After reading "Growing Up Saudi" by Karen Elliot House, I believe that the author wants readers to learn about young people in Saudi Arabia and how they are increasingly questioning the very conservative society. In this article the author discusses the strict rules that restrict youth in Saudi Arabia and how they push the boundaries to these rules. Young people are breaking rules such as the ban on womens' right to drive by protesting and posting videos of women driving on the internet.
I think the author wants readers to think about the rights of young people in Saudi Arabia and how this conservative society should be changed. The author conveys this message by including statistics and pictures to persuade the readers of this message. The author supports the idea that young people should be able to work by including statistics showing the population and unemployment rates of young people in Saudi Arabia.
One element of this article that shows the author's bias towards the restrictive society is the abundance of quotations stated by people in favor of changing this society. The author includes a quote from a young saleswomen living in this area. The quote she states is "It's nice to get out and work and get paid." This quotation supports the idea of change in Saudi Arabia. There are many quotations like this throughout the article. The fact that there are not many quotations from people who want to keep this society shows the authors bias because of the author's lack of representation for the opposing side.
In conclusion, I believe the author of "Growing Up Saudi" is in favor of changing the restrictive rules of the conservative society. The author conveys this message by including an abundance of quotations, statistics, and showing pictures that show how the youth of Saudi Arabia want and need change from this conservative society.
