Most nerds and geeks have struggled socially since elementary school, feeling like outcasts and losers. In the literary piece “America Needs Its Nerds” the author, Leonid Fridman, conveys the message that nerds and geeks have a positive impact on society and therefore should be viewed as extraordinary and as valuable as athletes. She believes that nerds are “ostracized”, “social outcasts”, but are also needed for “America to remain a world class powerhouse”. In the school setting, many people that enjoy specific activities like reading books, building model airplanes, playing music, and enjoying learning are being ostracized. As Fridman states, children are “Ostracized for their intelligence and refusal to conform to society’s anti-intellectual values, many are deprived of a chance to learn adequate social skills and acquire good …show more content…
Students have been taught from an early age that you can either conform to society, or be an outcast. As Fridman discovered, “Even at a prestigious school like Harvard, anti-intellectualism is rampant: Many students are ashamed to admit, even to their friends, how much they study”. At a school that takes impressive grades to get accepted into, students are afraid of what their peers think. Instead of being proud of the hard work and dedication to education, they are ashamed and do not want to tell other people about their hard work. They are afraid of being outcasts. Many students believe that being the star quarterback, or on the varsity team is more important than any education due to the acceptance from their peers and the attention. It does not have to be this way though, “In East Asia, a kid who studies hard is lauded and held up as an example to other students”. The child is not chastised by his or her peer, but they are envied and celebrated. They are inspired to keep up the good work, to improve and to make an impact on the
Author and Harvard graduate, Leonid Fridman, in an excerpt of his article, America Needs Its Nerds, points out America’s anti-intellectualism. Fridman’s purpose is to inform the reader of the contempt held for the intellectually curious and call for a change in the country’s attitude. He adopts a condemning tone to make the reader aware of the issue and encourage them to change their mindset.
For example, Fridman compares athletes to nerds in his quote, “Nerds are ostracized while athletes are idolized.” Fridman is explaining how kids who prefer to do academic activities compared to playing sports, later become social outcasts. He also compares other countries views of their nerds to how America views our nerds. For instance, Fridman explains to the reader how in other nations, “.... A kid who studies hard is lauded and held up an an example to other students.” While in America, athletics are held above academics on any given day. Also, Fridman uses elite professions in other countries to elite professions in America. In other countries, jobs such as being a professor in a university are one of the most rewarding jobs one can have. But in America, Fridman states, “Average professional ball players are much more respected and better paid than faculty members of the best universities.” Overall, Fridman is saying that anti-intellectualism in America is a problem and it needs to
Ultimately, by these students tieing their self image to getting the highest possible grade it can lead them to some serious Problems, the students not learning to their full potential, and negatively affect their career. Grades play a role in education but grades should not define a student like it does today.
Leonid Fridman’s article,”America Need Its Nerds”, published in the New York Times, conveys American society’s unpleasant perception towards intellectuals. Fridman asserts the issues of American society's evaluation of people in order to convince readers of the New York Times to acknowledge educated individuals. He employs logos, ethos, and pathos to contribute to his goal if the readers of the New York Times recognizing the value of intellectuals.
What is a geek? A geek is “a street performer who… bites off heads of live chickens.” In the passage “America Needs Its Nerds” by Leonid Fridman, Fridman argues why “America needs its nerds.” He begins by illustrating how the “intellectually curious” and “academically serious” are ostracized. From there he displays in the open why “nerds are ostracized while athletes are idolized.” Fridman develops his argument by displaying why “nerds are ostracized while athletes are idolized” and comparing the U.S with other countries across the globe on an intellectual platform.
In Leonid Fridman’s passage entitled “America Needs Its Nerds”, Fridman discusses why ‘nerds’ are needed in society. In his passage he develops his argument through comparison. He compares nerds to freaks and athletes to develop his argument that there is something wrong with america’s values.
American culture has evolved, and Society tends to ostracize people for their intelligence, and our culture has been giving these intellectuals derogatory names like nerd and geek. Leonid Fridman believes that these anti- intellectual values that pervade our society must be fought and should stop for the sake of America. The author supports this position in the passage “America Needs It’s Nerds” through the use of rhetoric by giving definitions of terms such as geek, offering comparisons through juxtaposition, adding a tone shift, and posing rhetorical questions to the reader.
Croal, N. (2008, August 18). You Don't Have to Be a Nerd. Newsweek, 152(7), p. 66.
There is no doubt that conformity is essential to the harmony of society. It allows for individuals to work together under a uniform set of rules and norms. In childhood and adolescence, the time during which students go to school, children begin to learn these basic rules of civilization. They socialize with others, learn respect and become well-rounded individuals. This requires students to not only develop their talents but also their weaknesses. This Achilles' heel may be academic, such as math and science or more artistic, like vocal music (Source F). Although students may not be pursuing a future in these areas, learning them is part of becoming a balanced person academically. Only strengthening and focusing on a student’s specific talent could create an image...
Penrod says that intellectuals have a negative name associated with them that can also give them a bad reputation. The name “geek” or “nerd” is not a positive one for the intellectuals and makes them feel devalued. An online venter describes what he hears “A+ this and…got a 1600 on my SAT and got all AP classes next year woohoo. That’s all these people care about don’t they have lives damn nerds” (Penrod). Even though the venter seems to be angry towards the end his anger shows something bigger. He is somewhat envious of the grades, SAT scores, and classes these kids get because they’re intellectuals. All of those factors together that he
Pressures on children in today’s society are a problem that is becoming more evident in academics as parents and teachers put more and more emphasis on these children to outperform their classmates, stress in the child’s life becomes an interfering problem (Anxiety.org, 2011 Weissbourd, 2011,). From preschool children to college adults, pressure to execute academic perfection extends across all areas of curriculum. In our highly competitive, American society, emphasis placed on academic achievement has never been so intense (Anxiety.org, 2011, Beilock, 2011). This need to be the best, fueled by our culture in America, has created a social force affecting education, a force to be reckoned with at that. Too often, parents and teachers sacrifice their chil...
It is obvious that most parents around the globe like their children to be educated. In today’s world, education means higher living standards due to the globalization of industry and competence. My parents are an example for such ambition of pushing children into the intimacy of studying to guarantee a sustainable future. Even thought my family lives in one of the highly educated districts in Baghdad, most parents in this district believe that education is a subjective matter. Therefore, the only goal of students in my district is to attain a minimum passing grade because nobody asks them more than that, even their teachers. In other words, students consider school as a community to have fun instead of earning knowledge. The main reason for such behavior is due to the political situation of Iraq before 2003. At that time, even though a person may hold a degree in engineering, he would work for the government with little salary that is not enough for living. Therefore, educated people at that time have no value for education; they simply know that college education is not enough to build a successful carrier. They feel
A statement from the Huffington Post states, “From a very young age, we are told the importance of getting good grades. Especially in high school, we are told time and time again that our grades affect what college we will get into. While grades are extremely important, people often forget about the importance of learning, not just getting good grades. There is a difference between the grade received in a course and the amount of learning that took place in the course.” Parents and institutions should teach the importance of learning. The society around the upbringing of students emphasizes getting good grades as apposed to getting every detail and aspect mastered. School priorities should be reevaluated and changed for future students
Are the new standards and expectations the world has for teenagers really creating monsters? The amount of stress that is put on students these days between trying to balance school, homework, extra curricular activities, social lives, sleep and a healthy lifestyle is being considered as a health epidemic (Palmer, 2005). Students are obsessing over getting the grades that are expected of them to please those that push them, and in return, lose sleep and give up other aspects of their lives that are important to them such as time with friends and family as well as activities that they enjoy. The stress that they endure from the pressures of parents, teachers, colleges, and peers have many physical as well as mental effects on every student, some more harmful than others. The extreme pressure on students to get perfect grades so that they will be accepted into a college has diminished the concept of actually learning and has left the art of “finagling the system” in order to succeed in its place (Palmer, 2005). There are many ways that should be implemented in order to reduce the stress on students so that they can thrive because, withoutthem, the school systems will only be creating generations of stressed out, materialistic, and miseducated students (Palmer, 2005).
Having explained the reason most children have become disheartened at the thought of school, I now turn my attention to the students who do realize school’s educational value. These are the students that will continue to prosper throughout their lives because they realize the extreme importance of education. There is a secret, yet not so secret, motivation behind their determination to exceed standards and expectations in school. The secret they withhold is their overwhelming desire to be successful in the future.