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Running Head: WAGE GAP

Wage Gap
Paulina Chinolla
The University of Texas at El Paso

WAGE GAP

Wage Gap
From the beginnings of time, men have been seen as superior to women, this means that
men should earn more money than women. For every dollar that a man makes, a woman makes
twenty-one cents less. Do you consider this to be fair? I guess not. Throughout time women have
fought for an equal pay, but after many years of fighting for what is fair, they have not obtained
what they want. Many people may consider that the wage gap that exists between men and
women is a complete lie, but I am here to tell you that the gender gap is real and it is still
affecting women in our times.

Audience and Purpose

The intended audience for this topic are all women who work and suffer from this wage
gap. I consider that women who work should be the audience because they are the ones that are
actually affected by this issue and they are the ones that can change this too. The first genre is a
graph from an internet website for journalists. The graph represents the amount of money that
women, four years after college graduation, earn in comparison to men. This graph classifies
men and women by their different fields of study. The purpose of this graph is to represent all the
information said in the article and make it easier for the reader to understand all of the
information. With the use of colors and labels it is easier for the reader to digest all of the
information in an organized manner. It is very easy to read this graph and understand the
injustice that is been done to woman, so the intended audience for this genre is probably
everyone. The second genre is an article published by the American Association of University
Women. This article explains the truth about the gender gap and how it affects most of the
women who work. This article is really thorough and deeply explains many things about the

WAGE GAP

wage gap. It discusses how the pay gap affects women differently depending on their
demographics and if there is a difference between jobs. Compared to the graph mentioned
before, this article is more informative and even includes a section on how women can make a
difference on this issue. The purpose of this article is to inform women about this issue and how
they can contribute to stop this. The targeted audience for this genre are people who advocate for
womens rights, women who will or already graduated from college, and people who witness the
effects of the wage gap in their jobs. This genre is written for people who want to be informed
about this issue and want to do something about this. The first genre is just representing a small
piece of information so everyone can understand and relate to it. Unlike the first genre, the
second genre is more thorough and it provides much more information for the reader.
Both of the genres differ in the amount of time that the reader will have to spend on
analyzing them. Like mentioned before, the first genre represents only the difference between the
pays of men and women in different careers, and even though the second genre has a greater
amount of information, the first genre can be more effective. It can be more effective because it
is visual, and an image can be more attractive than a long article. Also, it takes less time to
interpret and understand what the graph is telling us, unlike the second genre which will take
more than five minutes to read. The language used in each genre is slightly different from each
other. In the first genre the language is simple and uses easy keywords so that the audience will
be able to understand everything with absolutely no problem at all. The language used in the
second genre is a little bit more descriptive, uses an elevated vocabulary that not all of the
readers will understand.
Aside from the different amount of time that it will take the audience to read both genres
and the level of difficulty, the purpose of them is still the same. The purpose of both of the genres

WAGE GAP

is to inform the audience of the injustice and abuse that many women suffer from today. Both of
the genres try to inform people and let them know what is going on with the wage gap and how
they can make a difference.
Rhetorical Issues
Both of the genres use rhetorical appeals, the way in which each ethos, pathos and logos
are used throughout each genre is different.
Ethos
The first genre establishes its credibility by having the source of which they obtained the
information that they are presenting. At the bottom of the graph it is visible that they obtained
their information from the U.S Department of Education, the National Center for Education
Statistics and the Baccalaureate and Beyond Longitudinal Study. By having its source of
information, people can assume that the information presented in the graph is credible and
reliable. The second genre is an article publish by the American Association of University
Women, so the fact that it is published by a nonprofit organization gives this genre more
credibility. In the beginning of this genre there is a foreword written by the AAUW chief
executive officer, in this foreword, the writer is trying to let the reader know that they are telling
the truth about this issue and they are inviting them to join the fight. This and the fact that the
author of the article has a Ph.D. in policy development, gives this genre even more credibility.
Another factor that increases the credibility of this genre is that at the end it has all of the sources
that they used and mentions several webpages that you can access to obtain more information if
you want. Both of the genres are credible and reliable, and they both use ethos in a similar
manner.

WAGE GAP

Pathos
The first genre does not use much of an emotional appeal. The graph is just trying to
show people how gender discrimination can affect your pay check and how it varies from field to
field. The first genre is trying to provoke the audience to believe and actually understand that the
differences between the pay of men and women is significant and it will continue like that unless
they do otherwise. The second genre appeals to the emotions by stating the facts of the abuse and
unfair treatment that women throughout the United States suffer. In doing this, it can provoke
anger and encourage people to learn more about this issue and how they can contribute to stop it.
Also, at the end of this genre, they give the reader some tips and advice on what they can do to
stop this and how they can make a difference. This makes people feel empowered and capable of
doing what is right.
Logos
The first genre is trying to convince the audience by using logic and reason. The graph
clearly shows how men in all of the fields of study are payed significantly more than what
women are being payed. This genre is making the information provided simple and logical so
that the audience can get the message by simply looking at the graph. The second genre is
sustained by all of the statistics and examples that are used throughout the article. The
information provided in this second genre is clearly stating the injustice that it is being
committed by those business owners that agree to give a bigger paycheck to men than they are
willing to give to women who are equally capable and qualified. This genre is using all of the
examples and statistics to help the audience reason and understand their purpose. Both of the
genres use logic and reason so that the audience can perceive what they are trying to inform
them.

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Structure and Delivery

Both of the genres are trying to deliver the same idea to the audience but they each do it
in a very contrasting manner. The first genre can be understood easily and in practically no time.
It doesnt take much time for the audience to figure out what the graph means. In comparison,
the second genre is quite long and very informative, therefore, taking much more time for the
audience to read and understand. The first genre delivers the message in a quick manner and the
second genre might cause the reader to lose interest after a while. Each genre is different, one
presents a small amount of information in an effective manner, and the other one provides an
extensive amount of information.
Conclusion
Each of these genres demonstrated the injustice that is the wage gap and how it is
affecting most women today. Even though the first genre is short and effective and the second
genre is long and informative, in the end, both of the genres fulfill what they are asked for. They
deliver the message in a different manner, the purpose of both of the genres is to inform the
audience about the significance of the wage gap and they both do that.

WAGE GAP

References
Gupta, P. (2015). Equal pay, gender wage gaps and constantly moving goalposts: Review of 40
years of research. Journalists Resource. Retrieved from:
http://journalistsresource.org/studies/society/gender-society/equal-pay-gender-wage-gapsmoving-goalposts-research-review
Hill, C. (2016, February 8). The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay
Gap .Retrieved from:
http://www.aauw.org/files/2016/02/SimpleTruth_Spring2016.pdf