Article: Jill Smolowe's "A Town Divided"

Paper Summary:

This paper analyzes Jill Smolowe's article, "A Town Divided", about six young African-American male high school students, labeled the Jena 6 by the media, who were arrested and charged with attempted murder in an adult courtroom for beating a young Caucasian male student to unconsciousness. The paper first presents background information about the incident and then takes a look how the article covered it. Specifically, the paper discusses the ethos, logos, and pathos of the articles and concludes that, overall, the article is effective in creating sympathetic feelings for the Jena 6, as the original charges they faced and their initial treatment was definitely unfair.

Table of Contents:
Commentary
Argument Analysis Essay

From the Paper:

"The argument in this piece is very subtle but obviously clear and seeks to present the six African American males as sympathetic characters, which is the ethos of this article. Only the African American point of view is presented in interviews with some of the accused and their families, with none of the Caucasian participants given a chance to speak or express their side of the story. This logos makes sense when the aim of the article is to humanize one faction in a story, while demonizing the other."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Smolowe, Jill. "A Town Divided." People 68.14 (1 October 2007): 66.

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