Analysis Of Steven Malanga's Essay 'The Truth About Poverty'

The United States is known to be one of the richest countries in the world, yet the struggles of poverty affect many of our citizens. This issue has become very controversial, as everyone has their own opinions on the topic. Debates have been made on whether it is an economic or cultural problem. Many people believe that we should aid the poor to help them rise above the poverty level, but many are convinced that those who are poverty-stricken became that way on their own and should not receive assistance. Steven Malanga’s essay “The Truth About Poverty” incorporates multiple persuasive methods to be successful in effectively convincing its audience that people fall under the poverty line because of the results of their own actions. One method Malanga utilizes to be convincing in his argument is by incorporating multiple statistics and credible sources throughout his essay. In developing his claim, Malanga supports everything he says with at least one statistic, sometimes even more. For example, when associating poverty to a lack of a high school diploma, he includes a statistic from the American Community Survey which expresses that “almost seven in ten high school dropouts live in poverty” in New York. By backing up his idea with recorded information, he is asserting that there is logic behind his claim and not just an …show more content…
Although Malanga’s argument was successful, that doesn’t mean it is completely correct to others. This issue is at the core of a political divide on how to tackle poverty. More research needs to be done to determine who is at fault for the increasing numbers of poverty-stricken individuals in our country. No matter who is liable for this rising challenge, poverty is a nationwide concern that is in desperate need to be