Analysis Of Thank God I Wasn 'T College Material'

Matt Walsh wrote “Thank God I wasn't college material” to bring light to a common problem in America, the pressure on all young people to go to college. His main focus is that many young adults who are not a good fit for college are pressured to go because of society's overvaluing of a college diploma. Walsh shares his opinions on the subject and draws from personal experience to make his argument. But his persuasive argument is more of an 'I'm right, you're wrong, so you should listen to me' type essay. He lacks solid logic and makes broad generalizations to make his point, relying on his audience's emotional response to prove his point. While I agree with him on the idea behind his essay, he goes about it the wrong way, making one-sided, emotionally-compelling arguments, instead of using solid logic and evidence to prove his point. …show more content…
After a little more looking and having read his work before, I saw he also has a track record for writing one-sided, emotionally-compelling, generalized arguments. Sound familiar? In this particular essay, he draws heavily on his own experiences and not much else to make his point. His argument is riddled with broad generalizations and contradictions. But it's ok, because he is a self-made man, on whom education is wasted, and the template for non-college attending people. Walsh opens his essay with a story about a teacher who encouraged him to go to college to pursue a degree in creative writing. His response was one of disbelief: why did he need to go to college for writing, the one thing he was good at? And a degree in creativity sounded absurd! What Walsh missed because of his immediate, offended response was that he didn't need to get a degree, he could have gone to college merely to use the resources available to better his