Sunday, April 17, 2016

AP Language and Composition Current Event Blog for Week of April 18

This week's blog is worth fifty points (to Gryffindor).

Read the following review of Susan Klebold's book:

http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/28/books/review/a-mothers-reckoning-by-sue-klebold.html?action=click&contentCollection=Sunday%20Book%20Review&module=RelatedCoverage&region=EndOfArticle&pgtype=article

Answer the following questions related to the review:

1. Answer the following rhetorical analysis questions about the review:

- Who is the author?
- Who is the intended audience?
- What is the stated or implied purpose of the review?
- What rhetorical strategies are most in evidence?  Give examples of each.

2. How does the author feel toward Susan Klebold?  How do you know? (Give specific evidence from the review.)

3. What evidence does the author give that Klebold is experiencing penance for her parental actions?

4. In the paragraph that begins, "It is hard to shake the prosecutorial instinct while reading this book," why does the author enlist a series of rhetorical questions?

5. What is red herring argumentation?

6. In the comments for this review, one responder claimed that Klebold's book and the subsequent discussion about mental health issues and suicide prevention were merely red herrings for the real issue at hand: gun control.  Do you agree with this idea?  Based on what you read, what is the reason that this book was written?

7. How does the reviewer characterize Susan Klebold?  Is she justified in her characterization?

43 comments:

  1. Taylor Burge
    1. The author is an outsider to the situation who sees the Klebold family as they were and are, without judgements. The intended audience is for people who don't understand how it was possible not to notice the signs in a person so damaged. The implied purpose of the review is to go into the book with an open mind, and attempt to understand that Susan did not notice the signs in her son, and now she is willing to reach out and help the victims families in any way she can. The rhetorical strategy most evident in the review is anecdotes. For example, the author writes about how Dylan and his family were normal by telling stories about how Dylan loved homemade casseroles.
    2. The author admires Susan klebold for what she has done through her book and the platform she has built around suicide awareness. The language the author uses proves they have a kind and respectable view of Susan. For example, "This is writing as action, bursting from a life so choked by circumstance that she could express that sentiment only from within the safety of a 300- page book."
    3. The evidence proves Susan is experiencing penance through her parental actions as she lost 25 pounds and she suffered through suicidal thoughts herself after the incident.
    4. To show that the questions have been asked and that they acknowledge that they need to be answered.
    5. It is used to assert an argument that is not related to a specific issue.
    6. I don't think that Susan Klebold was trying to avoid the topic of gun control, but she was trying address the issue of mental health as that is the platform she has built after the incident. I believe the book was written as an apology, for the victims of the shooting, for her sons actions, and to her son himself, for she allowed him to get to such a dark place in his life. I think Susan just wanted to explain she didn't know about anything that was going on inside her sons head, and she wanted to explain if she had known, she would have tried to prevent it.
    7. The reviewer characterizes Klebold as reasonable person who just wanted to explain herself all these years, I think the author is justified in her characterization of Susan Klebold.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Casey Coggins 1st
    1. The author is a person who has extensively read and analyzed Sue Klebold’s memoir and understands that Sue is not to blame or deserving of harsh, angry treatment. The intended audience is the group of people who are angry with Sue Klebold and believe she is to blame. The purpose of this article is to review and evaluate Sue Klebold’s memoir and convince the audience that Sue is not the bad figure she may appear to be but, rather, a struggling parent just like other parents. In the beginning of the article, she uses background information and facts to help the audience understand the situation better, such as when she recounts the number of lives damaged in paragraph two. Throughout the review the author uses exemplification to illustrate how Sue was as a parent and her love for her son; one instance of this is in the fifth paragraph when she mentions how Sue searched his room because she was worried about him. In the eighth paragraph she uses rhetorical questions in order to point out and answer the questions surrounding other parents such as, “Did maternal pride cloud her judgment?”
    2. The author is sympathetic toward Sue Klebold and had pity for her, not anger. I know this because in paragraph four she describes the memoir as “written under oath, while trying to answer, honestly and completely, an urgent question”, in paragraph five she lists details of a loving home-life that was “better than ordinary”, in paragraphs six and eight she describes the horrible things Sue has been through since, such as her cancer and dreams about Dylan as a baby, and she tells the audience that Sue “earns our pity, our empathy and, often, our admiration” in the second to last paragraph.
    3. Evidences given to illustrate Klebold’s penance are that she has received threats and negative attention, she is questioned by the families and about whether or not she has raised Dylan correctly, she finds herself guilty and not Dylan, she suffers unrest and nightmares, and she went through severe depression and health issues after the shooting.
    4. The author uses a list of rhetorical questions in order to provide the opposing viewpoint that Sue is the main person to blame, but also to put a rebuttal into the article stating that no parent is perfect, and Sue’s failures are a small part, if a part at all, in the Columbine shooting.
    5. Red herring argumentation is when an irrelevant topic is mentioned in an argument in order to divert the attention from the main topic. It is mainly used to mislead readers and cause them to have false conclusions.
    6. I do not agree with this comment. Guns are no problem at all until people get out of the right mindset and begin to do inhumane, deplorable things. Also, suicide was a major factor in Dylan’s life; therefore, it helped play a large part in Columbine. This book was written to tell a mother’s truthful story, recall Dylan’s life, and help clarify the discombobulating facts surrounding the shooting.
    7. Sue Klebold is characterized as a troubled woman who is deeply repentant and sorry and not the main cause of her son’s actions. She is not justified by this characterization because even though she has changed and is not technically responsible for the shooting, she is still the mother and caretaker of the shooter.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Tanner
    1.
    the author is an individual who feels anger towards her child murderer
    the intended audience is parents who may not be aware that their child could be a killer
    the purpose is to acknowledge Klebold's book and expand her discoveries
    connotative diction (psychopath, ominous, terrible)
    2. the author feels negatively towards klebold. "Klebold’s powerful urge to defend herself all these years was surpassed only by her desire to disappear." "She earns our pity, our empathy and, often, our admiration; and yet the book’s ultimate purpose is to serve as a cautionary tale, not an exoneration."
    3."in the months and years after the tragedy, suffering panic attacks so debilitating she came to understand her son’s suicidal impulses. She lost 25 pounds, numbly stumbling through radiation for breast cancer but refusing chemotherapy because she was, all agreed, too broken to survive it. "
    4.because the reader already knows the answer, but may not have considered it. he/she wants to make it evident of their opinion on her.
    5.an irrelevant topic is introduced to divert the attention of the readers
    6.i personally think the book she wrote is based not on gun control, but on being more self aware of children who can potentially be off. i am all for more gun control laws but i have watched videos where Klebold discusses her purpose for the book and she claims it is to make it more aware.
    7.the reviewer makes her out as someone who is just trying to get famous by using a terrible situation to get noticed after strategically going into hiding. i see where she gets the idea and where it can be justified but i don't agree.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Cameron Simon
    1) Someone who thinks they failed as a parent and mother, the audience is people who believe that the the parents are at fault, The purpose is provide a way to cope with parents of the victims and help them go through this, rhetorical strategies that were used were she created ethos when she said that my work is to forgive myself and i let him down not the other way around
    2)She feels pity for her when at the end of the review she said that she wrote this to communicate with the families of the victims and when she had to go through panic attacks and breast cancer
    3)She dreams about Dylan as a baby and panic attacks
    4)To tell the many questions that most people were going to ask her about regarding Dylan
    5)discussing irrelevant topic to divert from the real issues
    6)no, I don't agree about this because the reason why this book was written was to tell what the mother had to go through and how she should have picked up the signs that Dylan was ill.
    7)The reviewer characterizes Susan as a mother who deserves our pity and our admiration for defending herself and giving her perspective on the tragedy. She is justified.

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  5. April McCool
    1. Author- A journalist who has inquired the stories and lives of criminals from the perspective of a family member. Audience - Those who question the thoughts and actions of the criminals along with the families. Purpose- To show that even the parents didn't understand what was happening; that they too worried about their children's behavior and actions. Rhetorical Strategies- • Exemplification: "-edge she’d never heard before." • Connotative Diction: "-a defensive account from an unreliable narrator; at worst, an inevitable end point to the media circus." • Visual Imagery: "fallen off an emotional cliff..."
    2. The author feels as if Susan Klebold was not an adequate teacher to her children and implied that she was not an adequate mother. The author labeled them as selfish by withholding information from authorities, and as if mocking Klebold's description of family environment as "if not perfect, better than ordinary."
    3. After the shooting, the Klebold's received threats. She feels immense guilt because she claimed a crime she committed was ignorance towards her son. Susan Klebold is also experiencing nightmares with a bloody and injured Dylan. Klebold has also faced panic attacks and periods of sobbing along with being diagnosed with Breast Cancer.
    4. To give some incentive as to why and how Susan Klebold's actions could have come about but also as a guide to the obvious answers.
    5. Introduction of an irrelevant topic into a main argument to distract audiences from the main conflict.
    6. Yes, the book was written to aid in identifying the causes that lead to gun violence. The novel also brings awareness to the mental health and suicides because many people, popularly teenagers in high school, struggle with depression and suicidal thoughts with mental health issues. Although it may be a red herring, it brings light to the initial cause that leads to gun violence.
    7. The reviewer is empathetic to Susan Klebold. They realize that the "bad mothering" label is only because she is an easy target and no one wants to be in her position. She's probably correct about people not wanting to be in Klebold's shoes but she's not an easy target. Several other people present in the event can be targets, not just the parents who "failed" in doing their job.

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  6. 1. Author- Susan Dominus
    Audience- Those who blame the parents for the actions of Dylan and Eric in the Columbine Massacre.
    purpose- to convince people who want to blame the parents that there was no way to have known what Dylan and Eric were planning.
    Rhetorical strategies- strong language (...one single, painful, recurring message...) rhetorical questions (...in 1999 would anyone have thought it possible?) both are used to create a sense of ethos and in some cases pathos.
    2. She is sympathetic towards Klebold; she asks the rhetorical question, "In 1999 who would have thought a thing like this could happen?"
    3. When asked if she could ever forgive Dylan, she responded by saying, "How could I ever forgive myself?"
    4. To make the point that nobody could ever understand what it's like unless you've been in Mrs. Klebold's shoes.
    5. Using a fallacy (irrelevant topic) to divert the readers attention and make them jump to conclusions.
    6. No; guns are not the issue, people are the issue. The book was written by Mrs. Klebold to explain her side of the situation and to let the public know that if there was a way to have stopped the massacre from ever happening, she would have taken every step necessary to prevent the tragedy.
    7. Susan Klebold is characterized as almost an innocent bystander which is highly accurate. There was know legitimate reason why Dylan would be the way he was because of his family. Other factors, such as school, bullies, etc., had to have affected him in such a negative way for him to have gone to the drastic lengths he did to alleviate his internal suffering. Parents had nothing to do with his actions in this particular case.
    ~Blake E. Lockridge

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  7. BRIAN PHAM

    1. The author is Susan Dominus who understands the implications of Columbine and its impact on the Klebold family.
    The intended audience are those who want to know the truth behind the actions of the Columbine shooters and what led them to carry out such actions.
    The stated or implied purpose of the review is to give audiences who were affected by the tragedy reasons to forgive Klebold for trying to "disappear" all these years.
    The rhetorical strategies that are most abundant are sentences that feature lots of comma usage. For example, "They did not know that he drank, or thought obsessively of ending his life, or was madly in love with a girl whom he wrote about in creepy, mystical terms..." Another rhetorical strategy is subtle exaggerations such as "refusing chemotherapy, because she was, all agreed, too broken to survive it" which gives the impression that Klebold was so exacerbated by the attacks that she could not survive any longer if she had to.

    2. The author feels like she understands Klebold very well stating that her "powerful urge to defend herself all these years was surpassed only by her desire to disappear". Not only that, but the author also seems to want to aid Klebold by informing the world that she is on the path to penance and wants to communicate her woes. This was stated conclusively by the author that "Klebold seems to have written the book for yet another reason: to communicate with the families of the victims."

    3. The evidence that the author provides about Klebold experiencing penance for her parental actions is that Klebold wrote the book in the hopes of communicating with families that were affected and clearing her name on the matter of shying away from the world.

    4. The author enlists a series of rhetorical questions to give her thoughts on the matter whilst reading the book and possibly gain curiosity from her viewers.

    5. Red herring argumentation is when the main argument is avoided and often distracted by another argument.

    6. The idea seems valid and could very likely be true, but I do not agree. I believe that the book was written on the basis of forgiveness to those who were affected by the tragedies and to give readers insight into the issues that Dylan had to secretly endure and how the Klebold's had to deal with those issues.

    7. The reviewer describes Klebold as a broken woman who is trying to gain forgiveness and penance for her sins that she allegedly committed as a parent of Dylan's. The reviewer sheds bad light on Klebold and makes her seem to shy away from the world, when in truth Klebold does not want to confront the tragic past that her son caused, until most recently.

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  8. Hannah Jackson
    1.) Author: someone who wants to change people's views about Susan Klebold.
    Audience: People who view Susan Klebold as the reason her son did the school shooting.
    Purpose: To explain how Dylan's family had nothing to do with the way he turned out.
    Rhetorical Device: Antidote; creates pathos
    2.)The author feels sympathy for what Susan is going through. "To say that she was right was an understatement", the letter that was sent to her by a father "cruel letter."
    3.) She is getting emails from victim's families asking why and blaming her. Susan blames herself, "'Forgive Dylan?' I said. 'My work is to forgive myself.'"
    4.) To make people see that her son's actions was not her fault.
    5.) Red herring argument is something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important issue.
    6.) I agree and disagree. I believe that mental illness and suicide is a very important factor in this tragedy. Though, the way Eric and Dylan - how easily - got guns is a major concern. If people were more concerned with guns than this may not happen again.
    7.) The author characterizes Susan as a good mother. How she made dinner for her family almost every night and checked his room for drugs. The author also says she is a "frightened animal" because of what people say about her and the way they verbally attack her.

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  9. Colby Free 3rd
    1) Author- An informed outsider looking in (in this case reading about) on the Columbine story and specificallly the shooter Dylan, and his home life.
    audience- People who stereotyped Dylan as a "murderer" and didn't know of his home life. specifically parents because she is saying how as a mother she loved her son and feels like its her fault for his actions.
    purpose- To show the people who stereotyped the boys that the book the mother wrote does not show the boys in that way.
    rhetorical stratagies- Creates pathos when telling the audience, who thought Dylan was a weird, dark, creepy boy, that he was her son and she loved him just as any other parent would love their child.

    2) she feels like people should hear her out and she feels like the mom deserves to be heard. she tells how the purpose of the book is for the mother to tell her story and how the mother felt like it was her fault

    3) The dreams that the mother has of her not being able to provide for Dylan as a baby or the dreams of her failing him asa mother.

    4) Because she wants the audience to wonder why the mother would writ this book other than to caution people.

    5)That gun should not be allowed.

    6)yes I do agree, the purpose of this book is to show the stereotypical people that Dylan was not this kind of child and that the mother was not the cause of this action even though she thought it was.

    7) yes, she correctly characterizes her as a strong, powerful women who makes to make a difference by using her circumstance to make sure this doesn't happen to another family and caution on suicide prevention.

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  10. Abby Ingle
    1.The author is someone who sympathizes with Susan Klebold and tries to understand her.
    The intended audience is the victims' families and the survivors who blame the shooters parents.
    The purpose is to show the audience that Susan Klebold is not at fault and is not responsible for the Columbine tragedy.
    The strategies that are most evident are rhetorical questions and an annedote. There is a rhetorical question at the end of the fourth paragraph, and the anecdote is in the first paragraph, where Susan Klebold recalls sensing something was wrong the morning of the tragedy.

    2. The author feels sympathy towards Susan Klebold, and indicates this through the tone. It is also stated towards the end of the article, saying that she has earned pity and empathy.

    3.Her nightmares and her continuing guilt.

    4.The rhetorical questions are to get the reader to think about why columbine happened,and if she could have prevented it or not.

    5. an argument that distracts from the main point.

    6. No, because while gun control is one of the issues, mental health and suicide prevention are bigger, and more important.Also, the boys planned on using more bombs then guns so I don't think its fair to turn Columbine into a gun control debate when the bombs were the "main event", according to Eric. I think the book was written to show that Susan Klebold was a good parent and tried her best to reach out to her son, but unfortunately, that didn't work.

    7. She is characterized as a caring parent, who really does what she can to keep her son out of trouble. She did the best that she could to stay involved in his life, but there is only so much a mother can do.

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  11. Alyssa Gore
    1.The author of this article is someone who is trying to understand Susan Klebold and her husband Tom after being blamed for their sons actions. The intended audience is people who are the victims families blaming Susan and Tom for not seeing the behavior of Dylan and why they weren't better parents.The purpose of this review is to show the audience that Dylans actions could not have been stopped even if she knew about the plans of the attack. The rhetorical strategies used in this article are anecdotes and rhetorical questions.
    2.The author feels sympathetic and pity for Susan, having to deal with constant blame for what Dylan did.
    3.The evidence the author gives is the letter from one of the victims fathers who is angry and feels that Susan and Tom are to blame even though Dylan had a very good home life.
    4.The author enlist a series of rhetorical questions to get the audience thinking of what life would be like after experiencing what Susan went through and the guilt that will remain in her life for forever.
    5.It is an argumentation that gets your mind off of the main focus of the argument.
    6.I believe that gun control is the least important of the issue. The boys intent was to not shoot everyone but to "watch their highschool burn in flames", the mental health issue was not the main focus of the boys reasoning of the attacks but i don't think it was used as a red herring argument.
    7. The reviewer characterizes Susan Klebold as a woman who has been eaten by guilt and pity since 1999 but that she was a caring parent who did what she could to keep her son out of trouble and from going down the wrong path. Susan is justified because she reacted and defended her parenting skills and son just like any other parent would.

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  12. Tag Shaw

    1. The author of the article is a knowledgeable person on the attack at Columbine and is attempting to find out just why Susan Klebold wrote her memoir and how she feels about her sons involvement. The intended audience is a group of people who want to know just exactly how the mother of a mass shooter feels and has reacted about her kids involvement in such a cowardly act. The purpose of this review is to give the reader an accurate review on what they will read in Susan Klebold's memoir and what they should expect. The author uses many rhetorical questions throughout her review when she is analyzing what Susan believes she could have done better in the raising of her son Dylan. The author also uses vivid imagery when explaining to the reader the living situation in which Dylan grew up in, a living situation in which many people would find to be above average.

    2. The author tends to feel understanding towards Susan Klebold and not judgmental in the least, her review is very unbiased. The author shows no sense of bias in her review. The author not once blames Klebold for anything that has happened, only fairly reviewing what Klebold wrote in her memoir. The author does show a little bit of disgust though in the first paragraph when she quotes Susan Klebold on thinking that there was something wrong with her son before he left for school the day of the shooting and then the author saying she could not be more right.

    3. The author gives many specific examples about Susan experiencing penance for her actions, mainly that of her newly acquired suicidal thoughts. Klebold lost 25 pounds and barely made it through her radiation for breast cancer and completely refusing chemotherapy. Klebold also says that if anyone else were in her place that they could probably have stopped Dylan and realized that something was up, and that it was only her that could not stop him.

    4. The author enlists a series of rhetorical questions at this point in the review to get the reader to think about what Susan is actually saying. Was she too caught up in herself to ever realize that something was wrong with her son? It makes the reader wonder if the deeds committed by Dylan were truly the faults of parents who were not involve with their kids lives.

    5. It is an argumentative strategy that diverts or distracts the reader from an important issue by introducing an irrelevant topic.

    6. I can agree with this statement. In the authors review, its clear that Susan Klebold only talks about herself, her guilt, and what she could have done better as a parent. She completely avoids the issue of gun control. The real reason the book was written was to let her personal story out and try to gain a sort of understatement from the rest of the nation.


    7. The reviewer characterizes Klebold as sort of a confused woman. still not quite understanding the full impact her son had on the entire world. She seems lost,not understanding what all she did wrong as a parent. She is justified in this characterization of herself too. Klebold admits to not being a good parent despite how great that she thought that she was.

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  13. Drew Gardino,

    - Someone who feels they caused the shooting.
    People who were victims of the shooting.
    The purpose is to show that the parents are as much to blame for the shooting as Dylan and that she wants to apologize for not seeing the signs.
    Pathos- Mom talks about depression and thoughts of suicide after what happened.
    Logos- Use of rhetorical questions.
    - He feels sympathetic toward her. He states, "She earns our pity, our empathy and, often, our admiration."
    - He says, "Klebold’s powerful urge to defend herself all these years was surpassed only by her desire to disappear... suffering panic attacks so debilitating she came to understand her son’s suicidal impulses."
    - To show that she is not the one that should be blamed for this.
    - Something that misleads from the relevant issue.
    - Yes and no. I think that gun control is part of the issue however Dylan and Eric especially had mental health issues and were definitely suicidal. The reason the book was written is to show that Klebold thinks she is to blame and that she wants to apologize and try to prevent things like this happening again.
    - Depressed, suicidal and in the end sorry. Yes, I think so.

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  14. Emily Free
    1)-Someone who has read Susan Klebold's memoir and has looked at things from her perspective.
    - People who just assume that Susan Klebold was a terrible mother to Dylan and that is why he went on the path he did.
    - To defend Susan Klebold against the hate she has received concerning what her son did, and her decision to write a memoir.
    - An anecdote about Dylan's life at home and rhetorical questions such as, "Did maternal pride cloud her judgment?
    2)I think that the author is sympathetic towards her, because she talks about how fearful Susan was to come forward and speak about what happened.
    3)Susan received numerous threats.
    4)She makes the reader question whether or not they could potentially make the same mistakes Susan Klebold did.
    5)A distraction that is meant to draw attention away from the main issue at hand.
    6)No, I do not think Susan Klebold was trying to draw attention away from gun control. I think that she chose to write about mental health and suicide prevention because she would like to give her experience and help other parents recognize warning signs in their own children.

    7) The author characterizes Susan Klebold as someone who made a human mistake, a mistake that anyone could make, and I think that this is justified. Susan thought her son was just a moody teenager- how could she predict what he would do?

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  15. 1. Author: Someone who wants others the history behind the shooters and to see her perspective.
    Audience: Those who believe that the shooters background was questionable and not “normal”.
    Purpose: To prove that the parents raised their child well and has concern for her child, but did not know about the plans for the shooting.
    Rhetorical strategies-Examplification: “but was also worried about him” Visual imagery: “She has a dream in which Dylan, still a baby, is found to have bloody cuts all over his torso that she had not seen; in another, other mothers have reserved a space for their babies to sleep, but she has not, and he cannot rest.” Connotative Diction: “Dylan’s misery were so overwhelming it was visibly oozing out of him.”
    2. The author believes that the mother is a good mother by stating that she was distressed after his arrest and that he lived if not perfect, better than ordinary lifestyle, but she did not see Dylan’s misery before the shooting.
    3. The penance they received after the shooting is that the mother herself developed panic attacks and suicidal thoughts and also threats from people.
    4. The rhetorical questions are to allow people to think about what could have happened as to why she did not catch the signs, but the questions give answers within themselves.
    5. Red herring argumentation is something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important issue.
    6.No, I disagree because as discussed in class, everything is added for a reason. I believe she talked about the suicidal causes and mental health as a way of showing that those issues can lead to a shooting like Dylan and Eric committed, but the book was also written to prove her standpoint that she did her best as a mother despite what others might believe.
    7. Through out the article, the author gives the mother the stereotypical “bad mom” title due to her son being one of the shooters. I believe she's wrong for giving her this title.People do not understand the backlash that comes from being the mother of a school shooter unless they went through it themselves. The author also doesn’t have a full understanding of the home-life because when children reach a certain age, they start to live their own life and have their own influences which is something the mother cannot prevent because it’s apart of life.

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  16. Sam Andrus

    1. -Susan Dominus
    -Intended for those who are seeking answers and explanations for the actions of Susan Klebold's son through the book that Mrs. Klebold wrote.
    -The purpose of the review is to defend Susan Klebold and suggest that her book is more than an act of self-defense, but a sincere communication to everyone about how to possibly prevent and help people from making irrational decisions because of their suicidal thoughts.
    -The metaphor of the emotional cliff and a tricolon of "She earns our pity, our empathy and, often, our admiration"
    2. Defensive, the mood is supportive and understanding of her. "This is writing as action, bursting from a life so choked by circumstance that she could express that sentiment only from within the safety of a 300-page book."
    3. Mrs. Klebold's reaction when asked if she could ever forgive Dylan, "My work is to forgive myself.’ . . . I was the one who let him down, not the other way around.” There is also about a paragraph that describes Susan's struggles since the tragedy, stating that, "..she came to understand her son’s suicidal impulses[firsthand]."
    4. To then specifically answer those questions, helping to "shake the prosecutorial instinct" of the reader.
    5. Red Herring Argumentation introduces an irrelevant topic to divert attention from the actual problem.
    6. No, that is ridiculous. Susan Klebold did not write a 300 page book about her beloved son and his suicidal massacre just to distract people from focusing on gun control rights. She obviously had a lot of emotions that she needed to communicate with people so that they could understand more about the circumstances that led up to the tragedy.
    7. The review kindly characterizes Susan Klebold as a survivor of suicidal depression and great tragedy who wants to understand and prevent the any events similar to Columbine just as much, if not more, than anyone else.

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  17. Sarah McWaters
    1. The author is someone who has done extensive research on the Columbine tragedy and on Susan Klebold's novel.
    The intended audience are those who believe it to be the killer's parents' fault that the tragedy happened.
    The purpose of the review is to get people to understand why Mrs.Klebold wrote the novel, and what they can expect to find in it.
    The rhetorical strategies are: rhetorical Q's (Did maternal pride cloud her judgement?) and anecdotes (the story of how dylan said goodbye on the dayh of the attack)
    2.They use words such as "horror" to describe her feelings or phrases like "Klebold had lost", suggesting sympathy.
    3. She has nightmares that Dylan is a baby that is covered in cuts or that he has no place to sleep; also people send her terribly rude and threatening letters.
    4. The author enlists these questions so that the reader will know what exactly Susan Klebold will address in her novel and what questions she will answer.
    5. It is where one person tries to win an argument by changing the subject.
    6. I do not agree. I believe that Mrs.Klebold wrote this novel in order to progress her own healing as well as the victim's families, and I believe she also wrote it in order to answer some long running questions about Dylan.
    7. I believe she is justified; the author characterizes her as a healing mother still grieving for a son she thought she knew, but did not really know at all.

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  18. Brandon Appling
    1.The author is someone who has read Sue Klebold's book and understands Klebold's reasoning for writing the book. The intended audience is people who are unclear about Klebold's purpose for writing the book. The purpose of the review is to detail Dylan's home life and inform about the blame Sue puts on herself. The author uses rhetorical questions that Sue Klebold asks herself to make the reader think about what they could possibly do in Sue's situation.
    2.The author seems to have a positive felling toward Sue Klebold. He describes Klebolds life as "choked by circumstance" in a tone that seems sympathetic. The author seems to understand Klebold's difficulty in answering the question, " What could a parent have done to prevent this tragedy?"
    3.The author cites Klebold's statement that she never blamed Dylan but herself. The author cites Klebold's underestimate of Dylan's capabilities.
    4.The rhetorical questions all ask how Klebold failed as a mother but they serve to ask the reader what they would do in the same situation and makes what happened seem inevitable.
    5.A type of argument that turns the attention away from the main issue.
    6.Based on the review, I do not agree that things mentioned in this book were merely red herrings. The main things that Sue Klebold seems to focus on are not gun violence and seem to be solely focused the mental health of teenagers.
    7. I think this review characterizes Klebold in a light tone. The reviewer is justified in classifying Klebold in this tone because none of us could know what we would do in that situation as parents and the reviewer believes that Klebold did the best that she could do in her situation as a parent.

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  19. kayla compton
    1. -the author is someone who would like to convince someone to read the book
    -the intended audience is people who would not read the book because they think it will be bad or useless
    -the purpose of the review is to inform others about susan klebolds novel
    - there were rhetorical questions such as in the paragraph mentioned in question 4, and anecdotes from susan klebold
    2.the author feels sorry for her, because the author says the most painful moment in the book is knowing she did not know her son as well as she thought
    3. she has reoccuring nightmares and recieves angry and threatening letters
    4. in order to state questions that need answers about the book, and get the audience thinking about the questions as well
    5.it is a type of arguement that employs false information in order to distract from the original issue
    6. i believe that the issue of mental health and gun control, as well as suicide prevention are all in the same arguement. however i do feel as if they are looking more at mental health issues rather than gun control in order to say "he was just one bad kid" rather than "this is an actual problem that needs to be stopped by putting a control on guns". the book was written as a personal account of the mother to talk about how she didnt know of her sons mental illness
    7. the reviewer characterizes klebold as an innocent mother who knew nothing of her sons decisions. she is partially justified in this characterization because she really didnt know of her sons actions, but as a mother should have known something was wrong with her son

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  20. Lauren Beatty
    1. The author is someone who seeks to inform others of the importance of parenting and really knowing your kid.
    The audience is unaware parents who could have the same thing happen to them or their kid.
    The purpose of the review is to explain why Sue Klebold wrote the book and what she hopes to achieve with it, also to explain that she regrets not being there for her son.
    An appeal to pathos is evident in Klebold's dreams by using personal examples and showing how she feels inadequate to other mothers'.
    2. The author is sympathetic towards Susan, explaining she lost 25 pounds and puts most of the blame on herself by saying she's trying to forgive herself, not Dylan. I know this because throughout the entire review she uses painful, saddening descriptive words to describe Susan.
    3. Sue explains Susan had panic attacks, dramatic weight loss, and breast cancer. Also, Susan received letters and media attention criticizing her.
    4. The author enlists this series of rhetorical questions to show what the readers of the book are thinking, but also to explain that this could happen to anyone.
    5. Red herring argumentation is an observation that draws attention away from the central issue in an argument, also known as a decoy.
    6. No I do not agree with this idea, because you have to put out the base of the fire in order to control the flames. I believe this book was written to put emphasis on paying very close attention to children and their problems.
    7. The reviewer characterizes Susan as a mother who simply did not know her son. Yes, she is justified in her characterization because even Susan says she didn't know her son.

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  21. Rett Saele
    1. Susan Dominus. People confused and attempting to figure out how a mother could be so disconnected from her son and not even realize it. To give Susan Klebold her side to the story, and to help answer peoples questions. 1.pathos: The overall tone of the review is sad because it's describing a moms situation and stance on her sons mass shooting. 2. exemplification: The beginning of the review is a recall of an actual conversation Susan had with her husband the morning Dylan left to commit the shooting. 3. Imagery:Throughout the review it describes the situation and scenes of what happened.

    2.The author feels remorseful and defensive because he talks about how Dylans home life was close to perfect.
    3. It says she even became suicidal and she wrote a book trying to help answer peoples questions on why her son turned out the way he did.
    4. To make the reader realize how complicated the subject matter is, and to show there isn't one easy answer for this problem.
    5. It's something that misleads or distracts the reader from a relevant or important issue/topic.
    6. No, because guns don't kill people... people kill people. Dylan needed psychiatric help. The book was written to show how tragic it was for susna as a mother to not realize her son sas mentally ill, and how she wishes she could of helped him.
    7. As a clueless but loving mom, and yes she is.

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  22. 1. -The author is a person who is showcasing how belittled and broken a mother is after the crime her son committed. The author shows that the average American would blame the house the child was brought up in rather than the illness he may have had.
    -The audience is centered around those who blame the tragedy on the parents of those who committed the crimes, even though they knew nothing of the crimes that were to be committed or of how their outlook on life had changed.
    -The purpose is to show that Susan Klebold raised her son normally in a loving household, rather than what was perceived to be a hate filled household which would've "created" what Dylan became.
    -The author uses the mother's viewpoint a lot throughout most of the review. This was done to show how much she has been affected by this mentally and physically.The author creates a lot of pathos throughout the review using examples such as how Dylan wouldn't feed the cats anymore and how his father and he would share the sports page in the paper after school.
    2. I believe the author felt much sympathy for Susan Klebold. The author acknowledged all of the hate and death threats Susan had got after the shooting and how the Klebolds isolated themselves from the media in fear of their words getting turned on them.
    3. The author says that Susan Klebold is writing a book on her traumatic experience and she also informs us that Klebold had severe panic attacks in the months and years after the incident.
    4. The rhetorical questions are implemented into the review to make the reader think about the underlying question: were the Klebold's at fault? Their son's outward appearance as well as his behavior hadn't changed much in front of them, and when it finally did it was already too late.
    5. It's information that is not relevant to the main topic used to divert the reader's attention away from the original issue
    6. I believe that they may have been used to do this, but gun control has and never will be able to happen. Tightening laws would only make things worse. There are more ways to obtain a gun illegally than there are to obtain one legally. I believe it was written to show that Klebold wants to reach out and be there for the families that were affected. I also believe that it was written to show how broken and sentimental she felt/feel even in the present.
    7. The author characterizes her as a grieving sentimental mother who may have been able to play a part in preventing this tragedy. Yes I do, because most people would just blame her for giving him a bad home life and not even listen to her side of the story, so someone standing up for her in the midst of all the hate she received helps raise her morale and further cope with the situation.
    -Alex Holliday 3rd

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  23. Jane Frances Armour

    1. a) The author is someone who wants people to understand why Susan Klebold's wrote her book of the purpose of it. b) The intended audience is people that do not get why Klebold did what she did. c) To help people understand that Klebold wrote her book to tell people her side of the story and to sympathize with her because of everything that's happened to her. d) Examplifiction by using stories from Klebold's book like, making layered Mexican casseroles for her family to create an appeal to pathos. Also, connotative diction is used by writing words like "devastating" to describe the shooting and "bottomless quilt" to describe how Klebold feels to create an appeal to pathos.
    2. The author sympathizes with her because the author mention her losing 25 pounds. The author also admires her for writing a book by saying she wrote it to caution other parents.
    3. The author gives evidence of Klebold experiencing penance for for her parental actions by mentioning her bottomless guilt and her losing 25 pounds.
    4. The author enlists rhetorical questions to show that even if she was prideful or was averse to confrontation that it doesn't explain how her fault as a parent could turn her son's life so horrifically.
    5. Red herring argumentation is a fallacy where an irrelevant topic is mentioned to distract the audience the original issue and mislead them to come up with false conclusions.
    6. No, I believe mental illness was not a red herring because the boys could have found another way to get guns and the reason they shot people was because they were mentally ill. The reason that the book was written was to give an explanation on how Dylan was raised, be a caution for other parents, and apologize to the victims and family.
    7. As a good moral example, loving, yet ignorant, admirable, and remorseful. Yes, she is justified in her characterization because it doesn't put the blame on her and it makes her look like she did what every other would do.

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  24. Cole frederick
    1. a) The author is someone who has read Sue Klebold's book and has analyzed it and want to inform the people on what it is about
    b) the audience is those who have read or are going to read Sue Klebold's book
    c) the purpose is to explain Sue Klebold's thought process on how she raised Dylan and express how hard it was on her
    d) the author creates a sympathetic tone towards Sue as the author talks about her suicidal ways, appealing to pathos.
    2. the writer defends her in a way as she includes that of course she had some mess ups, but what parent doesn't, and how was she suppose to know this would happen, because they thought they had a good family life.The writer also includes at the end that you can't help but feel pity, empathy and admiration for her so she must feel those things too.
    3.She has recieved several notes from parents and has gotten death threats
    4. because if you read the book, youre going to think "was she really this nieve?" and to show that there are doubts but requires the reader to form his or her own opinion.
    5. something that misleads or distracts from a relevant or important issue
    6. i do not agree with this idea. It sounded like to me Sue Klebold was just trying to give her point of view on a situation that a bunch of people had questions about.
    7. She characterizes her as basic, morally good, feels guilt for her son's actions, and after the incidence, it sounds like she's unhappy. The author is justified to say this because the author has read the book and is free to voice her own opinion on the matter.

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  25. Yasmine Evans (3rd)


    1.- author? - Someone who wants to also know more about the teen shooters and their motives.
    - intended audience? People who have family members killed by the shooters.
    - stated or implied purpose of the review? To understand why this tragedy took place and how it could’ve been prevented.
    - rhetorical strategies most in evidence? The appeal to pathos. The quote made by a grieving father saying “Might people say you were terrible, neglectful parents?”

    2. They feel that she could have done something to prevent this tragedy. The review talks about how Klebold describe their ordinary life and says” She does acknowledge that there were signs of impending danger”

    3. It first started when Dylan and Eric got arrested for stealing electronics and that lead to a room search for drugs. Then, she missed adolescent depression signs from Dylan.

    4. To emphasize the motives the boys would not have done if their parents were there for confrontation.

    5. It is a fallacy that misleads readers to false conclusions or an irrelevant topic.

    6. I I have to disagree with that. Yes, gun control is at use, but these boys were considered gothic and geeks. They were considered outcasts and were not as close to their parents anymore.

    7. Susan is a mother that has also lost her child, and not only is writing to other family members that have lost their child/children, but she’s also providing a sense of sympathy.

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  26. Dillon Baker

    1. Author- Journalist investigating the stories and lives of criminals from the view of someone close to them
    Audience- Those who question the motives of criminals along with family
    Purpose- Show that parents did not know what was happening to their children
    Rhetorical strategies- exemplification:"edge she'd never heard before"
    connotative diction- "a defensive account from an unreliable narrator; at worst, an inevitable end point to the media circus"
    Visual imagery- "fallen off an emotional cliff"
    2. Author feels that Susan Klebold was not a good teacher to her kids and feels like she was not a good mother.Also sees her as selfish for hiding information.
    3.After the shooting Klebold received threats. Feels guilty because she claims she did not know about her son. Klebold experienced nightmares about Dylan.
    4. To give a reason for how Klebolds actions could have come around.
    5. Introduction of an irrelevant topic as if to distract from the main topic.
    6. Yes, Book was written to help in identifying causes that lead to gun violence. Also brings awareness to mental health issues because many people struggle with them. May be a red herring but the book brings the causes of gun violence to light.
    7. Reviewer is empathetic to Klebold. Realize the bad mothering label is because she is an easy target. Several other people in this event can be easy targets, not just the parents of the killers.

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  27. Haden Jones
    1.Someone who wants people to know about Sue Klebolds tale of caution. The audience are people that believe the incident was caused by the failure of the parents. The purpose of the review is to explain that she did not write this book to defend herself or Dylan, but to explain that she failed to recognize the tell tale signs and that even if she did they might have not have mattered.
    2.understanding, pity, and admiration as stated by the author by writing "our pity, our empathy, and, often, our admiration."
    3. That she felt the same feelings of suicide, severe weight loss, debilitating panic attacks, and refusing chemo treatment from being too weak from the stress.
    4. To lost the often thought of questions brought up while reading the booking and if not thought of, to make the reader think of it while reading this article
    5.A fallacy that is rrelevant used to divide attention from the original point of the issue and is used usually to mislead readers or people to make false conclusions
    6.No they are not right because, even though they did amass guns they were able to build bombs and if they didn't have the guns, would've spent more time making the bombs and would not have failed to explode when used. Also, Sue thoroughly explained that both Dylan and Eric were deeply disturbed and mentally ill to the point where professional help wouldn't have worked on Dylan and didn't work on Eric.
    7.She characterizes her as somewhat ignorant to the signs that were clear to others. She was blind to the clear irritation, the distance he put between them, and his obsession with this girl.

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  28. Victoria Jones
    1. Susan Dominus, an individual wanting to give Susan Klebold the benefit of the doubt. Individuals thinking Susan abused her son or that they caused the Columbine shooting. To get individuals to think about the Klebolds with an open mind and to read Susan's book. Rhetorical questions: "had they spent much time with Dylan?" and "What would they have done differently?" Imagery: In the fifth paragraph when the author describes their home life.
    2. She empathizes with her and admires her. She even said [talking about Mrs. Klebold] "She earns our pity, our empathy, and often our admiration."
    3. She speaks about how Susan lost a substantial amount of weight and how she came to understand Dylans suicidal wishes, causing the reader to assume she debated taking her own life.
    4. To cause the reader to ask themselves these questions, overall wanting them answered therefore causing the reader to want to read Susan's book.
    5.A kind of fallacy that is an irrelevant topic introduced in an argument to divert the attention of listeners or readers from the original issue.
    6. no I don't, I believe this book was written as a prevention for another columbine to happen.
    7. Susan is characterized as a woman who suffers from what her son has done and genuinely wants to make right the crime he committed.

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  29. cameron rico
    1.) the author is a person trying to change their views of them on dylan and the parents of him.
    2.) people who blindly blame the parents of the shooters out of rage and saying its their fault without knowing the whole truth
    3.) to also show that she is sorry for the parents of the victims and to show that it was her fault for not caring enough.
    4.) connotative diction. "To say that she was right is an understatement. And yet, if there is one single, painful, recurring message in Klebold’s memoir, it is that she did not truly know her son " alot of emotion and visual imagery, of when dylan was a a young teenager and how they got together on family night and ate "gloppy, mexican casseroles"
    2. She shows sympathy towards her and is noted when she finishes her review and calls it a haunting sentiment.
    3. That she has had suicidal tendencies and that she is refusing chemotherapy and she was having panic attacks.
    4. she does this to go head point out some of the questions the readers were probably having about Susan Klebolds book and to pull the reader in even further to think about the topic.
    5.) is a fallacy in which an irrelevant topic is presented in order to divert attention from the original issue. The basic idea is to "win" an argument by leading attention away from the argument and to another topic.
    6.) No i dont think its a red herring for the issue at hand, she wrote the book because she needed to vent out everything she has been dealing with since the Columbine shooting and to tell everyone insights on how things were before it happened and to show she is sorry for everything that happened. Its much like repentance for something she did wrong.
    7.) as a broken women who wants to defend herself but not seem so justly by the defending of herself. Yes because thats all she has seen from her in her interview with her and from the reading of the book.

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  30. Michael Ayala

    1. Sue Klebold. People who are thinking about suicide and need mental help.To show people that even the people you least expect can become mentally insane. She mostly uses pathos because she talks about her own son and what she did wrong to not help him.

    2. He mostly feels sorry for her loss and what she's been having to go through. When she is talking about what she had done wrong as a parent and then the author comforts her in saying that it's not her fault and that it happens sometimes.

    3. When he talks about how she was losing weight and was diagnosed with breast cancer and she didn't want to treat but then decides how she wants to help people who are thinking suicidal.

    4. To show how much the book brings in the pain to those who have yet experienced it.

    5. Is a kind of fallacy that is an irrelevant topic introduced in a argument to divert attention to the readers and listeners.

    6. I'd some what agree because it does involve some talk in gun control. However the book also deals with kids who are suicidal and how to prevent them from feeling that way. And that's what I believe why the book was written, in hopes that kids will not think this way.

    7. She is characterized as a mother who had lost her son and is devastated and now wants to help people. And she is indeed characterized like this because she has a goal in hopes that people will try and listen in order to help their kids.

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  31. Taryn Dockery

    The author is someone who has read and understands Klebold’s book. The audience is people who may read her book or think she is a bad mother/person. The purpose is to show that the book is a “cautionary tale, not an exoneration.” In this review, Pathos is appealed to by the author’s description of how Klebold felt. This makes a reader empathize with Klebold and understand her better. Logos is also appealed to. The author uses details of the life of the Klebolds to make the reader see Klebold’s side of things and what she went through. The author respects Klebold and says of her, “She earns our pity, our empathy and, often, our admiration.” The author shows the penance Klebold has endured when she talks about a letter one of the fathers of the victims wrote to Klebold, and talks about how terrible she felt, even losing weight because she was so upset. She enlists these questions because these are some of the questions one might have while reading the book or just in general. She tries to show that Klebold was not a bad parent. Red herring argumentation is an argument that distracts from the real issue at hand. Klebold’s book is not a red herring argument because gun control is not the only issue at hand. I do not think that these were red herrings. If they were mentally stable, they would not have done with the guns what they did. Klebold writes the book to show people the warning signs so this does not happen again. She also attempts to reach out to the families of victims. Klebold is characterized as a normal mom that might have had some failings, just like everyone else. She tries to make her seem normal, and she is, other than this terrible thing she was a part of. She is justified in her characterization, this could happen to any parent, and Klebold wrote her book so parents could prevent it from happening to them.

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  32. Austin Levins
    1) The author is Susan Dominus. She is writing about the memoir of Susan Klebold, the mother of Dylan. She is writing to people who might be judging Susan, and to people who just want answers about how the homelife may have affected the event to convince them to read the memoir, and to make them realize this could happen to anybody. It is not necessarily her fault. She uses vivid imagery and details as when she was describing his home life like that final morning, and asking rhetorical questions to show that know one would have predicted it such as "What could a parent have done to prevent this trajedy?"
    2) The author does not blame or speak bad of Susan. If anything she almost presents Susan as a victim who was unfortunate with her son deeds. This is shown by the way she says Susan felt in the months after the attack and how she felt due to the letters she received.
    3) She receives letters blaming her, and she feels very guilty,such as the letters from the father asking how she was with him. Klebold talks of having to forgive herself.
    4) It demonstrates the questions asked about Susan. It is discussing whether she might could have done something different or if her personality can be blamed for her son committing the act.
    5) It is an argument about a topic that does not relate to the main point to draw attention away from it.
    6) I could not disagree more. The book has absolutely no relation to the argument of guns, nor is it about how the physical act of violence was carried out. It is about the mental aspect, and how the mom could have played a role in his mental state, and how parents should notice their children's problems.
    7)It claims that she did not play an impact and that the focus should be on how they carried out the act. I believe that Susan may or may not have played a part, but know one will ever know for sure.

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  33. James Atchison
    1st

    1: The author is Susan Dominus. The intended audience is anybody who thinks the Klebolds were neglectful or intentionally let them carry out the actions they did. The implied purpose is to convince the audience that the Klebolds did their best to raise Dylan in a good environment? The rhetorical device is citation.
    2: The author is in favor of the Klebolds for the fact that the only information cited is in favor of the Klebolds. The author also feels bad for the Klebolds, since they felt their statements could only be made safely in the form of a book
    3: The author cites a letter from a father that the Klebolds received. The Klebolds also received threats in the mail. Klebold also suffered extreme panic attacks and lost 25 pounds.
    4: These questions are often asked by the target audience
    5: argumentation that is misleading or false.
    6: I think that people who want to do harm are going to find ways to do so regardless of further restriction of gun access. Teaching people to be responsible and learning how to effectively deal with mental illness will be the better method in the long run. I think the reason the Klebolds wrote the book was pressure from society. Writing the book gave answers and was a safe outlet to provide those answers wanted by so many.
    7: The main characterization of Klebold that I can pull from this is that Klebold is painted as scared or hesitant. It isn't unreasonable for Klebold to feel this way because of backlash she has received.

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  34. Na'Daisha Mckinstry

    1.- Who is the author? Susan Dominus
    - Who is the intended audience? The families of the victims in the shootings and people who wanted to know how dylan’s parents allowed this to happen
    - What is the stated or implied purpose of the review? To give people who haven’t read the book yet an insight on why she wrote it.
    - What rhetorical strategies are most in evidence? Give examples of each. Exemplification (“Bye”) ethos ( “the tone disturbed her….”)

    2. she feels pity for her, empathy and some admiration for he survival through this.

    3. She lost 25 pounds , and she felt the need at times to also commit suicide

    4. To show that she wasn’t a perfect parent just like everyone else, she made a mistake of ignoring her child’s problems that were happening

    5. The leading away from the main argument with another argument that is irrelevant to that one to win the argument

    6. Yes I do agree because even if the mental issue was occurring they should have thought of how he got the guns, and his friends should have thought “oh, why do you need these, when you have your own?” but I also don’t agree because the mental illness of these two boys are a main factor in what they did.

    7.She is a terrified person, who is punishing herself for her son’s actions, and yes she is because, Mrs.Klebold is doing this to herself to remind herself that she made a mistake in paying attention to her son.

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  35. Ashlyn Grantham
    1. someone filled with guilt who believes she could have done something to change the history of Columbine; those who believe her son was made a killer out of negligence and lack of parenting, who think of her in a bad way; to show she was deeply sorry for underestimating Dylan's troubles, and to explain her side as well as try to stop all the hatred from haunting her; her small anecdotes about his childhood, "messy Mexican casserole" and "father who would come home and read sports magazines" to show he did have a good life and they were good parents.
    2. the author has compassion and empathy for Susan klebold; "To say that she was right is an understatement. And yet, if there is one single, painful, recurring message in Klebold’s memoir, it is that she did not truly know her son — that they were in fact living in parallel universes" in this, the author defended Klebold by saying she didn't know her son was in such deep psychological trauma, "The Klebolds knew something was wrong with Dylan his senior year, she writes. “We simply — drastically and lethally — underestimated the depth and severity of his pain and everything he was capable of doing to make it stop.” Politely, methodically, she eviscerates in the reader the dearly held conviction that had he or she been in Sue Klebold’s place, all could have been prevented." the author really emphasizes Klebolds compassion and honesty as well as her sympathy and guilt.
    3. Klebold has recurring dreams of her baby not having a place to rest like the other babies, or is bleeding uncontrollably from the torso. she feels out of control of her child. she feels as if she lived in a "parallel universe" from Dylan.
    4. to make the reader think of how she could have possibly missed her son being a future serial killer, yet it actually does the opposite. the following question from the first two actually justify her doings as it shows that no matter what she could've done, she could not have had the power to make her son a killer, or prevent him from being one.
    5. a direct distraction from the original argument, an attempt to change the argument to something the person can better respond to
    6. no, this book was about herself being a mother and the psychology in the household from herself and Dylan.
    7. the reviewer seems to make her very emotional and almost childlike and innocent. not knowing her son and what he's capable of. she seems oblivious and avoiding confrontation, yet constantly worried. yes, she is justified in making that statement because the reviewer obviously read the book.

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  36. Marlee ashcraft

    1. Someone who thinks that mental illness is something that should be a very important concern. The audience is people who might be at risk or know people at risk. The purpose is notably to raise awareness for mental illness, but also go into how her sons behavior did not seem so extreme but was and she should have raised more questions.
    2.He pities her and thinks that everyone else should as well
    3.He talks about how she even refused her Chemo because she honestly wanted to disappear
    4.Those are the same questions that everyone would be asking themselves when she released her book, especially those effected
    5.
    .6he book was written to warn parents of possible factors that could determine that their kids are in trouble, as well as reach out to the families of the victims.
    7.

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  37. Abby Nelson
    1. Author- A reviewer of a depressed mother who is trying to inform people how she was dealing with her sons horrible actions in her book.
    Audience- People who wanted to know more about the parents of Dylan to see if they could get a better explanation of why he committed those tragic crimes.
    Purpose- The purpose is to let people know what Mrs. Klebolds stance is on how she raised her child and to tell about her book where she finally reveals to the public more about her son.
    Strategies- Some strategies are anecdotes and rhetorical questions. She tells anecdotes of how Dylan seemed to have a normal childhood, but did notice a chnage in him in his teenage years. Also, she says, "Forgive Dylan?" as people ask her if she would forgive Dylan for his actions but then goes on to say that the person she really needs to forgive, is herself.
    2. The author feels some sort of sympathy towards Dylans mother as he tells how she went downhill in her life when she lost weight and got depressed after being blamed for turning Dylan into a murderer as her life seemed to be changed forever.
    3. Klebold is experiencing penance for her parental actions as it says that she recieved many horrible questions asking her how she ruined her kid's childhood. Also, it tells how she lost 25 pounds because she felt responsible for her sons actions and was depressed as she was then recieving many hateful comments and accusations after the shootings.
    4. He enlists these questions to make the audiences rethink their opinion towards her as he wants them to reevaluate how it could really be the mothers fault, when she tried so hard to be a good parent, that her child turned into the person he was before he died.
    5. Red herring argumentation is an example of fallacy that is a topic brought up to change the attention of an audience from the original issue/problem.
    6. No, I still mainly believe the book was focused on the right thing because its possible that if the kids had no problems, then guns wouldnt even have applied to them as they might have never had bad intentions without mental problems. I think the book was written so Mrs. Klebold could finally open up to talking about her son.
    7. The reviewer characterizes her as a broken, depressed, and sad mother who doesnt know where she went wrong with her child. She is justified in her characterization as she was going through such a hard time and was blamed for her childs actions and explains what she feels about it all in her book.

    ReplyDelete
  38. 1. Someone who understands the grief that Sue Klebold has to endure.
    - Those who rarely look at the parents' aspect in this situation.
    - The article gives an plausible explanation for Dylan Klebold's actions.
    - rhetorical questions
    2. The author feels sympathy for her and defends her. The author criticizes a memoir that attacks Dylan's parents.
    3. She gets letters from parents.
    4. He ask these questions to defend sue. When the reader reads this paragraph they are likely to put him or herself in the same position as sue and empathize with her.
    5. It takes the focus from the reader and distracts them with something else.
    6. Sue Klebold is feeling genuine grief as any parent would feel in this situation. Thoughts of suicide are likely to occur and not in an attempt to smother another serious topic. I think the book was written as a method for Sue to vent about feelings that she can't discuss openly.
    7. She characterizes sue as a normal, good parent. Yes, Sue reacted to the situation as many parents in her place would.

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  39. 1- Author- A reporter that depicts the lives of criminals and the affects they have on their close family members.
    Audience- People who associate a criminals behavior directly with those of a parent or relative.
    Purpose- To demonstrate that even close relatives and parents of those who commit horrendous crimes are as in the dark as the rest of the public and grieving in the same ways.
    Rhetorical Strategies- appeals to pathos and ethos using connotative diction.

    2- Starting with uncertainty about Susan Klebold's involvement in her sons life, her role in lack of maternal instinct which may have contributed to Dylan's downfall, then melting into sympathy towards the end in response to the effects of Dylan's crimes on Susan in her later life, i.e., refusing chemo, losing weight, suicidal thoughts.

    3- Susan was diagnosed with cancer, experienced severe stress, suicidal thoughts, and depression following the massacre. This is a result of continued threats and what she says her crime against her son, ignorance. She experience nightmares and panic attacks, all a direct result of regret towards her lack of paternal guidance.

    4- To explain questions that have clear answers yet are still presented in Susan's book and as open discussions about the reason and incentive behind Susan's parental actions in Dylan's later life.

    5- Used as a method in writing to divert the reader from the actual issue at hand.

    6- No, I do not directly agree because in the case of Dylan and Eric their motives are clearly driven by mental health, being that it is hard to find that the simple factor of gun control or gun training would have stopped Dylan and Eric from committing the murder that they did. Today, many teens suffer with mental health issues that often go unnoticed due to personal denial, parental denial, or such. Gun control would not have ultimately changed much in the lives of Dylan and Eric, who's to say they wouldn't find a different way to commit mass murder?

    7- The reviewer characterizes Susan as a flawed mother that didn't completely fulfill her parental purposes in Dylan's later life that could have contributed to prevention of his crimes. However, she is sympathetic to the fact that his crimes and the backlash of such was put on her and Dylan's family, and for the long term effects and consequences of such. This is agreeable to the point that no parent can be completely perfect yet can still try their best to see and notice when their child has a problem and act accordingly.

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  40. Will Ernest
    1) The author is Susan Dominus, the main audience are the people who are looking for answers after the tragedy of Columbine. The review is meant to show us that the Klebold family trying to move on, but the threats still scare them to this day.

    2) The author appears to understand Mrs. Klebold as a normal person despite the circumstances. She compares her to all other parents and proves that everyone has faults, but nothing that would cause Dylan's action.

    3) Mrs. Klebold nearly died during her penance for what Dylan did and she feel guilty for not see what she could have possibly stopped.

    4) It's to say out loud what the audience is thinking, it is a nasty habit to judge people.

    5) A series of Literary devices that are used to lead to a false conclusion.

    6) No, this book was written so that the Klebold could tell their story and to offer any answers to those looking for them.

    7) She characterizes her as a grief stricken and mournful person and is truly sorry for what her son did, but she truly knows there is nothing she can do about it. The review is very accurate and justified in her characterization of Mrs. Klebold.

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  41. 1. Author: Susan Dominus, Intended Audience: parents or families who have been victims of this particular situation, Purpose: the purpose of the review is to show how the columbine shooting has affected her over the years and influenced her to write the book. Rhetorical strategies: Pathos - " She lost 25 pounds, numbly stumbling through radiation for breast cancer but refusing chemotherapy because she was, all agreed, too broken to survive it" and a lot of anecdote:"She recalls being dumbfounded when someone asked her if she could ever forgive her son. “ ‘Forgive Dylan?’ I said. ‘My work is to forgive myself.’ . . . I was the one who let him down, not the other way around.”
    2. the author feels as though Susan wrote the book to explain her actions after the shooting and to justify her son's actions and how it affected her, especially when she claims her son had a "brain illness" to try to justify the shooting and she talks about her "suffering panic attacks so debilitating she came to understand her son’s suicidal impulses". In addition, she uses her pain and suffering to cover up the issue at hand which is why her son did what he did.
    3. The author gives examples of how she suffered because of the actions such as getting threatening letters directly after the shooting, experiencing panic attacks and constantly quoting her as she tells that she questions herself daily.
    4.She uses rhetorical questions to get the audience thinking about Susan's story or point of view and to emphasize the argument that the author is portraying.
    5. is a fallacy in which an irrelevant topic is presented in order to divert attention from the original issue.
    6. I agree, the media always calls "mental health" when there is a mass shooting in a public place instead of asking how'd he get the gun? how can we prevent or put stricter restrictions on guns? but the media would rather call mental health than saying gun control was the issue because everyone uses the excuse of the 2nd amendment right.The book was written to give insight of life after the Columbine shooting and how it changed her life and to communicate with the victim's families because she didn't address after the incident happened in comparison to the Harris's.
    7. The author characterizes her as a person who want pity and empathy from others and she thinks Susan let her motherly instinct cloud her judgement of what her son was experiencing. She is justified because instead of apologizing to the families on behalf of her son, she writes a book about what she went through and suicide prevention and noticing the "signs", it was slightly selfish.

    Teriana Moore

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  42. mills harrison
    1.the author is Susan Dominus. the intended audience were those who wandered what Dylans home life was like and those who wandered why he would do this with a good life and what kinda of home life do psychopaths have.the purpose of this was to show that everyone is effected the same by tragedies . the rhetorical strategies used in the article are pathos and ethos and these appeals are created by the use of person experiences. " might people say you were a terrible and neglectful parents,"
    2. sympathetic, because she feels that every parent would have done the same.she asked the question "what would they do differently.
    3.when mrs kelbold says that she must first forgive herself before she can forgive dylan.
    4.to make you question your self on that before judging every one needs to know that she did what any mother would do.
    5. a form of writing or argumentation that causes the reader to be destracted from the true issue
    6.no the real reason is to tell the audience that the people who do these things are us
    7. she characterizes her as a normal mom and yes because she followed her maternal instincts just as a true mother would.

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  43. Dillon Baker
    1. The author is someone who is knowledgeable of criminal mindsets and why they act the way they do. The intended audience is those who believe criminals may have become the way they are because of upbringing only, blaming it all on the parent. The purpose is to inform the audience that it is not always the parents fault as some don't even truly know theyre kids until its too late. The rhetorical strategies used are references to Dylans upbringing and how he had a very good home life so that could not have cause him to commit the act.
    2. At first one may think that the author is blaming Klebold but it eventually turns into a sympathetic tone that clearly shows the authors sympathy to Klebold.
    3. She is receiving many horrible letters from people that is causing her to become sick, afraid, and suicidal.
    4. The questions cause the audience to stop and rethink their blaming of Klebold for Dylans actions and then makes it clear that Klebold really could not have either made or stopped Dylan from becoming a killer.
    5. Steals the readers attention and turns it to something else that is of more importance
    6. No I do not agree. Dylan and Eric clearly had mental issues and besides a maniac is going to get their hands on weapons one way or another. The book was simply Klebolds feelings after the event and it told her story.
    7. She characterizes Klebold as a caring, but now broken, mother who blames herself for Dylans actions. This characterization is accurate because Dylan clearly had a good home life which could not have caused his atrocious acts.

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