Reading Response #2

Ch. 5 “And Yet” Reading Response #2

Ex. 1

1.      Views of others

“Marx and Engels wrote…”

“His definition: if you earn thirty thousand dollars…”

“The average American will tell you…”

Author’s own views

“If only that were true...”

“Are we allowed to choose?”

“I always felt that…”

2.      Ex. 2 

       For this exercise, I studied my argumentative essay on whether zoos were cruel to animals.

a. How many perspectives do you engage?

I engaged two perspectives in my writing; one from PETA (they believed zoos were cruel to animals, and one from myself and WWF (we believed zoos helped animals).

b. What other perspectives might you include?

It might have been helpful if I sort of gave more of my own perspective.  It’s true that I agree with WWF, but I don’t think that I clearly showed my own thoughts from that of WWF.  I could also include perspectives from groups that agree and disagree to a certain extent on whether zoos are cruel to animals.

c. How do you distinguish your views from the other views you summarize?

I distinguished my views from the other views I summarized by explaining why the opposing side disagrees with me.  For example, “It is often times these so-called “roadside zoos” (establishments that take on the name of zoos and use private selling of animals (“Yahoo! Answers”)), which make organizations like PETA oppose to zoos and give off the vibe that all zoos participate in the cruel treatment of animals.”  Then I counteract that statement with my own opinion, “However, the evidence shows that AZA accredited zoos care more about these animals well-being, and don’t resort to private selling and cross-breeding.”  I also usually state that “opposing groups like PETA argue…” so that it is clear that their opinion is not my own.

d. Do you use clear voice-signaling phrases?

I used clear voice-signaling phrases more so with the opinions of others than I did for my own.  It sort of seems like if I didn’t say “PETA argues…” or “WWF believes…,” then it usually was my own opinion.

e. What options are available to you for clarifying who is saying what?

The options that are available to me for clarifying who is saying what are through voice markers, through always saying who is stating what, and by being a bit sarcastic by saying things like “it seems…” because no one would show their lack of confidence in their argument.

f. Which of these options are best suited for this particular text?

For this particular text, I think it’s best to use voice markers that always say “X argues this” or “I agree, as X may not realize, that…”  These voice markers distinguish one opinion from the next, and in some cases allows for slightly agreeing even when you disagree.