Rhetorical Analysis Of Isabel Evans Head In The Instagrammed Clouds

680 Words3 Pages

Now that technology connects all corners of the Earth, Isabel Evans shares her input on the effects of social media. In her article, “Head in the (Instagrammed) Clouds” published by the Harvard Crimson in 2013, Isabel Evans discusses the impact of social media on everyday life. Evans’ purpose is to emphasize the role of these applications on the world. She uses a tone that is casual yet urgent to express her concern for the time wasted using social media. Throughout her article, Evans identifies with her audience, illustrates her ideas, and appeals to nostalgia to examine the negative effects of social media. Evans opens her piece by declaring that using social media is very normal and not at all unusual. She identifies with her audience by admitting that she too uses social media daily. Because Evans is writing an opinion piece for a college newspaper, it is important for her to quickly connect with her audience and …show more content…

She provides examples of how social media has influenced the world, both positively and negatively. The author refers to social media’s role in social uprisings: “In the revolution in Egypt to overthrow Hosni Mubarak, Facebook connected and united protestors so well that one Egyptian couple named their new baby “Facebook” as a show of gratitude to the site’s positive impact” (Evans 2). In this instance social media was an especially helpful and productive tool for the protestors to use. Often sites like tumblr and Facebook are quicker to provide information about breaking news; however, the speed of these sites becomes an issue in some cases. For example Evans mentions the website Reddit and how its users tried to identify one of the Boston bombers, but ended up accusing the wrong man. These illustrations draw out both the help and harm that social media can provide and makes the reader more cautious to the accuracy of the information they are