TOW #7 -- "I am Not a Coffee Drinker" by Ethan Hauser

"I am Not a Coffee Drinker" is a short essay written by Ethan Hauser in honor of National Coffee Day, recently held 3 weeks ago. However, the essay itself proceeds to highlight the importance of the symbolism of coffee in modern society, rather than the individual importance of the actual drink. Hauser talks about his knowledge of Starbucks and little coffee shops with baristas and free WiFi. He also talks about his knowledge of coffee's presence in social media, through Instagram and Facebook posts. Yet, he admits his lack of knowledge pertaining to what an espresso is, or an Americano, but only of a latte. Through mentioning this, Hauser divulges the fact that he has little knowledge about the drink itself, but only of what is portrayed in modern society that pertains to it.

Hauser goes about highlighting the significance of coffee in modern society through amusing anecdotes and repetition. He talks of his shortcomings with his understanding off basic coffee knowledge, such as the machines used to make the drink.

"I don’t know what Keurig is. Could that be my Ikea couch? When I assembled it from the pictogram that came with it, I had several screws left over. Probably someday it will collapse. (Don’t go to Ikea on a Sunday unless you need to feel relieved about being single and childless.)

Through this he establishes the drink's little importance to himself, as he completely ignores it in these sentences from an essay which is supposed to be all about it. He also draws humor from the audience with these lines, which in turn keeps their attention. Hauser also uses repetition to draw the audience's attention as well.

"I DON’T know what an Americano is. I don’t know what Chemex is, though I thought the point was to get chemicals out of our foods, not into. Maybe that is what the “ex” is for. I don’t know what cold drip is. (I do know what iced coffee is. Iced tea, too — Mayor Bloomberg tried to ban it and that’s what got him voted out of office, right?)"

Through this repetition he gets his point across that he has little knowledge of actual drinks and their specifics. Yet, he reveals his knowledge of iced coffee and iced tea, as he has come to know these drinks through the actions of Mayor Bloomberg which brought the drinks publicity. This furthers Hauser's message telling the audience he knows only of coffee as he has seen it in the media.
 



It is clear that the use of rhetoric devices is varied throughout the short essay. The author employs multiple devices in order to get his message across to the reader, including anecdotes and repetition. The anecdotes kept the attention, while the repetition hammered the message into the reader's mind over and over again. This allowed Hauser to explain his perspective that we know little about coffee, only what we see in media. Yet, coffee is a staple in our society through its presence in social media and that is the reason why we celebrate it.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/19/opinion/sunday/i-am-not-a-coffee-drinker.html?_r=0