Blog #2 Rhetorical Analysis

I picked the article that pissed me off the most. Since my faith, and self proclaimed status as a scientist are controversial today at best. This particular gem jumped out at me and gave me plenty of room to rant in my head for hours on end. 

What's the Matter With Creationism? 

The article, written by Katha Pollitt, sets out to understand why educated college students still hold to Creationism as a viable means for how the Earth, and life was created. She enumerates on multiple statistics on how many people from different groups believe in Creationism, Theistic Evolution, and Evolution. She states that the numbers haven't changed much over the years, and that she is appalled by how students fail to grasp the obvious truth that evolution is the scientific answer to life.

Provocation: The author makes a series of derogatory statements towards anyone who dares disagree with the almighty theory of evolution. " Or that 58 percent of Republicans are creationists, although that does explain a lot." Meant as a jab that anyone who is a Republican, or a creationist is an idiot. The author utilizes many other points to make a mockery of anyone who believes in creationism. She utilizes provocation to get a rise out of those who disagree with her, basically a "look how stupid you are" type approach to writing. 

Hand in hand with provocation the author utilizes Sarcasm: " And yet this massive concatenation of lies and delusion is so full of obvious holes that a pastor with a Bible-college degree or a homeschooling parent with no degree at all can see right through it. " The author makes the point through sarcasm that every scientist in the world couldn't possibly be wrong, and be so easily shot down by pastors or homeschooling parents. Sarcasm is employed in this article rather well alongside provocation to elicit powerful responses.

Tone: "Do you know what the worst thing about the recent Gallup poll on evolution is? It isn’t that 46 percent of respondents are creationists" The author sets the tone from the start by stating how disgusted she is about the fact that people still believe in creationism. Throughout the article the author maintains her attitude and conveys in several paragraphs how she feels about those who don't believe in evolution despite overwhelming evidence. The tone is powerful and sends a strong message that if you don't agree, you're probably a bloody idiot. 

Ethics, I feel as though the author appealed to our ethos by bashing it to bits. "After all, Americans are famously ignorant of many things—like where Iran is or when World War II took place—and we are still here." By picking at American ignorance the author conveys her point that it is in fact important for us to understand evolution and accept it innately.

Emotion: when used in tandem with tone creates an article that sends out powerful urges, this author uses her emotions of anger and disgust for creationists to set the tone for this article. "My brilliant husband, a sociologist and political theorist, refuses to get upset about the poll. It’s quite annoying, actually." The author states how annoyed she is that her husband isn't bothered by the poll while she clearly has issues with it. 

The article is interesting in the way that Jersey Shore is interesting. It pisses you off to no end, but for some reason you have to sit there and finish it anyways. I am more than a little disturbed when a scientific theory is defended with the same zeal that the Inquisition had. I enjoyed reading it in the fact that it was able to elicit such responses from me, so trying to keep an objective nature with this article will be a fun little challenge. 

- Daniel Lane