The Joy Of Reading And Writing Superman And Me Analysis

In his essay “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me” author Sherman Alexie writes about the pleasures of reading. His thesis “My father loved books, and since I love my father with an aching devotion, I decided to love books as well” best describes the author’s position on the topic. He conveys his thesis to the readers through rhetorical devices such as ethos, pathos and logos and literary devices such as repetition as he describes his personal experiences. Sherman Alexie wrote "The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me" with the purpose of informing his readers of the challenges he faced as a young Native American boy who, by society’s standards, was not supposed to be educated. His love of books came from his love and adulation of his father. Alexie recalls how he taught himself how to read by analyzing a Superman comic book at the age of three. He would tell the story to himself by observing the pictures to create a story. He realized the purpose of a paragraph by stating, “a paragraph is a fence that held words.” This is …show more content…
When he was a student he would remind and encourage himself that he was smart, arrogant, and lucky. He exceeded the presumptions made by the non- Native American teachers that Native American children are stupid and did not suppress his intelligence. Many years later, as a teacher, he again has to remind himself of this after observing the students who refuse to learn due to the fact that they have been taught to believe that they are not capable of succeeding in school. This is an effective conclusion because the author shows the audience that he is using his authority to make up for the mistakes of his past teachers. He is using his passions for reading and writing and tries to inspire the younger generations, hoping to save, not only his, but now, the lives of those in the community as a