Chapter 32. DIALOGIC/DIALECTIC
Student Samples of
Dialogic/Dialectic Papers ---
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Introduction
The samples below are papers by students, unless specifically noted.
They are examples of "A" level undergraduate writing or entry-level
professional work. To get a better idea of how this type of paper is
written, you will want to look at all the samples. Then compare the
samples to each other and to what the "Basics"
part of this chapter says.
The authors of all sample student papers in this
Web site have given their permission in writing to have their work included in
WritingforCollege.org. All samples remain copyrighted by their
original authors. Other than showing it on this website, none should be
used without the explicit permission of the author.
If you do not have time to read every sample
below, word for word, then use a form of skim reading: read the entire
introduction and conclusion paragraph of a sample, and then read just the
first and last sentence of all the other paragraphs in the sample. This
method of skimming often provides an understanding of the basic contents and
of the paper's form or structure. Another method of faster reading is to
choose just one or two of the samples that are most like the paper you will be
required to write; then read, either fully or using skim reading as described
here.
Unless otherwise noted, sample papers do not
necessarily meet all requirements an individual instructor or professional
supervisor may have: ask your instructor or supervisor. In addition, the
samples single spaced to save room; however, a proper manuscript given to an
instructor or supervisor normally should be double spaced with margins set at
or close to 1" unless another format has been requested.
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Sample One: Basic
Dialogic Paper, No Sources |
SPECIAL NOTES: This paper is
a rough-draft weekly paper, not a developed research paper.
Amy
Geiger
Practice
Paper #4
University of Minnesota
© by Amy Geiger
Three Opposing Viewpoints on Abortion
by
Amy Geiger
Abortion has been an issue of heated
debate in the United States for numerous years. Legislation has ruled it legal
to perform an abortion on any gestational age of an embryo or fetus. Some people
agree with the law and consider themselves pro-choice. Others are completely against abortion and
are pro-life. In addition to
these two groups is another group who support abortion in the first half of
pregnancy, but believe abortion should be banned for the second half.
Pro-Choice
Those who agree with the laws on
abortion are strong supporters of the woman's right to choose. Hence, they call themselves pro-choice
advocates. These persons are in support
of abortions no matter what the condition of the pregnancy. They believe in the woman's right to refuse
to carry an embryo or fetus in her body.
According to these people, a woman should be allowed to choose the best
option for herself and the fetus at any time during her pregnancy.
Pro-choice advocates do not consider abortions to be
murder. They view the embryo or fetus
as a human tissue that is dependent upon the mother's uterus to remain
alive. They believe that this tissue is
not viable outside the uterus and therefore is not independent human life.
This group of people also believes
that pregnant women have the right to refuse to use their bodies for the growth
of something they do not want. They see
unwanted pregnancies as invasions of a woman's body.
Pro-Life
Those against abortion believe that it
kills an unborn child. They consider
themselves to be pro-life advocates for America's unborn children. These persons suggest that the beginning of
human life is at the instant of fertilization.
They see abortion as morally and ethically wrong.
Pro-choice persons view abortion
as murder. They view an unborn child as
a human with rights to life. They argue
that taking a human life living outside the uterus is considered murder, so
killing an embryo or fetus, an unborn child, is also murder.
Pro-life advocates also argue that abortions are being used for
unsettling reasons. People are choosing
to have abortions when they discover that their unborn child is not
"perfect." The embryo or fetus
may be the wrong sex, or have some form of a birth defect. They also view abortions as an unacceptable
form of birth control. Many women are
not getting one abortion because of an unwanted pregnancy, but two, three, and
sometimes even more.
Late-Term Abortions
A third group of people involved in
the abortion debate are pro-choice for the first half of pregnancy, but
believe that late term abortions should be banned. Like pro-life supporters, this group believes that late
term abortions do not just remove tissue, but actually kill babies.
These people argue that fetuses can be
saved with today's technology at only 25 weeks gestation. They claim that neonates this age are able
to hear, smell, taste, breathe, and are capable of living as independent human
lives. Their physical characteristics
are human as well. These fetuses have arms, legs, eyes, mouths, and even
fingernails. They argue that babies born
at this age do have nervous systems that allow them to feel pain. They feel that late-term abortions are
cruel and unusual punishment of an unborn child. They conclude that an abortion on a fetus 25 weeks gestation or
older is unjust.
Conclusion
The
long-standing debate over abortion will continue forever. There are complex issues related to abortion
that make it a personal as well legal debate.
The three views presented here: pro-choice, pro-life, and
pro-life after 25 weeks' gestation, are just the tip of the iceberg on
abortion.
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Sample Two: Research Paper #1 on a Book |
SPECIAL NOTES: This
paper is a research paper developed from an initial response to a book.
The subject is related to world-government issues.
Eng. 1114-03
Inver
Hills Community College
© by Jesse Belter
Humanitarian
Assistance and
Sierra Leone
by Jesse Belter
Introduction
When a country fails to provide the basic needs of survival for its
people, the international community is faced with the issue of intervention.
However, there exists no clearly defined doctrine to guide governments or
humanitarian organizations in these matters.
Some people believe that the protection of sovereignty is more important
than the possible benefits of intervention, preferring that governments focus on
domestic concerns. Opposing this are
those who believe that humanitarian intervention is necessary to resolve many
conflicts and that the preservation of life trumps all else.
Still another mentality suggests that these two goals are not mutually
exclusivethat the members of the international community are capable of
controlling their own countries while still being able to intervene in some
countries. One good example of such
intervention is
Sierra Leone
. Daniel Bergner in In
the Land of Magic Soldiers says that this country has been named by the United Nations, for the third year in a row, as the
worst on earth. . . . Sierra Leone
was . . . ravaged by what was perhaps the most horrific civil war in a land [
Africa
] of civil wars (10). What
follows is an exploration of these three arguments, with specific examples taken
from the conflict in
Sierra Leone
.
Background
Some brief background information on the
conflict in
Sierra Leone
and
Britain
s involvement is needed to understand the points that will be made next. The civil war in
Sierra Leone
revolved around two main parties: the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) and the
government of
Sierra Leone
. Both sides of this bloody civil
war were fighting for controlover both the government and the country's
diamond mines. The RUF, a group of
rebel fighters, controlled many of the diamond mines, which partly funded the
war. The RUF forces led attacks that
left many dead and maimed civilians in their wake.
They employed brutal tactics, involving cutting off hands, arms, and
legs, while leaving many of these amputees alive.
The other especially troubling aspect of the RUFs fighting tactics was
its use of child militants. These
children were abducted and forced to commit some of the worst atrocities of the
war.
Britain
chose to intervene and put a stop to this cycle of violence.
While it may have had ulterior motives for its intervention, as will be
discussed below, it also felt a certain obligation to help
Sierra Leone
, which once was
Britain
's colony.
Sovereignty and Non-Intervention
With the preservation of sovereignty a
major issue to them, some people believe that the concept of non-intervention,
or staying out of another countrys affairs, is the proper course of action
for the world. According to Adam
Roberts in his article Humanitarian Intervention Is Not Effective, the
policy of non-intervention provides a clear rule for limiting the uses of
force by states and for reducing the risks of war
between the armed forces of different states. . . .
It involves respect for different societies and their religions, economic
systems and political arrangements (40).
Those who take this poistion believe that referring to a
military intervention as humanitarian aid skews the reality of what it
actually involves. As Roberts
explains, the whole notion of intervention exposes ethnocentric ideologies on
the part of the intervening country or organization (46).
An example of this ethnocentrism can be seen when Bergner says, The
British felt they would save the people from themselves (97).
To the British, the people of
Sierra Leone
needed saving more than they may have actually desired it.
Those who take this position may also feel
that when intervention does occur, the efforts are often poorly organized and
wasteful or are simply conducted out of a desire to look after the intervening
countrys interests in that region. The
world has seen many well-intentioned humanitarian efforts that have not gone as
planned, such as those in
Somalia
and Bosnia/Herzegovina. Thus, for
example,
Britain
s decision to intervene in
Sierra Leone
could be seen as an exercise in self-interest: the British might have been
attempting to improve their standing in the world by flexing their military
might in a country that was once their colony.
Another group of people who oppose intervention on principle does so out
of a desire to see their own countries' conflicts and problems resolved before
those of the rest of the world. Bergner
tells the story of a Sierra Leonean amputee named Lamin who traveled to
New York City
to receive a pair of prosthetic hands. While
there, he asked many people he met for money to aid him and his family, and
through his persistence he was fairly successful (91-92).
However, when he repeatedly asked the director of the YMCA where he was
staying to fund a new house for him back home, he was told that [n]o matter
how terrible things were in Sierra Leone, the organization had priorities here,
poverty here, children of prostitutes and drug addicts, right here on the
south side, even if it looks like we have everything (92).
This statement gives a good example of why someone who is not in support
of humanitarian intervention might feel as he or she does.
Such people believe that, with limited budgets and resources, each
country must focus primarily on itself and, through doing so, a strong
international community will be forged.
Of course, this position does not support total inaction in all cases.
If there is an international crisis that might become a threat to their
own lands, then most would consider an intervention acceptable.
In addition, conscience-shocking situationssuch as those
involving genocide and ethnic cleansingmight warrant action.
And although many people who take this position do not favor their
governments resources being used to support other countries, most would have
fewer qualms about the private sector choosing to do so.
Moral and Ethical Requirement to Intervene
On the other side of this debate are those who feel it is unethical to
stand by and do nothing when there are known crimes of war and crimes against
humanity being committed anywhere in the world.
U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan poses this question in his Millennium
Report: If humanitarian intervention is, indeed, an unacceptable assault
on sovereignty, how should we respond to . . . gross and systematic violations
of human rights that offend every precept of our common humanity (48)?
This question brings to mind some of the horrors that history has seen,
including the Holocaust and genocide in
Rwanda
, and the failure of the international community to respond in time.
Those who support intervention on
humanitarian grounds would consider prevention to be the best possible outcome,
but they also believe that there are times when military intervention is needed
to halt an ongoing conflict. Annan
admits this in his report, stating that armed intervention should not be
discarded as a possible resolution to violent conflicts involving murder on a
large scale, but that it must remain as a last resort (48).
Jane Sharp, who directed the Defense and Security Program at the
Institute for Public Policy Research in London, writes in
Moral Considerations Should Outweigh Political Arguments on
Intervention, There is no justification for passivity and indifference in
the face of systematic killing, torture, and rape of a people . . . (37).
To those that support this position, all of humanity is a collective
being, and the more stable the global community is, the more likely is the
stability of one's own country.
There can be some profits gained from intervening in another countrys
conflict. Bergner appears to believe
that
Britain
chose to return to
Sierra Leone
out of a seeming desire to bring peace to its former colony, with "heroism
in the British effort, risk without the promise of tangible reward (98).
However, he also feels that the British were looking to restore some of
their standing in of the international community as a powerful country (98).
Sierra Leone
did not have much to offer
Britain
except some undervalued diamonds, but the soldiers spoke of wanting to bring
peace to the land by bringing down the rebel forces, the R.U.F.
The people of
Sierra Leone
were generally accepting of British troops' arrival, as it symbolized the
beginning of some semblance of order in their lives.
These people craved structure, and the British could provide it.
Left to themselves, their civil war could have raged for years longer
than it did, bringing more chaos and death.
Britain
s intervention undoubtedly saved many lives and relieved some of the
suffering of the citizens of
Sierra Leone
.
Responsibility to Protect
A third position suggests that in a truly cooperative world, instead of
the competitive environment that currently exists, the nations of the world
could work together to suppress brutal leaders and resolve violent conflict,
both internal and external. In this
point of view, concerns of domestic stability and the desire to stabilize the
rest of the world are not mutually exclusive ideas.
According to Gareth Evans and Mohamed Sahnoun in The Responsibility to
Protect, the argument needs to be redefined in new terms: rather than
focusing on the right to intervene, the discussion should be about the
responsibility to protect (2). They
add that although this responsibility is owed by all sovereign states to
their own citizens in the first instance, it must be picked up by the
international community if that first-tier responsibility is abdicated . . .
(2). By changing their mentality to
the responsibility to protect, say Evans and Sahnoun, people would focus
on groups who are suffering rather than on people who may be considering
intervention (2). Ultimately, the
goal of any intervention should be the betterment of the lives of the civilian
populations of a particular area.
This mentality emphasizes that the people of the world need to be shown
that they all belong to the same global society.
This does not mean that they need to turn their backs on national pride
and devalue their own culture, but rather all countries need to learn to value
the cultures of their neighbors. In
his training of the soldiers of Sierra Leone, Captain Rosenfeld of the British
forces felt, for example, that it was his duty to create soldiers who feel
themselves different from the rebels, who feel a desire to serve society
(Bergner 103). It is through this
desire that peace can be brought to war-torn landsa desire to uplift ones
own country from within. If the
citizens of a country are unable to achieve this on their own, then it is the
responsibility of the international community to assist them.
In this viewpoint, the United Nations should be at the forefront of the
question as to who should provide this international assistance.
With its global representation and impartiality, the U.N. can continue to
fill the role of global watchdog. This
does not mean that the rest of the world's countries can sit by as the U.N.
looks after the world for them: the U.N. is only as effective as the support it
receives from the global community. In
this viewpoint, the superpowers of the world bear greater responsibility to
protect than do other countries.
Anthony
Lake
, a former
U.S.
national security advisor, supports this in 6
Nightmares: Real Threats in a Dangerous World and How
America
Can Meet Them.
He says,
There
is a moral imperative that is all the deeper with our superpower status.
How can
America
sit on the sidelines when innocent
civilians are being slaughtered? We
lose credibility on other issues if we turn our back on humanitarian tragedies.
More important, it is wrong to do so.
With our great power comes great responsibility and leadership in human
as well as geopolitical terms. Not
acting when you can is as much a decision as becoming involved.
(19)
People who take this position believe that by working together within the
context of the United Nations, the global community can be strengthened in its
resolve to see an end to tragic situations involving crimes against humanity.
On the one hand, though
Britain
and the U.N. were both integrally involved in
Sierra Leone
, it was the superior military might of
Britain
that was able to secure peace in the country.
On the other hand, though, without the presence of the United Nations,
the world may have looked less kindly on
Britain
s intervention. Both parties were
necessary to bring the beginnings of peace to this country.
In fact, this same formula could be implemented elsewhere where similar
conflicts exist. Following
Britain
s eventual departure from
Sierra Leone
, there must remain a peacekeeping force, most likely provided by the U.N., to
guard against a backslide into violence. The
work in this country is far from over, but a good start has been made.
Conclusion
The issues of international responsibility and humanitarian intervention
are multi-faceted, with many people presenting a variety of valid opinions.
These issues may not be as simple as the three main arguments presented
above, but the arguments do provide a well-rounded overview of the issue as a
starting point for further debate. None
of these three is, perhaps, completely right or wrong: as in life, there are
positives and negatives in all options. The
third argument, a compromise position, would seem to be the most idealized,
while the other two are more pragmatic. It
seems obvious that
Sierra Leone
continues to be in need. In the
words of one Sierra Leonean that Bergner interviewed, [I]f you leave this
cancer, the patient is going to die (60).
Clearly,
Sierra Leone
cannot be left to struggle alone. Hopefully,
the global community can work together to achieve the outcome that the
compromise argument would bring, for the world cannot afford to stand idly by.
---
Works
Cited
Annan,
Kofi A. We the Peoples: The Role of the United Nations in the 21st
Century. Millennium Report to the United Nations. 2000. Accessed
1 March 2006
. <www.un.org>.
Bergner,
Daniel. In the
Land of
Magic
Soldiers.
New York
: Picador, 2003.
Evans,
Gareth and Mohamed Sahnoun. The Responsibility to Protect.
Foreign
Affairs
v81 i6 (2002). Accessed
1 March 2006
. <http://infotrac.galegroup.com>.
Lake, Anthony.
6
Nightmares: Real Threats in a Dangerous World and How
America
Can Meet
Them.
New York
: Little, Brown: 2000.
Roberts, Adam. Humanitarian Intervention Is Not Effective.
Interventionism.
Paul Winters.
Current Controversies.
San Diego: Greenhaven: 1995.
Sharp, Jane. Moral Considerations Should Outweigh Political Arguments
On Intervention. Interventionism. Paul Winters. Current Controversies.
San Diego: Greenhaven: 1995.
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Sample Three: Research Paper #2 on a Book |
SPECIAL NOTES: This is an MLA research paper on a subject drawn
from one specific book. The subject is one from sociology, psychology, and
social psychology.
Dialogic Paper
(c) Dianna Berg
Eng 1114-3
Save the Killer
by Dianna Berg
Introduction
In
the book In the Land of Magic Soldiers by Daniel Bergner, the reader is
confronted with the idea of rehabilitating children soldiers. This dialogical
paper argues that there are a great number of people torn on the topic of the
rehabilitation of children who become killers through abuse and trauma. Some
believe that rehabilitation can’t be done. Flannery says, “Adolescents are
much more likely to react in an aggressive and violent manner . . .” (106).
Those who don't believe rehabilitation works believe that such children become
sociopaths with no sense of right or wrong. However, others believe with
therapy and hard work anyone can change and become a better person. In
addition, some people are split on the subject. They believe that it is
possible to change such children, but there will always be trauma haunting
them, and the trauma could resurface, causing more physical and psychological
damage.
Summary of
Bergner
Daniel Bergner wrote a collection of events about the 1990s civil war in
Sierra Leone from interviews he conducted during his multiple visits to the
country. In chapters seven through ten, he interviews Chema, a priest who is
trying to rehabilitate young children who were forced to become soldiers.
Chema conveys many accounts of his charges to Bergner, some horrible and some
enlightening. The children that Chema watches over have had the worst lives
imaginable: they have committed acts of violence that are hard to put into
words. Some of these children have no hope of returning to normal society,
while others have already been integrated back into a productive life.
Stay Violent
People on one side of the issue believe that these children can’t be changed
back into “normal” human beings because they are monsters, thirsty for
violence and bloodshed. Certainly, children can become cold blooded killers
through violence, trauma, or natural causes. Such was the case in the 1990s in
Sierra Leone. Take the example of the boy named Daniel. According to
Bergner, “With an ax, Daniel had told the caregiver, he’d removed the hands of
his own father. The same with his mother, the same with several siblings and
cousins. Then all were shot except his two youngest sisters. Daniel was
instructed, by the rebel who held him at gunpoint, to leave the two little
girls alone” (111). People who believe children cannot be rehabilitated
suggest that children who become this violent cannot return to a normal life
after living in such a violent environment.
Many children turn violent due to past traumas in their own lives, and these
traumas cause psychological damage. Kelly and Totten says, “They also
experience different kinds of negative social events; poverty, neglect, abuse,
family violence, bullying and teasing - and they struggle to deal with them in
variety of ways” (6). The same blood lust is seen in serial killers. Shirley
Lynn Scott, a writer on serial killers for Crime Library, says, “Even families
that appear healthy on the outside may be putting on an act. Children can
learn the ‘Jeckyl and Hyde’ routine from parents who are outgoing and social
with neighbors and co-workers, but who scowl at their kid's inadequacies when
they get home” (5). This transformation from innocent to wicked is one reason
why so many people do not see the ugliness until it is too late.
The cycle of abuse is hard to detect, because through generations the
technique is perfected. Scott adds,
In Serial
Killers, Joel Norris describes the cycles of violence as generational:
"Parents who abuse their children, physically as well as psychologically,
instill in them an almost instinctive reliance upon violence as a first resort
to any challenge." Childhood abuse not only spawns violent reactions, Norris
writes, but also affects the child's health, including brain injuries,
malnutrition, and other developmental disorders (5).
Parents will
abuse their children because their parents abused them. This cycle affects the
victim both physically and emotionally, warping the mind until the victim
believes that abuse is normal.
There have been many documented cases of children becoming violent and deadly
toward other people. According to Kelly and Totten, the average youth homicide
rate for 1984 to 2000 was slightly higher than the average youth homicide
between 1974 and1983. Vicious and violent crimes make up about twenty percent
of all adolescent crimes in Canada (Kelly, Totten). In America, the crime rate
for adolescences seems even higher.
According to Smith, on the night of April 19, 1989, around nine p.m., a group
of at least 40 youths went on a rampage in Central Park, New York City. The
intent of these youths was to mug, rob, scare, and beat anyone that they saw.
According to police reports, the adolescences assaulted and robbed a homeless
man, accosted a couple on a bike, and thrashed two male joggers. When the
youths came across a female jogger, they attacked, raped, and battered her to
the brink of death. Trisha Meili, known as the Central Park Jogger,
miraculously survived severe hypothermia, extensive blood loss, and a skull
fracture. Meili has no memory of the attack. The attacks committed by these
youths were so terrible that the word “wilding” was coined to describe the
event (Smith 40). The fact that a word was created to describe the event of
violence only underscores the horrendous attacks that these youths committed.
Children who
are exposed to years of fighting and living in constant fear know nothing but
violence. For example, Bergner met another boy named Komba. Bergner says,
“And by the time Komba came, having brought his West Side Boys unit with him,
the children were at war. Komba joined in. For their lost guns the boys
substituted smuggled knives, broken bottles, kerosene poured over one
another’s clothes before they set each other aflame” (112). Children like this
who grow up in a violent environment may continue to act like monsters and may
have no hope of becoming productive citizens. According to Bergner, another
child nicknamed "Killer" "wanted to learn to drive, then to own a taxi, and
the priest had arranged this, paying for lessons and buying Killer an old car.
I was told later that he’d been dealing drugs for soldiers in one of the U.N.
battalions and, most recently, employing his taxi for armed robberies" (123).
People who have been born into terrible environments grow up with the
knowledge to survive, and if that means killing other humans, then according
to them, that’s what has to be done.
Completely
Cured
People on the other side of the issue believe, however, that with hard work
and determination, children with psychopathic and violent tendencies can be
cured. Of course, child soldiers will have a difficult path in order to return
to being active citizen of Sierra Leone. However, the children who became
soldiers are victims, too. To rehabilitate children who have gone through such
great trauma requires counseling, reeducation, and possibly reunification with
the families from whom they were taken by rebel soldiers. Bergner says,
referring again the Chema, the priest who rehabilitated child soldiers, “But
compared to the kind of war they’d waged half their lives, Chema seemed to
view [such remembering] as progress rather than repetition, a movement away
rather than a movement back” (112). Chema is convinced that with time he can
help the child soldiers stop their violent tendencies.
In war time, children are exposed to unsuitably high levels of stress, which
affects their psychosocial development and the interpersonal trust learned
when people are children. According to Silverman, child soldiers are
threatened, injured, tortured, imprisoned, abused physically and sexually, and
“forcefully recruited to participate in violent acts against friends and
family,” even killing someone. All of this easily traumatizes such children in
severe ways, leading to anxiety disorder, depression, and sometimes suicide.
Such dramatic changes in the daily routine of children’s lives in war time
cause stress on them, which affects their physical and mental development.
The level of stress children will have depends on both their personal coping
skill and family support. Clinical examination shows that children with a
cause, like caring for the disabled or helping in post war clean up, are
better able to focus energy in a positive capacity, rather then feel forlorn,
isolated, and without a rationale (364). Children have their own way of
coping with stress and trauma. Children may act inappropriately but should
never be punished for it. Silverman suggests sitting the child down and
talking in a calm manner that perceives no anger or judgment and explaining
the situational norms, methods like Chema used to rehabilitate child soldiers
in Sierra Leone.
The
first step in the rehabilitation of victims of violence is to identify the
possible events that they witnessed and the effects those events had on them.
According to Helping Children Cope with Disasters and Terrorism from
the American Psychological Association, “Traumatized children and adolescents
often display depressive disorders or anxiety disorders in addition to
posttraumatic stress disorder” (Silverman 19). With this display of
apprehensive behavior, the road to recovery will be difficult and the child
will have to be counseled.
An
important part of counseling is to face the trauma by talking through it and
then move on. According to Bergner, “‘Normally at night I sit here,’ [Chema]
said, voice as soothing as all around us. ‘Normally at night, after they watch
a video or have their activities, they come to sit with me. They talk about
the day, what they have done in the war, anything’” (114). In Violence and
Mental Health in Everyday Life, Flannery gives a list of suggestions for
practice to help children that have been exposed to violence. “Safety and
security must be your first priority -- be persistent on getting the help you
need -- be patient, it will probably take more than a few weeks to cope with
traumatic events” (175-185). The family of the child needs to show him or her
that she is safe from harm and that the child is free to discuss the past
events openly without fear of being reprimanded.
Children who live in violent environments cope with daily stress in many
different ways. It was thought that the most violent youth would be most
likely to report using inappropriate coping strategies: for example, alcohol,
drugs, and aggression. However, one survey shows that the top two coping
strategies among such youth were listening to music and talking to friends
(Flannery). Such studies convey that with counseling and therapy, violent
children may be able to deal with their anger and aggression in a health
manner without resorting to violence.
In
addition, kidnapped victims who were forced to commit terrible acts of
violence may start to feel safe and begin to heal after their nightmarish
experiences once being reunited with their families. Bergner says, “Some of
the boys stayed no longer than several weeks [in Chema's rehabilitation
center]. The goal was to find their families, reunite them with parents or
relatives” (117). Children need to go back to their families to give the
children a sense of normalcy and safety. According to Helping Children Cope
with Disasters and Terrorism from the American Psychological Association,
“Given the numerous stressors that accompany a disaster, social support from a
variety of sources should help minimize youngsters’ post disaster distress -
social supports from significant others, such as parents, friends, and
teacher” (Silverman 28). Families of traumatized children will need to show
support for their children, but families should not smother the children in
over protectiveness. It is suggested that,if the child refuses to talk about
the traumatic event, it is better to allow the child a little time and ask
again, later, rather than force the topic.
Maybe Cured
but Always Haunted
People in the middle of the issue believe that sometime children can overcome
their violent pasts, but there will always be the knowledge of the events in
the backs of their minds, reminding them of what they have done. Some may need
continual help with this remembering. According to Bergner, “[F]or many of
the teenagers who’d finish their live-in months at the center, and who Chema
had placed in apprenticeships in the capital an hour’s drive away, the need to
be in his presence brought them back on frequent evenings to sleep on the
floor outside his room” (113). The children returned because in their minds
the center was the only safe place for them since they were taken from their
families. They became dependent on the safety they received when they were
living with Chema.
In
addition, other children who have been through violent traumas return to a
similar life because it is the only one they know. David J. Freed, Cumberland
County District Attorney, says,
But high-risk
offenders are very likely to commit more crimes, and often. In recent years,
there have been approximately 100,000 juveniles in custody nationwide. The
vast majority of these troubled youths will be released back in to the
community, with their expected "prime crime years" ahead of them and facing
recidivism rates of up to 75% - simply warehousing high-risk offenders is not
adequate. They need to be required to do the hard work of constantly
confronting and changing their anti-social beliefs and behaviors (4).
If children are
not rehabilitated fully, then they may go back to a life of crime and
violence.
Even if children change their behavior and stop killing, that violence may
manifest in a different manner. Bergner says,
As a feud
developed between the village and the center, sporadic fights led, one day, to
Chema being surrounded as they walked along the road. Jabbing and flailing
cutlasses in the air, the villagers seemed ready to take him hostage. His
boys responded with rocks and with blades of their own. He was rescued by the
violence whose aggression he hoped to purge (114).
Once the child
is taken out of the violent, polluted environment and is given therapy, even
with a relatively normal life the child may relapse. Bergner tells of one
incident at the center: "[A] boy reenacted his old ways against the priest
himself, getting hold of an ax and coming at Chema, weapon raised. Others
disarmed him before he brought the ax down” (113).
However, it is
a cycle of violence that can be broken if the child is given the treatment
required. In some cases, the child’s violent tendencies will stop on their
own when he or she is taken from the dangerous situation or when the threat
that caused the violence is no longer there. According to Davis, this was true
in the case of Cheryl Pierson. Cheryl was born into an abusive family. Her
father, James, would control the family with an iron fist and publicly beat
them. When Cheryl's mother got sick and couldn’t perform her marital duties,
James went after Cheryl to satisfy his sexual appetite. After years of abuse,
Cheryl started to fantasize killing her father. Finally Cheryl turned to a
schoolmate, Sean, who said that he would kill James for a thousand dollars.
Sean shot Cheryl’s father five times. The police learned about the arranged
killing and sentenced Cheryl to six months in jail. Six years later, Cheryl is
happily married with children and doesn’t seem to have any violent fantasies
or outbursts. With the abuser gone, Cheryl had no reason to continue to plan
the murder of others. Cheryl was able to have a normal life even though she
will always have certain memories that are painful.
There also are many drug treatments for people who suffer from depression,
anxiety, and OCD. However, medication alone is not a cure. There is no such
thing as a “quick fix” or instant cure for the trauma that violent children
have been exposed to. Most studies have shown that the combination of therapy
and medication are the best course of action than either alone (Flannery). In
child soldiers, dealing with aggression and violence may take time and
patience.
Conclusion
Can
child soldiers be completely healed and returned to a normal life? Or are they
doomed to be forever consumed by violence and bloodshed? Is there something
that lies between? There are numerous accounts of successful rehabilitation
and just as many failures in society and in In the Land of Magic Soldiers.
There may be too many variables to ever know for certain how many children
trained to slaughter other humans will ever be anything more than human
butchers. Flannery says, “Remember, it takes many years for a child’s behavior
to develop and there are many factors that influence how they may act . . .”
(178). All that can be done in the meantime is to give love, kindness, and
guidance, making sure such children will make the right choices.
---
(Note: Some
features of the older MLA format—from before 2009--may still be in this
bibliography.)
Works Cited
Bergner,
Daniel. In the Land of Magic Soldiers. New York: Farrar, Straus and
Giroux, 2003.
Davis, Carol
Anne. Children Who Kill. Great Britain, 2003.
Flannery,
Daniel J. Violence and Mental Health in everyday life. Oxford: AltaMira
Press, 2006.
Freed, David
J. "Hearing on Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act:
Overview and Perspective." United States House of Representatives Committee
on Education and Labor Subcommittee on Healthy Families and Communities and
Committee on the Judiciary Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism an Homeland
Security. 12 July 2007. Fight crime invest in children. 26 Feb. 2008. <http://dworkforce.house.gov/testimony/
071207DavidFreedTestimony.pdf>.
Kelly,
Katharine D. and Mark Totten. When Children Kill. Ontario, Canada:
Broadview Press Ltd., 2002.
Scott, Shirley
Lynn. "Childhood Abuse." Crime Library. Warner Bothers. 26 Feb.2008
<http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/notorious/tick/abuse_3.html>.
Silverman,
Wendy K. et al. Helping Children Cope with Disasters and Terrorism.
Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 2002.
Smith, Merril D. "Rape." Encyclopedia of Rape. 2004.
"Violence and
the Brain." Crime Library. 2007. Turner Entertainment New Media
Network. 20 Feb. 2008 <http://www.crimelibrary.com/serial_killers/weird/children2/brain_6.html>.
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|
Sample Four: Prizewinning Research Paper on an Individually-chosen
Subject |
SPECIAL NOTES: This paper is a fully-finished
paper developed from a subject chosen by the student. It
won the University of Minnesota 2000-2001 Wilson Library Award for Best Student
Essay Using Library Research in the University of Minnesota CLA Composition
Program.
EngC 3027-05
University of Minnesota
Graded Paper #2, Dialogic
© by Kelly Casperson
Discussions of Childhood Obesity
by Kelly Casperson
Introduction
Obesity is on the rise in America. News articles and scientific reports
unanimously agree that America is becoming the most overweight country in the
world, and other developing countries are not far behind. In addition, these
countries' children are now becoming as overweight as their parents and other
adults. Unlike these adults, children seldom have the knowledge and control over
their lifestyle to contribute to either health or obesity. Prominent researchers
in the field exemplify the need for quick action. They state, "The effects
of childhood obesity on morbidity and mortality indicate that effective
prevention and therapy for childhood obesity are likely to have a significant
impact on adult disease" (Gortmaker 100). This paper discusses different
arguments in the research to decrease the percentage of overweight children.
Modifications in diet, increased cardiovascular health, and behavior
modification programs are the three competing fields, each differing in their
actions and reasons for effectiveness.
Background
Before discussing the ways to control childhood obesity, it is necessary to look
at what the problem is and how prevalent it has become. The accepted clinical
diagnosis for being overweight is a triceps skinfold measurement to estimate a
person's body mass index (BMI). Although somewhat arbitrary, if this BMI is 85%
or more above the average, a person is considered overweight (Harlan 1).
According to the Center for Disease Control, "The percentage of young people who
are overweight has almost doubled in the past 20 years" (United States). In order to understand what these statistics
mean, it is imperative to look at the effects of being overweight as a child.
Obese children are at risk presently and in the future as overweight adults.
Being overweight can have both psychological and physical ramifications. Obesity
is linked to diabetes, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, total
mortality and certain cancers in adulthood (Harlan 2). Research published in the
New England Journal of Medicine states that "obesity present in young women
was associated with an adverse impact on
household income, education, and rates of marriage, poverty, and college
completion" (Gortmaker 1008). Reducing the incidence of obesity will
benefit these parts of society as well.
Furthermore, according to research by Price, "Overweight children are especially
vulnerable to stigmatization because of the importance given to physical skills
and appearance during the developmental years" (95). Additional research has
looked at children's views toward other children who show a disability. Results
showed that "depictions of obese children were consistently rated less
positively than most of the other depictions of children, including children in
wheelchairs, on crutches, with limbs missing, and with facial deformity" (95).
With research showing these serious effects, ways to effectively reduce and
prevent childhood adiposity (body fat) must be offered. Changes in diet,
exercise, and the implementation of social programs are three presented here.
Effect of Diet
The first argument states that diet is the problem and should be addressed to
control obesity. Today a child's diet is not as healthy as it was before the
increased popularity of fast food and pre-packaged meals. In addition, many
children and adults do not know what constitutes a healthy diet. Only a small
percentage of children get the adequate number of servings of fruit per day. This fact is exemplified by the story of a nutritionist at a local
grocery store that prides itself in its extensive produce section. She was left
speechless when the woman at the checkout counter had to ask her what was in her
bag; it was green lettuce. After that, the woman was not surprised when the
cashier also did not know what the eggplant was. The cashier verbally wondered
what possibly could be the use of something as ugly as that. Market appeal and
convenience have changed what people view as acceptable food for consumption to
the extreme of not recognizing fresh produce.
Most food marketed on television is disproportionately high in calories and fat
content. A diet high in these types of food increases a child's risk of obesity
because it has been proven that higher levels of energy intake can lead to
greater percentage of fat in a person. In addition, a high fat diet induces
obesity, so reduction of this factor is beneficial to the individual. In a
national survey asking pediatricians their recommendations for weight loss, 84%
answered that decreasing caloric consumption was the most important program
(Price 95). In addition, Davis says that "a reduction in daily energy intake is fundamental
to initiate weight loss in any individual" (299). Research has found
a positive correlation between total energy intake and fatness in a group of
three-to seven-year-old children. These same researchers further stated in their
published data that "total energy intake accounted for a significant
proportion of the variance in skin-fold fat increases over a 3-year period"
(Gutin 116). Decreasing daily intake of as little as fifty calories a day leads
to more than two kilograms of fat loss a year.
Additional proof is the finding that weight loss is increased when a diet is
implemented that has a lower percentage of fat. Peter Davis states in "Obesity In
Children," "One of the mechanisms proposed to explain this phenomenon is that a high fat
diet leads to the deposition of body fat due to the efficiency of the conversion
of dietary fat into stored triglycerides. The metabolic cost of such a
conversion is in the order of 3% of energy intake whereas the cost of storing
dietary carbohydrate as body fat requires the expenditure of 23% of the ingested
energy" (301).
In addition, researchers found that a child's amount of ingested fat may be
associated with their level of obesity, even when its total energy intake is
not. Gutin writes, "A high-fat diet leads to greater fatness, even at a lower energy intake than a
low-fat diet, perhaps due to the lower thermic effect of food for fats as
compared to carbohydrates and protein. Young children (mean 4.4 years) who were
at high risk for obesity because of their parental weight status were found to
ingest a diet higher in fat and lower in carbohydrate than a group at low risk
for obesity. No difference between the groups in total energy intake was
observed, and the high-risk group gained more weight over a one-year period"
(117). All of these researchers, regardless of the type of diet change, report that a
change in diet toward lower percentage of fat and decreased total caloric intake
is the effective means to reduce a person's percentage of body fat.
Effect of Exercise
Others argue that lack of sufficient exercise is the problem in childhood
obesity, and increasing energy expenditure is the most effective treatment
method in need of addressing. Proponents believe the problem lies in society's
shift towards a more sedentary way of life. Major Mary Christine Clark and
Stephanie L. Ferguson in their article "The Physical Activity and Fitness
of our Nation's Children" claim, "There has been a 50% drop of
required physical activity in high school physical education programs for 1991
through 1997. Only one state in the U.S., Illinois, currently requires daily
physical education from kindergarten through the 12th grade" (250).
Increasing daily energy expenditure will ensure healthier children and promote a
decrease in obesity throughout the nation.
Proponents of this side claim that exercise is more effective than diet changes
because these habits are more long term. Active children are much more likely to
be active as adults. This factor, more than diet alone, provides the backbone
for a healthy body. The National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and
Health Promotion is aware of the positive health benefits that incorporation of
exercise in one's life offers, and this is not just limited to losing weight.
The Center states that "adults who are less active are at greater risk of
dying of heart disease and developing diabetes, colon cancer, and high blood
pressure" (Kramer). Starting a life full of activity early on
increases the chance of continuing this habit into adulthood.
This active lifestyle can be promoted in several ways. The Center for Disease
Control claims, "Young people can build healthy bodies and establish
healthy lifestyles by including physical activity in their daily lives" (United
States). The CDC has established essential guidelines when starting up a
routine of daily exercise:
-
Emphasize enjoyable participation in physical activities that are easily done
throughout life.
-
Offer a diverse range of noncompetitive and competitive activities appropriate
for different ages and abilities.
-
Give young people the skills and confidence they need to be physically active.
Further, researchers at the Georgia Prevention Institute Medical College of
Georgia has outlined some principles for the most optimal exercise activities
for children. They state, "In order to use up a lot of energy, the focus should be on aerobic exercise such
as walking, running, cycling, dancing, and sports that involve moving the whole
body for extended periods of time. Activities involving both arms and legs allow
the strain to be spread over a larger muscle mass, with the result that more
energy can be used with less cardiovascular and subjective strain" (Gutin 117).
These techniques have been used effectively in classrooms and clinics around the
nation. The physiology behind these claims is that an increase in activity also
increases the resting metabolic rate of the individual, causing an increase in
fat burning capability. Davis states, "Exercise is known to increase the Fat-Free Mass (FFM) component of body
weight. Resting metabolic rate is dependent primarily upon the FFM of the
individual, with the fat man being much less metabolically active. An
increase in FFM will therefore increase resting metabolic rate and hence
total energy expenditure. This increase will contribute to a negative energy
balance and the subsequent loss of body fat" (301). These are only a small sample of the published studies that insist on physical
activity as the primary component in weight management and implementation of a
healthy lifestyle.
Integrative Programs
Others
argue that a change in diet or activity is not enough because diet and exercise
alone only accomplishes short-term weight loss. Instead, they believe a new
holistic outlook must be taken to encompass the diverse population of overweight
children. This includes providing culturally sensitive resources that provide
children with the motivation they need to be healthy and make more active
choices about their bodies. Proponents believe that changes in the classroom and
home life need to occur to prevent unhealthy children and promote healthy
living.
In addition, they believe that diet, exercise, and other behavioral management
techniques need to be implemented together in a persons lifestyle to maintain
a healthy weight and body tone. According to Davis, "studies that compared
an exercise regimen alone with a control group failed to find a significant
effect of the exercise program on change in weight. It has been suggested that
poor adherence to the exercise plan might have contributed to the poor results
in these studies" (302). Guidelines published in Childhood Obesity: a
Biobehavioral Perspective outline a policy that sums up current knowledge of
what effectively constitutes an integrative program to reduce childhood obesity
(see "Table 1"; Krasnegor 154).
Table 1
1. Interventions should include components directed both at food intake and
at energy expenditure.
2. The dietary component of interventions should provide for parental
involvement and for behavior modification and environmental modification.
3. The energy expenditure component should emphasize continuous, vigorous
exercise rather than short-burst competitive activities characteristic of
many physical education programs in schools. For overweight children,
changes in lifestyle exercise should be used to increase energy expenditures
and self-management skills.
4. For both diet and exercise components of school-based obesity control
programs, self-monitoring appears to be an important skill to be developed
in the child, probably for reasons of reinforcement and feedback in the
learning process.
5. Involvement of peers in the education of individual children and
adolescents appears to be helpful in building a supportive social climate
and norm for the dietary or exercise behavior.
Additional research at the New England Medical Center in Massachusetts has
listed two behavioral focal points to combat obesity in integrative
programs. The first is examining behaviors that are the center of behavioral
modification therapy. According to researchers, "These include the frequency and types of food consumed, the circumstances
surrounding eating, and individual behaviors such as eating speed. The
second approach will require a sophisticated analysis of family behavior
that focuses on both the explicit and implicitly messaged regarding fatness,
food consumption, and activity" (Dietz 51). They admit that their research is rudimentary, but it has already provided some
useful therapeutic framework to research the changes needed to effectively
regulate healthy weight loss.
Conclusion
It is apparent that there is a national health crisis stemming from overweight
individuals, including children. Many varying schools of thought and research
try to reverse the effects of poor lifestyle and the influence this has on
obesity. One positive outlook is that of Peter Davis. He states, "A major
advantage to those who aim to treat childhood obesity is that children are able,
in some cases, to grow into their weight" (300). Nevertheless,
casually assuming this view or ignoring the problem can lead to severe health
problems in the future. The health of future generations depends on
understanding this growing obesity problem and recognizing all three options
discussed here as ways to promote healthy lifestyles in children and reduce
obesity.
---
Works Cited
Clark, Major Mary Christine and
Stephanie L. Ferguson. "The Physical Activity and Fitness of Our Nations
Children." Journal of Pediatric Nursing. 15(4) (2000): 250-252.
Davis, Peter S. W. "Obesity
in Children." Clinical Obesity. Peter G. Kopelman and Michael J.
Stoch.
Oxford
,
England
: Blackwell Science Ltd, 1998.
Dietz, William H. Jr.
"Childhood Obesity." Annals of the
New York
Academy
of Sciences. 699 (1993): 47-53.
Gortmaker, S. L., Must A., Perrin
J.M., Sobol A.M., Dietz W.H. "Social and Economic Consequences of
Overweight in Adolescence and Young Adulthood."
New England
Journal of Medicine. 329 (1993): 1008-1012.
Gutin, Bernard and Tina M. Manos.
"Physical Activity in the Prevention of Childhood Obesity."
Annals
of the New York
Academy
of Sciences. 699 (1993): 207-19.
Harlan, William R. "Epidemiology
of Childhood Obesity." Annals of the
New York
Academy
of Sciences. 699 (1993): 1-5.
Kramer, Laura. "Slimkids:
Healthy Weight Control Program for Children and Teens." Web.
17 March 2001.
Krasnegor, N. A., G. D. Grave and
N. Kretchmer. Childhood Obesity: A Biobehavioral Perspective.
New Jersey: The Telford Press, Inc, 1998.
Price, James H., Sharon M.
Desmond, Elizabeth S. Ruppert, and Cathleen M. Stelzer. "Pediatricians
Perceptions and Practices Regarding Childhood Obesity." American Journal
of Preventative Medicine. 5(2) (1989): 95-103.
United States Department of Health
and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Online Division.
17 March 2001. <http://www.cdc.org>.
Additional Sources
Allison, David B. and F. Xavier
Pi-Sunyer. Obesity Treatment: Establishing Goals, Improving Outcomes, and
Reviewing the Research Agenda.
New York: Plenum Press, 1995.
Blackburn, George L. and Beatrice S. Kanders. Obesity Pathophysiology Psychology and
Treatment.
New York: Chapman and Hall, Inc, 1994.
United States
Senate (1999, November 20). "Physical Education for Progress Act
(PEP)." Senate Bill 1159 (S. 1159.IS). Web.
16 March 2001.
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