Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

Food Stamp Usage in the United States

Jazmine Del Castillo
University of Texas at El Paso
Professor Fatima Masoud
RWS 1302: Rhetoric and Composition

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

Food Stamp Usage in the United States
Food stamp use is increasing at a great rate within the United States. With the
increase of the Food Stamp program also known as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Progam), a rising question being brought to attention is whether the program
is being used properly. Many ask this particular question after seeing signs that read,
EBT accepted here, in places like corner stores and fast food chains. Corner stores for
the most part sell things like chips, cookies, and candy which most of the time dont
have much nutritional value, however come at a decent price. The purpose of food
stamps is to provide money for those in need to purchase groceries to help supplement
their diet, but how are those in need going to purchase items healthy for their diet when
the price of something not as healthy comes at a better price? This issue has been
addressed in many forms, for the purpose of this analysis two different genres will be
used the first will be an article, Mother Jones, Let Them Eat Junk Food and a
documentary by VisionVictory, American Dependency & Abuse of Food Stamps,
Shocking Documentary. Both genres are speaking on issue addressed above and will
be further analyzed.
Audience and Purpose
Genre number one is an article found in Mother Jones magazine. The Title of the
article is, Let Them Eat Junk Food. The purpose of this article is to look into the details
of the SNAP program within the United States. It goes into the details of what can and
cannot be purchased using food stamps. It also describes why those who so use food
stamps tend to purchase the items that they purchase due to the prices and what is
more affordable. Genre number two is a documentary found on YouTube published by

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

VisionVictory, American Dependency & Abuse of Food Stamps, Shocking
Documentary. The purpose of this documentary is too describe how easily the SNAP
program within the United States can be abused. It describes how many places with unnutritional food accept EBT card and why that food is easily accessed and purchased,
rather than nutritional foods. It also touches on the point of how easily the program
accepts people and how the program can be manipulated, and why people take
advantage of it.
The intended audience of genre one are those who read Mother Jones
magazine. This magazine covers topics such as politics, news, culture, and human
rights. In this case those who read the magazine are the primary audience. However,
those who are researching the SNAP program and want to learn more about will also be
a secondary audience. The Intended audience for genre two is a little bit more obscure.
This documentary is intended for those who ask the question, How are food stamps
being applied on a day to day basis?. This documentary is targeting those who want to
know how the SNAP program works, how people are accepted, and what can be
purchased and how and why items are purchased. The second genre focuses more on
the abuse of food stamps how it can be taken advantage of rather than the first genre
describing why some people make their choices based on prices and how they can
spread their money to better help their situation. The first genres audience knows what
food stamps are for and how they can be abused, they know the politics of the SNAP
program but they want to know why those who use food stamps abuse it so easily. The
second genres audience doesnt need to know much about the food stamp program

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

because much of it is explained within the video. However, the audience does want to
know why the program is abused.
The time required for each genre is different. For example, the Mother Jones
article will take about 3-5 minutes to read depending on the reader. A factor that also
effects the time the reader takes to read the article is whether or not the reader will read
the full article. If the reader decides to just skim through it, then the estimated time
above will be shortened. For the Documentary above however, will require more time to
be able to receive and listen to all the information. Due to the fact that the video is about
13 minutes the audience will have to spend that amount of time, if the audience wants
to pause the video to comprehend the information better than the time might be longer.
The purpose of each piece is to inform the audience however each genre is
presenting their perspective differently. Not only are the genres different, the point of
view and the language are different as well. For the first genre, the article from Mother
Jones Magazine, the SNAP program is looked on and analyzed. It gives reasons to
explain why people buy what they buy and looks and the pros and cons of the SNAP
program. The Second genre however uses its content to inform the audience of nothing
but the cons of the SNAP program. It speaks about the easy abuse of the program and
how some a readily taking advantage of it. Besides the different point of views, the
genres contain different vocabulary. To begin, the Mother Jones article addresses those
who are interested in politics, news, and culture. Based on that criteria the vocabulary is
formal so that those who read it, can understand it intellectually. However, it is formal it
written in such a way so that even those whom stubble upon it can understand the
content. The use of specialized words such as incentives, subsidize, and restrictions,

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

can be found within the article. The vocabulary coincides with the topic and informs its
audience with the pros and cons of the SNAP program. In the case of documentary, the
vocabulary can be found as informal. Since the documentary is found on a public site
the vocabulary needs to be able to be understood by all those who choose to watch it,
but it also needs to provide it information properly. The documentary uses specialized
vocabulary such as lobbying, advertising, benefits, and income. It uses its choice of
words to persuade its audience by only seeing one side of the story. The documentary
tends to be bias and focus only on the cons of the SNAP program.
Rhetorical Issues
Each genre contains various uses of rhetorical devices, however, each one uses
the devices to their own benefit and what will be able to portray each ones main ideas.
Pathos
In Mother Jones article the use of pathos can be seen in the background and the
colors used, it can also be seen by the use of the image of the vegetable face in the
middle of the page. The vegetable face has a frown, this draws the attention of the
audience and gives them the feeling of being upset. The colors of the vegetables are
bright and grab the readers attention. In the Documentary by VisionVictory the use of
pathos is used to persuade the audience to look at the issue in the same way they see
it. The music that Is played in the background is serious and gives the audience the
sense that the message the documentary is urgent and must be heard. It uses images
such as graphs and videos to prove its point to the audience.

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

Ethos
Since the article Let Them Eat Junk Food is found in a magazine it
automatically builds a sense of credibility with the audience knowing that the magazine
focuses on topics such as politics, news, and culture. This prior knowledge plus the use
of talking to a social worker and quoting them builds credibility with the audience. In the
case of the documentary American Dependency & Abuse of Food Stamps, Shocking
Documentary there is not much credibility built between the audience and the
documentary. The publisher VisionVictory published the video on a public website so
that automatically takes away from the ethos. Another reason that the documentary isnt
as credible is that it preforms its own experiment, however it is valid it does not have
much reliability due to the fact it was only preformed a couple of times and only within
one city rather than getting a bigger area to perform the experiment.
Logos
Both genres use logos profoundly. Within the first genre logos can be found
throughout the article. This genre uses its logos by explaining budgets that the SNAP
program implements on those who rely on the program. It states that 65 million
Americans, about 1 in 5, have incomes low enough to qualify for SNAP- that is income
1.3 times at or below the federal poverty line. (Philpott) It then states that of them,
around 47 million- nearly half of them children-actually get benefits The article uses
many statistics and facts to provide information and new knowledge to the audience
about the issue of the SNAP program. The second genre also uses logos as a factor to
get the attention of the audience. It uses news clips that are speaking about the problem

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

which are stating facts, one clip claims that the number of people who are dependent
on government food assistance is more than the population of Spain. The documentary
also states facts about how corporations take advantage of the system as well and
states that 80% of Walmart employees are on some type of government assistance.
The documentary uses the statistics in such a way to grab the viewers attention and
see the problem from its point of view.
Structure and Delivery
Both genres use structure and delivery as a significant way to get their message
across. The first genre is an article and to grab the audiences attention it takes the
reader on a journey. It begins with a personal experience in the present with a trip to the
grocery store and relays everything that he sees to the audience creating a relationship.
It transitions to facts about the program, statistics about how many people use the
program, how many are eligible to use the program, and even prices of groceries. By
the end of the article the author leaves with a personal statement and opinion of the
SNAP program. By writing the article in this manner a relationship is built with the
audience, and information can be properly placed to make an impact. The second genre
uses a similar structure it takes the viewer through a process of how food stamps can
be used and how they are used. It states facts and numbers about how many
Americans are currently using their food stamps. It also shows several interviews of
some who have been on food stamps and who have acknowledged taking advantage of
the program. It also takes the viewer through the experiment process giving the
audience the feeling of actually being there. The structure of the video takes the

Running Head: FOOD STAMP USAGE

audience through the process and gives an all-around view of what the publisher wants
to portray.
Conclusion
Each genre spoke about the topic but from different point of views, however they
were able to portray their views effectively. The first genre looks about the topic by
seeing the pros and cons of the SNAP program. It is formal addresses its audience
believing that they have prior knowledge. The second genre focuses mostly on the cons
of the SNAP program, it is informal and relays its information so that any who choose to
watch the documentary can understand its information. Both genres see the SNAP
program could have room for improvements and believe that the program is an issue
within the United States.
References
Philpott. T. (2014) Let them eat junk food. Mother Jones. Vol 39, No.2. Retrieved from
http://0-web.b.ebscohost.com.lib.utep.edu/ehost/detail/detail?sid=e67a45a02595-4103-bec0747a0b3adfe1%40sessionmgr101&vid=0&hid=107&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3Qt
bGl2ZSZzY29wZT1zaXRl#db=a9h&AN=94415231

VisionVictory. (2013) American Dependency & Abuse of Food Stamps, Shocking

Documentary. [Youtube.] Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gQtvNbGy1M