About Men – Essay Analysis

1. Gretel Ehrlich’s purpose in “About Men” is to expose the false stereotypes about cowboys. Her goal is to inform others of the real character of these cowboys. She describes the men that she knows, their work ethic, and their personalities with the hope of educating others of their true character. She explains the contrasts in the description of cowboys in ads and the cowboys she is close to.
2. One rhetorical analysis Ehrlich uses is parallelism. In the first paragraph, Ehrlich repeatedly says the phrase, “If he’s… it’s because…” to emphasize the the strength and hard work of a cowboy. She says, “If he’s ‘strong and silent’ it’s because there’s probably no one to talk to.” This shows a struggle and the strength a cowboy combats it with. This parallelism demonstrates the boldness, strength, and courage of cowboys that Ehrlich is striving to portray.
3. I agree with Ehrlich that cowboys can be stereotyped. I grew up riding horses on my aunt’s ranch and I was able to see men working hard to take care of their animals, land, and family. Watching how hard they worked was incredible to me because it showed me that they were motivated, strong, and working with purpose. Cowboys are not just “macho”, they are motivated workers who continually sacrifice.