1.What is the purpose of this essay? Where does the author state the purpose of the essay? Do you think this placement is effective? Why or why not? How is the author defining nerdiness? Where does he explain his definition, and is this placement effective? Why or why not? 2.Using the list on pp. 250-251 in Wyrick, identify those strategies used by the author in order to clarify the definition. For example, does he compare nerdiness to something else? Does he use familiar synonyms for nerdiness? Does he illustrate what nerdiness is not (negation)? Does he explain the etymology (history) of nerdiness? Does the definition change from the beginning to the end of the essay? ANSWER In his book of Celebrating Nerdiness, Tom Roger encourages us to hold tight to our identities and celebrate the personality we are as people or individuals. The main purpose of this Celebrating Nerdiness essay is to talk about famous role models. In the discussion of the celebrity role models, their influence on children, either positively or negatively, is also considered. There are many successful people in this world who are regarded by those upcoming individuals as role models and mentors. So, Tom Rogers tries thither and hither to discuss the celebrity role models and their influence on children as his main purpose of writing his essay. According to this article, the author states the purpose of his essay at the beginning of the essay. The first sentence brings out the purpose of the essay that Tom Roger discusses the celebrity role models in the society today and their influence on children. The placement of the purpose of the essay at the beginning of the article is quite effective. This is because it makes clear to the reader the main purpose why the author wrote the article. When the reader familiarizes himself with the main purpose of the author, he has that curiosity to know some of the celebrity role models who influence children and other people. The placement of the purpose at the beginning of the article is also very effective in the sense that the reader knows the main idea of the article but he only looks examples and some of the celebrity role models who have an implication and influence in the lives of children and upcoming young stars. The author defines nerdiness as an individual who is involved in passionate pursuit of intellectual activities, obscure interests and esoteric knowledge. What such an individual aims at is age inappropriate instead of going after popular or social activities which may assist him in socialization with other people. Therefore, nerdiness makes one to lack social intelligence and the general skills of associating and interacting with other people. In his explanation of nerdnesses which reveals the nature of the authors children to be nerd, the definition of the term nerdness is clearly and openly brought out for the readers to the understanding. This implies that the definition of nerdness is found in the author`s explanation. This placement is quite effective due to the fact that reader comes to a clear understanding of the meaning of nerdiness, in the early stages of the book without going deep into the book. This also enhances and promotes understanding of some new vocabulary words by the readers so that the reading and comprehension of the article is made quite easy. The author uses some strategies to clarify the definition of nerdiness. Tom Roger compares nerdiness to wonderful people who are brilliant, accomplished and who are able to carry out activities and tasks which average people may not be in a position to do. He gives the example of famous people including Estein, Thomas Paine and Newton. In his essay, the author, Tom Roger, uses familiar synonyms for nerdiness. He says that the society referred nerds to narrow minded and thoughtless individual. He also goes ahead to say that nerds have the inability to understand ?.societal norms. This shows that he calls nerdiness with synonym expressions such as narrow minded and thoughtless individuals and as individuals who have the inability to understand and conform to the societal norms. Tom Roger says that nerdiness is not the inability to understand ?societal norms. Inclusively, he dismisses the society`s word that nerdiness is described as narrow-minded and thoughtless people in the society. This clearly proves that he does not regard nerdiness as the inability to understand conforming to the societal means. Roger also, negates the view of nerds as those people who are narrow-minded and thoughtless. He goes ahead to explain the history of nerdiness. Roger says that every nerd originated with `virtually every modern blessing? From his words, we know that he is trying to bring out the clear fact that the origin of a nerd accompanied virtually every modern blessin. The definition that Tom Roger uses to define nerdiness changes with the course of the essay.