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Kaitlyn Post

Professor Granillo

English 101

4 March 2019

Time to Use the Phone Button

According to CBS Sacramento, “In the United States, nearly 74 percent of respondents

would rather send a text message instead of having a conversation in person.” One of the most

used forms of technology that Millennials use on a daily basis is a cell phone. The main task that

they struggle with on a daily basis is making the decision to call someone or text message them.

Texting could be the easier option for someone to communicate, but it sometimes does not show

how someone feels. Although Sherry Turkle’s “No Need to Call” suggests texting is a better way

to communicate; however, unlike texting phone calls display emotion and can be a better form of

communication; therefore, Millennials should rely less on communicating through text

messaging and more through phone calls.

There are many forms of rhetorical strategies that were used throughout the article. The

ones that were included were pathos and logos. For pathos Turkle uses a story from a girl whose

parents are divorced and relies on her phone for emotional support. Turkle writes, “She sees her

phone as the glue that ties her life together” (508). This passage shows how she cannot rely on

her family to communicate to each other so her phone is the thing that keeps everything in one

piece. Turkle uses this example of a girl named Audrey and her divorced family to pull the

audience in and show how there is no need to communicate through a phone call or face to face.

Turkle does not just show emotion through her text, but she also shows logistics by showing how
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people are not just teenagers that use text messaging as a solution. In the article Turkle states,

“Hope and Audrey are thirty years apart in age, both see texting as the solution to the ‘problem’

of the telephone” (515). Turkle took someone who is a lot older than Audrey and showed that

older people have the same issues as younger teenagers.

Who are other naysayers aside from yourself?

Sometimes it can be easier to tell send someone a text message so you do not have to be

expected to say something spontaneous every second of the phone call. In Turkle’s article she

states, “He avoids the telephone because he feels ‘tapped out’ … It promises more than I’m

willing to deliver” (507). With a phone call you do not have time to think about what you are

going to say to the other person. If you do not think of something quick enough you will just sit

there in awkward silence till finally someone thinks about something to say in that span of time.

With a text message they do not know if you have read it yet, so you have more time to think of

something to say without it being super awkward. Another sentence. Another sentence. Even

though you can express emotion through text message by using emoji’s, when calling someone

you will be able to hear their emotion through their voice.

Something that is hard to express through text message is emotion, especially in the form

of rejection. [Evidence on rejection through text messaging is hard]. [Analysis on evidence on

rejection through text messaging]. [Warrant on evidence on rejection through text messaging].

Rejection can be hard to express through a text message, but so is trying to read the tone of voice

through a text.

One other thing that is hard to express through text message would be the tone of your

voice especially since they cannot hear through messaging. [Evidence on tone through text
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messaging]. [Analysis on tone through text messaging]. [Warrant on tone through text

messaging]. Emotion is not the only thing that easier to express through calling someone on the

phone, but so is how better the communication is.

There are times when you need to get an answer right away and the person does not send

the text message back right away. [Evidence on how quick urgency is on phone calls]. [Analysis

on evidence]. [Warrant on urgency].

There are times when to stay organized it could be easier to talk on the phone to sort

everything out that is happening. [Evidence on organization and phone calls]. [Analysis on

organization and phone calls]. [Warrant on organization and phone calls].