Does the educational value of attending college outweigh the considerable debt that is accrued as a consequence of the cost of education? Barbara Ehrenreich considers this topic in her work titled ‘College Students Welcome to a Lifetime of Debt’ that addresses young adults trapped in university debt. She sarcastically informs the reader that the social norm to attend post secondary has been capitalized upon and now students are blindly lured into paying ridiculous fees. Ehrenreich strengthens her rhetoric about this matter by appealing to pathos through personalization of the argument, obscene contrasts, and small allusions to the core message that the fees are absurd. By the end of the writing it is apparent that underlying Ehrenreich’s humorous justifications lies her opinion of the devastating truth: higher education is overpriced.
Ehrenreich writes this purple prose to highlight the …show more content…
She validates attending Fleece U with number values, “now weighing in at $39,210 a year, or $50,000 with room and board” (par. 4) or “graduate with a respectable-sized debt of $20,000” (par. 7). Ehrenreich knows, that as debt accumulates, ignoring the numbers is much easier than facing them. This falls in line George Orwell’s insight “Ignorance is Bliss’. Money is often taken for granted and Ehrenreich attacks this by astonishing the reader with the grand prices.
Entangled within her sarcasm there are allusions to the truth about student debt. Many times her hyperboles are obviously swayed containing a sarcasm that pushes the reader to question them. When she says “your real purpose here is to shake off the pointless freedom” (par. 4), she comments on the societal expectations that guide a student to the pathway to debt. Small allusions like this are crucial when writing a facetious rhetoric. Through these references the reader is reminded of the underlying message instead of being completely distracted by
Ehrenreich writes this purple prose to highlight the …show more content…
She validates attending Fleece U with number values, “now weighing in at $39,210 a year, or $50,000 with room and board” (par. 4) or “graduate with a respectable-sized debt of $20,000” (par. 7). Ehrenreich knows, that as debt accumulates, ignoring the numbers is much easier than facing them. This falls in line George Orwell’s insight “Ignorance is Bliss’. Money is often taken for granted and Ehrenreich attacks this by astonishing the reader with the grand prices.
Entangled within her sarcasm there are allusions to the truth about student debt. Many times her hyperboles are obviously swayed containing a sarcasm that pushes the reader to question them. When she says “your real purpose here is to shake off the pointless freedom” (par. 4), she comments on the societal expectations that guide a student to the pathway to debt. Small allusions like this are crucial when writing a facetious rhetoric. Through these references the reader is reminded of the underlying message instead of being completely distracted by