Danny Jaskowak Informal Writing #5

Informal Writing #5

            The article from Lifetime moms was about how one mother decided to make her child pay his way through college.  She used her past experiences to emphasize that it could be done.  I think that while she could very easily make her case that paying your way through college in this day and age is possible, I also find her point invalid.  The cost of attendance for college during the time that she probably went through school has increase dramatically over the last two decades.  On top of that, I would love to see what kind of job this kid would get that would pay him to finish his undergrad.  I have heard of companies paying for graduate studies but I have never heard of companies paying for undergrad.  Colleges have also gotten a lot more selective on scholarships, and with both her and her husband having PhD’s I would doubt that he would get much financial aid.  Already we have a massive inequality of when the mother went through college and when the son is going to go through college.  I don’t find her argument persuasive, but rather and ignorant way to do things the way that someone wants to do it because that is what works in the past.  This article resonates strongly with me because her argument just seems so illogical.  It is almost laughable at the naivety of this woman.  IT is as if she doesn’t expect there to be any change over twenty years.  We have a different economy, different ideals, different executives, different social circumstances, most everything about the world is different than it was when this woman was going to school. 

            The article from Forbes was a more informational piece written on the topic of how much college costs now-a-days.  I think that this fits the audience really well, because it is a business magazine that is very prestigious (includes wealthy people).  He talks about the cost efficiency of college: how much we are paying for college versus how much it is actually worth.  He makes a very good point in saying that colleges are underpriced (hard to believe).  When you look at all of the things college students get out the college experience, it is worth more then what the cost of attendance states.  College gives students life experiences that they can’t find elsewhere.  Hopefully they will get a job that will be good enough to sustain themselves and pay off any college debt that they have.  I think he used the appeal to logos really well.  What he said made sense.  I think in that respect, the Forbes article was a lot better because it did a better job at using the rhetorical appeals.