Shakespeare is somebody that everybody hears about at least once in their life. Michael Mack gave a presentation to incoming freshman at a catholic university of America, explaining why it is important to read shakespeare. Mack generates an effective argument that Shakespeare is worth the time to understand through his use of rhetorical devices and counterclaims. First of all, the technique that Mack uses to advance his argument is his use of rhetorical devices. “The first time you listen to a piece of complex music, you hear but don’t hear. Why should it be any surprise, then, that the first time people read Shakespeare, they don’t get it?” (Mack, lines 25-27) In this, Mack uses repetition, paradox, and a rhetorical question to get his…show more content… “The obvious argument to the contrary is that reading Shakespeare is hard work and not particularly rewarding, at least the first time around. (Lines 3-5) Mack is pointing out that Shakespeare is a hard person to understand with the writing techniques he uses. “Indeed some of Shakespeare’s contemporaries justified the seriousness of literary fictions by pointing out that christ himself used them.” (Lines 75-77) Mack is explaining that it is as difficult to understand Shakespeare as it is difficult to understand Christ himself.
However, to strengthen his argument, Mack could have used different types of rhetorical devices. “What is it we find in Shakespeare?” (Lines 72-73) Mack could have gone more into depth with asking the question he used. The question he uses was a little broad and could be pulled out more.
Mack generates an effective argument that Shakespeare is worth the time to understand through his use of rhetorical devices and counterclaims. The reason this all matters with what mack is saying, is that Shakespeare is very difficult to understand, but if you actually look at it from different views, it becomes more and more easier to understand. Learning about Shakespeare can help you a lot through English
