Inside Amazon's Argument Essay

The New York Times article “Inside Amazon: Wrestling Big Ideas in a Bruising Workplace,” written by Jodi Kantor and David Streitfeld, employs effective use of multimodality to support their argument; which states: In order to achieve its lofty ambitions, Amazon maintains “unusually high standards” for its employees, resulting in a culture that puts work above all else—affectionately referred to as a “philosophy of work.” Kantor & Streitfeld primarily utilize the linguistic mode to make their argument to the reader; however, through subtle use of the other four modes, the argument is enhanced and made more effective at persuading the reader. The way in which Kantor & Streitfeld present the facts, or reasons, in a multimodal way contributes heavily in helping to explain how they have developed the

To back up these claims, the article mentions "What is it like to work at Amazon: Go Beyond the Badge with Nimisha," a video which is part of Amazon’s recruitment series. In the video, Nimisha, a current Amazon employee, utilizes the aural, visual, and gestural modes to convey the message that, if one wishes to work at Amazon, they either “fit here or you don’t…there is no middle ground.” The inclusion of this recruitment video is a great move by Kantor and Streitfeld, as it illustrates through the use of multimodality the singular thought process at Amazon—their current system of using and abusing new employees has led to Amazon’s success; thus, nothing will change. The embodiment of this thinking lends well to Kantor and Streitfeld’s argument, showing that if one does not enjoy pouring their time and effort in to the success at Amazon, they will not last long at the