Who Are You and What Are You Doing by Mark Edmundson

The Dream School

"Passion is energy. Feel the power that comes from focusing on what excites you." - Oprah Winfrey
Everyone's dream school is Harvard, but not everyone is accepted there through hard work and dedication. Instead, Harvard looks for passionate students who follow their dreams.
Source: http://theblackberryalarmclock.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/harvard-university-usa-44324.jpg

Edmundson, a college professor and the author of Who Are You and What Are You Doing Here, published his work in The Oxford American to express his opinion about how students should pursue higher education. Starting off his essay, Edmundson describes the flaws in society and how society influences people to pursue a career not suitable for them. Society believes that in order to become the best, you need to “work hard, get good grades, listen to your teachers, get along with people around you, and emerge in four years as an educated young man or woman.” (Edmundson 89). However, Edmundson does not believe in that philosophy. Instead, he firmly defends that “education is about finding out what form of work for you is close to being play – work you do so easily that it restores you as you go” (Edmundson 100).  He presents anecdotes about how he made his career decision, how his students have made theirs, and how students have regretted/accepted their career decisions. At the end of his essay, Edmundson presented an anecdote of a student who eschewed medical school and followed his dream to become a teacher. In addition to his anecdotes that portray his philosophies, he consistently alludes to Emerson and Freud, two prolific writers who shaped Edmundson’s reasonings and arguments in his essay. By incorporating anecdotes and allusions, Edmundson crafted an essay that urges college students to follow a path that they believe is right for them. While his anecdotes educate readers about making the right career decisions, Edmundson's allusions give readers a "more expert" opinion about the philosophies presented in the essay. Edmundson, speaking from experience, knows the life of a college student because he himself was a student at one point. Now he is a professor teaching English who also writes about his philosophies at the same time. Edmundson is a convincing writer who successfully showed his message to his readers through anecdotes, allusions, and wisdom.