Rhetorical Analysis Of Against Schools By John Gatto

In the “Against Schools” article, author John Gatto describes the modern day schooling system and its flaws. He uses several rhetorical strategies in trying to prove his point. He successfully uses all three types of rhetoric in writing this article, which includes ethos, pathos, and logos. He establishes these strategies very early, and often throughout the article. He believes one issues with today’s schooling system is boredom, and that there is a distinct difference between what it means to be educated and schooled. He uses his experience as a public school teacher in his effort to exercise this opinion that he has, which establishes his first rhetoric strategy. This first and most prominent rhetorical strategy that is used in the “Against Schools” article is ethos. In the first sentence of the article he informs the readers that he “taught for thirty years in some of the worst schools in Manhattan,” which very clearly tells the reader that he has experience on this subject matter. With thirty years of experience one can imply that he truly has seen just about everything that today’s schooling system has to offer. Gatto then goes to

The reader can now trust that Gatto has the necessary requirements to give an honest opinion that modern day schooling is for creating consumers and controllable citizens of society. He proves this to the reader through his experiences as a teacher and through the students he has taught. He also refers to other authors on the subject, such as James Bryant Conant and Alexander Inglis who breakdown the purpose of modern day schooling, which provides reliable sources to the reader. Gatto early on establishes his character, gives reliable sources to prove credibility, and attempts to convince the reader that he is speaking the truth through his tone on the subject. In establishing these things he can then go into other rhetorical strategies to pull the reader