Ready to Write More Ch-11

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C HAPTE R

Expressing Your Opinions

As a writer, you might be asked to give your opinion of a controversial topicin the news. You might also be asked to express your opinion aboutsomething you have read, seen, or heard.

Opinion papers have a very important place in academic writing. In some

classes you will be required to give your opinion of a topic you havediscussed or an article or a book you have read. For example, in a literatureclass, a professor might ask for your reaction to a poem or short story. In a

music class, an assignment could involve writing a reaction to a piece ofmusic.

Expressing Your Opinion about Controversial lssues

lssue IPrewriting

A. Read the followihg newspaper article about two convicted murdererswho were put to death for crimes they had been convicted ofcommitting many years before.

What Is Justice?

TWO MEN WERE PUT TO DEATH last week in the United Statesfor murders that they had been convicted of committing many years ago.

Billy Bailey died in the first hanging in Delaware in fifiry years. It was

twenty years ago that he murdered an elderly couple after breaking intotheir home.John Thylor, a child rapist and murderer, was shot by a five-manfiring squad in Utah.

Polls show that about 70 percent of U.S. citizens favor capitalpunishment. Many believe that people who commit horrendous crimesdeserve to die brutally in retum for the brutaliry that they inflicted on theirvictims. Others protest the barbarism of the death penalty, be it by lethalinjection, electric chair, firing squad, or hanging. While there were manypeople who supported the two deaths that took place last week, there werealso many protesters.

A 52, CHAPTER 11



fssue 3Prewriting

Pretend you ate manied to one of the managers of a small computer company in

Toronto, Canada. Your spouse has just received the following memo. Read the

memo and complete the exercise that follows.

wwry-ffi[w.uffiTO: All Employees

FROM: Jim Philips

RE: Merger with Logicom

DATE: June 30,2-

As most of you know, we have been talking for several months now with the people

at Logicom about merging otu two companies. !7e are pleased to announce that the

details have been worked our and we will be combining our companies. The official

merger date is ser for October 5. \7e are confident that we can look forward to a long'and

successful alliance with Logicom, since our products complement each other so

well. This merger should lead to greater success in the marketplace than eithercompany could achieve on its own.

This memo is also to confirm that as per Logicom's insistence, we will be moving

our offices and people to Monueal. We know that this will be difficult and disruptive

for some of you, but we sincerely believe that it is in the best interests of the company.

\Ue hope that each and every one of you will ioin us in this exciting opportunity.

Further details regarding the merger and the move will be sent to you shortly.

Writing

Write a letter to your parcnts or a close friend that expresses your opinion about

this news.

Dear

Love,

15'4F CHAPTER 11



Revising and Editing

Revise, edit, and copy your letter over before handing it in.

Expressing your Opinion about a piece of Aft

Painting lLook at the painting by Jackson Pollock called Number lo. Then read one student,sopinion

about it.

Discuss the Jackson poilock painting and the student,s opinion of it with a partner.what is your opinion of the paintingiwhat is the student,s opiniona

D@RESSING YOUR OPINIONS A 5€;



Painting 2Look at the painting by John Singleton Gopley called Watson and the Shark Then

read the information about the artist and the painting.

John Singleton Copley was one ofthe most important North Americanpainters of the eighteenth century. Hepainted huge and dramatic paintings

based on important events of his time.His paintings were often very realistic.

Watson udhe Shark is one ofCopley's most memorable works. Ittells the true story of a man named

Watson who was attacked by a shark

while he was swimming in Havana

Harbor. Watson was dramaticallvrescued and asked Copley to paint a picture of his story Copley made thepainting as realistic as he could. Some arr hisrorians think that the shark

symbolizes evil and that the man rescuing Watson symbolizes good. Theybelieve that Watson himself symbolizes the way we all struggle between theforces of good and evil.

Prewriting

Discuss the painting with a partner and answer the following questions.

1. \Vhat do you see when you look at the painting? Describe the people andtheir surroundings. You rnay need to use your dictionary.

Z.'What

is happening in the painting?3. How does the painting make you feel? Do you like the painting? Why orwhy nor?

4. How does the painting symbolize the conflict between good and evil?

Writing

On a separate piece of paper, write a paragraph describing your opinion of Watsonand the Sha*.


Exchange drafts with a partner. Use the checklists on pages 56 and 75. Discuss any

suggestions that your partner has for revision and editing. Write or type a rcvisedversion of your essay.

A €iGT CHAPTER 11



Painting O

Look at the painting by Andrew wyeth. Then read the information about the artistand the painting.

Andrew lil7yeth is another

Prewriting

3:",#:" your impressions of the painting with a paftner and answer the questions

at the painting? Describe the woman andto use your dictionarv.the painting?

rtist is trying to tell?e to describe the painting?

Writing

on a separate piece of paper, write your opinion of christina,s worrd.


. Use the checklists on pages 56 and 75. Discusshas for revision and editing. Write or type a

Follow-up Activity

Look at the painting again, now that you know the story behind it. Answer thefollowing questions.

1' Ie"q aspects of the painting express a mood of despair and a sense offrustration?

READYTO WRITE

D@RESSING YOUR OPINIONS 157



Z. Do you see that the painting is about life's limitatioru and unattainable goalsT

Why or why not?

3.What is your opinion of the painting now that you know the story that \ilyethwas trying to tell? \il7rite a paragraph explaining your new response.

Expressing Your Opinion about a Photograph

Prewriting

A. Look at the two photos.

B. Answer the following questions.

1. Describe what is happening in each photo.

Z. Which photo do you like better? \Vhy?

3. Which photo has more meaning for you? Why?

4. Which photo would you find it easier to write about?

A 5C} CHAPTER 11



Writing

on a separate piece of paper; write your opinion about one of the photos.


Exchange drafts with someone who chose the same photo you did. compare andcontrast your opinions' Then help each other revise and edit using the checklists onages 56 and 75' write ortype a revised version of youi essay.

Responding to GluotationsMany writing assignmentlt"loly. responding to quorations. you might be asked toxplain the meaning of a quotation and ,n." gi".'v.", .it"t."

"r,,.A- Read the following quotations from around the world and put a checkmark next tohose that you find especiaily interesting. In smail g;il;, discuss the quotes thatll the members of your group checked.

1. patience is power. (Chinese proverb)

z' The main thing in one's own privateworld is to try to laugh as muchas you cry. (Maya Angelou)

It is very tiring to hate. (Jean Rostand)

Anyone who looks for a perfect friend will remain without friends.(Tirrkish proverb)

We are shaped by what we love. (Johann Wolfgang von Goethe)

Jealousy is a tiger that tears not only its prey but also its own ragingheart. (Michael BeerJ

Happiness sneala in through a door you didn,t know you left open.

flohn Barrymore)Life shrinla or expands according to one,s courage. (Anais Nin)Humility is the root, motheq nurse, foundation, and bond of all virtue.St. John Chrysostom)

3.

4

5.

6.

c-

10' winning is neither. everything nor rhe only thing; it is one of manythings. (Joan Benoit S"-".lsJnl--'

11' A human life is rike a letter of the alphabet. It can be meaningress. ort can be part of a great meaning. (Anonymous)

12' I hate television-r hate it as much as I hate peanuts. ButI

can,tstopeating peanuts. (Orson Welles)

choose one of the quotes you discussed w*h your group and write a one-aragraph response to it. Be sure to incrude tnl quole"i

tn" o.ginning of youraragraph. Exprain why you chose that quote and how it has meaning for you.Read your reactions to the other members of your group for their feedback. Thenevise, edit, and copy your response over before h"nOing ii ii.

EXPRESSING YOUR OPINIONS A 5,S)



Expressing Your Opinion about a Poem

A. Read the information about Robert Frost and his poem "The Road Not Taken,"

Robert Frost (1874-1963) is one of the most important

North American poets of the twentieth century. "The

Road Not Thken" tells the story of an important choice

the author made in his life.

The Road Not Thken

I. Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,l

And sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

To where it bent in the undergrowth;z

il. Then took the other, as just as fair,l

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wearl4

Though as for that the passing there

Had wom them really about the same,

III. And both that moming equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.5

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,6

I doubted if I should ever come back.

2. Sometime in the future, hechoice and be glad that he

Stanza

IV. I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:7

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I-I took the one less traveled by,

And that has made all the difference.

-RobertFrost

1 One road divided into two roads in a forest2 To the place where it turned under the low bushes3 | took the other road, which was just as nicea Because it was slightly overgrown and less used5 No one had walked on either road yet that day6 | knew how one road often leads to another road7 In some olace in the future

Prewriting

The four stanzas (groups of lines) of the poem each tell a part of the story. Read

each stanza again and think about what it means. Then look at the following

summaries. Each summary refers to one of the stanzas in the poem. Match each

summary with the stanza it refers to.

1. He decided to take the road that looked like it had not been used as much.

Stanza

will remember this day when he had to make a

took the road that was less traveled.

A CD(O CHAPTER 11



3. A man was walking in the woods and he came to a place where the single road

,oj;lf,into rwo separate roads. H.;; ,"_y that he could not take both

Stanza

4. Although he chose the second road, he hoped that hesome day

to take the first one. But h. do,rb.t J;ir;;ir.Stanza

Writing

Robert Frost's poem is based on a choice he had to make. Think about anmportant choice that you have made. on" ""p",.l'ol"" of pape4 describe theituation and the effect your choice has had on Vorili".


Exchange drafts with a classmate. use the checklists on pages 56 and 75. Discussnysuggestions that your partner has for revision and editing. write or type aevised version of your essay.

B'F"r:ailL:,i"formation

about Emirv Dickinson and her poem ..Hopets the Thing with

Lmitv Dickinson (1830-1886)Thin! *itr, p."irt.rr" i, o.r. of gifted,poets' "Hope Is thethe metaphor of a bird to descr s' ln this poem, she uses

Prewriting

Hope Is the Thing with Feathers

Hope is the thing with feathersThat perchesl in the soul,And sings the tune without the words,And never stops at all.

And sweetest in the galez is heard:And sore must be the stormThat could abash3 the little birdThat kept so many warrn.

would be able to retumever would.

TO WR|TE

I sits2 strong wind3 upset

-EmilyDickinson

4 an extreme situations a small piece of food

EXPRESSING YOUR OPINIONS A GiA



READYTO WRITE

1. Jealousy is a/an

that

Prewriting

Discuss your opinion of the poem with a partner.

Writing

Emily Dickinson describes hope as a thing with feathers. How would you describe

hope? Write a paragraph about one of the following topics.

1. A time in your life when hope was very important7. Your hopes for the future

3. Your own description of hope


Exchange drafts with a classmate. Use the checklists on pages 56 and 75. Discuss

any suggestions that your partner has for revision and editing. Write or type a

revised version of your essay.

Metaphor Activity

A metaphor is a phrase that describes something by comparing it to something else

without the words like or as. Beread the first two lines of Emily Dickinson's poem.Using these lines as a model, create your own metaphors for each of the following

words.

Example

Happiness is a flower withbude rhatblossome in my heart.

with

Z.Beauty is a/an

that

with

3. Hate is a/an

that

with

4. Love is a/an

that

with

5. \Tisdom is a/an

that

with

6. Fear is a/an

that

with

A62, CHAPTER 11



The lnternet has many.ri3ts.gffamous sayings or pieces of advice. Exprore the webo find some of these rists. write down five interesting sayings or pieces of adviceand share them w*h your crassmates- choose one and write a paragraphexplaining your own opinion of the saying or the piece of advice.

You Be the Editor

The following e-mail contains seven mistakes. Find the mistakes and conect them.hen copy the corrected message onto a separate piece of paper.

I just finished reading one of the best books I have ever read. It is calredOne Hundredyears of Sokufu and was written by Gabriel GarcfaM6rquez' He won the Nober prize for this book in rggz.It was firstpublished in 1967 in Argentina and translated into english in 1970.Briefly' its the story of the fictional town of Macondo as seen throughthe eyes of many generations of the Buendia family. I leamed about thechanges that the town goes through as it grow and the years roll by wealso read about the universal themes of birth,

death, love, war, wealth,poverry, honor and comrption as we spend time with this large andfascinating family. The writing is simple, yer beautiful, even intranslation' If you are looking for a reaily good book to read, recommendthis book to you. Let me know if you read it. I hope that you enjoyreading about these people and their lives as much as I did.Love,

J,rdy

D(PRESSING YOUR OPINIONS a Gt3



On Your Own

A- Look at the two cartoons below. Choose one and write your reaction to the ideas

expressed in the cartoon.

Drawing by Rini, @ L995 Thc Neur Yorker Magazine, Inc.

IION

by'4 ry.

\Eiley

Write your opinion about a song, W program, or movie. You may choose one that

you are familiar with or one that you have just seen or heard for the first time.

aa4F oHAPTER 1'1

Ready to Write More Ch-11

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