Blog Post 5

Tom Bissell’s essay “Extra Lives” describes one man’s addiction to video games, which has been spearheading his indifference towards activities he once found enjoyable. Bissell’s struggle is one experienced by millions of people in our relatively new digital world. Recent reports of experiences like Bissell’s have shown a dark new downside to the rapidly expanding virtual gaming front. Throughout his essay, Bissell describes his use of video games in depth, while describing multiple games and his experience with them. However, although many readers could find his woes relatable while reading the essay, that is not what “who cares” entails. According to They Say I Say, “who cares” has to do with acknowledging the difference between your ideas and what others have been saying regarding the same topic. As far as I can tell, Bissell does not mention discussions that others have been having regarding video game usage. He only briefly mentions how it has been noted that “Vice City’s violent subject matter was said to have inspired crime sprees”. However this statement was a side note and was not really used to develop his argument in any substantial way. Not implementing “who cares” into his essay matters because it decreases the authority readers see in Bissell, as he is not regarding what others have said on the matter.

On the other hand, They Say I Say describes the idea of “so what” as making a connection between your ideas and a matter that the audience presumably already believes is important. In my opinion, Tom Bissell does an excellent job with this aspect. He discusses many issues that readers could potentially have found important prior to reading. Decrease interest in previously enjoyable activities, decrease amounts of sleep, and even violence and drug use are just some of the dangerous consequences that Bissell relates to voracious video game usage. I would definitely borrow his employment of “so what” when writing my own paper, however I would suggest to Bissell that he try incorporating actual examples of previous research on the topic and relate this research to his own ideas. This incorporation of logos increases how the readers view your authority on the subject. I especially appreciate his employment of personal anecdotes which grab the readers’ attention with their relatability.