I dont Bust Back Beacaus I Bat First

I don’t Bust Back Because I Bat First

Joey Vranicar

Subject- The subject of Dave Barry’s ‘Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out,’ is that women and men care about different things, those things are mainly for women, cleaning the house, and for men, sports. The different genders care for opposite activities is illustrated by the way Barry writes that women look for and see more dirt and grime than men, and the way he wrote that he and his friends felt like they ‘needed’ to watch a baseball game.

Occasion- ‘Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out’ was written during modern times, probably during the 2000’s. This I exhibited by the way he uses certain modern terms such as ‘Windex’ and his writing style is very much how my dad would talk to me present day. The probable place of this essay’s creation is America, as it states Barry and his three friends were very anxious to watch the World Series, which is an American only sport.

Audience- Barry’s audience for Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out’ is married couples male and female in their 30’s-50. The author’s target audience is clearly exhibited by the way as he uses his own marriage as example and support many times throughout this piece. He does not talk like he would to someone older or younger, he writes as if he is talking to someone his age, and that age is around 30 to 50.

Purpose- The purpose of Barry’s ‘Batting Clean-Up and Striking out’ is to entertain a general audience, and to inform of the key differences between man and woman. He is entertaining many times because he tells personal anecdotes and adds his own humor to spice it up. He also wants to inform married couples that there are many differences between men and women. He probably wants to inform couples this so they understand the differences between their genders and don’t get into petty arguments. For example, in the fourth paragraph Barry writes, “…I tell her I already cleaned the bathroom, she gives me this look that she has perfected…” If you are a male you know exactly what the author is talking about, him exposing this truth in his essay will make women realize that men don’t know how to clean or see the dirt. This in the long term may stop future conflicts.

Speaker- David Barry, Pulitzer Prize-winning American, believes that women care too much about cleanliness. This value is illustrated by the way his wife tells him to clean his son’s bathroom, he does, but she believes that the room is still very dirty. The way he explains how his wife gave him ‘the look’ after he did a ‘great job’ cleaning makes it seem like his wife is too nit picky about being clean.

Barry, age 64, also believes that most women do not care about sports. He portrays this belief by writing that only ‘certain’ women are the exception of being callous about sports. He also states that while him and his friends were excite about a sports game, his wife and other women were just sitting and chatting about other topics. The way he portrayed these women as indifferent about the ‘big game’ makes it seem like almost all women are this way.

Tone- Barry articulates a humorous and incredulous attitude about his wife’s behavior towards cleaning and sports in ‘Batting Clean-Up and Striking Out’. The way he talks about his wife’s lack of care about sports makes her seem like a crazy and unusual person. He is in shock of how his wife could be calm when such a big game is on and he uses sarcasm and hyperboles to add a humorous tone to his arguments.