Analysis Of Chris Crutcher's Whale Talk

Chris Crutcher argues in his article, “How They Do It”, that school systems should not become easily persuaded by the parents’ complaints to censor books that should be a part of the curriculum that their children benefit from due to the fact that the students can relate, learn, and build off of the books that are censored. Crutcher builds his argument throughout his article by including the use of personal anecdotes, pathos, and repetition.
Due to the fact that Crutcher includes the use of personal anecdotes, he supports his argument. He builds his argument with the use of personal stories in hope to engage the readers. Crutcher describes an experience where one of his books, Whale Talk, was added as an all-school read for a school in Michigan. …show more content…
The school district was under public watch when the Detroit Free Press became involved and took the situation to the publics’ eyes. The school board did not take into account that students were uniting with one another and the teachers were building a connection with their “hard-to-reach” students (Crutcher). Crutcher personally received emails from students and teachers that were thanking him with emotional responses to his book. This shows how much the students reaching out to Crutcher to personally thank him for writing such an influential book. The school board did not take into account that the majority of the students, including the teachers, were all gaining knowledge and hope from the book, Whale Talk. Yet, due to the one, single parent and his/her complaints, the school board in Fowlerville, Michigan decided to remove it from the curriculum in the beginning of the following school year. He did not agree with the school board’s …show more content…
He believes that the administrators should stand up for their students and teachers before they stand up for those complaining parents because, in the end, the students are what matter the most (Crutcher). The students are the future and the teachers should be allowed to teach what they feel necessary for the students to learn about life and about those around them. The books that are being censored could become so influential towards the students that are different. The school administrators don’t take these facts into account before they make their final decision. There is an unbalanced scale of those who benefit from Crutcher’s books to the one complaining parent. Crutcher writes his argument in hope of showing the corrupted school system and the benefits that censored books can bring to students, in his article, “How They Do It”, by showing that the school system should not become easily persuaded by the parents’ complaints to censor books that should be a part of the curriculum that their children benefit from because the students can relate, learn, and build off of the books that are censored. Crutcher builds his claim throughout his article by including the use of personal anecdotes, pathos, and