Gaming The Console: Article Analysis

In Bernstein 's article "Gaming the Console", she argues that it is okay for teens to play video games; she even goes on to say that playing video games can be beneficial for teenagers. However, she informs her audience that there are certain aspects of gaming that teens should be wary of: this includes prioritizing game time over school work and playing with inherent personality issues. Bernstein develops this thesis successfully by integrating visual and verbal texts effectively; each of the three photos in the article complements its surrounding text, appeals to her targeted demographic and reinforces her thesis.
The cover photo serves its purpose well: it attracts the targeted audience and aids the text to hint at Bernstein’s following argument about video games. The boy on the front page photo seems to be completely consumed by a video game given that his tongue is sticking out, a sign of intense concentration; this complements the point Bernstein brings up on the same page, “[p]laying a…game…is like a jolt of adrenaline to your system”. The photo and the text work together to address the all-consuming nature of the medium. Furthermore, the boy is leaning off to the side in the photo, this gaming position is relatable to other gamers, most of which are teenage boys, like the boy in the photo; these gamers are Bernstein’s target audience. This relatability complements the text’s …show more content…
Through her use of relatable photos and simple language that complement each other, she effectively draws in her targeted audience of teen gamers. These photos and text also work together to continually reinforce her thesis throughout the article. If any teen were to read this article, it would have, what I believe to be, Bernstein’s desired effect: if the reader is a gamer, they would continue to game while exercising caution in regards to their priorities as well as making sure to spend time doing things other than