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Brandon Low

Dr. Erin Dietel-McLaughlin

English 13100

15 September 2010

Technology¶s Purpose in Society

Does technology really benefit humanity? This is the question the articles ³This is How

We Live´ by Ellen DeGeneres and ³Someone to Watch Over Me (on a Google Map)´ by

Theodora Stites tackle in their respective pieces. The essays are both very informative, yet

entertaining pieces on the role of technology in our lives. The articles contain opposing

viewpoints and each side includes many examples to support her argument. DeGeneres believes

that ³modern technology is hurting´ (588) the human race while Stites accounts how technology

has benefited our society. Although Stites makes an intriguing argument about the social benefits

of technology, DeGeneresµ essay reaches out to more people and is more entertaining and better

structured to communicate her point about technology as a detriment to society. Therefore

DeGeneres¶ article would be better choice to include in the next edition of ë


In her article ³Someone to Watch Over Me (on a Google Map),´ Theodora Stites

describes how she is willing to ³trade human contact´ for virtual relationships. She praises the

various types of social networks such as Match.com and Facebook because they are benefiting

the way society interacts with each other. Stites also explains how each network is an integral

part of her life. She further acknowledges how each site has a unique and specific purpose

socializing with other people online and in real life. For example Dodgeball network is used to

locate others with her cell phone and IM is to communicate with friends her own neighborhood

to Jamaica. In another network called SecondLife, everyone has a virtual avatar that can imitate
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everything one does in the real world from changing hairstyle to marrying. These social

networks have become so popular that people¶s normal lives revolve around this virtual world.

Overall, Stites praises new technology and states that it is definitely helping society

communicate and reach out to more people.

At the start of the piece, Stites immediately develops her ethos when she identifies herself

as young 24-year-old adult. Stites wrote this piece intentionally for it to be published in the New

York Times, one of the most prestigious newspapers in the country. The main audience of this

publication is very educated individuals who are sometimes not technologically savvy. This

article informs the fairly knowledgeable audience by informing them about social network on

younger people¶s lives. Since Stites is part of this younger generation that understands these

social networks and has truly experienced a life centered around social networks, her word is

very believable to the audience. First hand experiences of her topic helps create credibility and

develop ethos in her article. The readers also get the feeling that Stites is not a novice at social

networks when she mentions that she prefers ³a world cloaked in virtual intimacy´ because the

online world is so similar to the real world. Only someone truly indulged in these activities could

proclaim this type of statement. This article would not be as interesting and insightful if it was

coming from an outsider such as an older professor who researched about online communities.

Stites also implements pathos, another part of rhetoric, very effectively in the article.

There is a lot of pathos in the piece because all of Stites¶ evidence and supporting claims

come from the many stories she describes in the article, which evokes emotion from the

audience. One of the main emotions that Stites evokes is pity. This pity comes from the fact that

these social networks are becoming so much a part of her real life that the outside world seems

foreign to her. For example, Stites sometimes finds herself ³in awkward social situations [she]
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couldn¶t log out of´ when at a party and ³thinks of people as their screen names´ even in person.

Stites also willingly settles for an online community called SecondLife where one controls an

avatar in virtual world that is almost similar to the real world. Although she has much evidence

to support her claim, the article seems more like a story than a convincing report. The stories also

appeal to her young intended audience and persuade the readers that these new social networks

help society. The stories work for this type of report since she is an expert at this topic and is

actually involved in these various activities. Although Stites has great pathos in her article, there

seems to be an absence of logos.

There is very little logos present in Stites¶ article ³Someone to Watch Over Me (on a

Google Map).´ The structure of her piece is more of a story of her lifestyle than a persuasive

paper about the benefits of technology. Even though the readers are able to deuce Stites¶

argument (that technology benefits society) from her stories, there is still a lack of logos in the

piece that makes it appear to be very poorly structure. Her stories do not appear to be coherent

and are very spread out. At one point Stites mentions about the various social networks and

suddenly starts talking about Instant Message with a very abrupt and unclear transition. Stites

logos appears to be nonexistent; however, Ellen DeGeneres¶ ³This is How We Live´ piece

develops all three parts of rhetoric effectively.

In the article ³This is How We Live´, DeGeneres gives many examples of how

technology can be very frustrating in our lives and how idiotic some inventions are. She supports

her view by presenting various situations with technology that many people could relate to and

making them seem ridiculous. For example she scrutinizes our society for the invention of GO-

GURT, which allows people to eat Yogurt faster. She explains that creating GO-GURT is absurd

because eating Yogurt with a spoon is not that time consuming. DeGeneres also states that
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technology is also causing us to be lazy. Technology is doing all of the physical activity for us

like pushing a button to roll up the car window instead of cranking it up yourself or breathe strips

that dissolve in your mouth so you don¶t have to suck hard candy. Her report is made up of many

stories and situations with technology that concludes to the point that technology is damaging

our society.

DeGeneres¶ name has a high and credible reputation, which is directly related to her

ethos. Many people know about DeGeneres and expect humorous remarks when she speaks or

writes. Although she begins the piece by refuting the fact that ³advancements in technology will

change the way we live forever´ (DeGeneres 588), it encourages the readers want to read more

in order to see why she does not share a common perspective with most of the public. She

explains that technology is a nuisance and causing our society to become lazier, then presents

solid, convincible examples that persuade the audience to her side of the argument.

Another part of rhetoric that DeGeneres implements well in the article is pathos. Pathos

is essential in persuasion because it allows the audience to have an emotional connection to your

argument. An important part of pathos is capturing your audiences¶ attention. DeGeneres does

this very well in the article. DeGeneres employs humor in her piece to engage her audience made

up of people of all ages that have even the slightest knowledge of recent technology. Comedy is

a very good device to connect to her audience. Mostly everyone enjoys humor, so many

individuals would take the time to read what she has to say. DeGeneres also uses her stories to

intrigue the audience as well because it is humorous and relatable to most people. DeGeneres¶

humor does not hurt any person or group, instead she mocks our society as a whole. So we are

actually laughing at ourselves. For instance, since ³someone decided that having to crank the

window down yourself was too hard´ (DeGeneres 588), cars now have a button to roll up and
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down the window. With this kind of humor she is able to reach out to many people. Her humor

allows her to communicate to a wider base of audience than just technologically savvy

individuals, which is required for Stites¶ article. So DeGeneres¶ anecdotes are not only comical,

but are also very relatable to many people. Most of the examples she provides are experiences

people have encountered. Almost anyone could relate to trying to open a CD from its tightly

bounded cellophane wrapping or loosing cell phone connection during an intriguing

conversation. Although DeGeneres takes situations to the extreme she does get her point across

and persuades the audience to think a certain way and have a different view of modern

technology. The combination of humor and interesting stories make the reader crave for more

and continue reading. DeGeneres also uses another aspect of pathos to further benefit her claim.

Another element of pathos is conjuring up emotion from the audience. DeGeneres¶

anecdotes evoke emotion from the audience such as anger toward technology being such a

nuisance. For example automated toilets were intended to help people flush the toilet, but in

reality ³they flush entirely on their own schedule´ (DeGeneres 590). There is also the personalœ

voicemail that makes ³you end up sounding more like a robot than the robotic message itself´

(DeGeneres 592). These types of examples leave the readers questioning the role of technology

in society. She performs a very convincing argument in a very humorous way. Usually

persuasive pieces would be covered with facts, counterarguments, and rebuttals, but DeGeneres

uses humorous and relatable stories that are equally convincing. So DeGeneres¶ storytelling

incorporated with humor effectively used to strengthen her pathos and support her argument.

Although DeGeneres¶ pathos is the strongest rhetorical device in the article, DeGeneres applies

logos, which Stites fails to do.

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The last portion of rhetoric DeGeneres uses in the article is logos. She develops logos by

using each story effectively and at the right moment to give a clear understanding of her thought

process and how it relates to her argument. It was easy for the audience to see what direction she

was taking for each example or story she provided. Creating her paper in a very sequential order

and coherent structure helped the audience understand the points DeGeneres was trying to get

across. She begins by describing the ways technology has made society lazier like creating

breathe strips so one does not have to suck mints, then transitions to how technology tortures us

from the plastic that clings onto CD cases that make it impossible to open without scissors to

drop phone calls in important discussions. Overall, DeGeneres utilizes logos successfully by

guiding the readers toward her conclusion and supporting her argument with many examples and

stories.

In conclusion, both articles make strong arguments and use anecdotes to support them. At

the beginning of the pieces, they were able to firmly establish their ethos by being credible

resources. Both their story telling allowed them to develop their pathos. The reports have

numerous stories that convey different emotions to the audience. However, Stites¶ article lacks

the logos that DeGeneres¶ article contains, which really strengthens DeGeneres¶ argument. Also

DeGeneres¶ article is more thought out and relatable to many people. On the other hand, Stites¶

report is only relatable to people in her generation and her stories and evidence seem to be

scattered in the piece resulting in a less effective article. Therefore I implore the editors of ë


 to include ³This is How We Live´ by Ellen DeGeneres the book¶s next edition to

show students that rhetoric is prevalent in not only old, classical text, but in entertaining,

contemporary pieces as well. This will allow young students to realize how important rhetoric is

and attempt to incorporate it into their own writing.

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Works Cited

DeGeneres, Ellen. ³This is How We Live.´ 



  

Ed.

Catherine G. Latterell. Boston and New York: Bedford/St. Martin¶s, 2006. 588-592.

Print.

Stites, Theodora. ³Someone Watch Over Me (on Google Map).´ 

  The New York

Times Company, 9 July 2006. Web. 8 Sept. 2010.