Do not Take Away Football from Schools in Michael Van Der Galien's Article, Dear Americans: Whatever you Do, Don't Ban College Football

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In the article titled, “Dear Americans: Whatever You Do, Don’t Ban College Football,” published May 26, 2012 on pjmedia.com, Michael Van Der Galien endeavors his audience the influence of football, and how banning the sport within schools will take away the uniqueness of the sport. Van Der Galien compares football players as “gladiators”; how gladiators are known to entertain the crowd while hurting one another. No matter how dangerous the sport may be, Van Der Galien is confused on how analyst are shocked about the man injuries in football. Coming from England, Van Der Galien believes that football is freedom for America, and how “the freedom to pursue your happiness, regardless of what know-it-alls thinks.” (Van Der Galien, 2012, para. 6). Mr. Gladwell, interviewer from Slate, argues about how college football needs to be banned because of its health issues, and how it does not benefit the academics whatsoever. Van Der Galien’s reactions to Mr. Gladwell’s statements were professional, and to clarify on what could be the real objective of football in colleges. Nevertheless, the article reveals that Van Der Galien’s indirectly attempts to demonstrate that college football should be considered as a right, and if taken away is viewed un-American. Recalling memories from his childhood, which expresses the use of emotion, impacts the reader and gives credibility for those hard core “MERICANS.” Furthermore, with the use of quotes by interviewee, Malcom Gladwell, used in Van Der Galien’s article, can be used to back up his opinion . All in all, I believe that after reading this article I would argue that even with it’s casual use of emotion, understanding of the other issue, and quotes successfully outlines Van Der Galien’s opinion on ... ... middle of paper ... ...athos, and give the readers creditbility on the issue. Furthermore, Van Der Galien’s shows his readers that he will defend his opinions when it comes to another’s opinion. With the small amounts of evidence that can be considered powerful in this essay showed that this article is clearly an opinion piece. I believe that Van Der Galien’s argument is not successful and should have been thought out more with evidence and creditbility. Van Der Galien has stayed in a casual tone, and in the end shows another’s opinion to argue with. I believe that being a foreigner, with a love for football, gave me the impression that he just wanted to express his pro-MERICA opinions without actually thinking on the direction of his article. Works Cited http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2014/02/03/if-fatherhood-falls-in-a-forest/?utm_source=PJM728Ad&utm_medium=CPC&utm_campaign=HouseAds

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