The Onion Satire

In almost a cliché manner, Nicholas Carr, in his book “The Shallows: What the Internet Is Doing to Our Brains”, argues that technology is ruining our brains. Just like Socrates, first lamented the invention of the books claiming that it destroyed our memories and ruined our abilities to tell oral legends, Carr laments the invention of the internet claiming that it destroyed our memories and ruined our abilities to read books.

As a columnist for the Washington Post, Esther J. Cepeda writes on a wide variety of topics, yet she consistently uses certain strategies to persuade her readers. Whether she is writing about heritage months or Lady Doritos, Cepeda employs several rhetorical techniques that capture her readers' attention and ensure they listen to her message. A few of the more notable strategies Cepeda applies include problem-solution organization, supporting research, personal anecdotes, and reasonable counterarguments.

Nothing says “human nature” like love and individuality. Part of what makes humans unique is our species’ ability to show compassion and caring for our peers and surroundings. Many people, particularly older generations, believe that the overuse of social technology has ruined the appreciation that younger generations have for the world around them. In Ray Bradbury’s stories, “The Pedestrian” and “The Veldt”, he gives examples of how technology could ruin our affiliations to what would be considered human characteristics. In “The Pedestrian”, Bradbury describes a futuristic world in which no one socializes or takes walks because they are so consumed with their televisions with the exception of one man; in “The Veldt”, parents using advanced

Behavioral changes from one generation to the next naturally occur little by little. Nonetheless, changes in adolescent behavior from the millennial generation triumphing it have been substantial and revolutionary. Today’s teens have never witnessed a world without internet. The majority of them possess smartphones and waste several hours each week on social media. But while numerous parents may feel allayed about their teens’ seeming uninterested in drinking, driving and dating, they could perhaps be overlooking the effects that continuous internet access has on their teens’ mental well-being.

In modern society, consumers are flooded with advertisements as they move along in their daily lives; advertisements displayed on billboards and magazines, the internet and social media, and television and radio. Many companies utilize different rhetorical techniques to appeal to their audience by extending their product and its capabilities. When viewing advertisements you can see the exaggeration and hyperbolic quality some create. Some advertisements are so exaggerated that they become humorous in a sense. An article from The Onion, a satiric newspaper, displays the unintended humor that is captured within some advertisements. Advertisers create false realities and exaggerate the abilities of their products in order to attract

During an average week, how much television does the average child watch? Parents, educators, and concerned citizens alike would be appalled at the answer of 1,480 minutes (BLS American Time Use Survey, A.C. Nielsen Co.). They would also be revolted by the statistic that 54% of four to six year olds would rather spend time watching television instead of spending time with their fathers (BLS American Time Use Survey, A.C. Nielsen Co.). In 1984, Neil Postman saw how devastating television watching was becoming to the culture of America, and gave a speech to the literary community at the 1984 Frankfort Germany Book Fair entitled “Amusing Ourselves to Death” which deals directly with this monolithic issue. Although the speech and subsequent article, published in Et Cetra, were directed at the publishers, writers, illustrators, etc., all those who read this article can also benefit from Postman’s overarching desire to decrease the hours of mind-numbing television watching. Through his successful use of ethos, logos

use of smartphones are affecting the adolescents of this generation. Jean M. Twenge argues in her article, “Have Smartphones Destroyed a Generation?” that the redundant use of these gadgets along with social media use is in fact detrimental to the current and upcoming generations. My experience using Snapchat, Instagram, and other applications on my smartphone supports Twenge’s stance because the excessive use of these applications has caused me to feel melancholic. According to Twenge, “Psychologically, however, they (iGens) are more vulnerable than Millennials were: Rates of teen depression and suicide have skyrocketed since 2011. It’s not an exaggeration to describe iGen as being on the brink of the worst mental-health crisis in decades. Much of this deterioration can be traced to their phones” (Twenge). The essence of Twenge’s claim here is that smartphones are causing the iGen generation to be more susceptible to vulnerability in many aspects. In particular, the way it is affecting the mental health of iGens, thus causing the rates of teen depression and suicide to “skyrocket”. Ultimately, Twenge stresses that the excessive use of smartphones is the cause of the increase in rates of teen depression and suicide. Her observation rings true to me because while I do not suffer from depression nor have suicidal thoughts, I can still attest to the fact that as I’ve overused my smartphone

In the article, “Stop Googling. Let’s Talk.” by Sherry Turkle, it talks about how the impact of phones and technology has on our conversations and interactions with people. Turkle talks about how now a days people divide their attention between multiple things, but the main two examples she uses are phones and conversations. By diving their attention, people rarely dive into deep conversations. They tend to have shallow conversations with people because they are constantly checking their phones at every vibrate or ring, which, in shallow conversations allows them to go in and out of the conversation without missing any important details. Turkle states that, “the mere presence of a phone on a table between them (two people) or in the periphery of their vision changes both what they talk about and the degree of connection they feel.” While this may be true, along with the other studies on how technology is detrimental to society, there as also positives aspects that contribute to society as well.

In the funniest publication, The Onion, the author uses satire to criticize people and expose them to their stupidity or vice, typically in politics or other recent and popular issue. Satire is used through the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule. In this mock press release from The Onion it is made to mock the release and the reasoning for the creating on MagnaSoles, which are shoe inserts. The author of this hilarious work of art writes this to criticize the concept of these shoe soles doing all the amazing things they are said to do, they are just basic shoe inserts. The author uses exaggeration and overstatements to achieve his goal of mocking the shoe soles and their release.

Many people believe that new forms of electronic media such as search engines, which offer easy access to incredible amounts of information are harmful to people’s intelligence because they allow us to understand only the main idea of the information provided instead of allowing us to gain an in depth understanding of the topic. Steven Pinker, a professor at Harvard University argues in his essay “Mind Over Mass Media” that these new forms of electronic media are actually beneficial to people's intelligence and the accusations made against it are unwarranted. He is successful in doing this because he brings up counterarguments and disproves them, he offers advice in practicing self control when

The article “Mind Over Mass Media”, written by Professor Steven Pinker, describes the impact of media on human lives and brains. Pinker illustrates the benefits people gain from using the worlds quickly increasing technology and media. Pinker suggests that today’s technology such as, PowerPoint, Google, and other forms of social media can actually enhance and bring more intelligence to the mind, instead of being detrimental. Critics believe that the many different forms of media can lower intelligence. However, Pinker declares that scientists are using all of this technology everyone else is using, and are still discovering new things. In his article, Pinker explains that there can be negative effects with the use of the wide range of technology.

Thesis: Parents and childcare takers need to severely limit screen time of children and supplement this time with outdoor play time because excessive screen time will negatively affect children’s sleep, physical health, and mental health.

Satire is the use of humor, irony, exaggeration, or ridicule to expose and criticize people's stupidity or vices, particularly in the context of contemporary politics and other topical issues. A literary work in which human foolishness or vice is attacked through irony, derision, or wit. Mockery is teasing and contemptuous language or behavior directed at a particular person or thing. Also the behavior or speech that makes fun of someone or something in a hurtful way. “The Rape of the Lock” by Alexander Pope and “My Satirical Self” by Wyatt Mason from The New York times are both about satire and mockery. Therefore, after reading the above sources, one can infer that the satire reflects today’s society in many ways.

This paper analyzes the effects technology has on mental health. When overused, without face to face communication, one may experience anxiety and stress. A study from the American Phycology Association states that most teenagers use social media, teenagers are especially vulnerable to these effects because technology surrounds them in their day lives. When using social networking, or technology in general, while maintaining face to face socialization one can also sustain their health.

Have you ever wondered why your parents would not get you a phone?. In Today’s technologically advanced world, it is pretty common that you have at least one or two connections between technology. However, most parents disagree assuming that technology is hurting the teen’s Childhood. Nevertheless, having a cell phone is a necessity in today’s modernized world. Some of the reasons are practicality, GPS tracking for parents to know where their kids are, and safety.