TOW #6: "Schizophrenic. Killer. My Cousin." by Mac McClellan

In “Schizophrenic. Killer. My Cousin,” the author, Mac McClellan, advocates for the increase in funding for mental health in America because he believes that it will decrease violence, save money, save a “misunderstood population.” At a time in this country where gun violence is high and more people with mental health issues are ending up on the streets and in jail, he believes that this funding is important. McClellan, who’s directly affected by family with mental health issues, gains credibility

McClellan begins with a heavy appeal to the readers’ pathos by giving anecdotes about his cousin, Houston, who, once a normal child, became schizophrenic and gruesomely murdered his father. Before, the doctors diagnosed Houston with the wrong condition, gave him the wrong drugs, and said if that didn’t work, to call the police. This chilling story is tied to many others, such as the Aurora movie theater and Sandy Hook shootings. By appealing to unsettling emotions, McClellan is able to show that there is a need for an improvement in the healthcare system of treating mental health.

McClellan then shifts to a heavy appeal to the readers’ logos by giving statistics and strong reason. He says, “They got Medicare and Medicaid, but [policymakers] didn't think about food. And haircuts. Clothes. How to find a place to live.” He is showing that there is a lack of resources being provided to mental health patients, which digs them into a deeper hole, and causes more problems, such as violence (eventually landing them in jail) and homelessness. McClellan also says, “Two to three thousand dollars in treatment saves $50,000 in jail,” which clearly shows that it makes more economic sense to spend money on prevention of mental health violence than punishing untreated mental health patients. By showing that there is reason to increase the mental health budget in America, McClellan effectively builds up his purpose.

McClellan finally shifts back to an appeal on the readers’ pathos by returning to Houston’s story. He explains that Houston is now being properly treated and is looking forwards to be a fully functioning member of society. Houston says, “he hopes he never goes to that place again, where he hears voices that say his parents are against him.” McClellan emphasizes that this could be the outcome for mental health patients across the globe if the government gives them more resources. This increases the readers’ sympathy for these people and helps him to achieve his purpose. 

Overall, McClellan effectively is able to convey his purpose due to a balance of appeals to logos and pathos. This text even is strong enough to convince people who are against mental health spending.

Schizophrenia is one of the many types of mental health issues
(http://www.newhealthadvisor.com/images/1HT00454/schizophrenia.jpeg)

TOW #5: “There's More to Life Than Being Happy,” by Emily Esfahani Smith

In this text, Smith distinguishes the difference between being happy and having meaning in life. She expresses that while happiness does have its benefits in here and now, sacrificing it for finding meaning and purpose is much more beneficial in the long run. By doing this, people can be healthier in life and more resilient to the challenges that they might face. Smith is writing this now because she believes that the idea of sacrificing happiness for meaning “seems to be at odds with our culture, which is more interested in the pursuit of individual happiness than in the search for meaning.” While she is just a journalist and not a scientist, she uses statistics and anecdotes in order to achieve her purpose and establish credibility throughout the text.

Smith’s use of statistics and data gives this text a strong appeal to logos and helps to show that research supports her claim. She says, “Psychological scientists asked nearly 400 Americans aged 18 to 78 whether they thought their lives were meaningful and/or happy...Leading a happy life, the psychologists found, is associated with being a ‘taker’ while leading a meaningful life corresponds with being a ‘giver.’” She then goes to on to explain that people who pursue happiness end up living a shallow, selfish life, while people who pursue meaning end up living deep, emotionally rewarding life. These statistics help to show that her claims have validity.

Smith also uses anecdotes of Viktor Frankl’s, a Jewish psychologist who lived through the Holocaust, life. She discusses how he had a chance to escape Hitler’s genocide, but he gave up his safety and personal opportunities in order to stay with his parents. By committing this selfless act, he was able to find meaning in his life and become more resilient throughout the Holocaust. Smith also tells the story of how Frankl helped two suicidal people find meaning in their life while they were in a concentration camp and helped them live through their self-destructive thoughts. By including anecdotes, Smith shows that there is support to her reasoning in the real world past just the numbers and data. Overall, I believe that Smith was semi-successful in advocating for the pursuit of meaning over that of happiness. She was a little heavy on the use of statistics, which made this article redundant. This text could be improved if she had focused more on the anecdotes of Viktor Frankl’s life, as it would give the text more depth.

Viktor Frankl, psychologist and survivor of the Holocaust
(http://www.charterforcompassion.org/images/menus/ReligionSpiritualityInterfaith/frankl3.jpg)

TOW #4- IRB: Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell

In Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell, a journalist and author, discusses and theorizes many of the factors that contribute to high levels of success. This is his one out of five books, most of which are national bestsellers, that he has written. Gladwell believes that people’s beliefs on what success comes from are not accurate, which pushed him to write this book. Outliers pushes the readers to disregard their former beliefs of what success comes from, as this is necessary to understand Gladwell’s unorthodox beliefs on what causes success. Because of this, Outliers is aimed towards people who are or want to become leaders and successful people.
Gladwell uses many rhetorical devices in order to achieve his purpose to explain the origins of prosperity. Since his theories tend to be more unconventional than those of other people, these devices are essential in order to support his arguments and make them more believable. One of the major devices that he uses is anecdotes. For example, in Chapter 1, he explains the “Matthew Effect,” which is the idea that success favors people who were born with an advantage. These people are given more opportunities to become successful. He ties this theory to sports and education by explaining that children who were born at the beginning of an age cutoff for a sport or grade have the special advantage of getting a few more months to develop than the other kids in that group. They would stand out as more talented and would be chosen to be part of a gifted program in school or part of the elite level in a sport. He uses stories of kids who had this advantage and grew up to be more successful. This allows the reader to see that there are many cases that support his reasoning.
Gladwell also uses data in order to support his arguments. He gives many charts of rosters that show the birthdays of successful sports teams and shows that the majority of the team members have birthdays at the beginning of the age cutoff (e.g. the cutoff for Canadian hockey is January 1 and most of the players of a team that won the national hockey championship a few years earlier had birthdays between January and March). This data that he provides show that statistics support his argument, giving it validity. Overall, his rhetorical tactics are heavy in an appeal to logos since reason an essential part to supporting his argument.
Overall, I believe that Gladwell’s use of rhetorical devices effectively support his untraditional theories, and builds his purpose to explain the true factors of success.

Outliers Book Cover
(https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41h5QL0vVEL.jpg)