Published in the New York Time's editorial pages, the article First Kill the Witches. Then, Celebrate Them by Stacy Schiff explores the origins of one our country's favorite holidays: Halloween. Especially fitting for this time of the year, Schiff's article looks into the causes of a holiday that essentially celebrates objects which have historically been looked down upon. In her exploration of such an evolution, Schiff speaks to the flaws of American culture, negating it as being especially superficial in its ideals and prone to make mockery of past tragedies. She utilizes a variety of different rhetorical devices in order to achieve such a purpose, the most prominent being her use of situational irony and satire. Allowing her to add an element of humor to her article, these devices are exceptionally successful at bringing the true purpose of the article to fruition.
Motivated by the fall weather and the coming of such a beloved holiday season, Stacy Schiff decided to take a look into the history of Halloween, primarily focusing on the evolution of witches in American culture. She begins by sharing the findings of her interviews with residents of Salem Massachusetts about witches. Such an interview demonstrates Schiff's use of situational irony within her text to facilitate the meaning to be taken away from the article. The interview showcases a dramatic lack of knowledge toward the historic Salem witch trials, ultimately allowing Schiff to argue her point further. However, with this all being said, Schiff also utilizes the humorous element of satire to keep her article from sounding too serious. She not only describes the ironic elements of Halloween but also the what it demonstrates about American culture, in a comedic fashion. Such a strong control of language is was truly marks success in Schiff's article by allowing her to point out the issues with one of America's holidays without placing blame on the practice itself.
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