Analysis of Tina Rosenberg's Everyone Speaks Text Message

“Everyone Speaks Text Message" appeared in an American daily newspaper, The New York Times, on December 9, 2011. Author, Tina Rosenberg, a Senior Fellow at the World Policy Institute, in “Everyone Speaks Text Message” implores her readers to contemplate preserving their native language and presents digital technology as the ultimate solution. Rosenberg targets linguistic minorities and the readers of The New York Times as her audience. The author’s main purpose is to inform the readers that numerous indigenous languages such as N’Ko are fading away, and efforts towards saving them must be initiated. She examines the problems faced by N’Ko, and then she concludes the essay by discussing efforts put forth by the native people to save N’Ko. Rosenberg uses anecdote, imagery, and statistics in her article to let the audience know that many native writing scripts such as N’Ko are on the verge of extinction, and there are ways to save them.

Rosenberg extensively makes use of anecdotes, providing supporting details to thoroughly engage the audience in her article. Rosenberg starts off the essay by providing the readers with a brief account of Traore. The author says, “ When Ibrahima Traore takes his sons to a park in Montclair, N.J., he often sits on a bench and reads…. most of the time he reads N’Ko, a language few speakers of those languages would recognize” (Rosenberg 267). Presence of an anecdote in beginning of the essay proves Rosenberg’s intent to entice readers’ attention with the help of interesting narratives. For instance, the story involving Traore’s family is used by Rosenberg to support her claim that digital technology has helped transform N’Ko, such when she says, “Digital technology has already transformed how Traore ...

... middle of paper ...

...ation. There are a variety of ways that Rosenberg makes this happen. Rosenberg takes advantage of the use of anecdotes, imagery and statistics to make the audience emotionally aware of the situation. When the audience is more aware and emotionally connected to the article, the audience is more likely to step up and do something. Rosenberg does not just write to sit there and become famous, she genuinely cares about her topic, and urges the audience to think about their lives. Not only does she make the audience aware, she also presents various solutions to solve this problem. This provides closure for the audience, and allows the audience to be more appreciative of their own language.

Works Cited

Work Citied

Rosenberg, Tina. "Everyone Speaks Text Message." 2011. First-Year Writing: Writing in the Disciplines. 7th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. 267-271. Print.