"How to Pay for a Baby" Analysis

Blogpost 2

"How to Pay for a Baby" analysis

Write a well-constructed paragraph analyzing Kool A.D.’s use of language. You should be incorporating evidence from the text, as well as using he concepts and terminology from toddy’s class.

In the article, “How to Pay for a Baby,” by Kool A.D., the author uses distinctive diction and syntax to convey social criticism for the society he lives in. Upon a closer examination of the text, it is evident that this author utilizes his sociolect, along with colloquial diction to emphasize the points made in his text. The first and most prominent area in which Kool A.D. reveals his sociolect is in the introductory paragraph, where his use of colloquial language, coupled with slang, indicates his distinctive idiolect. Firstly, the author introduces his topic with the sentence, “I’mma keep it 100 with ya’ll….” This particular phrase gives reference to the precise colloquial language used, since this form of diction is very low and is used in everyday life, perhaps common among Ebonics. The author also uses humor throughout the text with phrases, such as “most likely you’re bad at planning ahead and thinking things through” and advice that includes robbing and stealing. Additionally, the use of expletives and slangs, such as yapper,” “hella,” “doggie,” “yo” and “ya’ll” derived from Kool A.D.’s idiolect could indicate that he is from a lower-middle social class, since it wouldn’t be expected from a high-class citizen to be this informal in an article. This, correspondingly, makes the article seem very casual and not serious at all. Despite this, in certain areas, the author shifts from casual and conversational language into sophisticated and poignant statements that reveal the real purpose of the article and relate it to condemnation for the capitalist society. For instance, Kool A.D describes children as “dudes” with “desires and susceptibilities to advertising tactics,” who are brought into this world “against their will, fully enclosed in this charade with you…”. In this particular example, the shift from colloquial diction to formal diction is quite noticeable. Furthermore, the last third is actually a game changer, as it changes the dynamic of the article from pure entertainment to a well thought-out critical analysis. Although the use of expletives is beyond any reach, an exploration of the paragraph will actually uncover the true purpose of this text, despite it being masked by the sociolect and idiolect of the author. Lastly, it is essentially very thought-provoking as to why the author ended the article on a humorous note. As mentioned before, Kool A.D suggests gambling, stealing money, or becoming a rapper, in order to provide for a child. This statement, although amusing, does reveal a lot about the linguistic background of the author, thus emphasizing the aforementioned concepts of diction and dialect.