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Summary Of Karen Matthews's Essay 'Cheating Pollies'

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Accompanied by an already ridiculing tone, the author, Karen Matthews quickly asserts her main contention with the title ‘Penalty rates cut to hit workers hard, while rorting MPs have snout in trough’ in an article published on the 4th of March, 2017. Matthews also includes a political cartoon entailing hypocrisy and inequality between two figures who are affected by the issue at hand. Throughout the article, the writer argues that the reduction in penalty rates is harmful, and incorporates the cartoon to support the same contention in a simpler and more visual form.
The author initially proposes an argument supported by the Rogerian model of persuasion, which is used to incline the reader to hold belief of predisposed open mindedness and willingness …show more content…

This form of argumentation relies on character and a sense of reliability and trust. The personal branding of the author and the writing style used to implement the argument is crucial to appealing to the reader’s emotions and actions. In response to the actions of ‘cheating pollies’, the writer argues that there is clear injustice and action needs to be taken. “I propose a system that might just make them think twice. What if we punished rorting politicians…?” Rather than to empathise with those affected by the penalty rate cuts, the author’s motive is to instigate feelings of indignation. Consequently, the author creates a clear separation between the MPs she is criticising and the readers, grouping herself in with the latter to encourage uproar and create a unified tone of general outrage. By doing so, she uses her credentials as an ordinary person, just like the reader, as opposed to the MPs to persuade the readers and to highlight inequality that she feels is necessary to act upon. Matthews also reinforces these feelings of unity and inclusion with the use of colloquial language. “Let’s face it we’re witnessing major inequality here and things need to change.” In an attempt to appeal to her audience of regular people and allow for a mutual sense of understanding, the sentence is very informal and simple. This further reinforces the author’s attempt at creating outrage reliant on the author’s credentials and reputation that is shared with the

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