This article argues the obsession teenagers between the ages of 13 and 17 have with their cell phones. The author, Niall Ferguson, is a professor of history at Harvard University and a professor of business administration at Harvard Business School. In addition, Ferguson is a researcher at Jesus College, Oxford University, and Stanford University, which shows his high level of credibility. The context of this piece is causal because text messaging has been brought about by interaction between today’s generation and the past. This piece focuses on a rhetorical question that is the main purpose of this passage: how will the “civilizational illiterates” compete against America’s global rivals? The author’s intention is to propose the topic of text messaging as hindering teenager’s education, for they are reading less in their spare time and losing important knowledge from books. The audience for whom this piece is written is intended for parents of teenagers who are addicted to their cell phone, and have a high interest level on this topic. The rhetorical elements in this piece include ethos, pathos, logos, and paradox. The author accomplished his purpose because he established credibility by admitting he is guilty of text messaging, however he redeems his credit by stating that he reads books, which shows the reader that he has a high knowledge of how books stimulate the mind. Also, he proved his point by using statistics in this article.
Ferguson, Niall. "How Will Today's Texting Teenagers Compete?" The Daily Beast. Newsweek, 11 Sept. 2011. Web. 16 Sept. 2011. <http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2011/09/11/how-will-today-s-texting-teenagers-compete.html>.
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