Rhetorical Analysis Final Draft Jordan Newbould

ENGL-1010
Onwuzuruoha
5/1/17

John Tierneys The Reign of Recycling was published on October 3rd 2015 for the New York

Times. Tierney makes opposing claims to our recycling process and what its going to take to

reach a sustainable society. Tierneys article was very informative but also created a logical

connection with the reader to inform them about possible changes that could make to their own

recycling process. Tierney suggests that prices for recyclable materials have plummeted and

reductions in demand and oil prices. With the cost rising sharply and our environmental benefits

gradually decline. Tierney implies that rinsing our recyclable materials even has a net effect of

releasing more carbon into our atmosphere. Tierney suggests that in order to generate clean

energy and reduce our greenhouse emissions we need to find alternate solutions to recycling, as

the process grows more expensive it becomes less valuable for our society. The money used for

recycling could be used in more valuable ways to reduce our greenhouse emissions.

The Reign of Recycling is gradually declining, and our current recycling process will

not further offset our carbon footprint to achieve a sustainable society without heavy expense.

With our current recycling process its more expensive to recycle household waste, rather than

sending it to a landfill. Trying to turn garbage into gold costs a lot more than expected. People

are often encouraged to believe that recycling is benefits the public but these goals are often not

met. The economic benefits for recycling is declining and we have not yet reached a shortage

in our landfills to make recycling profitable. Recycling operations can have environmental

benefits including less mining, drilling, and logging with reduction of greenhouse gases. But,

with the increased cost of labor and the decline of raw materials has made recycling an

increasingly expressive way to produce materials that less valuable. The more trash that is
 Rhetorical Analysis Final Draft Jordan Newbould
ENGL-1010
Onwuzuruoha
5/1/17
recycling the more difficult it is to sort the valuable raw materials for the worthless trash.

Tierney wrote a previous article under the New York Times in 1996 explaining the

inefficient system of recycling. In his current text he still shares the same ideas as the previous

article and tries to inform the audience on the reality of our recycling process. Tierney uses logos

when discussing imposing a $15 carbon tax on garbage also uses when discussing only 35% of

our trash was worth recycling while state officials set goals to recycle 50% or more. Tierney in

an article that all the trash generated by American for the next 1000 years would fit in one-tenth

of 1 percent of the land available for grazing. Tierney explains how recycling can be effective,

but its overall costly and ineffective in the long run. He suggests imposing a carbon tax on

garbage to further offset our environmental impact and we should find alternate solutions to

reduce greenhouse emissions.

Tierneys use of logos reassures the audience about his current claims on our recycling

process. Tierney uses logos when discussing that reducing our greenhouse emission results in

saving the United States around 186 million metric tons of carbon dioxide, compared to

removing 39 million for cars. Three tons of recycled glass would only equate to around one ton

of greenhouse benefits. But, receiving very little greenhouse benefits makes recycling a less

valuable process in the long run. Leaving Americas total annual savings from recycling plastics,

glass, textiles, rubber, is only around two-tenths of 1 percent of Americas carbon footprint.

Tierney uses pathos and goes on to say that people are convinced to recycle in order

benefit our society or achieve a common goal. Tierney describes a warm glow that

influences people to take pleasure in our current recycling process. That people are unaware of
 Rhetorical Analysis Final Draft Jordan Newbould
ENGL-1010
Onwuzuruoha
5/1/17
the relative costs and actual benefits of recycling. Tierney also uses pathos when making

comparisons between religion and the recycling process recyclers want more than freedom to

practice their own religion. Some recycle as a ritual, others for mortality reasons to help

improve the environment.

Ethos is used when he uses his former article for The New York Times arguing that the

system of recycling is wasteful where he argued his first claim on how recycling was costly and

ineffectual. He still shares similar beliefs in his current article, but he feels recycling could

flourish if the public learned how to do it properly. Tierney uses ethos when uses his

credibility on recycling to inform others about the true nature of recycling. The author also

uses logos when presenting public officials (Mayor Bill de Blasio), the EPA (Environmental

Protection Agency), Dr. Kinnaman, an economist at Bucknell University, and Chris Goodall as

references throughout the text.

Tierneys article was very informative but also created an emotional connection with the

reader to inform them about possible changes that could make to their own recycling process.

Tierney made the audience reflect on recycling, and what we need to do to reach an

environmentally sustainable society, in which our recycling process will benefit us more. Tierney

had a biased opinion about our recycling process, but he backed it up with strong supporting

details. His tone in the article is direct, but is also biased towards people who current recycle,

which is his target audience. Tierney did an excellent job of conveying his ideas. He presents

some possible solutions on how we can improve our system of recycling, and how the Reign of

Recycling is more expensive than its worth.

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