Analysis Of If I Was A Poor Black Kid By Gene Marks

“If I Was a Poor Black Kid,” By Gene Marks (published in Forbes magazine December 12, 2011) presents the argument that “…the opportunity is still there in this country for those who are smart enough to go for it.” (Marks) Mr. Marks makes this argument about education based on a speech given by President Obama. The President spoke about our economy and how the middle class is working to be able to afford families, homes, and a retirement. “The world is not fair to those kids mainly because they had the misfortune of being born two miles away into a more difficult part of the world and with a skin color that makes realizing the opportunities that the President spoke about that much harder.” (Marks) The writer makes this generalization in the

Marks has a good use of pathos throughout his article. He opens his article by talking about the speech given by the President and how it made him think of his children. “My kids are no smarter than similar kids their age from the inner city. My kids have it much easier that their counterparts from West Philadelphia.” (Marks) The focus of pathos is directed towards kids from the inner city. Paragraphs eleven through thirteen talk about school systems and how inner city kids can get into them. “Most private schools I know are filled to the brim with the 1%. That’s because these schools are exclusive and expensive, costing anywhere between $20 and $50K per year. But there’s a secret about them. Most have scholarship programs.” (Marks) He is bringing a sense of hope to the audience he is writing for. The audience of the “poor black kids” as well as the white middle class like himself. Marks wants his audience to feel sympathetic towards these students and he wants to give these students a sense of hope that they can do it.

The use of pathos seems to be effective in this piece of writing because Marks is making an argument for the impoverished students. He is standing up for them and making sure they know they are able to get into these good schools and they are able to get a good education for

The first one Marks uses is the genetic fallacy where Marks is making claims based on the background of the subject. He makes the generalization that all black kids are poor and therefore they need to be helped. “[The] prospects are not impossible for the kids in the inner city. It doesn’t mean there are no opportunities for them.” (Marks) It may be true that kids who live in the inner city may be poor and they may be black, but it may also not be true at all. Marks makes this assumption and he has nothing to back it up. He also uses false cause to represent the inner city community. He generalizes that because black kids live in the inner city; they must be poor, and because of this, they need to make it their goal to do well in