Writing about the WallEvery day, there are many people crossing the border between the United States and Mexico. This creates the question of should or should there not be a well between the two countries. Richard Rodriguez strongly answers this question in The Great Wall of America by saying that there should not be a wall. He uses substance, style, and organization to successfully do this. The essay is written towards an audience of those who are either in favor or opposed to the building of the wall; mainly Americans and Mexicans, but also has a larger, more general audience of everyone that would have access to read the essay. The Author of The Great Wall of America argues against the future image of a wall between the United States and Mexico by creating an image of the wall in our minds using great examples, a serious tone with a few non-serious examples, and organization to help the points he makes against a wall transition and give us an understanding.Richard Rodriguez uses well created real world examples to argue successfully against having a wall. He argues that even though The Great Wall of China is longer than the wall that would be between the United States and Mexico, China still is able to go across borders to expand their economics. The example of Israels wall is also used. This example is used to show the opposite side of the argument for the wall. Many people who are for the wall say that it would keep illegal immigrants out and keep the United States safe. Rodriguez goes on to say that police and border patrol would keep the border safe and the so called illegal immigrants out.The well-defined tone of The Great Wall of America uses non-serious examples to represent serious issues when Rodriguez is writing about his attitude towards the wall. To create a non-serious tone for a serious topic, Rodriguez states it is an attempt to stop the Roadrunners progress with an Acme Border Sealing Kit (59). This cartoon is something that many Americans can relate to, thus making this an effective way to go about adding a non-serious tone to the issue. Using the example of an American cartoon sets the audience of the essay to be geared towards American readers. Rodriguez also says that Grandmas knockoff Louis Vuitton handbag is so full of meds it sounds like a snake rattle (59). This is also giving us a non-serious tone in the way it talks about a grandma having a handbag that is full of medication. This is using imagery that is taken non-seriously. The essay also has an ironic tone to it. The article mentions that the statue of liberty advertises for the tired and the poor (Rodriguez 60). This is showing an ironic twist in where some of the immigrants who are coming to the United States might be tired or poor and are looking to better their lives.The organization of Rodriguezs essay is very easy to follow. The essay starts out by describing the wall itself, and goes into describing the Mexican, and American side. This gives us a background about the wall and a feeling about what it would be like on both sides of the wall. These are separated into different paragraphs, and it is easy to tell what he is talking about. The Author then goes on to give his examples about China and Israel. This is logical to put here, because it is showing us what a wall on our border could potentially be like. At the end, Rodriguez has a concluding paragraph that brings his essay to the end and sums up the arguments he makes against building the wall. Rodriguez is successful in arguing his point against a future wall on the border between the United States and Mexico. The examples of The Great Wall of China and the wall of Israel are used to create images of what a wall could be and do in our minds. A serious tone is used throughout the paper, showing that the issue is serious. A few of the examples that are used however, are non-serious examples and might add a little relief of the serious tone of the essay. The essay is nicely organized with how it is laid out and it is easy to understand what is talked about throughout the paragraphs. The way that Rodriguez writes his essay is successful in arguing against the wall and proves the point that there should not be a wall on the border between the United States and Mexico.

Reference:Rodriguez, R. (2008). The Great Wall of America. In G. H. Muller, The New World Reader (pp. 58-61). Boston: Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Essay The Great Wall of America by Richard RodriguezIntroductionIntro sentence - The Author against a wall on the border between the United States and Mexico (Purpose) and is for people who are considering a wall, but also for a general audience to gain support for his points against a wallThesis - The Author of The Great Wall of America argues against the future image of a wall between the United States and Mexico by creating an image of the wall in our minds using great examples, a serious tone with a few non-serious examples, and organization to help the points he makes against a wall transition and give us an understanding.

First Main Point SubstanceThe examples that Richard Rodriguez use help him create an argument against a wall. Chinese Wall Example The Chinese go across their border to expand their country Israel Wall example To help get rid of violence in the countrySecond Main Point - StyleThe tone of the essay is serious but some examples are using non-serious ways to represent a serious topic The example of the Roadrunner is turning a simple non-serious cartoon in representing a serious issueThird Main Point OrganizationIt is easy to follow if the Author is talking about the American or Mexican side of the borderThe Essay transitions from describing the border to giving the examples about why we should not have a wallConclusionEssay makes an effective argument against a wallUses great examples to do thisUses a few non-serious examples to support a serious topicThe organization is clear and easy to follow