Custom «Reminders of Poverty» Essay Paper Sample

“Reminders of poverty soon forgotten” was written by Alexander Keyssar. He was a historian and a professor of History in Harvard University. His articles have always focused on the American dream issue and mostly on the problems of unemployment which America faces. This article was in particular no exception. It focuses on disasters that have hit America such as the Hurricane Katrina that has led to severe poverty in the regions that have been hit. He also talks about how the disasters have caused the government to be more helpful and participate more in eradication of poverty and whether the American Dream can be achieved. The author also looks at the attitude and effort of the government towards helping the poor people in America.

Keyssar used different classical arguments in this article to describe the poverty situation and the possible solutions that have been or should be implemented towards the problem. The classical principles of argumentation are very crucial in any argumentation or argumentative essay. They help in driving the critical thinking skills associated with argumentative writing. The writer used classical principles of arguments so as to convince his readers to accept the points in the essay which in this case is poverty. The classical principles should ensure that the writer convinces the audience to believe in his or her position and accept the logic and evidence that he or she is putting across. Keyssar used different principles of argumentation which are ethos, pathos and logos. Ethos is the principles of argumentation which ensure credibility of what the writer is saying (Yagelski, 2011). It also brings some element of ethical appeal. This means that the writer has to convince the readers using his character.

People usually easily believe the people that they have great respect for. The writer, therefore, has to ensure that they create an impression to the reader that he or she is worth listening to or reading about. The writer, therefore, creates some authority to himself so that he can be respected by the readers. Keyssar used this principle in this article, for example, his tone and style of the message is very precise and shows that he is really worried about the poverty situation in America. He also refers to differing views on poverty in the article. Keyssar also has a good reputation as shown by his expertise in the field of poverty since he has written many articles on poverty in America. He, therefore, has a good record in the field of poverty and this helps in convincing the readers easily and creating an ethical appeal.

Another principle that Keyssar uses is the pathos. This principle usually seeks the emotions of the reader (Shapiro, 2005). The writer uses pathos to persuade the readers and allow them to respond emotionally. The writers usually choose the language correctly if they want to trigger emotions from readers. In this article, Keyssar uses the Hurricane Katrina as the main point of reference. The hurricane Katrina was a dark part of many Americans and they can easily relate to it. It, therefore, triggers the emotions of the readers easily and prompts them to want to read the article. Logos is another classical principle that the author used. The logos help in persuading the readers by the use of reasoning. It helps in ensuring that the message is consistent. The message has to be consistent for the readers to believe that what the writer is saying is the truth.