Emma M's Analysis of "When Nice Ain't So Nice"

Emma Mortensen
Freshmen Writing 150 Honors
2/23/12
The Price of Being Nice

From early childhood, we are taught to be “nice,” but is there such a thing as too much nice? Elouise Bell believes that Nice ain’t so nice at all. In her article When Nice Ain’t So Nice, Professor Bell uses personification, parallelism, and juxtaposition to effectively reveal the insidious character of Niceness.

Throughout Bell’s article, Nice is personified in many ways. Foremost, the word is usually capitalized, making it a proper noun, like a name. Nice becomes a specific entity instead of an abstract quality. The first example of personification happens in the sentence, “The problem with Nice isn’t that it’s sometimes wimpy; the problem is that Nice can be dangerous” (170) From the beginning, “nice” demonstrates human attributes, especially that of being dangerous. This use of personification establishes the tone and instantly identifies the purpose of the essay.

The second example of personification is in the last paragraph of the article:

Nice flies under false colors, wants the reputation of the gentle dove without the wisdom of the wise serpent. It is the Great Imposter, having none of the power of Virtue but seeking the influence thereof. Nice is neither kind, nor compassionate, neither good nor full of good cheer, neither hot nor cold. But, being puffed up in its own vanity, it is considerably more dangerous than luke-warmth. (174)

Here Bell clearly states exactly what is wrong with Nice. Nice becomes something that “is” and “wants.” It becomes an entity of desire. This personification makes the idea of Nice more tangible and threatening to the audience because it is an actual physical presence that can affect them. Nice is called the “Great Imposter” signifying the utter deceitfulness it displays. Nice is portrayed a liar and a fake, which lends weight to the assertion that Nice is a treacherous evil.

In addition to personification, Bell uses parallelism in her article to emphasize the menace that is Niceness. An example of this is:

. . . Courage is the virtue that protects all other virtues. That is, it is courage which enables us to be truthful when speaking the truth might be risky; it is courage that backs up loyalty when loyalty is unpopular; it is certainly courage which makes patriotism meaningful in time of danger… it is niceness which can corrupt all other virtues. Niceness edits truth, dilutes loyalty, makes a caricature of patriotism. It hobbles Justice, short-circuits Honor, and counterfeits Mercy, Compassion, and Love. (170-171)

The same qualities that courage supports, specifically truth, loyalty, and patriotism, illustrate what Niceness undermines. This parallelism shows that niceness is the complete opposite of courage; it tears down all that courage upholds. The structure of this quote underscores the destructive power of Nice.

Another important example of parallelism is:

Not wanting to know, not willing to know, not about to know...Not to take one nibble from one piece of fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, but to remain, instead, Nice. Not to know about History, except for a few pretty branches used as decoration...Certainly not to know about Poverty...Not to know about Death, but to confine him to curtained cubicles in isolated “units” of hospitals and nursing homes. (174)

Bell is explaining how the word “nice” can be traced to the Latin “nescius,” meaning ignorance. This connection reveals the major peril of niceness: deliberate, lazy not knowing. Each sentence begins with the phrase “not to know,” greatly emphasizing the negative facets of Niceness. This emphasis stimulates the audience to recognize exactly what is so bad about this deliberate ignorance. The parallelism reinforces the significance of the quote.

Parallelism is similarly evident in the other half of each sentence in the above quote. The structure is as follows: not to know ___, but to ____ instead. Not only are those who only want to be Nice unconcerned about learning of good and evil, history, or death, they are also intentionally hiding the negative aspects of these. Instead of partaking of the Tree of Knowledge, they are content to remain Nice. Instead of regarding the whole of history, they only see the frivolous happy parts. Instead of accepting death, they hide it away in the confined spaces of hospitals and nursing homes. People who only want Niceness exhibit the above traits and ignorance. The parallelism is an extremely effective way of highlighting the adverse consequences involved with being Nice.

Similar to parallelism is Bell’s use of juxtaposition. The first instance of juxtaposition is Bell’s description of the tone that many Letters to the Editor of BYU’s Student Newspaper display, “They are hostile and mean-spirited...the letters drip with innuendo, invective, and scripture-laden scourging. All this from neatly dressed, smiling youths who hold doors open for each other and walk clear across campus to turn in stray Number Two pencils to the Lost-and-Found depository” (171). The images of the hateful and derogatory letters and the polite and thoughtful students are completely opposite each other and are usually unrelated. The juxtaposition of the two grabs the audience’s attention and holds it. This in turn brings greater force to the display of how deceitful Nice can be.

Another case of juxtaposition is:

I learned that in my very nice young-executive neighborhood...at least five wives are beaten regularly by their husbands. One of the nicest men in the ward has been convicted of sexual molestation. Absolutely the nicest elder I knew in the mission field afterward had to uproot his wife and family and give up his profession because he had been found guilty of molesting preschoolers. (172)

These are examples of people in Bell’s own neighborhood that have been deceived by Niceness. The common perception the audience has of nice totally contrasts the picture displayed in the quote. Those who are nice would never commit such heinous crimes, yet they tend to be the greatest offenders. The juxtaposition of what nice is supposed to be and those who committed these crimes proves to the audience that their view of Nice is skewed; thereby convincing them that Bell’s point, that Nice is treacherous, to be true.

Elouise Bell’s article, When Nice Ain’t So Nice, reveals the true nature of what Nice is through personification, parallelism, and juxtaposition. This article causes the audience to reevaluate all they had previously thought about the absolute importance of being nice. It scours away the appealing coat of duplicity to expose the core of self-imposed ignorance and insidious poison that Nice implants in human beings; such internal erosion is the ultimate price of being Nice.



Works Cited

Bell, Elouise. "When Nice Ain't So Nice." Print. Rpt. in Readings for Intensive Writers. Comp. Susan Jorgensen. 5th ed. Provo: BYU Academic, 2007. 170-74. Print.