PEACE CORPS IN THE 21 ST CENTURY: A RHETORICAL ANALYSIS

24has broad residual effects. Almost three-quarters . . . say their service increased theirinterest in following news about a public issue or area of the community in which theyhad not previously been interested. Just as large a share of young adults . . . say theirservice has enhanced their understanding of public issues, politics, government, orcivics.” 71It is possible that participation in the civic world is an intentional effort toaffect politics and policy through other avenues, “a rejection of the means of politics andpolicy but not the ends.” 72Zukin et al., present two kinds of civic engagement that have not previously beenincluded in research. First, public voice is the way citizens express their opinions onpublic issues. For example, they may sign a petition, send an email, contribute to a blog,or write letters to news editors. The second form of engagement is cognitive engagement,which is defined as citizens paying attention to public affairs. This includes followingthe news, talking about politics with friends and family, or simply being interested inpublic affairs. 73These two forms of participation are not recognized in studies ofcitizenship behaviors, but when included, greatly broaden our ideas about whatconstitutes active citizenship. These things also confirm that civic engagement isbeginning to occur in individualistic ways, which is what Putnam most fears. Asmembership in organizations decreases, Putnam believes our concept of a democraticcitizenship shrivels. However, when we expand our definition of civic involvement toinclude less grandiose forms of civic behavior, we begin to see that joining anorganization does not make for a better or more engaged citizen.Evidence suggests that some faith exists for future generations. Putnam evenwrites, “A wide range of evidence . . . suggests that young Americans in the 1990s