Jelani Prtchard
Professor Werry
6 Nov. 2014
Draft
Research and several studies show that in the
United States..[*stops reading*]. And that is when we usually stop or want to
stop reading a text in today's era. Nicholas Carr, who is a writer for The Atlantic discusses how the internet
has negatively affected the way we read, write, and think in his article,
"Is Google Making Us Stupid?" In his text, which was ironically
dreadful to read through, discusses the aspects of how the internet has
negatively altered our ways of reading and writing. Carr questions if the
internet has made us stupid enough to the point where we can't even get through
a full text of reading without wanting to give up on it because of the lack of
interest we have. Carr also claims that the world wide web has tweaked his
methods of writing. With a few searches on Google, information is quickly found
right under your finger tips. Writing papers or researching studies has evolved
with the help of the internet, while the old method that once required stacks
of print and hours at the library has seem to drifted off along with the wind. In
this text Carr uses multiple credible sources that he calls 'literary-types'
who gives input on the internet and its influences on readers and writers. Carr
argues that as a literary-type, he and others have trouble staying focused
reading an article or text the more they use the web. In this day and age, our
generation has grew up with technology that helps advances education. It is
important for us to understand whether or not if the technology, particularly
the internet, is a negative influence on our reading, writing, and thinking
skills or not. Carr does make favorable arguments, but there are also flaws in
his text. In this paper I will discuss how Carr presents his argument to the
audience by analyzing strategies he uses.
In the article, "Is Google Making Us
Stupid?" Carr, uses several strategies to help support his argument and
persuade his audience. One strategy Carr uses well throughout the text was his
use of Ethos. Using multiple experiences and information from individuals who
all seem to be credible literary-types, Carr tries to point out the effects of
the internet and how they can alter brain activity and focus. A literary-type,
Bruce Friedman, who regularly blogs
about the use of technology in medicine, gave his insight on how the way he
reads and works has been affected by the internet. Friedman states that he "has almost
totally lost the ability to read and absorb a longish article on the web or in
print" (59). Having credentials such as a graduate from the University of
Michigan Medical School and who is now a pathologist, Friedman is a prime
example of how Carr uses Ethos to help support his argument. By using multiple
credible individuals in his text, Carr is able to build his credibility and
trustworthiness throughout his text.
This strategy works by introducing and presenting a notable individual
to his audience to reassure them that it is not just a random individual off
the streets who blogs on his iPhone. He uses this specific strategy to show
that even high authorities or an individual with high credentials can also be
victims of how the internet effects focus. Friedman even explains how he is
unable to read the classic novel of War
and Peace or even a couple of paragraphs on a blog post because it is
"too much to absorb." With the internet making work and reading
"easier', it may have flawed the human brain to look for the easy way out.
Brain activity is now altered for the human to absorb information they will
only be useful or beneficial to them. Carr uses the strategy of Ethos fairly
well. From computer scientists to corporations such as Google, he presents
multiple credible sources that help him with his claim. Convincing readers that
the internet can change the way you take in or even have the ability to absorb
information from a text, Carr proves that the strategy of Ethos is effective.
Although effective, Carr may have several flaws in the way he uses this
strategy. He does indeed provide very credible individuals, but they are all
literary-types, just like him. Using experiences and information from literary
types may seem a little biased considering the fact that the whole argument is
about how the internet effects the way us humans read, obtain knowledge, and
sometimes write. Carr should probably look into using individuals who has a
different perspective than he and his literary-types do. They may even say that
the internet is actually helping the way we work by providing a more efficient
way to complete tasks or texts. Nonetheless, Carr still uses Ethos in an
effective way to support his
argument.
Nicholas
Carr also uses the strategy of exemplification. With credible sources
established and introduced, he uses examples from others to help illustrate and
illuminate his argument. Examples of the past has been presented various times throughout
the text. Carr compares how new technology back then affected individuals to
how the new technology we have here today affects us. According to Carr, Alan
Turing, a British mathematician, proved that the digital computer (which at the
time of 1936 only existed to be a theoretical machine) "could be
programmed to perform the function of any other information-processing device
(61). He then discusses how the computer has evolved to not only provide
information on the internet, but also become a radio, a map, a television, type
writer, a printing press, and even a calculator. Now with the technological advancements,
the internet can work in a very versatile way. He claims that the net has now
become a domain of distraction, scattering our attention span and diffuse our concentration.
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