How is brent staples using the term victim

Reference no: EM133443982

Questions:

1. What is the impact of the opening sentence, "My first victim was a woman...?"

2. How is Brent Staples using the term "victim"?

3. How does the meaning of sentence and the term change as you read and reread the essay?

4. What examples does Staples provide to illustrate "the language of fear" (para. 3)?

5. What explanations does Staples provide for "his victim's" behavior? To what extent does he blame her? Does he want us readers to blame or be more sympathetic toward her?

6. In what ways does the description at the beginning resemble a scene from a novel?

7. To what extent does Staples blame his victim? Does he want readers to blame her or be more sympathetic toward her?

8. Why are people intimidated by Staples?

9. Staples opens paragraph two with the short, simple sentence "That was more than decade ago, an objective statement that indicates the passage of time. Does this sense jolt you as a reader? Disappoint you? Explain why you think it is or is not an effective follow-up to the opening paragraph.

10. What examples does Staples provide to illustrate "the language of fear" (para. 3)?

11. In what ways does Staples acknowledge that the "victim's" response is not unwarranted?

12. What is Staples' purpose of quoting Norman Podhoretz and Edward Hoagland?

13. Do Podhoretz and Hoagland provide support for his viewpoint, a contrasting viewpoint, expert testimony, or something else?

14. Is Staples being ironic when he writes, "I began to take precautions to make myself less threatening" (para. 13)? Cite specific parts of the text to support your view-point.

15. Is the final paragraph intended to be serious? flippant? humorous?

16. Explain whether you find it an effective conclusion to the essay.

17. How would you describe the overall tone of this essay? You might consider a phrase rather than a single word to capture the complexity of this piece. Support your answer with specific references to Staples' language.

18. Staples first wrote this essay in 1986. Do you think the content of the essay is outdated or still reflective of current society? State or explain your answer.

19. Explain why you do or do not feel that many people in today's society continue to perceive young African American males as threatening.

20. If a friend asked what this essay was about, how would you describe it to her/him?

Reference no: EM133443982

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