Dana Gioia creates a passage encouraging, influencing, and informing the reader of the recent literacy rate decline. He begins by verbalizing the problem, then moving to how it connects to business, then finally the decline affecting politics. Gioia uses evidence such as facts and quotes to support this idea and drive the thoughts into the reader’s head. These strategies, build his argument and assists with persuading the reader on how this decline will have a negative effect on society.
One of these strategies that are abundant throughout the passage is the use of facts from reliable resources, in this case, a survey. Dana uses information from the, “2002 Survey of Public Participation in the Arts,” to show that art participation by Americans has, “declined for eight of the night major forms that are measured.” He uses this strategy because it proves how this decline is having an effect on the populace, strengthening and tightening the hold on the subject and his argument as he uses these various strategies. This shows to the audience the effects of the constant feeling of literacy and proving it to be a fact.
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Now, he uses quotes to illustrate how the decline in reading takes a toll in the civic and political sphere. A quote from the “National Conference of State Legislatures,” is inputted from Gioia, verbalizing how this toll has led to, “Young people [not knowing] the ideals of citizenship...and their appreciation and support of American democracy is limited.” Dana’s use of these quotes, such as these creates the foundation of his argument, cementing his side to the argument. The effect of this strategy details how this now involves politics and governmental issues, not just the decline in various art