L R Intimate Modi cations: Eighner, Morrison, and Staples

how he would behave in public. Everything surrounding their experiences, from the time of day, to who was involved, and even the manner in which the authors acted, will serve to establish their credibility, and fuel their persuasiveness. eir continuous use of rhetorical appeals throughout their essays develop their credibility as an experienced individual under the topics they’ re discussing, but also influence the audience and their reaction to the encounters presented. Lars Eighner, Toni Morrison, and Brent Staples all detail polarizing stories, and demonstrate how someone considered invisible in the face of society, will modify their way of being, and drastically change people’ s attitudes towards them. is invisibility often comes in the form of discrimination, isolation, and even unfamiliarity; that will all drive individuals to change their outlook on situations, and at times even themselves, in an attempt to ease tensions.

A variety of issues are covered including social restraints, skepticism, and even racial discrimination which, in themselves, are relatable to many readers. Yet, the conscious decision made by Eighner, Morrison, and Staples where they detail their own personal encounters, from the first perspective, is done for multiple reasons. For the purpose of establishing credibility, detailing personal encounters dealing with these issues is done to demonstrate that these authors are the suitable individuals to speak on such complex issues that will affect many readers. Apart from “Strangers”, Eighner and Staples refute the stereotypes around them in an indirect manner, and rather, get rid of these preconceived ideas directed towards them by demonstrating how intelligent, and civilized they are; which is another way in which they will establish their credibility. Starting off with Lars Eighner, the experiences that he endures as a dumpster diver, and dedicating a large portion of his life to trying to make it through the day as a homeless man, may seem unsettling to many since there’ s the stigma surrounding those living in poverty; such as them being deceiving or untrustworthy. In order to address these preconceived ideas about the homeless, Eighner dedicates a large

portion of “On Dumpster Diving” to detailing his thought process when going through a dumpster, and the judgement he uses to determine what should be consumed or avoided. Eighner presents the reader with facts such as how “nonorganic peanut butter does not require refrigeration and is unlikely to spoil in any reasonable time” and how finding food without its original package “is not so much a positive sign as it is a sense of a negative one” (57). Eighner’ s facts and conclusions demonstrate how much thought goes into the actual process, and how observant one must be; not only does this work to ease the idea of health risks, but since they’ re encounters that Eighner has gone through himself, it portrays him as eager to learn. Something that Eighner does, that is particularly interesting when it comes to establishing his credibility, is his indirect critique of academia; the wording of the title, “On Dumpster Diving”, uses the same format that scholars would use for texts dealing with, typically, highly academic topics, and for Eighner to use that same format when talking about dumpsters would juxtapose this intellectual format with such an unseemly topic, such as dumpster diving. As previously mentioned, Eighner talks about the durability of peanut butter, and how he tends to find them in dumpsters affluent to college students, but Eighner also takes this opportunity to play on academia yet again. His tone when it comes to describing the college students has a mocking undertone, and describes them as able to buy another jar of peanut butter with “daddy’ s money” and as naive when it comes to these common motor skills of knowing when food is good or not, rather than tossing it without question (57). Lars Eighner plays with the popular idea that students in higher education will be, by default, intellectually superior to others, yet he’ s able to distinguish certain areas where he reigns more knowledgeable due to his experiences being homeless. Getting rid of the stereotypes surrounding the homeless directly worked to establish Eighner’ s credibility, and it tends to come in the form of him detailing how he went about his scavenging. He talks about how he has “never placed

a bogus order to increase the supply of pizza” but rather he will take the pizzas that are actually placed wrong (57). Here, Eighner is slowly diminishing the stigma surrounding the homeless, in which they’ re seen as deceiving and liars.

Not only so, but he also distinguishes between those who make a mess with the garbage from the bins and how disorderly they are which would also display how he disapproves of such behavior. He also discusses how he wouldn’t look through trash bins from houses since they would be a lot more personal than dumpsters outside an apartment complex. If he’ s capable of keeping all of this in mind, and being respectful of others’ privacy and comfort, Eighner demonstrates how civil he is and how, by default, those living in poverty aren ’t barbaric, or set out to cause havoc. Everything being discussed in “On Dumpster Diving” comes from Eighner himself, and develops his credibility as someone in a position to speak about the realities of being homeless, and what is required of them. For Eighner to be able to detail all the nooks and crannies that must be kept in mind while dumpster diving rejects the idea that those living in poverty are intellectually inferior, but also helps him establish his credibility as someone who has lived through a wide variety of moments and has learned equally as much as someone in higher education. He paints himself to be observant and resourceful, but at the same time, very respectful, but these aren ’t attributes he’ s decided to fulfill randomly; Eighner acknowledges that he’ s in a position to be heavily criticized due to his status, and must use his best efforts to demonstrate that he is not untrustworthy and deceiving, but he also realizes that if doesn’t use his best efforts those around him would get uncomfortable and could, potentially, stop him from going through dumpsters which is the only resource he has.

In “Black Men and Public Space”, Staples grapples with the struggles that black men face in public spaces, and the reactions many take when they come across them. Stigmas surrounding black men are heavily outlined with them being seen as a po-

tential threat, or more of a threat when compared to white men, but the essay also details the horrid ways in which Brent Staples is actually addressed and treated. Right in the beginning of the essay, Staples begins detailing the encounters he’ s had where he’ s profiled for being black, and how in one instance, “To her, the young black man [...] seemed menacingly close”, and would then cause her to run away (267). e issue of racial discrimination that Staples is evaluating, isn’t any issue in today’ s society, and in this case, the perspective in which these encounters are discussed, and how impactful these encounters are, will play a large roll in establishing Staples’ credibility; he’ s making himself seem as someone who has gone through the effects of discrimination, and would know, first hand, what it’ s like and would know how to approach the audience who also relate to these issues. e topic of racial discrimination may be one that the audience may very well relate to, but Brent Staples then goes on to note how “Such tales are not uncommon. Black men trade tales like this all the time” which, in this case, knowing more encounters, and pointing out how normalized these instances are, helps him build his credibility as someone who has experienced discrimination (269). By taking into consideration that “Women are particularly vulnerable to street violence” and that these fears aren ’t simply “hallucination”, Staples will differentiate the fears that women experience out in public, to the different type of instinct they get around black men that is more impactful to Staples (268). Although there may be those out there with very conservative ideologies that will still view African Americans as inferior to others, and could possibly question the intelligence of the author, Staples doesn’t really need to highlight his educational credits for that purpose; instead, his credibility comes from a place of assuring the reader that he has gone through some of the worst times, and truly understands that hurt that come from preconceived ideas. Staples has seen the horrors that have happened to black men around him, and how vulnerable and overlooked they are in today’ s society, that he finds himself overthinking how he

must act out in public, and lead him to rearrange how he behaves. Staples is already surrounded by deeply rooted stereotypes that affect all aspects of his life, and he understands that he must be the one to approach situations differently, and be overly calm, because those around him continuously refuse to change. As a result, Staples has been forced to modify his way of being out in public to ensure his safety, and prevent matters from escalating.

In Toni Morrison’ s “Strangers”, the author directly addresses how we ’ re all so quick to think of strangers as those who will “Disturb. Betray. Prove they are not like us” and so they’ re pushed away as a way of keeping oneself safe (130). Toni Morrison’ s credibility comes in the form of distinguishing themselves from the majority, and making decisions that, typically, wouldn’t be done by others. By them addressing the stereotypes that come along with strangers, and highlighting the initial thoughts that one would have, and then choosing to go against them, would demonstrate that Morrison is willing to delve into the experiences that one may come across with someone new. roughout the entirety of the essay, Toni Morrison is hurt by the mischief that this utter stranger brought, but their credibility still stands as they were willing to make such a bold decision, speaking to a stranger with the objective of getting to know them. e manner in which they’ re capable of retelling these stories will be pivotal to hooking the audience, and demonstrating that they have this broad outlook on the complex issues they’ re talking about. e essays are meant to leave an impact on the reader, and so the authors must establish that they’ re in the position to, basically, educate the audience. When Eighner details how he would never go through someone ’ s personal trash, when Morrison says that they directly contradicted their initial judgement of strangers, to even Staples’ whistling mechanism all demonstrate how they’ ve modified who they are, and attempt to ease tensions around them. If Morrison were to avoid the stranger by the lake, there’ s a possibility that they would then find themselves skeptical of who they really were, and would feel a lot more paranoid. Staples having

to make an effort to make those around him feel comfortable are attempts to ease the tensions that would come if someone were to let racially fueled ideologies come between them. en, if Eighner was to recklessly go through bins, and invade the privacy of others, he would find himself being confronted by others, and falling into the stereotypes placed around him. All of these authors have had to set boundaries for themselves in order for matters to be kept rational, and to prevent them from escalating. e encounters that Eighner, Morrison, and Staples have gone through have placed them in a position to speak about the complex issues they faced; the manner in which they speak about these instances is what primarily engages the audience, and moves away from just telling stories, to actually placing the readers there with them. When the authors detail how they felt and actually make that emotional connection to the audience, they’ re making the essay a lot more intimate. e intimacy carried throughout the essays, as they speak about hurtful moments, will, in itself, let the audience know that they’ re speaking from a personal place and are willing to open up about it all. is appeal to pathos aids their persuasiveness since they’ re tugging at the emotions of the audience; It’ s important to note the manner in which they go about sharing these intimate moments is also a way to strengthen their credibility. Although “On Dumpster Diving” is very informative at times, there are moments where Lars Eighner lets his emotions show, and is one of the few moments where he doesn’t make dumpster diving seem like the best option. He talks about how his dog, Lizbeth, will eventually pass away, and “[...] when her time comes she too will go into a dumpster” and the audience is struck with a feeling of empathy as they realize that Eighner has come to such a conclusion (61). Eighner never really mentions a close relationship he’ s ever had with others through his adventures, but Lizbeth is the only one he’ s had by his side, and so for him to talk about losing someone so dear to him would hook the audience, and begin to sympathize with him. In a similar manner, Staples details how he felt in

moments where he’ s seen as a threat and how “Her flight made me feel like an accomplice in tyranny”, and the way in which he describes these feelings makes it seem like he’ s viewing himself in a different manner (267). By those around him lashing out, and demonstrating all the hatred held against him, Brent Staples slowly began believing their inaccurate ideas about him. e intimacy comes in when he lets the audience in on how he feels, on how these moments made him feel like he had discovered something new about himself, which is not even true, but that also struck the audience even more as they realize how miserable these moments were for Staples; he’ s being alienated and held to this low standard that causes him to rethink about who he is, yet, these standards are nowhere near true and are only set out to hurt him. Morrison’ s encounters are a bit more peculiar, since she consciously placed herself in a position where, in reality, anything could happen, but at the same time, she romanticized the outcome of her relationship with the stranger and ended up getting hurt. When she talks about her fantasies about what their relationship will be like, from her clothes to the manner in which the stranger speaks, Toni Morrison feels as though she will build this motherly relationship with the stranger; she believes that they will go on and learn from each other, but remain by their side. Realization hits Morrison in one of the worst states, when she’ s vulnerable and, to an extent, delusional. When she realized that the stranger didn’t actually know the owners of the house, and had actually lied to her, Morrison feels cheated and deceived. Although she wishes to move on, “A certain view from [her] window is now devoid of her, reminding [her] every morning of her deceit and [her] disappointment”, and the audience begins to see how hurt Morrison is left, and one really can not hold those illusions against her, since speaking to the stranger was done out of hope that they wouldn’t be like notorious strangers (130). Seeing Toni Morrison be so hopeful for what the future held for her and stranger, and then seeing it come crashing down placed the author in such a vulnerable position, and all the emotions that

went through them are displayed to the audience. All three of the authors took a very courageous step where they reveal these emotions to the audience, and demonstrate how impactful these moments were to them; their approach in attempts of persuading the audience is very similar, where they all reveal their emotions, and impacts that these instances had on them, so that in turn, their encounters seem a lot more intimate and connect with the audience. “On Dumpster Diving”, “Strangers”, and “Black Men and Public Space” all demonstrate how individuals dealing with stereotypes will find themselves having to modify how they go about manners, and changing the thought process behind their decisions. Choosing to modify the way they handle themselves is a voluntary action that all three authors could’ ve chosen to ignore, the same way they chose to accomplish, but the goal of these essays is to invite the audience to see how making these decisions is necessary, and at times, challenging. Doing so would require them to be persuasive, and directly telling their stories wasn ’t going to get through to the audience entirely, and so, they all strive to influence the way the audience responds to the essays. e audience would begin to see just how impactful these experiences would be; they would realize how Eighner’ s only companion would eventually just be another object he would lose along the way, they would realize how horrible it would be to be chased down the halls of your own job the way Staples had, and they would be walked through the painful revelations Morrison went through as she realized she had been lied to. ese authors are all speaking from a place of pain, and a place that has caused them to have a different outlook on matter as well, but the appeal to pathos was done to influence how the audience would react, and to ensure that they’ re on their way to having a similar outlook that Eighner, Morrison, and Staples now have.

In their essays, the authors create this eloquent atmosphere where they demonstrate how educated they are, and how capable they are of looking back and perfecting what they made of those instances. A particular way that their credibility is depicted, is

how they’ re telling these stories very well after they have taken place, and avoid speaking from a highly sensitive spot that could sway their judgement on matters, and make them come to biased conclusions. Although they come to the same realization that confrontation must be addressed in a different manner depending on the situation, and they must modify how they approach circumstances, Eighner, Morrison, and Staples all come to different sub conclusions. Starting with Eighner, he has realized that ought to take what you can, and let everything else go by, and if you can ’t make use of them then they shouldn’t go along with you, but he has also learned the transience of material being; meaning that material things will only be permanent, but the sentiment behind them will last (63). e conclusions that Eighner has come down to, not only come from his extensive experience as a dumpster diver, but are also universal, and demonstrate the intellectual realizations he has come to after partaking in such a stigmatized practice. Toni Morrison had tried to ignore the stereotypes that come along with strangers, and how they may be deceiving, and found herself imagining what her life would be like after befriending the stranger. Her conclusion then deals with how “Image increasingly rules the realm of shaping, sometimes becoming, often contaminating knowledge” and that any image of others, whether deprecating of flattering, will change how the interaction goes with them (130). What Morrison realizes after being, as they said, cheated, is that she allowed herself to be hurt because she placed an image of someone before the actual interaction, and was then disappointed. e motherly image that Toni Morrison created before approaching the stranger is her own stereotype that she made, in hopes of refuting the pre-existing one. In one instant, Staples discusses how he has been “been calm and extremely congenial on those rare occasions when [he has] been pulled over by the police”, meaning that even after he made an effort to seem calm, the police still fell into their racial ideologies, and stopped him (269). His conclusion wasn ’t directly stated, but through his experiences it

can be assumed that it deals with the stubborn discrimination some fill face, even after one modifies their manner. For all of the authors to be able to reflect on what has occurred to them, and formulate it into lessons displays the time they’ ve invested in understanding these moments. For them to avoid speaking out of an overly sensitive place, is to speak from a reasonable and orderly place that has taken the time to truly come to conclusions. Authors Eighner, Morrison, and Staples have clearly reflected on the events that have taken place in their life, and how they must live off those experiences and the lessons brought along. All of them have gone through moments that have forced them to change their attitudes towards confrontation, meaning that they know they must approach situations in a specific manner in order to maintain tranquility, and allow hostility to lower. e encounters that they’ ve all gone through challenged their judgement, and made them admit that in order to go about matters calmly, they must modify how they treat those around them. e topics that the authors talk about are very complex, covering issues such as racial discrimination, societal constructs, to even the misconceptions of those around you, but they all build their credibility through the use of stories that have allowed them to gain a broader outlook on these issues. Although the experiences themselves are very different in the cases of Eighner, Morrison, and Staples, but having those experiences is what establishes them as the right individual to speak on these issues; these topics will be relatable to a lot of the audience, in themselves, but the authors demonstrated that they comprehend these issues very well, and have learned from them. Credibility not only comes in the form of educational credentials, but, as these authors have realized, also comes in the form of one ’ s interactions, and how they present those to the audience. eir persuasiveness comes in the form of connecting to the audience in a very intimate manner, in which they reveal their emotions, and detail very vulnerable moments in their life. By revealing their emotions to the audience, and making that intimate connection

to them influences how they responded to what the authors were talking about. Authors Eighner, Morrison, and Staples all have come to the unanimous conclusion that they’ re all going to go through difficult times, but from then, have realized that they must change how they approach these scenarios. Taking it a step further, they all deal with stereotypes that affect them, and so, they must change the manner in which they behave to avoid fulfilling those stereotypes, or refuting them indirectly with the way they act. In the face of such a judgmental and critical society, individuals must then realize the deprecating standards being held to them and work against them since they’ ve come to the conclusion that it’ s easier to change who you are, rather than expect society to change for you.

Deciding e Rest of Your Life at 18

K R

What are your plans after high school? Where are you going to college? What are you going to do with your life? Influential adults ask high-school students these questions daily. Instinct says to reply by stating “some four-year college” without a second thought. Yet, I can ’t help asking myself, do I even want to go to college? Or does society want me to go to college? High school students are conditioned to believe that going to college is the sole way to have a successful, meaningful, and fulfilling life while being able to provide for themselves and their future families, even if it means voluntarily sacrificing their own desires. Societal pressures are a large factor in the decision-making process for many people because of their fear of judgment if they happen to choose another career path that is seen as less intellectually demanding. Joey Franklin’ s “Working at Wendy’ s,” William Zinsser’ s “College Pressures,” and Mike Rose’ s “Blue-Collar Brilliance”, challenge this prevalent notion using ethos and pathos. By providing anecdotal evidence, the three essays refute this all too common belief and analyze society’ s reasoning for pressuring high school students to go to college even if the stu-