Analysis Of The Kekule Problem By Cormac Mccarthy

Throughout Cormac McCarthy’s essay “The Kekulé Problem” he uses numerous different rhetorical elements. Some of these elements are more crucial to the understanding and appreciation of this piece than others. Three elements, in particular, stand out as more important than all the rest, and these are his introduction, his use of the three appeals, and his diction.

To fully grasp the importance of these elements, you need to have an understanding of Cormac McCarthy’s essay “The Kekulé Problem”. His piece delves into the origin of language, and the role the unconscious mind played in the development of language. The main point Cormac continually raises throughout his paper is that language did not fulfill a need. Thousands of other mammals

As discussed earlier, I believe three of these elements are much more important than the others and crucial to your understanding of Cormac McCarthy’s strategy he uses throughout the essay. The first of these elements being his introduction. Cormac opens his essay by presenting readers with “The Kekulé Problem”. The cliff notes version of “The Kekulé Problem” goes like this ‘Kekulé has a problem – he goes to sleep – the unconscious mind shows Kekulé an image – he awakens with an answer’. The main point McCarthy is trying to stress is that language and the unconscious is at odds. He states “…the unconscious understands language perfectly well or it would not understand the problem…why doesn’t it simply answer Kekulé’s question” (McCarthy, pg.2) This frustration exhibited by McCarthy is not without merit. Why doesn’t the unconscious just tell Kekulé the answer? Why the cryptic image of the snake? These are the questions McCarthy is asking, and consequently, the reader will begin asking as well. His introduction sets the stage for the rest of his paper by introducing important information the reader needs to know. That is why his introduction is so effective and necessary to the paper as a whole. As discussed, his introduction builds into the rest of his paper, and directly into the second most important element used by McCarthy, his uses of the three