs like a snake! A single opening in the rear as though it laid eggs! There was an explosion of anger. The thing was a hoax. Some unfunny jokester in australia, taking advantage of the distance and strangeness of the continent, had stitched together parts of widely different creatures and was intent on making fools of innocent zoologists in England.” This device implies strong emotion through sentence length (and punctuation). Short, emotive sentences climax to a lengthy raging one.

d) “Is the duckbill platypus a mammal? A reptile? Or just a duckbill platypus?” These rhetorical questions, used as the final statements of the essay, leave the reader with the main idea in mind and the same emotive attitude towards the subject.

e) “Fossil remnants exist of mammals and reptiles if the far past, but these remnants are almost entirely of bones and teeth. Bones and teeth give us interesting information but they can’t tell us everything.”  These two sentences reflect one another. The first ends with “bones and teeth”; the second begins with “bones and teeth”. This repetition of the same phrase emphasizes the important point.

4.

I am not one who has ever been intensely interested in zoology, but this essay is interesting. I am impressed on how Asimov was able to turn a fact-based science subject into an engaging and entertaining essay. It reminds me of the book I’m currently reading,  “How To Live On Mars” by Robert Zubrin, which also is able to make a very science intensive subject entertaining, even funny. As for Asimov's ultimate classification that the platypus is unlabeled, I disagree. What I do know zoology would tell me that all animals come from a certain branch of evolution and must be able to fit in and relate to other animals somehow. Overall, I enjoyed the new information about the platypus and the process of organising animals in general.

Zachary Windsor

Critical Analyses Entry #3

“If You Find This Letter, Then It’s For You”: What It’s Like to Write Love Letters to Total Strangers

By Hannah Brencher

1.

In the article “ ‘If You Find This Letter, Then It’s For You’: What It’s Like to Write Love Letters to Total Strangers”,  Hannah Brencher recounts her experiences of sending love letters to people she does not know. It started for her when she saw one lonely person and decided to write a love letter to cheer them up, but the person was gone before she could give it to them. Gradually she filled a notebook with letters that were never given to the intended recipient. So instead she decided to leave love letters in public places, addressed to any person who picked one up. She created a website to tell the stories of her actions and encourage others to do the same. When she learned of a person in need, she used this website to collect many letters for them. She turned this into a mission, and more and more people were receiving boxes of love letters from total strangers, brightening their lives.

2.

Hannah Brencher’s primarily narrative piece tells of her gradually expanding mission to spread happiness through anonymous love letters. She expresses common moral values unique and interesting way, appealing to a general audience. Much like how her letter writing spreads positivity and love, her goal is to do the to same with her essay for her for her readers. Along with the cheerful story itself, she does this by keeping an optimistic tone. Consider this quote: “We make mistakes. We hurt the people who mean more than the world to us. And we get hurt. We get rejected. We fail tests. We oversleep. We break promises. We break hearts. We doubt ourselves. We drink too much. We laugh too little. And we are hopeful.” Brencher uses short sentences to build excitement, repetition to drive a point, and a climatic positive observation to contrast the previous negative ones. This powerfully communicates optimism, and the reader feels the strong emotion. This expression of strong emotion causes the reader to sympathize with Breacher’s ideas, achieving her purpose.

3.

“a) During the fall of 2010, I kept tucking and leaving, tucking and leaving. I left the letters everywhere I could. I propped them on bathroom sinks. I slid them into coat pockets in department stores. I left them in fitting rooms. I would stick them into the seats at work when I would attend large meetings. I was playing Juliet to the city.” This quote uses only short sentences to build excitement. Also, the last sentence repeats what was previously stated.

b) “ He had the dirt of both Afghanistan and Iraq deep in the grooves of his boots. PTSD hung on his shoulders like a cloak when he finally came home.” The first sentence creatively alludes to where he served. The second sentence uses simile. These two devices work together to strongly convey emotion

c) “He e-mailed me one night about two years ago. Matt told me he was getting older. His family and he were disconnected. He didn’t have many friends. He was starting to believe he’d leave nothing behind and he’d be forgotten.” Again with only using short sentences. It doesn’t necessarily built excitement like the others, but it does emphasize the gloomy tone. It takes sad to contrast with the happy to create an optimistic tone overall.

d) “At Grand Central Terminal, I waited for the subway doors to open and then busted out of my seat quickly. Darting through the doors, I kept walking faster and faster once my feet hit the platform. My nerves surged. There was a whiff of adrenaline as I got farther away from the train, disappearing into the city.” Brencher picks verbs (“busted and “darting”) and details (her nerves and adrenaline) that best convey her excitement, and therefore affect the reader.

e) “I looked down at my shoes as people filled the train, and then I saw her. I saw her beat-up unlaced construction boots first. I followed the shoes, laceless hole by laceless hole, all the way up to the face of an old woman. She was tiny. She had a slight slump in her shoulders. She wore a bright red cap. Wisps of gray poked out from beneath it.” This introductory sentence uses imagery and, as she does many more times in later on, only short sentences to have an emotional impact. These two things together make for a hook that draws in the reader.

4.

The concept itself writing “love letters’ to strangers seems a little corny at first though. Still, I can’t think of a better way to go about cheering a person up. One small act of kindness does wonders, but when many people work together for one act of kindness, I can see why it would “restore faith in humanity”. The part about her leaving love letters about the city reminds me of another story. A person in Oregon was leaving $100 bills for people to find. This may not have as strong emotional impact as a letter, but it goes along with the gist of committing small acts of kindness. In a hectic world where only seems to be trouble and hardships, it can mean everything to receive a small sliver of happiness. Perhaps I’ll try writing one of those letters some day.

Zachary Windsor
Critical Analyses Entry #2
"The Pizza Plot" from The New York Times
Adam L. Penenberg and Marc Barry

1.

The article "The Pizza Plot" by Adam L. Penenberg and Marc Barry tells the story of Marc Barry's experiences as a competitive intelligence agent contracted to investigate the production capability of a new type of frozen pizza. The authors introduce the competitive intelligence profession, persons who investigate the production and marketing plans of rival companies. In the article, Marc Barry is subcontracted to a consultant of Schwan's Sales Enterprises to investigate their rival's, Kraft, production capability of a new rising crust pizza, DiGiorno. To do this, Barry creates several fake personas to call organizations and convince them to give him his required information.  Barry social-engineers this information from various sources, such as the local government of the target factory, the factory itself, and the factory’s cardboard suppliers. With this information, Barry accomplishes his job as a competitive intelligence agent by giving Schwan’s a competitive edge.

2.

The authors provide a detailed procedural analyses of how a competitive intelligence agent obtains their information by using the specifics of one investigation. This part-technical-part-story writing best targets persons who may be interested in business proceedings, but do not have a strong background in it. The article is about a relatively unknown and perhaps underhand tactic used by companies to gain information. Given this audience and subject, it is clear that their purpose is to both inform and to entertain. To do these at same time, the authors use a witty tone. Consider what is written about

Barry’s musing over what could be used to measure pizza production : “Wheat? Yeast? Oil? Nah, those wouldn't do it. The cardboard boxes? Maybe, except that Tombstone pizzas were packaged in shrink-wrapped plastic, not in a box. Then it came to him: diskettes. Every pizza, whether it came in a box or in shrink-wrapped plastic, sat on a round, cardboard diskette. This was the one constant.” This quote uses laid-back diction (such as “nah” and “maybe”), rhetorical questions, and a climactic conclusion to make the text sound casual or fun, yet still it reveals interesting information about the competitive intelligence logic process.

3.

a)“SCIP stresses the ‘ethical’ acquisition of information ‘from publicly available’ or ‘open source’ materials like published documents, public filings, patents and annual reports. The purpose of SCIP’s spin control is to make industrial spying more palatable to P.R.-conscious corporations. It also makes spying more difficult.” The sarcastic quotes mocking ethical practices makes for a witty tone. The reader learns of about the SCIP, and otherwise boring subject, interesting and fun.

b)“The fire department didn't bite, and the building inspectors weren’t in.” The authors use the personification the the fire department’s biting to make the story entertaining.

c)“Delighted by his score, Barry thanked the secretary and hung up. Four spiral and two high-rise freezers? A 2,000-square-foot loading dock? A bakery waterfall oiler? Although Barry didn't know anything about pizza production, Schwan's certainly did and would be able to make good use of this information.” This quote provides characterization for Marc Barry. It shows his enthusiasm for finding useful information, though he had no use for the information himself. This implies he has passion for his investigation, an important aspect of being a competitive intelligence agent.

d) “It was the winter of 1997, and up to then it was often hard to taste the difference between a frozen pizza and the cardboard box it came in.” This quote provides hyperbole, to both describe the frozen pizza’s rather bland taste at the time and to make this information humourous.

e) “Barry, an Irish, streetwise redhead in his early 30's, had made a name for himself as an expert "humint" (human intelligence) man. Working undercover for years at a time, he had infiltrated Asian organized crime networks that controlled the distribution of counterfeit goods in the United States, as well as tracked phony pharmaceuticals and airplane parts. To Barry, collecting intelligence on companies was a snap compared with gathering information on violent gangs.” This quote gives excellent characterization. It describes how Marc Barry’s experience, and outlook (calling himself a “‘humint’ man”) makes him effective at his job.

4.

Previously, I wasn’t aware that “competitive intelligence” existed. I had never put any thought into how one company gets an idea of what their competitor is doing. Investigative work has intrigued me in the past, but I only associated it with government work. Though there still should be some limits to how far one company can spy on another, I still think company-sponsored investigative work should be a more widely known profession. It would be a good option for those who like intelligence activities, but do not want to take on the risk that being a detective or government agent implies. I enjoyed “The Pizza Plot” for its introduction of a previously unknown profession, and for its exciting storyline. It reads similarly to what is to be expected from a crime novel, but is instead ironically about frozen pizza. It makes me wonder if there is more exciting stories of competitive intelligence, and what effects these activities have had on history.

Zachary Windsor
Critical Analyses Entry #1
"The Lion in Winter" from The Norton Sampler

Sebastian Junger

1.
In the essay "The Lion in Winter", by Sebastian Junger, the author narrates his experiences of covering a battle against the Taliban as a journalist. In the first half of the essay, the author writes the viewpoint of the military leader Ahmad Shah Massoud. Junger describes Massoud surveying the battlefield, making plans for an attack, and the restless night that followed. The next day, the attack begins. Junger switches from describing Massoud's experiences to describing his own. The author gives details relevant to the beginning, peak action, and aftermath of the ultimately failed attack.

2.
 Junger's audience is anyone seeking a glimpse of actual battle. Junger uniquely describes the battle from a limited viewpoint; through the action behind the front lines. It is this unique viewpoint that also reveal Junger's purpose of writing. Rather than describing the viewpoints of soldiers in the midst of fighting, or describing the battle from an omniscient viewpoint, Junger uses a limited viewpoint, and describes the battle through the actions and dialogue away from the danger. This reveals his intention to expose the audience to the the dilemma between humanly moral and coldly strategic aspects of war. This purpose is also expressed through a varying tone that switches between matter-of-fact and solemn. When Massoud is surveying the battlefield, the tone is  matter-of-fact: "The trip had served its purpose though. Massoud had identified two dirt roads that split in front of the Taliban positions and circled behind them. And he had let himself be seen in the front line, reinforcing the assumption that this was the focus of  the attack." Even in danger, Massoud analytically surveys the battlefield. A solemn tone is revealed when the author  questions Massoud's reasoning for waging war: "The Koran says that war is such a catastrophe it must be brought to an end as quickly as possible and by any means necessary. That, perhaps is why Massoud has devoted himself to exclusively waging war." By using this varying tone, Junger reveals the natural struggle of any human tasked with risking the lives of themselves and countrymen in order to accomplish greater good. They are sure they want to stop evil, but it's difficult to not ask if they are only bringing unnecessary pain onto themselves.

3.
      a) "He fell asleep, woke up, asked Reza a question, then fell asleep, over and over again for                    the next hour.  Occasionally a commander would walk in, and Massoud would ask if he’d                    repositioned those mortars or distributed the fifty thousand rounds of ammunition to the front"            Massoud being unable to stay asleep implies an emotional struggle. Even then, he still works to          devise strategies.
     b) Descriptions of the devastating effects off a land mine are told matter-of-factually, showing                what is necessary to keep calm and plan strategy even as suffering occurs, despite the initial                 urge to panic.
   c) When discussing with a commander what he did wrong Massoud says: "'I don't care. These are             my children,  your children' Massoud shot back." Massoud must strategize effectively, but                   remembering humanity is necessary.
   d) "Explosions flashed continuously against the Taliban positions on the ridge, and rockets started            streaking back and forth against the dark valley." His viewpoint doesn't allow him to see the                carnage resulting from the explosions and rockets, and instead only allows him to describe the             scene matter-of-factually.
   e) The author compares himself, who has never covered war before, to Raza, another journalist who        has. Raza expresses a cold outlook to the carnage, as he records images with his camera. Junger         learns the one must both see it how it is, and realize the horror of the situation, to get the most             complete picture.

4.
 Junger uses a unique viewpoint of what war is like behind the front lines. Most war films or texts either examine war in a historical sense, examining both sides and the contexts, or they are trying to humanize and give terror to the carnage of the front line, often by telling the narrative of one or a few characters. Junger's description of what a military leader and the journalist experience behind the lines is an interesting and refreshing tangent. The only other war media I have experienced that is anything similar is the the 1970 movie "Patton", but I've never read any form of text the is similar to Junger's. After reading, I can see how understanding the viewpoints of the military leaders and experiences behind the lines is important to understanding a war as a whole. I enjoyed reading something different,  and it's unfortunate that this viewpoint is often overlooked.