One of the most effective ways to be able to connect with a reader, like myself, is through a personal story. Jill Adams wrights the article Life ... Without bumper pads: Son's swimming test a lesson in taking the plunge for the purpose of informing the reader. The article was published in the News Sentinel. She wants everyone to realize that in life we have to do things we don't always want to do. She is trying to get a message across loud and clear. She's telling everyone that life is scary. There are times when we have to take a leap of faith. We may be scared to do something, but it's for our own good that we do it. Nothing bad will happen, but first you just have to try. One of the easiest ways to accomplish that is through a personal story she tells about her son, because it easily grabs the attention of the reader. Not every choice in life is an easy choice. Many times we have to do things that we are …show more content…
The overall tone of the story is one of sympathy and caring. Throughout the article we learn of her son. We find out that at one point he had a bad swimming experience. A reader's heart immediately goes out to the son. The reader feels bad and starts to develop an emotional attachment to Adams and her son. Then we find out that the son is nervous about taking the test. Automatically we assume that he is scared. At this point the readers are so attached they would be willing to do about anything Adams said to make the son happy. Through the tone, in the article, Adams is able to get the reader to form an emotional attachment to the characters. That is an extremely powerful tool in persuasion. Once a writer can get the audience emotionally invested they are able to convince them of anything. When people get emotional they are willing to agree to most anything. The tone in the article Adams wrote was able to make the reader invest emotionally, and that went a long way in persuading the audience.