Question 3 from the 2009 Form B asks us to "support, refute, or qualify Ehrenreich's assertions about television." We are given a passage from Barbara Ehrenreich's The Worst Years of Our Lives that talks about how Americans have become couch potatoes.
Student Response 3A had a great introduction, using rhetorical questions to clearly show the author's position on the issue. The student refuted specific quotes while also using examples to qualify his own perspective. This essay received an 8.
Student Response 3B said that Fox News was good TV, which makes it really difficult for me to take them seriously, but nevertheless, it was a decent essay. The student definitely took a clear stand, but maybe did not back it up as interestingly or intelligently as 3A did. The introduction and conclusion could have been stronger. This essay received a 5.
Student Response 3C did not even answer the question. They put their own views on television into the essay, but they did not relate those views to Ehrenreich's opinion. They misinterpreted some part, and did not understand the argument. This essay received a 2.
If I was writing this essay, I would choose to qualify the argument. The 3A and 3B responses both seemed to refute the argument. I don't know what was going on in 3C, but I would not do that either. Here are some ideas I would mention:
- "I don't mean that it is two-dimensional or lacks a well-developed critique of the capitalist consumer culture or something superficial like that." This quote made me laugh, and none of the responses mentioned it. No one mentioned Ehrenreich's sarcasm. Obviously television does lack a critique of the capitalist consumer culture (and the culture, not the critique of it, is superficial). In fact, television leads many people to buy into the consumer culture - here I would talk about advertisements. Ehrenreich then goes on to complain about the lack of television-watching on television. Sarcastically addressing this argument shows that many are more focused on watching the television than the greater problems surrounding it.
- Ehrenreich mentions that people actually did things outside before the television era. This would be part of me "yes, but" - yes television is bad for the people who are couch potatoes, but if you take it sparingly, there is not a large problem. People still go outside. And television only shows the good parts of life, which are still there, because there are hour long shows that displays entire lives. Television is used to show us something, even if that something is bad, but it can sometimes be good, but I would say it more intelligently than that because right now I am running out of time and writing on a blog.
- I would end with answered the question she poses, "why do we keep on watching?" And then I would go back to why watching is good/bad, qualifying her argument.
I think (I hope) I would do decently on this question, if I got my thoughts together.
