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Leonid Fridman 'America Needs Its Nerds'

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Growing up with Asian parents, it was not unusual for me to skip ballet class if I did not finish my homework. Quite the contrary, most Americans today glorify athletes, while nerds cower in the corner. In an excerpt from Leonid Fridman’s essay titled, “America Needs Its Nerds,” Fridman shows readers why Americans should not look down on nerds by utilizing writing tools to develop his argument.

In the first two paragraphs of the passage, Fridman lays the foundation for his argument. First, he states what society thinks about nerds: society’s values are so flawed that terms like “nerd” and “geek” are used only for the academically serious and curious ones. Here, Fridman’s tone is serious, with a touch of humor when he defines “geek.” By going so far and defining the word as “a street performer who shocks the public by biting off heads of live chickens,” Fridman’s attention to detail helps him seem well-researched and detailed, but also logical because he proves how absurd it is to view geeks and nerds in this …show more content…
Fridman compares America to students in East Asia, saying that students there who study hard are good examples for others. Fridman compares this to schools in America, where athletes are paid more than professors at top colleges. By showing the difference between America and East Asia, Fridman is able to bring doubt about shunning nerds in the reader’s mind. In the last paragraph, Fridman asks a list of questions about America shunning its geeks, such as how can parents be ashamed of their child from choosing school work over an extracurricular and how could America remain a world-class power if we ignore academic achievement. These thought-provoking questions help readers think more about why most Americans ignore the studious. Fridman is able to wrap up his argument effectively by leaving readers with an important thought: America needs its

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