Essays unzippedBy C.J. Bennett, published by

Peterson’s, 2007

The introduction

• Weak and General Funnel Opening–Violence is everywhere around us.

Modest Change

–When people most feel the need to relax, violence– transmitted through their television screens– haunts them.

Still general, but uses stronger verbs and more complex structure.

Radical change

–Children can now watch themselves depicted as the victims of violence at nearly any hour of the day, on almost every television station.

Topic of television violence gets added focus and surprise by narrow the topic toward children.

Radical change with fiction writer’s trick

–Little Jason, with his first pair of glasses balanced on his small nose, and Sophie, who has just begun to sit up, can now watch themselves depicted as the victims of violence at nearly any hour of the day, on almost every television station.

Other ways in…

• Statistics–According to the American

Psychiatric Association: “By the age eighteen, a U.S. youth will have seen 16,000 simulated murders and 200,000 acts of violence.”

Other ways in…

• Rhetorical questions–Why should you care about

violence if you have never been a victim? Why should you care about depictions of violence on television if you don’t watch violent shows?

Topic: Cutting down trees

Brainstorm topics

• Create an opening:–Startling facts–Ask a question–Create a scene: includes character,

setting and what’s happening.