Editorial by Dorothy Samuels
Opponents of abortion have gotten more aggressive and persistent in recent years. While they recognize that an outright ban on abortion is nearly impossible at this point in time, they are doing everything they can to make abortion as difficult as possible by imposing numerous of new restrictions. As a result, they are unjustly compromising the right of a woman to make her own childbearing decisions. The number of abortion clinics nationwide has also steadily decreased due to this legislature.
This article is from New York Times, a well-established and trusted resource.
The context infers that the audience is pro-abortion. It includes the ongoing conflict between abortion supporters and opposers. It also takes into account the Roe v. Wade Trial, which legalized abortion nationwide, and the current Congress, which holds a Republican majority that is ultimately against abortion.
The purpose of the author was to convince pro-abortion supporters to make their voices heard, because if they don't, abortion rights will only decrease. Dorothy is evidently pro-abortion throughout the text.
Dorothy used statistics (support) displaying the increasing number of states that are accepting these new abortion restrictions. She uses this to appeal to her readers logically, to prove that anti-abortion supporters will prevail if no steps are taken to stop them.
The article was informative but as an editorial piece, I found it to be a little weak. I was not very moved for her use of diction lacked a certain power and passion. Instead, it was almost boring and cliche. I admire the author's views but she could have done a better job in substantiating them by offering the philosophy behind pro-abortion.
Sunday, September 25, 2011
Sunday, September 18, 2011
AOW #2: For Adoptive Parents, Questions Without Answers
News article by John Leland
Recent incidents in child trafficking has suggested that the children in China sold to adoption, are not always abandoned by their biological parents. In some cases in the Hunan Province, Chinese government officials have kidnapped children from their families in order to sell them to orphanages, which would then pass the children over to adoptive parents. Such lucrative exchanges are considered very possible considering that many American parents often make generous donations to the orphanages they adopt from. This event has spawned major practical and moral concerns among foster parents who have already adopted Chinese babies or are looking to adopt. Some parents recall that paperwork presented by the orphanages were sometimes "inconsistent" and suspicious. However, fearing how it might affect the child and their lives, parents have been reluctant to speak up or be aggressive to find the truth.
This article is from New York Times, a well-established and trusted resource.
The context is that very often American parents have gone to China to look to adopt, because although child abduction is nothing new in adoption programs, the process in China has been considered for the most part clean.
The purpose was to inform the audience, perhaps readers of NY Times, external affairs officials, and parents considering adoption, to be aware of the circumstances that circle these adoption processes.
Rhetorical elements include dialogue, logic, testimonials that appeal to emotions, statistics and evidence.
Yes, I found the article very easy to read, highly informative, and even a bit heart-provoking.
Recent incidents in child trafficking has suggested that the children in China sold to adoption, are not always abandoned by their biological parents. In some cases in the Hunan Province, Chinese government officials have kidnapped children from their families in order to sell them to orphanages, which would then pass the children over to adoptive parents. Such lucrative exchanges are considered very possible considering that many American parents often make generous donations to the orphanages they adopt from. This event has spawned major practical and moral concerns among foster parents who have already adopted Chinese babies or are looking to adopt. Some parents recall that paperwork presented by the orphanages were sometimes "inconsistent" and suspicious. However, fearing how it might affect the child and their lives, parents have been reluctant to speak up or be aggressive to find the truth.
This article is from New York Times, a well-established and trusted resource.
The context is that very often American parents have gone to China to look to adopt, because although child abduction is nothing new in adoption programs, the process in China has been considered for the most part clean.
The purpose was to inform the audience, perhaps readers of NY Times, external affairs officials, and parents considering adoption, to be aware of the circumstances that circle these adoption processes.
Rhetorical elements include dialogue, logic, testimonials that appeal to emotions, statistics and evidence.
Yes, I found the article very easy to read, highly informative, and even a bit heart-provoking.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
IRB
Title of Book: The Open Road: The Global Journey of the 14th Dalai Lama
Author: Pico Iyer
Sections: The books is split into 3 sections: In Public, In Private and In Practice. I will read 60 pages at a time.
Why you chose this book: I am very interested in spirituality and self-discovery. Getting better at living is actually a concept that I practice and I apply to my own life. The Dalai Lama is also one of the people I respect most.
Sunday, September 11, 2011
AOW #1: The Palestinians' Statehood Dilemma: Full U.N. Membership or Observer Status?
URL: http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2091317,00.html
Palestine plans to appeal to the United Nations for an upgrade from its current status. Having long fought over land with its Israeli neighbor, Palestine continues to seek a way to become its own independent state. It can appeal to the UN in two ways: request full UN membership and most likely be rejected by the US, which is part of the Security Council that reviews the applications, or request for a promotion from the position of "observer entity" to "observer state." Such approach would not require the approval of the US, and would allow Palestine to appeal to the International Criminal Court to charge Israel with humans rights crimes.
This article is from TIME, a renown and internationally acknowledged news source. The author of this article, Karl Vick, is Time's bureau chief in Jerusalem. In 2001, he was among the Washington Post finalists for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
To get the gist of this article, it is necessary to understand the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict that has gone on for 70 years. The background of the two nations is essential to understanding why Palestine strives to be an independent state.
The purpose is to simply update readers on the conflict status. It is mostly facts and quotes. It helps readers get a better idea of the situation by explaining what Palestine's options are.
The audience would be politicians and those interested in politics. It is a relatively neutral article so the audience is not especially restricted.
Rhetorical elements exemplified in this article would be dialogue and logos.
Since the author wrote for mostly informational purposes, I'd say he was relatively successful. However, I would have preferred more specific details and a personal opinion. That would have spawned more thought among his readers.
Palestine plans to appeal to the United Nations for an upgrade from its current status. Having long fought over land with its Israeli neighbor, Palestine continues to seek a way to become its own independent state. It can appeal to the UN in two ways: request full UN membership and most likely be rejected by the US, which is part of the Security Council that reviews the applications, or request for a promotion from the position of "observer entity" to "observer state." Such approach would not require the approval of the US, and would allow Palestine to appeal to the International Criminal Court to charge Israel with humans rights crimes.
This article is from TIME, a renown and internationally acknowledged news source. The author of this article, Karl Vick, is Time's bureau chief in Jerusalem. In 2001, he was among the Washington Post finalists for the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service.
To get the gist of this article, it is necessary to understand the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict that has gone on for 70 years. The background of the two nations is essential to understanding why Palestine strives to be an independent state.
The purpose is to simply update readers on the conflict status. It is mostly facts and quotes. It helps readers get a better idea of the situation by explaining what Palestine's options are.
The audience would be politicians and those interested in politics. It is a relatively neutral article so the audience is not especially restricted.
Rhetorical elements exemplified in this article would be dialogue and logos.
Since the author wrote for mostly informational purposes, I'd say he was relatively successful. However, I would have preferred more specific details and a personal opinion. That would have spawned more thought among his readers.
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