Barron.PDF I. Introduction     Not many people believe that…

Barron.PDF I. Introduction     Not many people believe that AMJ, Accumulated Male Junk, is a real thing, but it is.      In the passage, “In Defense of Male Clutter” by Steve Almond, he explains the ways in which males end up gathering junk over the years and why it is so special to them to never get rid of it.     Thesis Statement:  Almond seeks to persuade his wife and readers that Accumulated Male Junk is normal by explaining how he has had this clutter both before and after his marriage, examples of how his clutter represents his past, and specific examples of the clutter he has accumulated.   II.  Ethos       a. The article states, “One of the best decisions I’ve made in my three-plus years of marriage was to move all our belongings into our new home myself.” (Almond, 58)        Almond is showing here that he is very aware of AMJ because he is married and has gathered AMJ throughout those years of marriage.          b. The article also explains, “My friend, Owen, for instance, who is now happily married with a child, has chosen to outfit his basement with many of the accessories from his fraternity years.” (Almond, 58)        Almond is providing more credit for himself here by giving an example of a friend that also has AMJ and is married, as well.   III.  Pathos       a. Almond states, “Look, we all need something to remember our pasts by.” (Almond, 58)        He is trying to support his claim further here by trying to persuade the reader that his AMJ is okay by appealing to their emotions.        b. In addition, the article says, “Do I really need the battered black softball glove that saw me through eight seasons in left field?” (Almond, 59)        Almond is appealing to his readers by giving an example of something he has kept from his past because it means a lot to him.       c. Furthermore, Almond gives an example of a disc he has kept over the years that got him through his graduate years in North Carolina.         He is trying to explain here how much this one disc in particular means to him because of past things he went through that it reminds him of, which helps appeal to his reader’s emotions.   IV.  Logos       a. Almond continues on to say, “In my own case, this junk included, but was not limited to, a rusty bread box dating back to the Eisenhower administration, two hand-painted walking sticks, a 78-rpm phonograph, a broken snow blower given to me by my old landlord, and exactly 4,123 CDs.” (Almond, 58)       Here, he is giving an example of the AMJ he has collected over the years with small innuendos of why he owns those items.         b. The article also explains, “It’s not supposed to be practical. In the always perplexing male psyche, AMJ serves one of two purposes: Either it functions as a reminder of our joyously unkempt bachelorhoods or it represents our wholly unrealistic hopes for the future.” (Almond, 58)       This is another example that Almond is giving of what his AMJ is and what it represents for him and many other males.   V. Conclusion       Throughout the article, Almond explains the reasons male accumulate junk and gives examples of these pieces of junk.        Reworded Thesis: He does this by explaining how he himself has this accumulated junk as a married man, examples of why this clutter means so much to him, and specific examples of the junk.        While one may not understand the full reasoning behind AMJ, from this article, it seems that men may have true justification for their junk after all. 
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