ESSAY # 1: Analysis of WALLS
Essay # 1 – Bias Versus Empathy from First-Hand Exposure (1,000 words minimum) 20 points.
DUE May 24, 2024 (Open for Submission starting Week 6)
Texts: Jamil Zaki, The War for Kindness: Building Empathy in a Fractured World. Chapter 3: “Hatred Versus Contact.” 52-73
Marcello Di Cintio, WALLS: Travels Along the Barricades. “A Nakba of Olives: The West Bank Wall.” 100-129.
Objective: To explain and evaluate contact theory by applying it to Marcello Di Cintio’s experience at The West Bank Wall.
Research: Closely analyze a chapter from WALLS and note of Di Cintio’s developing opinions.
Guiding Questions: In Di Cintio’s example, did exposure reinforce bias or produce empathy? What appeals to pathos were evident, and were they effective? Which supplemental appeals had greater impact–ethos (ethics) or logos (logic)? What factors may have influenced these results?
Outcome: a well-developed essay of about 1,500 words (approx. 10 paragraphs) of original* writing, incorporating quotes and analysis as needed and a substantial amount of personal reflection.
Process Description: Choose an encounter that Di Cintio writes about during his time in Palestine, and reflect on how he felt a the beginning, his evolving point of view, and his final position. Did contact end up reinforcing his biases or strengthening his empathy?
Formulate your answer in a thesis statement placed at the end of your introduction. Develop body paragraphs describing the contact and resulting empathy or antipathy. Use these paragraphs to support your thesis. Add body paragraphs about other rhetorical appeals (covered in Week 3) that contribute to the resulting attitude. End with a reflective conclusion.
[Your Week 3 Module breaks down this process into 10 steps].