It is universally known that to truly understand someone, you have to walk a mile in their shoes. Investigative journalist Sonia Nazario does exactly that in her Pulitzer Prize winning book, Enrique 's Journey. She immerses herself into the life of Enrique, a desperate Honduran boy in search of his mother, by imitating his journey through the harsh South American terrain on "El Tren de la Muerte [The Train of Death]", in hopes of understanding what brings "48,000 South American children to the United States alone and illegally each year" (299). Nazario evokes feelings of humanity and compassion in her audience by establishing her credibility as an unobtrusive observer, appealing to the reader 's emotions, and citing concrete facts and evidence.
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This is a direct appeal to pathos because people are more sympathetic towards kids. She states that "they are cold, hungry, and helpless. They are hunted by corrupt police, bandits and gangs" (320). This works to elicit compassion out of her audience because people are inclined to view children as little people that need to be protected, and the fact that people of authority, such as police, would harm them, provokes anger in the reader. She then asks the reader, "What kind of desperation pushes children as young as seven to set out, alone, through such a hostile landscape with nothing but their wits?" (95). She answers this question by describing the abject poverty in Honduras that forces so many mothers to the United States, and then describes the hardships that mothers face to smuggle their kids, which leads children to take matters into their own tiny hands. Analuisa Espinoza, a Los Angeles Unified School District social worker explains that, "Many mothers expect the separations to be short, but they typically last six to eight years"(2456). Nazario successfully conveys immigration as each single individual 's plight to survive, and reminds the reader that it is not just mass immigration...it is children fighting for the right to live. She also makes the wise decision to use straightforward language, doesn 't unnecessarily embellish, and simply describes things as she sees them. This method makes …show more content…
Her book is ripe with statistics and factual evidence that help her audience solidify Enrique 's story, as well as keep in mind that this isn 't just Enrique 's story. It 's the story of millions of immigrants in the United States. She reinforces the dangers children face throughout the book with studies such as one by the University of Houston which found that "children who travel on top of trains are likely to be robbed, beaten, raped, or killed"(320). She also appeals to logic by demonstrating that because of the economic conditions in South America, mothers are forced to flee, which in turn pushes their children in search of their
This is a direct appeal to pathos because people are more sympathetic towards kids. She states that "they are cold, hungry, and helpless. They are hunted by corrupt police, bandits and gangs" (320). This works to elicit compassion out of her audience because people are inclined to view children as little people that need to be protected, and the fact that people of authority, such as police, would harm them, provokes anger in the reader. She then asks the reader, "What kind of desperation pushes children as young as seven to set out, alone, through such a hostile landscape with nothing but their wits?" (95). She answers this question by describing the abject poverty in Honduras that forces so many mothers to the United States, and then describes the hardships that mothers face to smuggle their kids, which leads children to take matters into their own tiny hands. Analuisa Espinoza, a Los Angeles Unified School District social worker explains that, "Many mothers expect the separations to be short, but they typically last six to eight years"(2456). Nazario successfully conveys immigration as each single individual 's plight to survive, and reminds the reader that it is not just mass immigration...it is children fighting for the right to live. She also makes the wise decision to use straightforward language, doesn 't unnecessarily embellish, and simply describes things as she sees them. This method makes …show more content…
Her book is ripe with statistics and factual evidence that help her audience solidify Enrique 's story, as well as keep in mind that this isn 't just Enrique 's story. It 's the story of millions of immigrants in the United States. She reinforces the dangers children face throughout the book with studies such as one by the University of Houston which found that "children who travel on top of trains are likely to be robbed, beaten, raped, or killed"(320). She also appeals to logic by demonstrating that because of the economic conditions in South America, mothers are forced to flee, which in turn pushes their children in search of their