Help with a freshman definitional essay. (mature theme) - Writers Forum

Shoujoka · 03-10-2008, 05:00 PM

So I've been struggling with writer's block lately and it has been making any scholastic or journalistic attempts really difficult. I'm working on a 5-page definitional essay due tomorrow morning and I've seem to hit a road block. We're covering "Revolutions in Marriage and Family" and my teacher wants me to write a fiercely argumentative definitional essay that covers a controversial topic. She seems very flexible though, and it's hard to say what exactly she wants.

We covered gay marriage to the ends of the Earth in class, so I want to aim for creativity points and write an essay on how a law prohibiting abortions in the United States would lead to the disintegration of family values in the United States.

Note: I'm not stating my stance on this and I do not want this to turn into a giant anti-abortion debate. She said controversial, and by that she usually means liberal.

Basically, I have my outline set up and I'm having trouble fleshing out the paragraphs.

Introduction
Roe v. Wade has been one of the most heavily debated Supreme Court cases in history. In the early 1970's, abortion was illegal in Texas and several other states. If this restriction on women's rights had continued post the sexual revolution of the 1960's, family values would have disintegrated rapidly as more and more women started having families before they were ready. The pro-life argument endorsing a law to illegalize abortion again contradicts American family values. A family is a group of people living together sharing a common sense of love and support, often a family is what makes or breaks a child. Restricting a women's right to abort an unwanted pregnancy will lead to an outbreak of broken families who are raising children with limited opportunities.

(Here I go into structure, each * followed by a topic sentence will be it's own couple paragraphs.)

Love
A fundamental part of what makes a successful family is a communal sense of love leading to a general feeling of well-being within the household. Key terms to note in that sentence are successful, love and household.
*Purposefully bearing an innocent life into a broken household. (single-parent with no child support, teenage pregnancy, no opportunity for both father and mother experiences)
*Bitterness and resentment towards the child because it was not wanted and completely altered the desired path of the parent.
*Records that demonstrate that parents who were not able to have abortions exercise child abuse most.

Support
*Cost of raising a child vs. cost of living.
*Missing out on the support/time/opportunities a two-family household can offer.
*Overpopulation and resource scarcity down the road ($4 gas prices)

Adoption
Is putting up a child for adoption crueler than aborting a fetus?
*State of adoption centers. Cite Skeels & Dye's study of a classified "good" Iowa adoption center where the children spend most of their time in sterilized cribs but taken very good care of. (fed/washed/changed/etc.) The link to mental retardation as a result of social deprivation.
*Psychological trauma from adoption. (Am I wanted? syndrome)

Conclusion.

----

I have sources to back up the cost of living and adoption argument which would make them simple to write, but I'm struggling through the "love" portion. Possibly because it's the last black and white of the three.

Writer's block (a result of rusty practice, I've been struggling with carpal tunnel) is hindering me a lot write now. I look at the screen blankly wishing for something to come out. Can anyone offer me and advice and/or guidance in terms of this paper?

Thanks so much!

Sam Winchester · 03-10-2008, 06:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shoujoka

Love
A fundamental part of what makes a successful family is a communal sense of love leading to a general feeling of well-being within the household. Key terms to note in that sentence are successful, love and household.
*Purposefully bearing an innocent life into a broken household. (single-parent with no child support, teenage pregnancy, no opportunity for both father and mother experiences)
*Bitterness and resentment towards the child because it was not wanted and completely altered the desired path of the parent.
*Records that demonstrate that parents who were not able to have abortions exercise child abuse most.

Are those two pieces of information actually factual, or just something you believe? Abortion is not one of my favourite topics, because I believe that the only time it should be allowed is if the baby is endangering the mother's life. However, since you specifically said that you don't want to turn this into a pro-anti-abortion thread, I won't say much more in regards to that.

I think, basically, what you're asking here is that you want someone to give you a few pointers on how to start your section on 'love'. Very well. Hopefully this piece will jump-start your brain.

'Recent abortion studies have shown that children born from unwanted pregnancies are held in disdain by their parents. This discovery has illustrated the shocking realisation that some parents blame the child for ruining their lives, and keeping them from achieving their goals. Even more shocking, similar studies have determined that a significant number of these children are both physically and sexually abused by one or both parents.

A fundamental part of properly raising a child is giving it a loving environment in which to grow up in. Denying a child this will have implications which will stretch far longer into adult life. Coupled with the abuse, this will render the child one of two things: socially awkward, or violently unpredictable.'

I hope this helps. I know it's a little off-subject, and not much, but it's all I could think of at present.

Sam.

Shoujoka · 03-10-2008, 06:09 PM

You are absolutely right Sam, shortly after posting this I began searching for facts to back up my "child abuse" claim and I came up with absolutely nothing. Knowing it's crucial to the pathos in my argument I decided to go at it not from a "this happens" angle but that neglect and child abuse wouldn't be prevalent in a family that a) actively wanted the child in the first place and b) was financially, emotionally, physically and mentally ready for a child.

I took your advice and managed this:

Love
*Purposefully bearing an innocent life into a broken household.
A fundamental part of what makes a successful family is a communal sense of love leading to a general feeling of well-being within the household. Key terms to note in that sentence are successful, love and household. To restrict abortions would be to indirectly allow and endorse children being born into a family that never had any intention or desire to raise it. The potentional pro-life law fails to protect children from the risk of growing up in an intentionally fatherless, motherless or even homeless family.

*Bitterness and resentment towards the child because it was not wanted and completely altered the desired path of the parent.
Depending on the psychological situation and/or maturity level of the parent, the child could be subjected to verbal and physical abuse as a result of resentment on the part of the parent. Cases of abuse and neglect demonstrate the actions of a parent dealing with the responsibility of a child he or she was not ready for. A law forcing a child to indirectly pay for his or her parents mistakes (and my mind trails here).

I absolutely love your closing, I'm looking up statistics right now. And thanks for honoring my wish, very admirable of you.

amalie_bowers · 04-22-2008, 02:42 AM

This is a great sample of argumentative essay. From the term itself, "argument" should be controversial and debatable enough for your readers. This kind of essay tries to persuade its reader in order to make them believe on whatever the writer is trying to say.

This is a good sample for the fact that we made some research after reading your essay.