Anker Susan. Real Essays with Readings with 2009 MLA Update
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READINGS
Chapter 50 • Cause and Effect 837
9 Another time I was on assignment for a local paper and killing time
before an interview. I entered a jewelry store on the city’s affl uent Near
North Side. The proprietor excused herself and returned with an enor-
mous red Doberman pinscher straining at the end of a leash. She stood,
the dog extended toward me, silent to my questions, her eyes bulging
nearly out of her head. I took a cursory look around, nodded, and bade
her good night.
10 Relatively speaking, however, I never fared as badly as another black
male journalist. He went to nearby Waukegan, Illinois, a couple of sum-
mers ago to work on a story about a murderer who was born there.
Mistaking the reporter for the killer, police offi cers hauled him from his
car at gunpoint and but for his press credentials would probably have
tried to book him. Such episodes are not uncommon. Black men trade
tales like this all the time.
11 Over the years, I learned to smother the rage I felt at so often being
taken for a criminal. Not to do so would surely have led to madness.
I now take precautions to make myself less threatening. I move about
with care, particularly late in the evening. I give a wide berth to nervous
people on subway platforms during the wee hours, particularly when I
have exchanged business clothes for jeans. If I happen to be entering
a building behind some people who appear skittish,
8
I may walk by,
letting them clear the lobby before I return, so as not to seem to be fol-
lowing them. I have been calm and extremely congenial
9
on those rare
occasions when I’ve been pulled over by the police.
12 And on late-evening constitutionals
10
I employ what has proved
to be an excellent tension-reducing measure: I whistle melodies from
Beethoven and Vivaldi and the more popular classical composers. Even
steely New Yorkers hunching toward nighttime destinations seem to
relax, and occasionally they even join in the tune. Virtually everybody
seems to sense that a mugger wouldn’t be warbling bright, sunny selec-
tions from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. It is my equivalent of the cowbell that
hikers wear when they know they are in bear country.
8
skittish: nervous, jumpy
9
congenial: pleasant, agreeable
10
constitutionals: walks taken for one’s health
SUMMARIZE AND RESPOND
In your reading journal or elsewhere, summarize the main point of “Just Walk
on By: Black Men and Public Space.” Then, go back and check off support
for this main idea. Next, write a brief summary (three to fi ve sentences) of the
reading. Finally, jot down your initial response to the selection. Did you fi nd
PAUSE: In para-
graph 11, underline
each of the precau-
tions Staples says
he takes to appear
less threatening.
PAUSE: How do
you respond to
the image, in
paragraph 12, of
Staples whistling
classical music as he
walks at night?
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READINGS
838 Part Eight • Readings for Writers
any of what Staples relates surprising, or do his observations match your own
experience? Did reading about Staples’s experiences change your attitudes in
any way? What impression do you have of the writer himself?
CHECK YOUR COMPREHENSION
1. Which of the following would be the best alternative title for this essay?
a. “Walking the Streets after Dark”
b. “The Burdens of Racial Identity”
c. “Being Mistaken for a Criminal Because of One’s Skin”
d. “How to Avoid Muggers and Other Street Criminals”
2. The main idea of this essay is that
a. the author had to learn how to make himself appear less threatening
to others.
b. the author recognizes that strangers may be unjustifi ably afraid of him
because he is a black man.
c. the author believes that people should try to see black men as indi-
viduals and not stereotype them as muggers.
d. the author knew criminals as he was growing up but wants readers to
understand that he himself is not one.
3. An important point that Staples makes in this essay is that
a. the police and other authorities often stop black men for questioning
for no good reason.
b. he felt angry because of strangers’ behavior toward him but found
ways to suppress his anger.
c. people in large cities like Chicago and New York are more likely than
others to fear black men.
d. he was once almost arrested because he was mistaken for a murderer
he was writing a story about.
4. If you are unfamiliar with the following words, use a dictionary to
check their meanings: menacingly (para. 1); unwieldy, insomnia, way-
farers, dismayed, indistinguishable, dicey (2); hallucination, perpetra-
tors, solace, alienation, entity (5); lethality, retrospect (6); bravado (7);
perilous, posse, labyrinthine (8); affl uent, cursory (9); credentials (10);
warbling (12).
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READINGS
Chapter 50 • Cause and Effect 839
READ CRITICALLY
1. What, specifi cally, is the cause-and-effect relationship that Staples is de-
scribing in the essay? How well do you think he shows this relationship?
What is the effect of the situation on Staples himself?
2. Why do you suppose Staples opens his essay by referring to “[m]y fi rst
victim”? What is the effect of this language?
3. Who would you say Staples imagined as his audience for this essay? What
vision of himself does he seem to want his readers to come away with?
4. Why do you think Staples refers to the experience of another black man
in paragraph 10, when all of his other examples are drawn from his own
experience?
5. What is your response to Staples’s fi nal two paragraphs? To his fi nal sen-
tence? How would you evaluate this conclusion?
WRITE AN ESSAY
Write an essay, based on your own experiences, about the causes and effects
of stereotypes and mistaken perceptions. You might focus on mistaken per-
ceptions others have had of you or on mistaken perceptions you have had of
others — or on both kinds of mistaken perceptions. You might also focus on
instances of mistaken perceptions and stereotyping that you have witnessed.
Be sure to establish clear cause-and-effect relationships.
Cause and Effect: Linked Readings
CONCEPTIONS OF GENDER
Each of the following readings focuses on various aspects of the effects of
gender on people’s behaviors and lives.
Amy L. Beck, “Struggling for Perfection” (this chapter, p. 829)
Daniel Goleman, “For Man and Beast, Language of Love Shares Many
Traits” (Chapter 46, p. 781)
Scott Russell Sanders, “The Men We Carry in Our Minds” (Chapter 47,
p. 788)
Dave Barry, “The Ugly Truth about Beauty” (Chapter 49, p. 817)
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READINGS
840 Part Eight • Readings for Writers
Read the selections, and draw from at least one in addition to “Struggling for
Perfection” to write an essay titled “How Gender Affects Behavior.” You can
refer to your own experience, but make sure to use material from the essays
as well.
CHASING BEAUTY
Though they have very different tones, both of the following readings focus
on women’s quest for beauty or perfection.
Amy L. Beck, “Struggling for Perfection” (this chapter, p. 829)
Dave Barry, “The Ugly Truth about Beauty” (Chapter 49, p. 817)
Read the selections, and write an essay titled “The Dangers of Chasing Beauty
and Perfection.” You can refer to your own experience, but make sure to use
material from the essays as well.
STEREOTYPES
Each of the following readings focuses on stereotypes.
Brent Staples, “Just Walk on By: Black Men and Public Space” (this
chapter, p. 834)
Scott Russell Sanders, “The Men We Carry in Our Minds” (Chapter 47,
p. 788)
Amy Tan, “Mother Tongue” (Chapter 47, p. 796)
Nancy Mairs, “On Being a Cripple” (Chapter 48, p. 805)
Read the selections, and draw from at least one in addition to “Just Walk on
By” to write an essay titled “Stereotypes: Are They Wrong?” You can refer to
your own experience, but make sure to use material from the essays as well.
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841
51
Argument Casebook
Assisted Suicide
This chapter includes fi ve essays on the issue of legalized assisted suicide.
The fi rst three, in favor of it, are written by a nurse, a doctor, and an
individual with terminal cancer. Their essays argue that legal physician-
assisted suicide is a humane choice and, in some cases, is the only way
for people to maintain their dignity and humanity in the face of acute suf-
fering. The last two essays, written by doctors, are against legalization of
physician-assisted suicide. These essays reveal another side of what legal
physician-assisted suicide could bring — not a humane end but rather the
triumph of cost-effectiveness over compassionate end-of-life care.
As you will see when you read these fi ve essays, physician-assisted sui-
cide is not an easy issue. It is, however, an issue that has signifi cance for
all of us. Physical trauma can dramatically affect an individual’s quality of
life at any time. Any of us could be seriously injured in a traffi c accident
or suddenly affl icted with an untreatable disease.
Some of you may already have an opinion on physician-assisted sui-
cide. As you read the essays, however, consider carefully the arguments
that they present. Try to imagine that someone you love is the patient,
and evaluate the arguments as though you were going to have to make a
decision about the end of that person’s life.
FOUR BASICS OF GOOD ARGUMENT
1.
It takes a strong and defi nite position on an issue or advises a
particular action.
2. It gives good reasons and supporting evidence to defend the
position or recommended action.
3. It considers opposing views.
4. It has enthusiasm and energy from start to fi nish.
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READINGS
842 Part Eight • Readings for Writers
Legalized Assisted Suicide:
In Favor
Barbara Huttmann
A Crime of Compassion
Barbara Huttmann was middle-aged when she returned to school to
study nursing, receiving her degree in 1976. She went on to earn a
master’s degree in nursing administration and later worked as an ad-
ministrator for a health-care consulting fi rm. She is also the author of
two books, The Patient’s Advocate (1981) and Code Blue: A Nurse’s True
Story (1982), which recount her years in nursing school and her later
years as a practicing nurse.
The following essay, adapted from Code Blue for Newsweek maga-
zine in 1983, focuses on her decision to honor a patient’s wishes to be
allowed to die.
GUIDING QUESTION
What motivates Huttmann to act as she does?
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This selection has been omitted intentionally from your
eBook due to electronic permissions issues. Regrettably,
we cannot make this piece available to you in a digital
format. You may be able to find a copy at your local or
school library; the author and title are included in your
eBook’s table of contents.
READINGS
Chapter 51 • Argument Casebook 843
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This selection has been omitted intentionally from your
eBook due to electronic permissions issues. Regrettably,
we cannot make this piece available to you in a digital
format. You may be able to find a copy at your local or
school library; the author and title are included in your
eBook’s table of contents.
READINGS
844 Part Eight • Readings for Writers
PAUSE: What do
you predict that
Huttmann will do
in the next few
paragraphs?
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This selection has been omitted intentionally from your
eBook due to electronic permissions issues. Regrettably,
we cannot make this piece available to you in a digital
format. You may be able to find a copy at your local or
school library; the author and title are included in your
eBook’s table of contents.
READINGS
Chapter 51 • Argument Casebook 845
SUMMARIZE AND RESPOND
In your reading journal or elsewhere, summarize the main point of “A Crime
of Compassion.” Then, go back and check off support for this main idea.
Next, write a brief summary (three to fi ve sentences) of the selection. Finally,
jot down your initial response to the reading. Do you think that Huttmann’s
action makes her a “murderer”? Or do you sympathize with her decision?
What makes you think as you do?
CHECK YOUR COMPREHENSION
1. Which of the following would be the best alternative title for this essay?
a. “A Defense for Murder”
b. “The Diffi cult Job of Being a Nurse”
c. “The Right to Die”
d. “Prolonging Life: The Responsibility of Medical Professionals”
2. The main idea of this essay is that
a. the author believes that suffering patients who have no chance of
recovery should not be kept alive artifi cially against their wishes.
b. the author believes that television talk shows do not provide an
adequate forum for discussing complex issues such as the right
to die.
c. the author believes that most readers do not understand all the tasks
that are required of a nurse.
d. the author believes that advances in medical science make it pos-
sible to prolong life and that doing so is the responsibility of medical
professionals.
3. According to Huttmann, several medical professionals that she worked
with when Mac was a patient felt that all patients must be resuscitated
because
a. it was the ethical thing to do.
b. they had the medical expertise to do so.
c. most patients wanted to be resuscitated.
d. not to do so might have led to legal liability for negligence.
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READINGS
846 Part Eight • Readings for Writers
4. If you are unfamiliar with the following words, use a dictionary to check
their meanings: vultures (para. 3); macho (4); haggard (5); feces (7); neg-
ligence (9); lucid, infusing, impotence (10); pallor (15).
READ CRITICALLY
1. Evaluate Huttmann’s three opening paragraphs. What do they contribute
to her essay? How and why does she refer back to them in her conclusion?
2. How well do you think Huttmann presents her patient Mac and his wife,
Maura? How does she attempt to make their situation seem real to the
reader?
3. What is the purpose of paragraph 9? Why do you think that Huttmann
waits until this point in the essay to offer this information?
4. What is the effect of the questions that Huttmann poses in paragraphs 10
and 11? Why do you think she presents these thoughts as questions here?
5. What is your overall evaluation of Huttmann’s argument? How effectively
do you think she presents her case? How is her argument shaped by her
role as a nurse? How do you explain your evaluation?
WRITE AN ESSAY
Write an essay about a belief that you have come to hold through personal
experience but that many other people might disagree with or fi nd controver-
sial. Like Huttmann, show readers what happened to make you think as you
do, and take a clear stand on the issue.
Marc Siegel
Treating the Pain by Ending a Life
Dr. Marc Siegel, a 1985 graduate of the School of Medicine and Biomed-
ical Sciences at the State University of New York, Buffalo, is an associate
professor at the New York University School of Medicine as well as a
practicing internist. A prolifi c writer for general audiences, he writes a
regular column, “The Unreal World,” for the Los Angeles Times in which
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