The Liberal Arts Are Dead Analysis

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In the article, The Liberal Arts are Dead: Long Live the Liberal arts, David M. Whalen, the author states his position on the view of the liberal arts. The problem is that the liberal arts are portrayed as unimportant in the education system and in a person’s life. Whalen expresses his thoughts towards supporting the belief that the liberal arts are important, His intended audience are to scholars who object to the importance of liberal arts and the ones who support his view. Whalen writes an effective argument using ethos by stating his creditability, logos, by stating his view step by step by expressing his opinion, and pathos, evoking emotion in the reader. In the article, Whalen gears this argumentative article in the direction of supporting…show more content…
Whalen, is an English professor, as well as a senior administrative officer at Hillsdale college, he maintains a national reputation through liberal arts. Since he is an expert in that field and maintains strong points of his view, it makes him creditable, he uses his language to reflect his education and intelligence. Whalen uses the words like “tendentious” and “ideological” to express that the liberal arts have been devalued by STEM supporters. He uses his high vocabulary to assure the audience that he is confident in what he is talking about. Having credibility makes others listen to what the expert has to say, and there is a higher chance of others believing them. The idea is to express that the liberal arts as not dead but alive. The author wants people to support his idea because he knows the impact that the liberal arts make in the world and how common the arts are used and are implemented in our daily lives and speech, Whalen references this well, “The disciplines that take up this inescapable facet of our humanity are the liberal arts” (Whalen). He explains that components like science and math are important in the liberal arts, knowing that STEM is embedded in liberal arts supports Whalen’s view on how liberal arts are important. The author’s text suits his audience and purpose well because it demonstrates his point of…show more content…
When using pathos, he tries to evoke emotion by explaining how it impacts one’s life. The emotion can be fear of what would happen if one does not have liberal arts in their life. The author’s choice of words reflects his education and intelligence as well as express how liberal arts can make an impact. “A sound liberal arts education aims precisely to sharpen readers and thinkers in their use of such arguments and amusements” (Whalen). The article is straight to the point of the author’s view. The word choices of the article are put in a way to where one can directly see that he believes in the liberal arts. Whalen describes that it is risky to forget about the liberal arts. It is pointless for a person to acknowledge one and reject the other because the liberal arts are within STEM. When choosing the word choice, the author evokes an emotion out of the reader because he wants them to be more connected and see his point of view. To have the reader see his perspective, they can decide whether they would be for or against his
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