Joseph Pastran

RWS
Genre Analysis
Introduction
Mass Incarceration is a serious issue in the United States. This literature review
will review two genres discussing mass incarceration in the United States. What mass
incarceration is its the high rate of imprisonment the United States has in the country. As
a country the United States holds 25% of the worlds prison population. An article and a
picture/poster were selected as the two genres being reviewed. First is The Mass
Incarceration Problem in America by Grace Wyler. The thesis on this article is a brief
description to about the problem the United States has and a quick intro to show how
much the prison population has grown. The second genre is an Infograph from aclu.org.
The thesis for this genre is a quick paragraph on how Mass Incarceration is wrong and
how its not helping the country but only making it worse with the economic crisis the
United States is in.
Audience and Purpose Questions
The article by Grace Wyler is aimed at people that are in the United States age
seventeen up and unaware of the major issue mass incarceration is. The information
presented in the article is meant to inform people about the issue of Mass Incarceration.
The audience ties in with the purpose of the article because of all the stats it provides it is
giving people awareness on the issue that is Mass Incarceration in the United States. The
audience going into the article is likely to know how strict the United States is with laws,
especially those dealing with drugs. When stumbling upon the article the audience would

want to know what Mass Incarceration is and why its a problem in America. The
audience will probably spend around 15-30 minutes on the article due to its length and
vast majority of information, along with the graphs it provides. The article itself is very
formal and fills its purpose of showing the audience the issue of mass incarceration.
Aggressive vocabulary seems to be used because even in the thesis its has the word
Draconian which in other words means excessively harsh or severe so the author is trying
to push the point of mass incarceration being bad.
The Second genre being the infographic is aimed at people who are already aware
of Mass Incarceration in the United States and trying to do something about the issue.
The graph/picture is to persuade people to join the cause for stopping mass incarceration.
The audience ties in with this piece of literature perfectly because many wouldnt just
stumble upon this infograph you would have to be actively looking on the website that is
aclu.org or searching up information of mass incarceration. The website who has the
chart up is actively trying to get people to agree with them on how mass incarceration is
bad and trying to get people to join their organization which is trying to put a stop to
mass incarceration in the United States. The audience is likely to know about mass
incarceration but want to know some more facts about the subject. The time spent on this
piece will be around 15 minutes because the infograph does include a lot of statistical
numbers along with graphs to really give a sense of the difference in the worlds prison
population and the United States prison population. Formal vocabulary is used and the
words arent of a high literacy level because the point of the infograph is to not only raise
awareness of mass incarceration but a sales pitch to try and persuade people to join the
fight against mass incarceration. The language and vocabulary are both appropriate for

the purpose and audience because they dont reach and provide the right amount of both
vocabulary and language necessary to get the task at hand done.
The similarities in both genres are they both provide similar statistics and both
anti mass incarceration. Differences are the way the information is presented one is an
article and the other does it in graphs and numbers. Another difference is how the
information is used the article is more just trying to improve awareness of people on the
subject while the infograph is trying to get people to join the cause against mass
incarceration.
Rhetorical Issues: Ethos, Pathos, and Logos
The article establishes its information by providing details to the issue of mass
incarceration and comparing the United States prison population to many countries
around the world. The article does this by providing a picture of the States in the US and
countries around the world. The article tries to evoke a concerned response because its
talks about how the United States is supposed to be the land of the free but has become
far from that due to mass incarceration. Its effective in fulfilling the articles purpose
because it will leave people wanting mass incarceration to come to an end.
The infograph establishes its information by showing the graphs and providing
actual numbers to the mass incarceration subject. The infograph tries to evoke a action
response in wanting people to join the fight against mass incarceration. Its effective
because many people will already be coming across this infograph borderline on if they
want to join an organization against mass incarceration and this will only provide them
with that extra push they needed to take that step.

Similarities are they both try to use emotion and provide cold hard evidence to the
mass incarceration epidemic the United States has. Differences are minor besides the
information being presented to the reader differently.
Structure and Delivery
The article is shaped in a lengthy way because its a news article and the
reporter/author has the freedom to write lengthy. Its intended to bring awareness to a
topic many might not be aware of dont care so the more in depth the author got it
provided a better feel for the subject. The news article is organized to just keep showing
how the United States prison system is bad in how imprisonment in states alone is more
than many of the worlds countries. The visuals provided in the article are in black with
little color but that may be due to the websites design.
The infographs is more a short quick response with little freedom to go into extra
detail about mass incarceration. Its more of a numbers and graph piece to get the point
across without losing a persons interest. The color scheme of the infograph is red, white,
and blue, which could be a nod to the hypocrisy the United States has when it comes to
imprisonment. I think it adds to the message because you see the colors and think of
freedom but in fact the piece is on the complete opposite of that.
Conclusion
Though both in my opinion got their message across effectively, the genre I think
that was more effective in getting its message across was the article because it gives a
more in depth view to mass incarceration and is not only geared towards people already
aware but more towards those unaware of mass incarceration. All in all using different

genres in discourse are good because it will help provide different understandings that
can be brought to the table when trying to discuss an issue with someone.
References:
Wyler, Grace. "The Mass Incarceration Problem in America | VICE News." VICE News
RSS. July 26, 2014. Accessed September 7, 2015.
"[Infographic] Combating Mass Incarceration - The Facts." American Civil Liberties
Union. June 17, 2011. Accessed September 7, 2015. https://www.aclu.org/infographiccombating-mass-incarceration-facts?redirect=combating-mass-incarceration-facts.