Rhetorical Analysis Of Richard Louv's Last Child In The Woods

In his 2008 novel, Last Child in the Woods, journalist and natural idealist Richard Louv demonstrates the effect that separation from nature has on children. Using a variety of rhetorical strategies, Louv reminds the different parents, as agree cohort which adapted alongside new technology, of the benefits they received from nature prior to the technological revolution. Louv persuades them to instill an appreciation of the natural world in their children, even if such appreciation deviates from societal norms.

“A walk in the Woods” is the story of two men setting out on the AT trail. They come across what not only they are missing but the disconnect in nature. The book helps to expand on what aspects are missing from our culture in order to incorporate nature in our daily life.

In the passage extracted from Last Child in the Woods, Richard Louv makes use of several rhetorical devices such as: logos and satire, also, he employs kinesthetic imagery; in order to mock the modern day American society, and simultaneously emphasize how young children are being driven away from nature. Louv employs logos when he includes researchers like Matt Ritchel who argue the "countless possibilities [of] moving ads out of the virtual world and into the real one" and he does so in order to exemplify innovative advertising mediums that will keep people engaged with nature. Furthermore, through logos, he also encourages the readers to "respect the cultural importance of using nature as ad space," and also ponder over the idea of synthetic

In Richard Louv's essay titled Last Child in the Woods, he uses many different rhetorical strategies to develop an argument discussing man versus nature. Louv writes about how the world and society change everything and how technology is taking over the world. Louv also mentions about how technology is becoming apart of people daily lives for the good and the bad. Louv presents a strong argument on how this generation is more focused on technology than nature. Louv was able to make strong arguments using many rhetorical devices to help develop his argument discussing the difference with people and nature.

Louv uses strong imagery to describe how to connection that people have with the environment has changed over the years. He describes how “[they] used [their] fingers to draw pictures on fogged glass as [they] watched telephone poles tick by,” in a time where there was no technology and they had to entertain themselves. By painting a picture of this experience it shows how time has changed

As humans become intrigued to the developing digital reality around them, they become unaware of the existing world around them. Within Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods, Louv begins to explain the advancement of technology, then continues to argue about how society is beginning to drift away from the experiences of nature. Louv also calls the audience into action, he develops his argument with the use of irony and juxtaposition. He thoroughly applies juxtaposition and irony creates an aspiring tone for the audience to bring action of the upcoming world.

Louv supports his claim about the separation between people and nature by using an anecdote of a friends experience when buying a car. When declining the offer of having a backseat monitor for her daughter the “salesman jaw dropped” and wouldn't let her go without an explanation on why. His purpose is to show how in desire these “multimedia entertainment products” are, and how now they have taken the place of nature. Louv shifts to a reflective tone where he depicts a back seat “drive-by movie” in a simpler time, where children were able to see houses and the woods teaching them how “cities and nature fit together”. Louv then appeals to emotion by using pathos when talking about the future, he says that maybe we’ll be able to tell the stories to our grandchildren. Really just painting a picture of how your imagination run wild looking out of the car window “drawing pictures on the fogged glass” and “counting cows and horses”. Where you could disconnect from the world.Connecting with the experiences of many people who lived in a time where backseat monitors didn’t

John Muir, a brilliant Transcendentalist, has written hundreds of enlightening environmental essay to emphasize the adamant need to save these sacred kings of the forests, the Redwoods. Within Muir’s vivid and emotional entries, specifically “Save the Redwoods”, John utilizes rhetorical devices such as personification, analogy, and Religious allusion in order to express the vital need to save the trees.

Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods, the overarching message of the effect of the climate around us, is clear throughout. Whether through his accusatory tone or his multitude of rhetorical devices, the writer is able to easily flow together his ideas and claims. The structural integrity of the passage allows for easy understanding for all ages. Whether the passage is to be analyzed by an older generation for reflection or for students to read for experience, the devices. used within are easily applied.

People of all ages rely so heavily on technology that they fail to appreciate the beauty and simplicity of nature that surrounds them. In the past few years, technology has become increasingly advanced that people have become dependent on it for almost every aspect of their lives. For instance, people have all the information they can possibly want with just a click of a button. Through Richard Louv’s Last Child in the Woods, he emphasizes the desperate need for people to stray away from technology and focus on the importance of nature.

Many see the grass of yesterday as greener. This is the case with Richard Louv in his work Lost Child in the Woods where he believes that today’s society is too removed from nature and too obsessed with technology. Louv claims that as the world becomes increasingly influenced by technology the “true nature” is less valued than it was with previous eras. He successfully uses rhetorical techniques in order to accomplish his purpose of criticizing the people of today for distancing themselves from the natural world.

The short story, “The Wild Parks and Forest Reservations of the West,” by John Muir paints a picture of the necessity of human interaction with the wilderness. In his story Muir pleads with his audience to gain more appreciation of nature and to understand their impact on it by using religion, pathos, and imagery.

Nature has played an enormous part in our lives. From the childhoods of unwanted or loved trips to the country to the issue of climate change, we have all had our part to play in the matter. And yet it affects us as well. Without the presence of nature, we would not be able to survive. Both Rachel Carson and Henry David Thoreau understand the necessity of nature and humanity's lack of love for it. However, they are not without any dissimilarity. Carson's "A Fable for Tomorrow" and Thoreau's Walden are both serious, persuasive pieces that consider the current habits of the American people to be harmful and use pathos as one of their methods to convey this message. However, the differences in time periods, messages, rhetorical effects, and approaches reveal a clear rift between the two works.

Through removal and technology, humans have started to become isolated from the wilderness and the nature around them. This view distinctly contrasts with Thoreau’s perspective. “Though he [Thoreau] never put humans on the same moral level as animals or trees, for example, he does see them all linked as the expression of Spirit, which may only be described in terms of natural laws and unified fluid processes. The self is both humbled and empowered in its cosmic perspective,” states Ann Woodlief. The technologies that distract and consume us, and separate us from the natural world are apparent. Many people and children ins cities have seen little to no natural-grown things such as grass and trees. Even these things are often domesticated and tamed. Many people who have never been to a National Park or gone hiking through the wilderness do not understand its unruly, unforgiving, wild nature. These aspects, thought terrifying to many, are much of why the wilderness is so beautiful and striking to the human heart. “Thoreau builds a critique of American culture upon his conviction that ‘the mind can be permanently profaned by the habit of attending to trivial things, so that all our thoughts shall be tinged with triviality,’” pronounces Rick Furtak, quoting Thoreau’s Life

As a child, I grew up in close proximity to a small wooded area, backed by an elementary school on one side, and a busy neighborhood on the other. It was barely big enough to be called a forest, and often muddy and littered with trash from the nearby school. Nevertheless, it was a source of adventure and awe for me and my siblings. During the summer, we would spend entire days in the woods, bounding through the trees and playing hide and seek. Even during the winter, we could be found out in the woods, sliding on ice in the small swampy pond. That forest, where I spent countless hours in wonderment, has ignited in me a reverence for nature and all its beauty that lingers on to this day, almost ten years later. Those towering trees seemed sacred and invulnerable. Today, however, that already small forest is shrinking, as companies buy the land, one section at a time. Most of the once towering trees have been cleared out and replaced with pristine rows of houses; instead of low brush and bushes, there are now “For Sale” signs. In the same fashion, Earth’s natural resources are being rapidly depleted worldwide in the name of human development. Whether in distress for the environment, or concern regarding the ability of the human race itself to survive, advocates for the concept of sustainability are calling for a change in human attitude and behavior. In order for us to preserve the sacred beauty of nature, and to prevent our vital resources from diminishing further, we need to