America is known as a melting pot, this is where all kinds of different cultures come together and feed off of each other’s differences in order to find one’s own sense of self. They are surrounded by different languages and cultures every day but yet some young Americans still cannot identify different countries or oceans on a map. Douglas McGray effectively uses statistics, appeals to history, appeals to fear, and irony in his essay “Lost in America” to persuade educators in America to put emphasize on diverse cultures and languages in their learning curriculum. McGray uses many statistics in his essay to validate his points. Using statistics shows that he knows what he is talking about when it comes to this topic. It shows that he has done
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He uses Christina a “modern, multitasking, American 15-year-old” as an example of the ironic situation many Americans are in (351). She lives in California which is so culturally diverse that “more than 1 in 4 of the state’s residents [are] born outside of the United States” but yet she thinks the Philippines is in China (McGray 351). This is the position that many Americans are in. Surrounded by lots of cultures but still uninformed. The fact that they are surrounded by diverse people every day helps the readers to see that it is not hard to become culturally diverse. It shows it is not hard to learn a new language that someone in the neighborhood speaks. This irony highlights that the American education system has to push for a broader curriculum to be mandatory because young Americans need an extra push to want to learn about other cultures and languages.
The use of statistics, appeals to history, appeals to fear, and irony all successfully persuade the reader of McGrays essay, “Lost in America”, that young Americans are indeed lost in America and blind to other cultures. Education is the first stepping stone in increasing Americans awareness of other countries. His essay persuades American educators to add culturally diverse lessons to their curriculum nationwide to insure a bright future for young Americans and America
He uses Christina a “modern, multitasking, American 15-year-old” as an example of the ironic situation many Americans are in (351). She lives in California which is so culturally diverse that “more than 1 in 4 of the state’s residents [are] born outside of the United States” but yet she thinks the Philippines is in China (McGray 351). This is the position that many Americans are in. Surrounded by lots of cultures but still uninformed. The fact that they are surrounded by diverse people every day helps the readers to see that it is not hard to become culturally diverse. It shows it is not hard to learn a new language that someone in the neighborhood speaks. This irony highlights that the American education system has to push for a broader curriculum to be mandatory because young Americans need an extra push to want to learn about other cultures and languages.
The use of statistics, appeals to history, appeals to fear, and irony all successfully persuade the reader of McGrays essay, “Lost in America”, that young Americans are indeed lost in America and blind to other cultures. Education is the first stepping stone in increasing Americans awareness of other countries. His essay persuades American educators to add culturally diverse lessons to their curriculum nationwide to insure a bright future for young Americans and America