In today's society, being educated or knowledgeable is often criticized, this action causes intelligent people to be humiliated because of their special gift. Many of us have seen books, TV shows, or movies that show a good kid being terrorized because of his genius, while athletes and pretty girls are praised for their popularity. These dramas showed the unfavorable point of view of the gifted. Even though many people consider denigrating wise people unacceptable, a minimum of people have spoken out. However, the author and editor (Leonid Fridman) has a lasting amount of information to express. Leonid Fridman, in his essay, illustrates the need for society to completely end the anti-intellectualism plaguing America. Fridman's critical essay uses the mode of comparison, antithesis, mode of definition, and colloquial language to highlight how society views education in a negative light. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay In the second paragraph, Fridman applies a mode of definition, while displaying his thoughts on the negative connotation of the word "geek." “A geek, according to Webster's New World Dictionary, is a street performer who shocks the public by biting off the heads of live chickens” (2). The author implies that society has changed a convenient word by turning it into something unfavorable. The justification for using this mode of definition was to recognize that humanity denounces intellectuals and associates them with the “mentally handicapped.” This rhetorical mode helped the author achieve his goal by explaining that Americans changed the word "geek" just to harass their more intelligent counterparts. The author chose this rhetorical mode for the audience, so that the audience can highlight the sacrilegious behavior that society uses when it comes to education. Similarly, the author provides the audience with a well-known dictionary source, “Webster's New World Dictionary,” which allows the audience to point out that even credible dictionaries misdefine intelligent human beings. In addition to the mode of definition used in the second paragraph, colloquial language has also been used in this paragraph. The author writes: “a monster that bites the head of a living chicken” (2). The purpose of this quote was to criticize Americans for turning the word "geek" into negative content, while intimidating intelligent human beings. Colloquial language strengthened the writer's essay by informally comparing an intelligent person to a monster that bites off chicken heads. Fridman chose this rhetorical device to get the audience to support the negative content of “geek.” In short, Fridman uses the mode of definition and colloquial language to highlight the troubling correlation between intellectuals and “monsters.” As the text progresses, Leonid Fridman uses antithesis to distinguish the different treatments one can receive based on one's social status. “Nerds are ostracized while athletes are idolized” (3). The function of the antithesis was to contradict the fact that "nerds" and "geeks" are oppressed, while athletes are glorified because of their popularity and skills. This is unfair treatment considering that both parties are working extremely hard to achieve their goals, rather than winning a game or getting a great grade on their essay. So why should academics be considered weird, while athletics is considered.