Persuasive Essay

Having escaped rule from a tyrannical British government, the United States was founded on ideals of freedom and equality for all people. These fantasies of universal egalitarianism turned out to be merely that: fantasies. American history is full of stories of the oppressed struggling to get the rights they deserve and of the controversy over these issues that consequently ensues. “The Hypocrisy of American Slavery” by Frederick Douglass and “We Shall Overcome” by Lyndon B. Johnson are two speeches made confronting two of these issues. Douglass’s speech, delivered in 1852, condemns the institution of slavery and maintains that slaves are men and are therefore entitled to freedom. Johnson’s speech, on the other hand, was written in 1965 and discussed the civil rights movement. In it, he implored local governments to allow all American citizens, regardless of race, to vote. Despite the significant gap in time between these two addresses, both speakers use similar persuasive techniques, including ethos, pathos, and parallelism, to convince their audience that change needs to be implemented in America.

The same lady with the problem with my shorts scoffs and gives me a smug look before opening her mouth,

In 1983, Raymond Carver introduced his short story “Cathedral” to the public. The first-person narrative takes place within the narrator’s home, where his wife is waiting upon the arrival of her blind friend Robert. The narrator, however, becomes more concerned about how Robert’s visit will affect him rather than enjoy the situation. Once Robert arrives, the narrator tries to understand the blind man, but he is unaware of what tasks Robert is capable of performing due to the narrator’s inability to “see”. In time, Robert shows the narrator the difference between looking and seeing through illustrations of a cathedral, drawn by the narrator with his eyes closed. “Cathedral’s” narrator exposes readers to anti-heroic views

“As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands- one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” – Audrey Hepburn.

Being an athletes is one of the best-paid jobs on Earth. Being that they are paid so much the cost for the consumer is very high. The prices of tickets and sports memorabilia have been steadily rising over the years. The average ticket prices for the NHL, MLB, NBA and NFL all rose 5% to 10% this year, according to Jon Greenberg, executive editor of Team Marketing Report. (Mihoces).

Over 7,500 animals are killed in zoos because they are deemed surplus, as stated by Liz Tyson an animals rights activist. This giraffe in particular sparked a huge controversy. HIs name was Marius, he was homed at the Copenhagen Zoo and was 2 years old when the staff killed him with a bolt gun. Marius was then dissected and fed to lions in front of ongoing zoo goers. What got people fuming is that he was a healthy, young giraffe. Therefore I believe the killing of Marius should not be justified.

Michael Jordan once stated, “Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb over it, go through it, or walk around it.” This inspirational quote motivated many to overcome adversity when challenged by it. The texts, Speak by Laurie Anderson, “Third and Final Continent” by Lahiri Lahiri, and “The Art of Resilience” by Hara Marano, all have themes similar to Jordan’s quotation. All three articles support this through symbolism, foreshadowing, and character interactions. A common theme that one must stay resilient in order to overcome challenges while also staying level-headed during the positive and negatives is shown in Speak, “The Third and Final Continent,” and “The Art of Resilience.”

The last time I saw Charlie outside prison walls we were on the run. Charlie was on the run, not I, I just went along for the ride because he was my husband. Charlie was on parole, but he loved to drink his booze. In our state it's a violation to drink while on parole.

With NFL Players kneeling everywhere and soldiers feeling unappreciated, our country is in shock. It all started by a player named Colin Kaepernick, a quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, in 2016. This event persuaded numerous NFL players to continue this process. One by one, players all over the league began to protest to call attention to the issues of "racial inequalities and police brutality". With mixed reviews of this protest, I believe that kneeling during the National Anthem of the United States of America is disrespectful because it is abrasive, selfish, and hurtful. Also, I am not sure that all of those protesting in this manner know the true meaning of our national anthem or the flag that represents our freedom.

Jared Kushner, the son-in-law of Donald Trump, has been under fire in the aftermath of possible collusion. Kushner has gone under investigation after emails were leaked of a Russian meeting and is being interviewed to get information. The dishonesty of Kushner, has shaken the trust within the government and the incriminating evidence keeps surfacing as the interviews conclude. The news focused on the four meetings that occurred during the 2016 presidential campaign, and the main people that were involved in the meeting.

Draven forgot his lines once, and when he remembered, he yelled out dramatically, “Million dollar question goes to Draven!” When he accidentally said ‘grows’ instead of ‘blows’, he shouted ‘blows’ three times while clapping horrendously loud, igniting loud laughter from the other kids. perhaps that’s how he dealt with nerves. He added a comedic aspect to the group. However, he still maintained a focus on what he was doing. He fiercely acted out his lines while still having fun and being himself.

In conclusion gangs are a violent reality that people have to deal with in today's cities. What has made these groups come about? Why do some kids feel that being in a gang is an acceptable and prestigious way to live? There are many different theories to these questions. On the surface, gangs may appear to be shallow and materialistic; a result of human beings' personal wants, but there are speculations that are more profound. In reference to the way humans are influenced in society, there is valid evidence to distribute blame at negative forces of economic disadvantages, capitalism, and the media.

“Your assignment is to write a persuasive essay and present it to the class in a week. You will be graded based on how convincing it is. Today we will be choosing topics,” announced Mr. Bowerbank, my 7th grade English teacher and ruler of classroom 110. My class simultaneously groaned at the prospect of work. I simply lifted my head with intrigue as it was already May and about time we had our first essay. He then proceeded to give examples of topics we could choose and gave us some time to think before we had to tell him our topic. My classmates were already rushing to tell the teacher their idea lest someone else steal it. That meant the usual abortion, death penalty, or drug use topics were out. I really couldn't think of anything and the teacher was slowly making his way through the remaining students like an executioner beheading criminals in a line. I have always thought that he would make a marvelous supervillain if he had a curly mustache, a tophat, and a cape. Eventually my name was called. I slowly dragged myself over to his desk. Even sitting down, he still seemed to tower over me. “What is your topic Cindy?” As usual in such desperate times, my mind turned to food. “Waffles are better than pancakes.” I figured that a waffle was just a differently shaped pancake with a nicer texture. “Hmm. Excellent topic. I look forward to your essay!” I survived to live yet another day.

Constant controversy, immaturity at its finest, an American flag, a little blue birdy logo, a verified checkmark, more than 44 million followers, little elementary school arguments with Kim-Jong-un; the list goes on. If you are still unaware of what I am referring to, it is the twitter account of the current President of the United States (POTUS), Donald J. Trump. This man is one of the largest and most active gatekeepers in the realm of social media. Generally, one would assume information posted in a tweet from the POTUS would undoubtedly be accurate. How could that ever not be a reputable source? Why even bother to do some of your own research? Unfortunately, this is not the reality we live in; not everything presented to us through news, government or media is true and thus, everything you hear today requires a conduction of your own research prior to accepting anything as true. To be completely honest, if you did not know I was referring to the POTUS, you are probably in a much better position than his 44 million followers, as you have successfully managed to avoid one of the many gatekeepers/media outlets whose employed methods entail the plaguing that come with the concept post-truth politics. Though, you must keep in mind that is just one of the many outlets, as this concept is currently taking place all over the world. You, along with the rest of the population are essentially forcibly subjected to fake news every single day of your waking life whether you choose to believe it or not. On September 10, 2016, The Economist published an article titled “The Post Truth World: Yes, I’d lie to you.” The article claims the reality of the current political world; a reality The Economist suggests the general population is ignorant of. The article is severely opinionated and due to the multitude of reasons provided in support of their argument, many of which substantiated with an abundance of factual evidence, the authors were very convincing in their contention that post-truth politics are to be with us for many years to come unless changes are made immediately.

In a world of many political, social and moral issues, I believe that people should back the president in his attempts to secure our border.  Without protection of our borders we are open to terrorist attacks.  I completely disagree with Henry David Thoreau’s motto that “that government is best which governs least”(Thoreau 369).  If Trump was not allowed to try to keep our country safe by protecting our borders, our nation could easily be attack and leaving people to feel unsafe.  While I believe that most muslims are not terrorist, I think that it is necessary to have travel bans for some countries in order to keep the American people safe.