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Homework of Reading: Informational Text is:

Design a power point presentation to be presented before your classmates that analyzes, and
evaluates the rhetorical devices used in Melisa Dickson’s essay, “The Victorians Had the
Same Concerns About Technology As We Do”, and how Dickson used analogies to reflect
her views on technology in the essay.

PLEASE NOTE:

 All weekly assignments should be submitted on the assigned 'Home Assignment' link
and keep a copy in your Second Term - Home Assignment Folder that you have created
earlier.
 All writing assignments should be typed following the APA style and format (e.g.: use
Times New Roman font - size 12) and attached to the 'Home Assignment' link as a
word file.
The deadline for submitting this assignment is on Thursday, 23rd. March, 2023 at 11:59
pm.

1. Introduction:

Question - Introduce Melisa Dickson's essay, "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology
As We Do", and explain why it is relevant to the topic of the presentation.

Answer – Melisa Dickson's essay "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do"
examines the equals between the worries of the Victorians and our cutting-edge worries about
innovation. It looks at how Victorian culture wrestled with the effect of Modern Insurgency on their
lives, and how they communicated worries about security, work removal, and the effect on human
connections. Dickson makes connections between the Victorian era and the present day, noting that
our society is also dealing with the effects of technological advancements. The essay encourages
critical reflection on the significance of technology in our lives and the potential adverse effects of our
reliance on it.

Question - Introduction: what rhetorical devices Melisa Dickson used to convey her message in
the essay “The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do”
Answer - Melisa Dickson's exposition "The Victorians Had Similar Worries About Innovation As We Do"
utilizes a few explanatory gadgets to pass on her message. A few examples include:

Analogy: Dickson draws parallels between the concerns that Victorian society had regarding
technology and those that are prevalent in contemporary society. By utilizing this relationship, she
features the similitudes between the two periods and recommends that set of experiences is rehashing
the same thing.
Repetition: To emphasize the Victorians' concerns regarding technology, Dickson uses the phrase "they
feared" throughout the essay. The idea that the Victorians were extremely concerned about the effects
that technology would have on society is bolstered by this repetition.

Imagery: The author depicts the Victorians' fears regarding technology with vivid imagery. She writes,
for instance, that they feared "a world in which human beings were enslaved by their own creations"
and were "haunted by visions of machines taking over their lives." The idea that Victorians were deeply
concerned about the effects of technology on their lives is bolstered by this imagery, which contributes
to the sensation of unease.

Irony: Dickson utilizes incongruity to feature the difference between the Victorians' apprehensions
about innovation and the way that advanced society has embraced it. For instance, she takes note of
that "the Victorians would be both astonished and stunned by the innovation that encompasses us
today," proposing that they would be both intrigued by its abilities and scared by its likely outcomes.

Overall, these rhetorical devices aid in conveying Dickson's message that modern-day concerns about
technology are not new and have always existed. She suggests that we can learn from the Victorians
and approach technology with a healthy dose of skepticism and caution by drawing parallels between
their fears and our own.

2. Overview of the Essay

Question - The essay by Melisa Dickson titled "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About
Technology As We Do" summarized.

Answer - The essay of Melisa Dickson's essay, "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About
Technology As We Do" is a comparison of Victorian and contemporary anxieties regarding technology.
The thesis of the essay is that Victorian society's concerns about the effects of technology on society
are still relevant today.

The Victorians' concerns about technology are described at the beginning of the essay. They were
worried that machines would take over their jobs, that technology would have an effect on their health
and well-being, and that technology might be used for bad things. These anxieties, which were
expressed in literature, art, and popular culture, demonstrate that the Victorians did not naively
embrace technology but rather dealt with the repercussions it could have.

The essay then compares and contrasts the concerns of Victorian society with those of contemporary
society. Dickson points out that we are also concerned about how technology will affect our jobs, our
health, and our privacy. She argues that our concerns about technology are not new; rather, they are
rooted in a long-standing concern that dates back to the Victorian era.

The essay suggests that we can learn from the Victorians' approach to technology in the final section.
They didn't completely reject it, but they approached it cautiously and skeptically. They were careful to
weigh the benefits and risks of technology before adopting it because they were aware that it could be
beneficial or harmful. By gaining from their model, we can move toward innovation in a more smart
and dependable manner, and guarantee that it serves the requirements of society in general.

Question - Explain how the essay examines Victorian era attitudes to technology and how it compares
to contemporary concerns. Essay by Melissa Dickson “The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About
Technology As We Do "

Answer - Melisa Dickson compares Victorian attitudes toward technology to contemporary concerns in
her essay, "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do." She argues that
Victorians' anxieties and fears regarding technology were not significantly different from ours today.

Dickson says that Victorians were very worried about how technology would affect their lives. They
were concerned that machines would take over their jobs, that technology would have a negative
impact on their health and well-being, and that it might be used for evil. The literature, art, and
popular culture of the time all reflect this concern.

On the other hand, today's society has embraced technology with open arms, frequently without fully
considering the potential negative effects it could have. We are now concerned, among other things,
about how technology will affect our jobs, our privacy, and our mental health. This has prompted a
developing feeling of disquiet and distrust about the job of innovation in our lives.

Dickson suggests that we can learn from the Victorians' approach to technology and that these
concerns are not new. They didn't completely reject it, but they approached it cautiously and
skeptically. They were careful to weigh the benefits and risks of technology before adopting it because
they were aware that it could be beneficial or harmful.

Dickson demonstrates that these concerns are not unique to our time by comparing Victorian attitudes
toward technology to contemporary concerns. Instead, they are a part of a concern tradition that has
been going on for more than a century. We can approach technology in a more thoughtful and
responsible manner and ensure that it meets the needs of society as a whole by drawing lessons from
the past.

3. Rhetorical Devices:

Question - Define rhetorical devices and their significance in writing.

Answer – Techniques or strategies used by writers to better convey their message and persuade their
audience are referred to as rhetorical devices. Language, structure, and style are just a few of these
tools.

These are some common rhetorical devices:

Metaphor: a way to show a point by making a comparison between two things that are not alike.

Alliteration: the use of the same sound or letter multiple times at the beginning of sentences.

Anaphora: the use of the same word or phrase over and over in different sentences or phrases.

Hyperbole: a distortion used to underscore a point.

Questions of rhetoric: questions that aren't meant to be answered but are meant to make you think
and make a point.

Writing needs rhetorical devices because they help writers better convey their ideas and engage their
readers. Writers can make their writing more memorable and persuasive by employing rhetorical
questions, metaphors, and other devices. A piece of writing can also be given a certain tone or mood
by using rhetorical devices, which can help the writer have the effect they want on the reader. To put it
plainly, expository gadgets are significant instruments that scholars use to make their composing more
compelling, connecting with, and convincing.

Question - Analyze Dickson's essay's use of rhetorical devices like metaphors, similes, and repetition. In
her essay titled "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do,"

Answer – In "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do," Melisa Dickson
utilizes a few logical gadgets to successfully pass on her message. Metaphors, allusions, and repetition
abound throughout the essay. The essay makes use of a number of rhetorical devices, each of which
has an impact on the overall message.

Metaphors: Throughout the essay, Dickson uses metaphors to create vivid imagery that helps the
reader comprehend the scope of the Victorians' fears. For example, she looks at the apprehension
about innovation to a "foreboding shadow approaching not too far off." The Victorians' concerns were
extremely serious, and this metaphor conveys a sense of urgency.
Repetition: Redundancy is utilized all through the article to accentuate central issues and make them
more vital. In order to emphasize that modern society is not the only one concerned about the impact
of technology on humanity, the author repeatedly uses the phrase "we are not alone." The rhythmic
pattern that is created by this repetition keeps the reader's attention and reinforces the author's
message.

Allusion: The author also makes allusions to cultural artifacts and historical events. She uses the
example of the Luddites, a group of English textile workers who destroyed machinery at the beginning
of the 19th century, as an illustration. The reader is helped to comprehend that technology has always
been a disruptive force and that the concern that automation will eliminate jobs is not new by the
reference to the Luddites.

Contrast: Dickson makes use of contrast to draw attention to the differences in attitudes between
Victorian society and modern society. She takes note of that the Victorians were wary and incredulous
about innovation, while present day culture will in general hug it all the more promptly. This difference
assists the peruser with understanding that the feeling of dread toward innovation isn't just legitimate
yet additionally fundamental.

Generally, Dickson's utilization of explanatory gadgets is profoundly compelling in passing on her


message. The contrast, repetition, allusions, and metaphors all help to emphasize that technology has
always been a double-edged sword and that society should approach it with caution and skepticism.
The essay serves as a potent reminder that Victorian concerns are still relevant today and that we can
gain a lot from their cautionary tales.

4. Rhetorical Analysis:

Question - "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do," Melisa Dickson

Examples of each device and how they contribute to the overall message of the essay.

Answer - In her essay, "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do," examines
what the worries about innovation and its mean for on society that we have today are not
extraordinary to our time span but rather were additionally pervasive during the Victorian period. Here
are a few instances of gadgets she involves in her paper and how they add to her general message:

The message: During the Victorian era, the telegraph was a significant technological development that
made it possible to communicate quickly over long distances. Be that as it may, as Dickson notes, there
were worries about the effect of this new innovation on society. A stressed that the message would
prompt a deficiency of protection and an obscuring of limits among work and recreation time, like
worries we have today about cell phones and steady network.
The motorcycle: Another Victorian-era invention that had a significant impact on society was the
bicycle. Although the bicycle was initially viewed as a liberating technology that enabled people to
travel farther and faster than ever before, there were also concerns regarding its impact on gender
roles and social norms. According to Dickson, some individuals were concerned that women who rode
bicycles would develop an excessive amount of independence and would no longer conform to
traditional gender roles.

The steam locomotive: One of the most important innovations of the Victorian era was the steam
engine, which powered everything from trains to factories. Be that as it may, there were worries about
the effect of this new innovation on the climate and on laborers. As Dickson takes note of, a stressed
that the steam motor would prompt ecological debasement and to the removal of laborers who were
not generally expected to perform difficult work.

By and large, by looking at these and other mechanical developments of the Victorian time and the
worries that were communicated about them, Dickson's paper recommends that our ongoing worries
about innovation are not exceptional to our time span but rather have been available since forever
ago.

Question - Melisa Dickson's essay "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We
Do" employs several rhetorical devices to engage the reader and persuade them of the essay's
argument. Here are some ways in which these devices contribute to the essay's overall effectiveness:

Answer - The essay "The Victorians Had the Same Concerns About Technology As We Do" by Melisa
Dickson makes use of a variety of rhetorical techniques to engage the reader and convince them of the
essay's thesis. Here are a few manners by which these gadgets add to the paper's general viability:

Anecdotes: A story about a young Victorian woman worried about how technology will affect her
relationship with her fiancé serves as the introduction to the essay. By providing a relatable and
humanizing illustration of the concerns about technology that were prevalent during the Victorian era,
this anecdote helps to engage the reader. The essay engages the reader and encourages them to
continue reading by beginning with a personal story.

Allusion: Dickson draws parallels between the Victorian era and the present day throughout the essay
by referring to contemporary concerns regarding technology. She draws parallels, for instance,
between the concerns regarding the privacy implications of the telegraph and current concerns
regarding smartphones and constant connectivity. By demonstrating that Victorian concerns about
technology are still relevant today, these allusions help convince the reader.

Repetition: The essay emphasizes its main argument through repetition: that the worries we have
about technology today are not unique to our time, but rather have existed throughout history. For
instance, the expression "we are not extraordinary" is rehashed a few times all through the exposition.
The essay's central message is reinforced and made more memorable for the reader by this repetition.

Imagery: The paper utilizes striking symbolism to assist the peruser with imagining the worries about
innovation that were available during the Victorian period. Dickson, for instance, refers to the steam
engine as a "giant iron beast" that was feared for its capacity to disrupt nature. The reader is engaged
and the concerns about technology become more real thanks to this imagery.

By providing relatable examples, drawing parallels to contemporary concerns, emphasizing key points,
and employing vivid imagery to make the concerns about technology more tangible, these rhetorical
devices help to engage the reader and persuade them of the essay's argument. Dickson is able to make
a compelling argument that resonates with the reader and encourages them to consider the impact of
technology on society in a new light by effectively utilizing these tools.

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