Bashing Energy Drinks

In Simon Benlow's article, "Intoxitwitching: The Energy Drink Buzz" he expresses his feelings on energy drinks. Benlow appears to be reaching out to college students and their generation as a whole. He claims that instead of getting what all companies call "energy," consumers have difficulty concentrating and find themselves easily distracted. Deep within Benlow is attacking college students by stating that their generation is distracted and consumed by many digital products. Considering the two purposes of Benlow's claim, the logic is quite strong which gives validity to his article. However, he secretly attacks his audience and pulls away from his main purpose, which diminishes the value of the whole article. Ultimately, Benlow's argument is effective to an extent, but his hidden agenda causes the article to have weaknesses.

Benlow uses emotions to grab the attention of his audience. College students buy energy drinks mainly to stay up on all those all-nighters to get their studying done. In other words, students use energy drinks to concentrate, but Benlow's whole article is to show that just the opposite occurs, lack of concentration. Students who buy these drinks will think back to their nights in the library and evaluate their experiences trying to cram in all their homework. Benlow connects with his audience by using examples that they can relate to, and reflect back upon. This adds credibility and emotion to his article.

Throughout the article Benlow adds some humor. This makes an emotional connection between him and his audience because they are college students. In the conclusion of Benlow's article he talks about the Roman's and their termination. He says, "The Romans went down, some say, because of lead in the drinking water. They all went nuts-followed their leaders right over the cliffs of reason. Maybe beverages are, indeed the pivotal element in the rise and fall of civilizations." Younger people appreciate cynical comments like this, and snicker at the thought of this story. The college generation will feel a connection with his humor and find reading his articles interesting because they always get a chuckle or two in.

Benlow also uses a little guilt to connect and make his audience really think. Benlow shares a story of hiking in the woods after drinking a Red Bull, and then evaluates his experience. He says, "I hadn't anticipated such drama- from a drink that my preteen niece could buy if she could tolerate the taste"(735). This causes the audience to think about their younger family members and if they have ever allowed them to sip off their drink, or even given them one of their own to drink. These drinks are highly caffeinated and full of sugar, and the audience will really consider if younger family members should be able to consume one. He also uses the word niece, which is a family member that many college students have, rather than using daughter/son. This adds to the logic of his article. Benlow really gets his audience thinking making his emotional claims very strong.

Throughout the article Benlow shows a respectable amount of understanding what energy drinks are, and what they are made up of, which adds to the value of his article. Benlow opens the article with a few diminishing claims on energy drinks, but before he goes too far he makes sure his audience is aware of his own caffeine addiction. He states, "My evaluation may sound harshly negative- as though I'm anti-stimulant. But I'm a caffeine fiend. I drink anywhere from 3 to 6 cups every day" (735). Benlow is a college instructor, so he is a part of the community of his audience. By criticizing himself, and saying he isn't perfect either, his audience connects with him. This makes Benlow seem more "real" instead of just a preacher. Although some may argue why are you bashing a product that contains something you drink in abundance, it actually adds to his credibility cause he is aware of his counteraction and shares it.

Throughout Benlow's article his main purpose remains