TOW #13 - The Dispensable Rocket by John Updike

Based on history, men and women have different roles assigned to them. Men “were for combat” and hunting while women bore and took care of the children. These roles gave rise to the argument that a man’s body is disposable while the woman’s body is more precious and important. In light of him growing older, John Updike thoughtfully shares his views, using metaphors and personal anecdotes, on the expendable nature of a man’s body and how it affects a man’s behaviors and emotions in The Disposable Rocket.

Updike explains how a man’s body is disposable when having children using metaphors. When having a child, Updike explains how a woman is a “device for retention” while a man, “his body is, like a delivery rocket that falls away in space, a disposable means.” Comparing a man’s body to a piece of a rocket ship that floats off into space, allows the audience to understand the idea of being used and thrown away that Updike tries to portray. The contrast between a woman being for “retention” and a man being “disposable” puts the emphasis and importance on a woman because she is the one who does the majority of the work. A man lacks importance because his “job” is relatively short and fleeting compared to the “job” of the woman.

Once Updike establishes the idea of a man being expendable, he then shares how the feeling of insignificance affects a man’s behaviors and emotions. By giving a personal anecdote, Updike is able to evoke ethos and pathos because the audience sees his first hand account and can feel sympathy towards Updike who feels useless, lost. He describes how all of his life, he would take pleasure in falling down. He describes how many things including “... the pain-smothering adrenaline rush, form cumbersome and unfashionable bliss… Take your body to the edge, and see if it flies.” While Updike seems a little radical and whiny, the audience can sympathize for him as he searches for significance. The intensity of putting his body in danger of injury exemplifies how large his longing for meaning and importance is.

After many years of life, John Updike reflects on his importance as a man and aims to share his finding that men are dispensable, by using metaphors and a personal anecdote. Considering the traditional roles of men and women in society, many arguments can be made yet one indefinitely holds true: men and women are equal; they always have been and they always will be.

TOW #12 blink by Malcolm Gladwell

Have you ever wondered why when you see a snake you jump without thinking? Malcolm Gladwell, writer of Outliers, attempts to answer this question and more for his reader in blink. Gladwell has done extensive research in the area of our brains known as the adaptive unconscious. It’s where we make our split second decisions whether it be jumping from in front of a moving car or concluding that someone is stuck up from a glance at their attire. Gladwell explicitly states his goals: to convince us that quick decisions can be very effective, to teach us when to trust and when to be wary of our instincts, and to convince us that our split-second decisions can be controlled.

As his hook, Gladwell tells an intriguing story about a museum and its purchase of a sculpture. A man sold the museum the “ancient” sculpture; its type is often discovered in archeological digs. The museum had experts come in and analyze the sculpture's authenticity and it passed the test. However, when they showed the it to fellow collectors some first impressions were “fresh” (an ancient sculpture should not seem fresh), repulsive, and “that thing has never been in the ground.” In the end it turned out that the sculpture was a fake despite the months of professional testing ran on it. What this story does is immediately draw in the audience; we want to know what happens. While we don’t yet know how the story ties to the rest of the book, we nonetheless want to know how the story shakes out. As we’re engrossed, Gladwell introduces the subject of the entire book, the power of the subconscious, intuition. From the irony of the outcome of the story we begin to see what Gladwell’s argument is and want to know more because the subconscious is an uncommon topic that many have a vague understanding of.

From other experts, he goes on to give other testimonies on how powerful the subconscious really is. Having read only half of the book, I can’t wait to read how he answers all of our questions.

TOW #11 - Second Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln

In 1865, the American civil war was was nearing it’s end. With President Lincoln being re-elected, Americans looked to him for guidance and eloquence. In his Second Inaugural Address, President Lincoln addresses speaks of God in order to establish his ethos, which allows him to create an effective homily his “fellow-countrymen”. He calls for all American citizens to do what’s necessary to end the war and establish everlasting peace in an effort to establish a better sense of unity.

Most Americans were Christians who followed the bible, therefore talking about God allowed for Lincoln’s message to be easily absorbed and trusted. He says, “... with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the world we are in… to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.” Once Lincoln has the American people’s trust in his message, he uses his spiritual tone to let them know what to do in the time of crisis. The major disunity and division in the country was the open wound that his words healed. Lincoln puts the North and the South under one category by mentioning that “both read from the same Bible and pray to the same God.” By uniting the American people through a strong force of religion, he is able to create a sense of hope and show everyone that they are not very different, yet the same in many ways.

Abraham Lincoln was able to spark a sense of unity in a largely divided country by pointing out what everyone had in common, religion. He expertly does this by first establishing his ethos with the speaking of God, and then using God’s teachings to deliver a homily that would strike the hearts of all Americans.

TOW #10 - from Words That Work by Frank Luntz

Dr. Frank Luntz is a political consultant who studies polls and focuses groups in order to craft arguments. In this excerpt from his book Words That Work, Luntz originally addresses the spouses of Republican men and women of Congress. In 2007, with the media becoming more and more powerful and the presidential election coming in the next year, Luntz informs the congressional spouses that proper word choice is pivotal.  In this excerpt, Luntz presents real-word examples in addition to using careful diction to emphasize that sometimes leaving out the right words makes all the difference.

In order to support his claim that “effective communication requires that you stop saying words and phrases that undermine your ability to educate the American people,” Luntz gives a list of what to “never say” versus what one should “instead say” followed by an example that appeals to logos.  After one of his lists he writes, “Similarly, ‘capitalism’ reminds people of harsh economic competition that yields losers as well as winners, while ‘the free market economy’ provides opportunity to all and allows everyone to succeed.” He appeals to logos by simply providing what the American people think. He also appeals to pathos with his use of the words “harsh” and “losers”. This lets the spouses realize disdain that the wrong word can cause, causing them to understand how their words can affect an audience. Different connotations of words that mean the same thing can paint a different picture in an audience’s mind. After further establishing his ethos by mentioning his involvement in a “language creation effort involving environmental issues”, he goes on to give another example of how the wrong word can create the wrong picture. “‘Drilling for oil’ causes people to paint a picture in their minds of an old fashioned rig… ‘Exploring for energy’ conjures a picture of twenty-first technology…”. Placing the words “drilling” and “exploring” and “oil”and “energy” right next to each other gives the congressional spouses the opportunity to analyze the differences in the effects of the phrases that mean essentially the same thing. Also, Lentz’s juxtaposition of the terms “old” and “twenty-first century” in his analysis provides the spouses with the mindset of their own audience, the American people. With his specific examples and careful word choice, Lentz effectively conveys the right words have the right meaning and the wrong words don’t.

IRB Intro #2

blink by Malcolm Gladwell is the opportunity to see and learn about our subconscious, when we think without thinking. Gladwell presents his research into how the brain works in our everyday lives. His other works include Tipping Point and Outliers in addition to his regular articles for The New Yorker. For this marking period, Eamon and I decided to trade IRB books from last marking period. I trust his judgement and hope that we’ll be able to have good discussion about both of our books.

TOW #8 - Between the World and Me

Ta-Nehisi Coates writes Between the World and Me as a letter to his son, in light of the recent news that no charges would be brought up against the police officer who killed Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri. His book is for all Americans, so they can see what it’s like to be black in America, specifically through Coates’s eyes. He shares personal stories, recounting on what he has learned throughout his life. His title Between the World and Me indicates that his message is a personal one, and is aimed towards everyone. When he mentions his childhood in Baltimore he writes, “Not being violent enough could cost me my body. Being too violent could cost me my body.” Coates had to fend for himself in his hometown while also keeping himself out of trouble. He depicts the harsh reality and helps the reader understand as to how merely trying to live can feel unfair, especially for a child. With accounts from his childhood, Coates also shares realizations that he has come to as an adult. “Black people love their children with a kind of obsession,” he writes. “You are all we have, and you come to us endangered. I think we would like to kill you ourselves before seeing you killed by the streets that America made.” Coates gives his son and America the raw feelings a parent has when they hear of the horror stories happening around the country. No parent wants their child to prematurely lose their life. His statement allows Americans to understand the fear that is put into Black parents’ hearts when their child wants to go to the movies or their school football game. It can happen anywhere and to anyone. If the audience accepts Coates’s invitation to try on his shoes they’ll be able to have a better idea of what it’s like to be black in America.

TOW #7 - Nick Anderson Cartoon

Nick Anderson is a liberal cartoonist who focuses his drawings mainly on political and social issues within the U.S. The question as to whether abortion is moral or immoral is widely debated around the country. With that also comes the question as to when abortion should be illegal. In 2013, when this cartoon was made, most states had their own laws stating when abortion was illegal. The timeline spanned from after 12 weeks in some states to after 28 weeks in others; nine states had no laws restricting abortion. Also, with the U.S.’s federalist government, the Supreme Court can make final decisions and throw out state laws. In light of the controversy around abortion, Nick Anderson uses the woman’s facial expression and the phrases in the picture to say that a woman should have the final say, and not the federal government, when it comes to her having an abortion.

In the picture, a woman is in a clinic and the doctor is evaluating her body by looking at screen. The audience assumes that the doctor, a man with the words “Big Government” on his back, has some sort of apparatus hooked up to the woman in order to show information. Analyzing the picture all together allows for Americans to see Anderson’s purpose. The text “If you are reading this you are too far up my uterus” in addition to the woman’s facial expression, lets the audience understand that the woman is unhappy with the “big government’s” interference in her decision because she should have control over her body, not an outside party. Also considering that the doctor is a man and not a woman, Anderson presents the idea that a man does not understand what it takes from a woman to birth a child. Since he doesn’t know or understand, he should not be making decisions for her. Most government officials making decisions on abortion laws are men, so Anderson appeals to logos because it seems illogical for a man outside of the situation to make decisions for a woman and her body. She should have the right to make the ultimate decision concerning her body.

TOW #6 - Maryland and the Marriott

Jonathan O’Connell is a reporter for The Washington Post. For the past five years, he has been writing about land use and the connection between government and community, as well urban and economic development. In his writing, O’Connell shows the influence that corporations have over U.S. states today. Specifically, Maryland was recently under pressure to keep the Fortune 500 Company Marriott in their state lines because there was question as to whether Marriott would leave or not. Currently, Maryland cannot afford to lose Marriott because the corporation helps to fuel Maryland’s economy by providing thousands of jobs. Also, Marriott’s big name looks good and Maryland officials want to keep it in the state. O’Connell writes The trap that causes states to give millions to corporations like Marriott primarily for the people of Maryland, who would want to know how their economy can be affected. O’Connell uses an anecdote and state government officials’ statements to inform Maryland’s residents of the influence that Marriott has over the state.

O’Connell accomplishes his purpose well. To start the article, he uses an anecdote and ties it directly into the context and topic. He writes,

In 1999, then-Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening was under pressure from J.W. “Bill” Marriott Jr. for millions of dollars to keep the hotel giant Marriott International in the state. Wrestling with how to respond, Glendening stepped into the Annapolis office of fellow Democrat Maryland Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., who offered some advice. “He said, ‘Listen, you don’t want to be the governor who lost Marriott to Virginia,’ " Glendening recalled recently.

O’Connell then writes that “17 years later, nearly the exact same thing has happened.” Having the history of the interactions between Marriott and the State gives Maryland residents a better understanding of what is happening and what the likely outcome is. The anecdote also gives a clear understanding of how corporations influence the state and gives insight into the way state government officials think when making decisions. Simply, Marriott’s stature gives it the power to influence the state. With the anecdote, O’Connell uses statements made by state government officials to show Marriott’s influence. When talking about Marriott’s possible departure, David Ianucci, who helped decide the deal with Marriott says, “It was something we had to do… There would have been a fallout of the state’s business climate, reputation had they left.” O’Connell’s use of statements gives a clear example how Marriott effects the state of Maryland and why it cannot leave. Marriott’s departure would greatly impact Maryland in a most likely negative way, and state officials did not want to be responsible for it.

TOW #5 - Double Solitude by Donald Hall

Donald Hall is a critically acclaimed poet, writer and editor. His writing often exemplifies his love for nature and peace. In Double Solitude, Hall gives the reader his perspective on solitude and how his love of it has affected his life. In Double Solitude, Hall is 87 and reflecting on his life and his marriages. This essay was written for people who choose to be alone; to let them know how the solitude that they love will take a toll on them in the long run. Hall effectively conveys this message with a couple of rhetorical strategies. Using repetition and heart-warming irony, Donald Hall lets solitude lovers know how he felt after a life of solitude, in order to prevent them from feeling the same way.

Throughout the essay, Hall uses repetition to draw emphasis to his love of solitude. In the start of the essay, Hall writes, “I spend my days alone… and lie back in the enormous comfort of solitude.” Later after he details his marriage and divorce with his first wife he writes, “For five years I was alone again, but without the comfort of solitude.” Hall’s reiteration of the “comfort of solitude” gives the audience an understanding of how Hall views solitude. His repetition lets his fellow solitude lovers relate to him while it allows other readers to have sympathy for him. After his use of repetition throughout his essay, Hall reveals his purpose with irony. After he tells the reader of the “double solitude” he shared with his second wife Jane, before she died, Hall writes, “Last January I grieved that she would not be beside me as I died.” Hall puts heavy emphasis on the comfort of solitude and then writes that he does not find that comfort in the end, and that he wishes he was with his wife. The ironic shift in Hall’s perspective unveils his purpose and shows his deep regret.

TOW #4 - IRB Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Ta-Nehisi Coates is an African-American,  award winning writer and educator. He grew up in West Baltimore and studied at Howard University. Coates primarily addresses cultural, political, and social issues in the U.S. In the first half of Between the World and Me, Coates begins his letter to his son and attempts to delve into the unanswerable question: “How do I live free in this black body?” (12). The book is a letter to his son David, who is becoming aware of the tragedies many young black boys like him  face. Coates writes in order to help his son start his own journey of investigation of the answer to his question and also to enlighten his son and others of the history of African Americans. To do this, Coates tells his own story. While Coates primarily writes to his son, he also writes to anyone who can relate, and those who seek more information in their own investigation for answers. In order to enlighten his son on the plight of African American people, Coates uses emotional anaphora and thought provoking metaphors.

When detailing his memories of watching videos in grammar school of the Civil Rights Movement, he writes, “The black people in these films seemed to love the worst things in life—love the dogs that [rip] their children apart… love the men who raped them… love the children who spat on them” (32). Coates’s repeated us the word “love” emphasizes the number of troubling things in the lives of African Americans. It puts emphasis on how ingenuine the video seemed. Also, the irony between the word “love” and the negative event after it creates a depressed mood in the reader. The combination of the emphasis and the mood created gives Coates’s son a feeling similar to what Coates felt in grammar school. The combination allowed his son to feel the history rather than just learn it. In order to help create a vivid picture of the past, when describing his experiences in West Baltimore, Coates writes, “North and Pulaski was not an intersection but a hurricane, leaving only splinters and shards in its wake” (22). His tone and use of metaphor gives his son a more genuine account of what life was like for him. Coates does not want to sugar coat his stories because they weren’t sugarcoated when he was experiencing them. The raw realness of Coates’s account even further allows his son and others to understand the history.

TOW #3 - A Cartoon Drawn by Dr. Seuss

Before and during World War II, Theodor Seuss Geisel, or Dr. Seuss, created an array of racially charged political cartoons. At the time, there was widespread suspicion that Japanese citizens were disloyal to the U.S. and were spies for Japan. Because of this, many, including Seuss, held a prejudice against and a fear of Japanese citizens.  Though he was not as popular at the time as he is now, he had been creating and publishing cartoons since he attended Dartmouth College in 1925. Before his children’s books, Seuss composed cartoons like this mainly for adult audiences, specifically Americans. In this cartoon, Dr. Seuss aims to depict all Japanese citizens as dangerous and traitorous. Seuss shows a long line of Japanese citizens along the states of the west coast (where the Japanese population was the highest). His depiction of them standing in line waiting for explosives, stereotypes the Japanese citizens as dangerous and a threat to the safety and security of all Americans. With this depiction, Seuss appeals to pathos by playing on the fear of the Americans. In addition to the explosives, at the top of the booth, Seuss writes, “Honorable 5th Column,” which is defined as an organization that aims to undermine the larger group that it is in, often for the larger group’s enemy. This, including the words “Waiting for the Signal From Home…” along the top appeals to logos because it was not uncommon for first generation of Japanese citizens to have loyalties to Japan. These loyalties made it plausible that there were Japanese spies. Also, the man on top of the booth seemingly looking towards Japan, reiterates the idea that the Japanese citizens were loyal to Japan and awaiting its orders. For the time period, Dr. Seuss was effectively spread the idea that Japanese citizens were dangerous spies. His appeals to pathos and logos were very effective and made it very plausible that what he was portraying was true. However, Seuss failed to recognize all of the facts surrounding the subject. There were many reports and investigations that conveyed how Japanese citizens were not threats to American security and were loyal to the U.S. While, Dr. Seuss did accomplish his purpose during WWII, he fails to now.

TOW #2 - The Lives of a Cell by Lewis Thomas

Lewis Thomas was a physician and essayist who studied at Princeton University and Harvard Medical School. In The Lives of Cell he compares the earth to a single biological cell and describes humans as being part of that cell. In light of the belief that Man is trying to detach himself from a fragile Earth, Thomas wants modern-day humans, that understand the basic components of biological cells, to understand that they are not overseers of the Earth, but rather smaller parts of a complex system with the Earth. Thompson achieves his purpose through the use of a metaphor, an allegory, and personification. To contradict the common belief that Man has power over the Earth, Thomas writes, “... [the earth] is the toughest membrane … we are the delicate part, transient and vulnerable as cilia.” Comparing people to cilia on the outside of a cell membrane gives the reader an image of how insignificant and powerless people are in relation to the Earth. Also, this metaphor exhibits the mutual dependence of people and the Earth for cilia cannot function independently of the cell, and on the cell, they serve a specific purpose for it. Additionally, Thomas shares the story of how the modern-day mitochondria became a part of the eukaryotic cell. He described the mitochondrion, the organelles that makes energy, as “separate creatures” that have “maintained themselves” and possess their “own special genome.” This allegory presents the idea that people are not in total control of themselves and that there are smaller forces that control us; which magnifies our insignificance as individuals. After Thomas describes the mitochondrion, he questions what else governs his body. He wonders that “perhaps it is they who walk through the local park in the early morning, sensing my senses, listening to my music, thinking my thoughts.” The personification of the components of our cells emphasizes the idea that people are not in control of themselves and that their is another force carrying out actions for us.

TOW #1 - The Front Line Against Birthright Citizenship

U.S. born children of undocumented Mexican immigrants are having their citizenship tested in Texas. Thousands of natural-born children are being deprived of their full rights because of their immigrant parents. Parents cannot receive birth certificates for their children born in the U.S. because they do not possess an acceptable form of I.D. The only accessible form of I.D. that many immigrants have, the matrícula consular, was no longer accepted after 2008 because it wasn’t secure enough. Families filed a lawsuit against the state of Texas in order to get a form of identification that is both acceptable and accessible. The author of this article, Jonathan Blitzer, is an editor for The New Yorker that often writes about American politics. He studied English and philosophy at Columbia University. Blitzer writes for the American public in effort to bring light to Texas’s alleged discrimination against Mexican immigrants. Blitzer achieves his purpose well with his tone and irony. Blitzer’s use of phrases like  “stripped away the rights” and “another mother had to fight” lets the reader see the situation as unconstitutional and unfair to the immigrants. Additionally, after he questions Texas’s intentions for fighting the lawsuit, Blitzer includes a quote from the Dallas County Commissioner, who says, “I am aware of the concerns about the reliability of the consular identification document. However, I am hard pressed to imagine how its use in this context poses any threat of identity theft, fraud, or other abuse.” The irony of the Dallas County Commissioner saying this makes the reader question Texas’s motives. Finally, the reader makes the connection when Blitzer includes a thought from a congressman who believes that “the state’s response to the lawsuit coincides with a broader effort to create a federal court case around birthright citizenship.” Since birthright citizenship, in Texas, primarily affects Mexican immigrants, Blitzer conveys to the reader that Texas’s actions are discriminatory.

The Front Line Against Birthright Citizenship - The New Yorker

IRB Intro #1

Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote award-winning Between the World and Me as a letter to his son about the reality of being a black citizen in America.  With influence from James Baldwin, Coates uses history as well as personal experience to convey his message. In addition to writing Between the World and Me, Coates often writes about cultural, political, and social issues within America. I chose this book because it was recommended to me by former teachers and friends, and because it will enhance my knowledge. I am eager to learn Coates’s perspective and outlook on the reality of being a black citizen in America.

Insert Flap "A" and Throw Away by S. J. Perelman

S. J. Perelman is a man known for his humorous writing and contribution to the creation of many screenplays. He won an Academy Award, for best screenwriter, for his work on the film Around the World in 80 Days. His essay, Insert Flap “A” and Throw Away, details a man’s struggle and eventual nervous breakdowns while performing seemingly simple tasks. Initially, he tells of a breakdown he had in the late summer months, then he moves into telling a story of a breakdown he had while trying to assemble his children’s toy on Christmas. Perelman writes for everyone, to bring light to the realness of insanity and some doctors’ capitalization of it.

Perelman achieves his purpose well with the use of satire, humorous hyperboles, and even personification. After reluctance, the man in Perelman’s story tries to build the children’s toy, but with great trouble. He says, “... the only sentence I could comprehend, ‘Fold down on all lines marked ‘fold down’.” He shows the reader through humor that he actually is having difficulty following the simple instructions. Later when he asks his son for a knife to continue with the assembly, his son replies, “I dowanna … you always cut yourself at this stage.” Since the man made no indication that he was taking extra precaution, the son’s reply indicates his father’s insanity; he repeatedly makes the same mistake. After the man cuts himself, Perelman implements the use of the hyperbole, “I was in the bathroom grinding my teeth with agony”, to show the man’s exaggeration of not only simple tasks, but small cuts as well. Perelman even further exemplifies the man’s insanity with the man personifying the tab and slot of the toy by saying they were “thumbing their noses” at him. After, the man becomes hysterical and loses consciousness, and wakes up to find himself in a hospital bed with doctors hovering over him. He hears them say, “If we play our cards right , this ought to be a long, expensive recovery.” The doctors’ conversation reveals part of Perelman’s purpose in informing the audience of the corruption of some doctors who deliberately extend patients’ stays to pilfer more money.

A photo depicting a corrupt doctor pocketing money that doesn't rightfully belong to him. (From an article by James Salwitz on the Sunrise Grounds website)

Graven Images by Saul Bellow

Graven Image: an object (such as a statue) that is worshipped as a god or in place of a god

Saul Bellow was an accredited writer who received numerous awards throughout his life. From a young age he took interest in English literature and writing. Having graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in anthropology, he took his talents to prestigious institutions such as Princeton University. Later, he won many awards for his writing. In Graven Images Saul Bellow criticizes photographers for exposing our amour propre, or privacy, that we have all spent time fortifying. He was inspired to share his thoughts after many times being photographed and not liking how he appeared. Bellow explains how we all, including him, have an image of ourselves that we wish to present. He writes that photographers deliberately aim to destroy our facades and uncover the real us. They believe that they are doing us a favor by granting us immortality with their skills. While, being raised in the Jewish faith, Bellow was taught by his grandfather it is a sin to have your photo taken. Understanding this, Bellow’s aim is to inform us that in the end, our facades don’t matter; our conceived images of who we want to be don’t matter. What’s remembered and immortalized is our reality, our surface, whether we choose to accept it or not.

Saul Bellow does achieve his purpose through the connotation of his words and the use of irony in his examples. In the beginning, speaking of being photographed, he writes, “One can only submit to the merciless cruelty of ‘pure objectivity’.” The connotation of the words merciless, cruelty, and others such as demonic, and sadistic that Bellow uses to describe photographs and photographers, gives the reader the impression that he wishes to outright get rid of photographs. However, he unveils his purpose towards the end when he describes how his mother had his grandfather photographed, towards the end of his life, in order to remember his face. He writes, “Perhaps the old man [Bellow’s grandfather] knew perfectly well that his picture was being taken.” Some form of objection to having his picture taken is expected from his grandfather, yet there was none. This exemplifies that we can’t fight how we are and should instead embrace it, no matter how much we dislike it.

A photo showing the paparazzi relentlessly taking photos. (From an article written by Nick Allen of The Telegraph)

The Rainy Mountain by N. Scott Momaday

N. Scott Momaday, is a Native American, Pulitzer prize-winning English professor and novelist. Being from Kiowa descent, he shares stories of his people that were told to him by his grandmother. In The Rainy Mountain, Momaday writes about the history and plight of the Kiowa people in order to bring light to the dismantling of Kiowan culture. After his grandmother passed, he decided to visit the places that she told about in her stories. He wanted to better understand the stories and feel a connection to his ancestors who had traversed the path years prior. Momaday shares his experience and a message with the reader in The Way to Rainy Mountain. He writes for non-Kiowa people, specifically modern-day Americans. Writing in the second person, using words like “your”, lets him reach his audience on a more personal level. In addition to teaching readers of his culture and history, Momaday tells a story as an allegory and wants the reader to understand how the US’s oppressing of Native American cultures eventually dismantles them and hurts future generations.

Momaday achieved this purpose by using figurative language. His grandmother symbolized the final fight of the Kiowa people with her knowledge of her ancestry and her presence at the last traditional Kiowan Sun Dance, which was shut down by American soldiers. After describing how his grandmother’s house was once full of “excitement and reunion” Momaday writes, “Now there is a funeral silence in the rooms.” Kiowan culture and tradition died with her after a long fight for survival. Referring to his ancestors’ surrender to US troops, he writes, “My grandmother was spared the humiliation … by eight or ten years, but she must have known from birth the affliction of defeat.” Because of his ancestors’ pain, he and his grandmother felt pain within their lives. Using these examples, the reader is able to empathize with Momaday and better understand how his family was affected. This long-standing pain led to the eventual dissolving of Kiowan culture and tradition. Reading The Way to Rainy Mountain by N. Scott Momaday has undoubtedly given me more insight as to what has happened to Native American cultures in the US.

A drawing of a traditional Native American Sun Dance drawn by Jules Tavernier.