TIME GOAL: 20 minutes

START TIME: 7:34 pm

END TIME: 8:01 pm

READING LOG #: 1

BEFORE READING

Write the following information down in this order.

Title of Article: “A Night in Bruce Springsteen’s America”

Based on the title alone, what do you know about the subject matter?
The author most likely spends his time at one of Bruce Springsteen’s concerts in which his music
represents American society and his views about the United States. This is hinted through the title and the
common trend with all of the other chapters within the book.

Write down your predictions: What will this article cover?

This article will probably cover the author’s experience of Bruce Springsteen’s concerts and how he
interprets his music to represent the broader American society.

Make a list for each.

External Distractions (What is physically distracting you?):
- The basketball game on in the living room
- Chatter around the house
- Car noises
Internal Distractions (What thoughts are interfering with your concentration?):
- How much I want to watch the Laker game
- Tiredness
- Random thoughts popping up in my mind
 DURING READING

Practice annotations using these methods. Check the boxes to confirm which methods you’ve practiced.

● Circle words that are new to you, and that you do not understand.
● Write the main idea of each paragraph next to it in the margins. Try to use one word or a short
phrase to summarize these points.
● Highlight passages that demonstrate ethos (yellow), pathos (pink), logos (green).

Complete the following chart, indicating words/ pop culture references you had to Google during your
reading. Hit the TAB button if you run out of room.
Words/Pop Culture What do they mean?
References

Prudential Center Indoor arena located in Newark, New Jersey

The River Song written by Bruce Springsteen

Michael Brown African American male who was shot by a white

police officer. Represents police brutality
occurring at that time.

mundane Lacking interest or excitement

anthemic An anthem within a song that is meant to be

rousing or uplifting

AFTER READING

Answer the following questions using complete sentences in your composition notebook using intext
citations for each question.
Example of an in-text citation, or quotation sandwich: In one instance, Abdurraqib discusses his own
experience and states, “...” (Abdurraqib 82).

1. What is the speaker’s motivation for writing this piece? Who is their target audience? Explain how
you know by including an in-text citation, or evidence from the text. (8 complete sentences +)

The author’s motivation for writing this piece is to share his thoughts and arguments about Bruce
Springsteen’s music about America. He gives many opinions about the message of Springsteen’s songs in
which some follow or contradict his beliefs. Hanif Abdurraqib’s target audience is those who associate
themselves with American society and the views individuals have about the country. The author within
this specific passage talks about how he “[tries] not to think about death―[his] own, or that anyone [he]
loves―but [he] does [not] consider the future in the way that The River seems to consider the future”
(Abdurraqib 21). Within this quote, the author gives his insight to the song written by Bruce Springsteen
and talks about how he disagrees with the message of The River. He feels that he does not need to worry
about his future and what is happening, which contradicts the message of The River which talks about
how we must all enjoy and have fun now because we are all going to die one day. The author seems like
he is focusing on the present and whatever happens in the future happens. This is one of his many
opinions about that one particular song, which he hopes to share with those who have different or the
same views as he has.

2. What rhetorical appeals did the author employ to make for a compelling argument? Provide citations
for each example of ethos, pathos, and logos. (8 complete sentences +)

The author uses a mixture of pathos, ethos, and logos to express his opinions and argument for the
readers. For instance, the author talks about his 2016 experience and talks about how “not watching the
videos of black people murdered doesn’t mean that black people aren’t murdered” (Abdurraqib 21). This
is an example of a pathos appeal where he connects with the readers through his emotions and
experiences of being a black individual in America during that time where the issue of police brutality
was at an all-time high. In another example, the author talks about his experience of being in New Jersey
for the concert in which he understands that the album talks about how death is inevitable and will happen
to everyone, written by someone who believes that they will live for a long time (Abdurraqib 21). From
this piece of evidence within the chapter, he essentially tells the reader that he is a credible source to make
an opinion on Bruce Springsteen’s album because he went to the concert, establishing an ethos appeal.
This strengthens his argument and essentially his opinions on Springsteen because he is an individual who
took time to think about his music. In the final example, Hanif Abdurraqib compares his experiences of
being black and poor in America and how work is always associated with the two (Abdurraqib 20). The
author uses analogies by comparing his experiences with the work associated with the songs of The River
which is a logos appeal. By adding this, readers are asked to reason when giving a specific analogy.

3. Although you may disagree with the argument, or the issue the speaker presents, pretend that you
agree with them, and describe the qualities of the argument that you found most compelling. Be sure to
use direct in-text citations, or evidence to justify your argument. (8 complete sentences +)

One of the qualities of the author’s argument that I felt most compelling is how personal he made it.
Being an African American in the United States and giving his insight and perspectives on Bruce
Springsteen’s album makes his argument very interesting. I personally agree with his argument due to my
understanding of the black experience at that time. He gives another perspective to different things which
sometimes contrast with others or sometimes agree with them. For example, the author does not agree
with the message of Springsteen’s music saying how he “[tries] not to think about death―[his] own, or
that anyone [he] loves―but [he] does [not] consider the future in the way that The River seems to
consider the future” (Abdurraqib 21). The author then talks about his experiences “to listen to an album
like this with different eyes in the world . . . . what it must feel like to imagine that no one in America will
be killed while a man sings a song about the promise of living” (Abdurraqib 22). This is a very interesting
point due to the context of the time he wrote this passage. Police brutality and African-American
discrimination was a major issue in 2016 and the author talks about how the song talks about the promise
of a living, but because of who he is, a black male, he has a different perspective on this idea.

4. Although you may agree with the speaker’s stance on the issue, write a counterargument
explaining why you disagree. Again, you will need to use direct evidence to make your case(8 complete
sentences +)

Bruce Springsteen’s album, The River delivers the important message of living the best of your life before
you eventually pass away. This increases the level of optimism in listeners and is the reason why many
people enjoy his album. However, Hanif Abdurraqib argues that this level of optimism to live your life to
the fullest is not an accurate representation of America and how he views the country and its people. The
author talks about how lucky “it must feel like to imagine that no one in America will be killed while a
man sings a song about the promise of living” (Abdurraqib 22). Although there is some truth to his
argument, The River brings happiness to others and brings optimism to many individuals who enjoy the
music. Although there are people in American society who will not have the promise of living,
Springsteen’s album is to bring joy to people’s lives, even though it may or may not be the truth. People
go to concerts, like the type the author went to in order to forget the despair and issues in their lives.
Music created by Bruce Springsteen allows people to forget and sometimes that is a good thing.