1. Why did The New Republic include the first paragraph? Do you think the essay would be more or less effective if it began simply with the sentence "On July 27, 1995, my sixteen-year -old nephew was shot and paralyzed"?Dickerson had her first paragraph as it was to show us her background before she talks about the issued at hand. She wants to show us that she is well-educated and that she has worked her way through life to get a respectable job despite having few privileges in childhood. She tells us this so that we know that ...view middle of the document...
Instead she shows that she is educated and that her family acted morally and were the victims of some gang bangers.2. Dickerson feels--and expresses--anger throughout this essay. How? Against what or whom?Dickerson expresses her feelings of anger not only toward the person who shot Johnny but to everyone who does such things. Her anger is directed at individuals who steal, beat, rape, murder. She is angry at everyone who has ever ruined the lives of others. She refers to these people as "He" or "brother". She refers to them as this because she feels they are all the same and have no individuality and are "total losers".3. Why does Dickerson use the term "brother" in the final paragraphs? How does this composite characterization work? How does it answer the question "Who shot Johnny?"Dickerson uses the term brother to refer to those individuals which she considers to be plaguing our communities. The composite or fused characterization of these people is brought about by referring to them as "he" or "brother". This helps to answer the question "Who shot Johnny?" The answer is: everyone who Dickerson considers to plague society; she holds no individual responsible.
