Elite Colleges: Response

I really liked Charlie's pick for this week with the article "Elite Colleges Open New Door to Low-Income Youths" by Sara Rimer in The New York Times. I think that this piece is a great example of something short, sweet, and interesting.

First, the lede is fairly interesting. It could have been done better and more artful, but I also like the fact that it gets down to business quickly. It is a great lead in to the theme and subject of the piece and overall serves its purpose. The piece begins with a close up of Jack, zooms out to a portrait of his family, and zooms out again to the issue at hand: that elite colleges are taking measures to attract and invite low-income individuals. This type of cinematography is quite simple, and again, serves its purpose to use Jack's story as a door into a more widespread issue.

The piece begins to get factual, but the author does a good job of interspersing the boring (but important) details with those "gold coins". For example, after dealing with the facts of the socioeconomic status of students at the elite colleges, the writer inserts a great, funny, true statement about Jack to bring the focus back to him: "The only debt he says he owes is the $41 it cost to make copies of his 107-page honors thesis.

The piece then flashes back quickly, which does a good job of providing personal background information. The flashback is inserted at just the right moment to allow the reader to continue building Jack's character.

A few times I was disappointed in the lack of efficient transitions. For example, the story about Jack's run-in with the police seems out of place.

I like the conversation with Jack near the end of the piece, because I felt like I really got to know him better. I wonder if any of his dialogue wouldn't have been more effective more toward the beginning, though, instead of diving right into the issue and then returning to Jack to finish up.

The kicker, like the lede, is generally interesting, but I do think it could have been done better. The writer uses a good quote from Jack, but it seems like a forced quote that, after getting to know him through the piece, I wouldn't expect him to say - at least not in those exact words. I like the idea of quoting people how they talk, and I didn't get a feel for Jack's voice in any of the quotes used in the narrative.

Overall, I thought this was a great piece among some of the shorter, more brief ones we have read for class. After having read it, I get a pretty good feel for character, I am introduced to a broader issue, and I care. Good pick, Charlie!