In Dana Gioia’s, “Why Literature Matters”, Gioia presents his argument declaring that the measure of interest young Americans have displayed in arts has declined vastly in the recent years and if the numbers continue in this direction, it could be a serious problem with immense consequences. Gioia supports his argument using several pieces of evidence such as polls, reports, and even a quotation from a distinguished author. Gioia’s main intent for writing this article is to draw attention in the direction of the young Americans. Gioia uses a great quantity of statistics to help persuade the young American population to develop some interest in the arts. As stated by the National Conference of State Legislatures, “Young people do not understand …show more content…
This is too important of an issue to ignore. “The significance of reading has become a persistent theme in the business world.” The world is developing at a rapid rate and in order to keep up, you must be at the top. “literary readers are markedly more civically engaged than nonreaders, scoring two to four times more likely to perform charity work, visit a museum, or attend a sporting event.” As you can see, people that read are more likely to go to social events, and the reason for this “may lie in the kind of civic and historical knowledge that comes with literary reading.” Manufacturers have polled their employees and poor reading skills is ranked second. This puts the jobs of many people in the danger zone due to their literacy skills. There are many consequences just from the decline of reading, and we can prevent all of these just by developing a slight interest in reading. In conclusion, Gioia presents a strong debate trying to persuade the audience that the downfall of reading will have a negative impact in the society, especially young Americans. The consequences from the decline in the amount of reading can be very harmful. Gioia uses several types of evidence including statistics, polls, and a quote from a prestigious author. He also uses convincing examples that will make the reader think twice before making a mistake like this