Rhetorical Analysis Of 'Is Google Making USupid?'

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Modern versus tradition is the ideology of many, usually used to show the differences of past generations with the current generation. Modern can be characterized by or using the most up-to-date techniques, ideas, or equipment. Society, typically, associates modern with the use of technology and the internet. Yet, there are those among us who do not believe that the use of modern technology is resourceful. Those who are uncomfortable with the advances generally use the traditional way of interpreting and sharing information. An example would be the use of books or face-to-face communication. Could the use of technology change the basis of learning and gathering information? To be more specific, in “Is Google Making Us Stupid?” Nicholas Carr …show more content…

These rhetorical devices were used to persuade the perspective audience of those who use technology frequently. Though he may be aiming at previous generation and older millennials, this generation would also be included in the audience. The article starts with dark overtones by using a scene from Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey to emphasis how technology is changing us in a negative way. “I can feel it. I can feel it.” “I can feel it too” (Carr in Graff et al 313). Using these dark overtones, he dramatizes the changes technology does to the mind. Using certain language, such as “tinkering with my brain” and “the human brain is almost infinitely malleable”, brings fear. Fear is the tactic he uses to intimidate the audience into siding with his argument. When individuals are told that there is a problem with themselves and society, the reaction could be either anger or confusion. Since this generation never made a transition from analog to digital, a reader from this generation would be offended. This change to Carr’s mind has always been the mind of a person from this generation. Almost as if, Carr is depicting this generation is strange and unusual. As young children, fitting in was what most aspired to do because of the fear of ridicule and isolation. Being portrayed as strange makes an individual question one’s self. Is there something wrong with me? The answer to that problem is usually to change