Analysis Of The Modes Of Appeal In The Logic Of Stupid Poor People By Tressie McMillan Cottom
Do you spend ridiculous amounts of money on items you do not need? If so, is the money you are spending less than enough, just enough, or more than enough? If you are spending large amounts of money on unneeded items, and you only have enough to get by, then you will have some form of connection to Tressie McMillan Cottom’s piece, “The Logic of Stupid Poor People”. In her piece, Cottom brings attention to the illogical decisions poor people make. She wants to inform everyone that the reason behind these unnecessary purchases of luxury handbags, shoes, cars, and homes is to have that feeling of acceptance. She also incorporates herpersonal experiences throughout her piece to further build a connection to her readers. Cottom uses logical, emotional, and ethical viewpoint to strengthen her argument throughout her story.
One of Cotton's early appeals to logic is during the time she speaks about how survival skills are perceived in various ways. “One thing that I’ve learned is that one person’s illogical belief is another person’s survival skill”. As you can see, Cottom uses personal experiences to strengthen her argument regarding poor people. Her argument is strengthened by the fact that even though others may disagree with how people may choose to survive, the reason to survive is logical. For someone who may be financially struggling, buying a luxury item may be a strategy to survive because in their mind, it will give them a sense of acceptance. Although it might seem impractical to think that buying expensive things just so you can fit in, it is a big chance for survival to many people. Another way Cottom appeals to logic is when she includes a statement that revolves around evidence. For example, “There is empirical evidence that women and people of color are judged by appearances differently and more harshly than are white men”.
Cottom strengthens her argument about the emphasis of status symbols because by including this statement, the readers are reminded of the many difficulties non-white males have to face. Throughout her piece she also adds other times where she herself and other felt discriminated against because of how they looked or dressed. A great way to appeal to the emotions of readers is by adding stories from past personal experiences. Cottom does this very well throughout her piece, which definitely builds that connection to her readers. One particular story that I personally felt a connection to as a reader, is about an elderly woman who had been turned down by the social service agency. Cottom tells her story by explaining that, “the older woman had been denied benefits to care for her granddaughter she was raising”, and later on receiving those benefits after her mother helped her. Cottom creates an emotional reaction by adding this story because her readers are informed of what the older woman was not given prior to receiving her benefits. I think that this strengthened her argument because it shows us readers that there are many people out there who experiences these types of situation. In addition to emotional appeals, another way Cottom uses this strategy is when she explains why poor people buy luxurious items.
“Why do poor people make stupid illogical decisions to buy status symbols?”. She starts off with this question and then states that the reason people buy expensive items is that they want to belong. I believe that by adding this statement affects the emotions of readers by providing the them something to relate to. Us readers can relate to this statement because in this day in age, most people want to belong. The wealthy have set a standard so high these days that being average is not even enough for you to be accepted in this society. Appealing to the emotions of readers this way strengthens her argument by letting the reader look deeper into the reason a poor person might buy such expensive items to boost their status. She wants the reader to know that by buying these expensive items, a person status is greatly affected. In Cottom’s piece, the readers are informed that she grew up around her great-grandmother, grandmother, and mother. As a young girl, “she grew up watching her great-grandmother and later her grandmother and mother, use their minimal resources to help other people make ends meet”. With this being said, it appeals to ethics because although a person may be struggling to make ends meet already, that person still finds a way to help others in any way they can. Helping others when you can is a moral belief that myself and many others share. Having this mentality and belief is rare to find. There have been many stories and news reports of people having very little but still find a way to help out someone else in need. Cottom’s argument is yet again strengthened even more because the audience is able to connect to her piece in a much personal way.
One last appeal to ethics is when Cottom speaks about the judgements towards the poor who choose to buy luxury items. In her piece, it states, “the heart of these incredulous statements about the poor decisions poor people make is a belief that we would never be like them. We would know better”. Non poor people believe that they know better than the poor and because of that, they feel that they are able to judge them. I think that those who are judging think it is okay because in their point of view, someone who is poor should only save their money and not splurge on anything else but their necessities. In some ways the judgement towards the poor is right, but just because you are poor does not mean you cannot make yourself feel a little bit better by treating yourself with something nice.
To conclude, Cottom found many different ways to appeal to her readers in different viewpoints such as; logical, emotional, and ethical. Her appeals towards each of the three were used in different ways and each was effective on its own. She appeals to logic through analogy and evidence, emotion through personal stories, and ethics through morals. Having many different stances, the reader is able to view the decisions poor people make when they buy items to advance their status.
