Rhetorical analysis

Order Description As you read the passage below, consider how Paul Bogard uses •Evidence, such as facts or examples, to support claims. •Reasonin" rel="nofollow">ing to develop ideas and to connect claims and evidence. •Stylistic or persuasive elements, such as word choice or appeals to emotion, to add power to the ideas expressed. Adapted from Paul Bogard, “Let There Be Dark.” ©2012 by Los Angeles Times. Origin" rel="nofollow">inally published December 21, 2012. At my family’s cabin" rel="nofollow">in on a Min" rel="nofollow">innesota lake, I knew woods so dark that my hands disappeared before my eyes. I knew night skies in" rel="nofollow">in which meteors left smoky trails across sugary spreads of stars. But now, when 8 of 10 children born in" rel="nofollow">in the United States will never know a sky dark enough for the Milky Way, I worry we are rapidly losin" rel="nofollow">ing night’s natural darkness before realizin" rel="nofollow">ing its worth. This win" rel="nofollow">inter solstice, as we cheer the days’ gradual movement back toward light, let us also remember the irreplaceable value of darkness. All life evolved to the steady rhythm of bright days and dark nights. Today, though, when we feel the closeness of nightfall, we reach quickly for a light switch. And too little darkness, meanin" rel="nofollow">ing too much artificial light at night, spells trouble for all. Already the World Health Organization classifies workin" rel="nofollow">ing the night shift as a probable human carcin" rel="nofollow">inogen, and the American Medical Association has voiced its unanimous support for “light pollution reduction efforts and glare reduction efforts at both the national and state levels.” Our bodies need darkness to produce the hormone melatonin" rel="nofollow">in, which keeps certain" rel="nofollow">in cancers from developin" rel="nofollow">ing, and our bodies need darkness for sleep. Sleep disorders have been lin" rel="nofollow">inked to diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease and depression, and recent research suggests one main" rel="nofollow">in cause of “short sleep” is “long light.” Whether we work at night or simply take our tablets, notebooks and smartphones to bed, there isn’t a place for this much artificial light in" rel="nofollow">in our lives. The rest of the world depends on darkness as well, in" rel="nofollow">includin" rel="nofollow">ing nocturnal and crepuscular species of birds, in" rel="nofollow">insects, mammals, fish and reptiles. Some examples are well known—the 400 species of birds that migrate at night in" rel="nofollow">in North America, the sea turtles that come ashore to lay their eggs—and some are not, such as the bats that save American farmers billions in" rel="nofollow">in pest control and the moths that pollin" rel="nofollow">inate 80% of the world’s flora. Ecological light pollution is like the bulldozer of the night, wreckin" rel="nofollow">ing habitat and disruptin" rel="nofollow">ing ecosystems several billion years in" rel="nofollow">in the makin" rel="nofollow">ing. Simply put, without darkness, Earth’s ecology would collapse.... In today’s crowded, louder, more fast-paced world, night’s darkness can provide solitude, quiet and stillness, qualities in" rel="nofollow">increasin" rel="nofollow">ingly in" rel="nofollow">in short supply. Every religious tradition has considered darkness in" rel="nofollow">invaluable for a soulful life, and the chance to witness the universe has in" rel="nofollow">inspired artists, philosophers and everyday stargazers sin" rel="nofollow">ince time began. In a world awash with electric light...how would Van Gogh have given the world his “Starry Night”? Who knows what this vision of the night sky might in" rel="nofollow">inspire in" rel="nofollow">in each of us, in" rel="nofollow">in our children or grandchildren? Yet all over the world, our nights are growin" rel="nofollow">ing brighter. In the United States and Western Europe, the amount of light in" rel="nofollow">in the sky in" rel="nofollow">increases an average of about 6% every year. Computer images of the United States at night, based on NASA photographs, show that what was a very dark country as recently as the 1950s is now nearly covered with a blanket of light. Much of this light is wasted energy, which means wasted dollars. Those of us over 35 are perhaps among the last generation to have known truly dark nights. Even the northern lake where I was lucky to spend my summers has seen its darkness dimin" rel="nofollow">inish. It doesn’t have to be this way. Light pollution is readily within" rel="nofollow">in our ability to solve, usin" rel="nofollow">ing new lightin" rel="nofollow">ing technologies and shieldin" rel="nofollow">ing existin" rel="nofollow">ing lights. Already, many cities and towns across North America and Europe are changin" rel="nofollow">ing to LED streetlights, which offer dramatic possibilities for controllin" rel="nofollow">ing wasted light. Other communities are fin" rel="nofollow">indin" rel="nofollow">ing success with simply turnin" rel="nofollow">ing off portions of their public lightin" rel="nofollow">ing after midnight. Even Paris, the famed “city of light,” which already turns off its monument lightin" rel="nofollow">ing after 1 a.m., will this summer start to require its shops, offices and public buildin" rel="nofollow">ings to turn off lights after 2 a.m. Though primarily designed to save energy, such reductions in" rel="nofollow">in light will also go far in" rel="nofollow">in addressin" rel="nofollow">ing light pollution. But we will never truly address the problem of light pollution until we become aware of the irreplaceable value and beauty of the darkness we are losin" rel="nofollow">ing.