English assignment
Homework1: What Others are Saying
Please see the accompanying pdf, “They Say, I Say (Ch. 1),” and complete Exercise 1
beginning on page 26. Write out the sentences a-g using the template language from earlier
in the chapter. Then add one more sentence (f), that gives your (provisional) central claim
for your essay, again using the template language. Do not do exercise 2.
Homework 2: Body Paragraphs
A body paragraph typically includes what 3 parts?
What 4 questions should you ask yourself about determining the purpose of a body
paragraph?
What are 8 useful approaches for concluding an essay?
Given the topic and purpose of Essay 1, which 2 or 3 strategies from the 8 are you
considering using to conclude Essay 1?
Homework 4 Due Monday 14th
COVID Info Links
Data Trackers
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
Assigned Materials
http://somatosphere.net/2020/mild-covid.html/
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-su
pport-groups-symptoms/615382/
https://www.semiovox.com/articles/2020/04/22/pharmacist-vs-guru/
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-american
s-cdc-data.html
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-rural-cal
ifornia
Further Journalism
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/
615637/
Summaries and Discussion of Peer-Reviewed Medical Articles
https://www.reddit.com/r/COVID19/
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
http://somatosphere.net/2020/mild-covid.html/
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-support-groups-symptoms/615382/
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-support-groups-symptoms/615382/
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-americans-cdc-data.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-americans-cdc-data.html
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-rural-california
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-rural-california
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/615637/
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/615637/
https://www.reddit.com/r/COVID19/
PERCEIVINGCOVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 1
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY
Nanor Petrossian
Woodbury University WRIT 313
September 14, 2020
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 2
Abstract
Ever since the emergence of coronavirus, it spread across the globe quicker than anticipated.
Some countries were hit harder than others due to lack of sufficient medical resources and
medical workforce to curb the disease in its early phases of spread. Approximately 213 countries
worldwide have registered cases of the pandemic. As of August 2020, there have been 29 million
cases, 900,000 deaths and 21 million recoveries. Despite the pandemic being a serious concern,
there has been a lot of politics and social issues surrounding the coronavirus pandemic that
changed its perception and response. A lot of world organizations such as U.N. joined hands with
philanthropists in different parts of the world to assist some of the less privileged countries to
fight COVID-19. However, the pandemic created an opportunity for a hidden political agenda in
some countries. Mistrust between government, health sector and citizens started materializing.
Most vaccines are either in their trial stages in some of the countries with resources to
successfully conduct the activity. During the early months of spread, contact tracing was
challenging, but with an advanced technological approach, it is easy to track COVID-19 victims.
The perception of the virus has been distorted, with some of the citizens feeling insecure with the
whole process of contact tracing and reported COVID-19 cases.
Perceiving COVID-19 Differently
The United States of America continues to be the leading country in terms of coronavirus
cases globally, registering 6.7 million cases. India and Brazil follow closely with 4 million cases
each (Worldmeter). There have been some improvements in terms of response to the coronavirus
Alexei Nowak
It feels like the abstract here is really the introduction. You can make this the start of the main essay, and add a new, shorter abstract, which simply highlights the main ideas of the essay.
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 3
in some countries than others. Countries like China had started with higher cases forcing
complete lockdown. The lockdown resulted in the country being able to reduce the spread of
coronavirus. Death cases in Italy during the first few months of the pandemic were worrying
enough, but current statistics reveal the situation is having turned out for the better. The United
Nations has been at the forefront of assisting African countries with medical kits as well as funds
to fight coronavirus. South Africa is the leading African country in terms of COVID-19 cases.
Latinos and blacks were among the most affected people per ten-thousand-person sample
collected in America. COVID-19 cases in America have been nothing short of drama and
politicization, which has raised a lot of questions.
Contact tracing in America was not as effective as Asian countries where phones could
easily be tracked. The failure of America in establishing a proper manner for tracing coronavirus
victims and people they shared close encounters was fueled by mistrust according to reports (The
Atlantic, Khazan, 2020). Some of the health facilities and organizations that had been given the
mandate to conduct contact tracing were less known to the public, igniting fear. Studies also
reveal that a significant number of U.S. residents reached by contact tracers do not answer their
phones. The lack of cooperation is being witnessed in Philadelphia, New Jersey, Houston,
Maryland and even Miami. Even some of the COVID-19 patients were willing to go an extra
length to protect their loved ones by refusing to disclose the required information. Comparing the
rate of responsiveness of the United States to other countries like New Zealand or Iceland, the
superpower has failed tremendously.
Alexei Nowak
rephrase
Alexei Nowak
The sentences on China and Italy made sense together because they were the first two places with large, out-of-control outbreaks. But as the paragraph goes on it feels like a list of many different unrelated things. Reconsider what is the main topic of this paragraph, and revise to keep that topic at the forefront.
Alexei Nowak
Explain why this is (since the countries all have the same technology)
Alexei Nowak
Explain. Isn’t fear an understandable and even appropriate response to a pandemic?
Alexei Nowak
Why “even” Miami?
Alexei Nowak
Explain how this protected loved ones.
Alexei Nowak
Yes, definitely. To show what you mean, maybe insert a sentence directly before this one, where you reiterate that what you talk about in this paragraph has led to the most deaths in the world.
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 4
Racial disparity in regards to COVID-19 cases was another horror that the U.S. was facing
in fighting the pandemic. The blacks and Latinos as statistics revealed were registering twice the
number of infections of the whites. Death rates followed the same trend, and in hospitals, the
number of the two minority groups was confirmed to be higher. Federal data revealed
African-Americans and Latinos across different regions in America recorded the disparity when
compared against the whites. The repetitive trend was a clear indication that something was not
being done in the required manner. Factors leading to such trends in statistics put a lot of
institutions into question including some of the governing bodies in charge. Some of the
African-American leaders came up to address the elephant in the room. Kansas City mayor
Quinton Lucas termed it as ‘systematic racism’ which was extending beyond the criminal justice
structures. There was no justified explanation to illustrate how the discriminated groups ended up
being vulnerable to the pandemic (The New York Times, Oppel et al., 2020).
While COVID-19 got the attention of people worldwide, a sense of humor could not be
withheld by some group of people. New cases continue to stream in, mortality rates increasing
daily as recoveries also provide a beacon of hope. Memes were created despite the trying
moments that not only made people smile but also gave the perception of people (Josh, 2020).
There have been serious pandemics before coronavirus graced the world. COVID-19 offset the
status quo by being highly contagious to the extent of not allowing time for control measures to
be effectively implemented. Contact tracing failure in America might have contributed to the
spread of the virus at a faster rate. Advertising bodies and agencies failed to package the
conveyance of the crucial matter in the right format. Funny memes followed, and the struggle to
Alexei Nowak
This sentence is very true, but is this a topic sentence that shows how this paragraph links to the previous paragraph and to the overall essay? The way it reads here, as the topic sentence, sounds like the purpose of the essay is to point out all the several failures of the U.S. during the pandemic. That could be a good thesis, but you would want to announce it at the beginning.
Alexei Nowak
use different word
Alexei Nowak
This paragraph feels less integrated than the previous paragraphs. Note repetition in some of the sentences (especially about memes). What is the main idea of this paragraph and how does it fit in the essay?
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 5
convince a vast majority of Americans became real. The call for action by advertising brands
was not impactful as response discourse revealed. A lot of people spend most of their time online
since the emergence of coronavirus. A lot of people were laid off at work as some companies
closed down for a time until COVID-19 curve had flattened. Blog Posts and all forms of media
advertisement received attention like never before. While some brands were determined in
creating awareness of the pandemic, some people were quick to create humor out of the serious
matter. Failure to properly convey the message did little in keeping American on toes. Perception
of coronavirus in America was blurred, and everyone would feel the consequences.
I believe that the government is at the core of the pandemic hammering the United States
despite the country having the potential to curb the virus. The government was reluctant in
spending its resources on contact tracing. The pay for contact tracers was not enough to motivate
their drive-in service delivery. Rising cases for coronavirus meant an increase in contact tracing
cases which became overwhelming (The Atlantic, Yong, 2020). Rescuing America from the
pandemic was not an easy task for contact tracers. The U.S. government was trying to use
contact tracing on a population that already had skyrocketing cases. None of the countries that
had managed successful contact tracing did it after the cases had reached that of America. In
Texas, for instance, some of the days registered a maximum of 15000 new cases daily. It is
difficult for contact tracers to follow up on such cases via calls only, which the U.S. wanted to
achieve the impossible.
Another area that the government failed that changed people’s perception was in testing
duration before results were obtained. It took a very long time for patients to be informed about
Alexei Nowak
This is the thesis. Reorganize the essay to make this point from the beginning. See final comment.
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 6
their COVID-19 status. The United States of America is bigger than Iceland in terms of
geographical size and resources, yet the latter surpassed the former in the testing strategy.
American healthcare did not provide the mechanism for quickly testing and quarantining of
positive cases. Spreading of the virus in the United States was a matter of negligence by the
government and health sector to some point. It was understandable why the government did not
appeal to the desire of its citizens. Not all members of the government and health sector speak in
a harmonious tone, as some do not show any sign of tension concerning COVID-19. The same
mistrust got replicated on the citizens. The emergence of videos and blogs against the
government portraying the virus as a conspiracy, made some groups develop hatred for the
government.
Racial disparity is also tied to government action, another web of misfortune. The
communities that had a huge percentage of inhabitants of minority groups were less tested.
African-Americans registering a higher mortality rate is due to suffering from preexisting health
conditions such as obesity, heart disease, asthma and diabetes. The virus becomes lethal when an
individual has preexisting health conditions (Callard, 2020). The neighborhood of Latinos and
African-Americans are not supplied with sufficient healthcare to cater to their needs. The
inequality of resources subjects the minorities to health conditions twice or more that of the
whites. COVID-19 tests were administered selectively across America, based on race and
employment rate. ZIP Codes that had more whites residents were frequented by health workers
conducting teasing as well as contact tracing. The situation was different for neighborhoods with
minorities or higher unemployment rates. Some blacks had established that they were more
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 7
vulnerable to the disease than any other race. Sixty-three per cent of COVID-19 infection in Kent
County is accounted for by Blacks and Latinos. Government’s unpreparedness and inequality of
services distribution made fighting COVID-19 a debacle (Vives, 2020).
It is never too late for the United States to change the narrative as the country has the
potential of reversing the situation. Dead people cannot be brought back to life but trying to save
the lives of individuals that are still breathing is possible. The government should take the mantle
of leadership as it has always done and served as an example to other nations. Winning the trust
of American citizens may take more than a single act. The president and his administration
should tighten their grip on the health sector. A lot of lives that the nation has lost due to the
pandemic are situations that could have been dealt with beforehand. Contact tracing was not
successful because the government failed to recognize its importance at that time. Also, the
government needs to eliminate racial discrimination across all platforms. It is disheartening that
some minority groups feel they are vulnerable to coronavirus compared to the whites. For the
fight of the pandemic to be successful, the government has the biggest role to undertake.
Misconceptions and distorted perception about the seriousness of the matter require the health
sector and government collaborating to ensure the right message is delivered. Even with vaccines
underway, chances of such a pandemic happening again in future is likely. The United States
needs to be fully prepared and equipped to address such national issues without reluctance
moving forward.
Alexei Nowak
Very good work on this first draft. You have brought together many types of sources, and the essay builds to a compelling conclusion. The first half of the essay is presented like background information, and the argument really gets going in the second half (from middle of page 5). For revising, reorganize the essay so that you articulate your central argument—your criticisms of the U.S. govt’s handling of the pandemic—right from the beginning. As it is now, you cover each topic twice, so that there is an early paragraph about contact tracing and then another paragraph in the second half with your argument about it (and they actually seem to contradict each other—in the early paragraph you say the U.S. could not have tracked phones, but then later you say the U.S. should have done more), and the same for race. Integrate these so that you discuss the contact tracing and give your argument about it at the same time, before moving on to race, where you should do the same. The paragraph about social media is the least clear—you can consider removing it if it doesn’t relate to your central argument about government failure. Note that the abstract here feels more like a paragraph that belongs in the main essay, and you can write a new abstract of just 4 sentences or so, just telling the reader what the major points of the essay are. Keep up the good work!
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 8
References
coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
Callard, F. (2020). “Very, very mild: Covid-19 symptoms and illness classification.”
somatosphere.net/2020/mild-covid.html/
Vives, R. (2020). “Underserved and underfunded’: Inside California’s county hit hardest by
COVID-19.”
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-ru
ral-california
Khazan, O. “The Most American COVID-19 Failure Yet.” The Atlantic.
www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/61
5637/
Oppel (2020). “The Fullest Look Yet at the Racial Inequity of Coronavirus.” The New
York Times.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-americans-c
dc-data.html
Josh, Glenn. (2020). “Thick Description.”
www.semiovox.com/articles/2020/04/22/pharmacist-vs-guru/
Yong, E. (2020). “Long-Haulers Are Redefining COVID-19.”
www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-supp
ort-groups-symptoms/615382/
www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
https://coronavirus.jhu.edu/map.html
http://somatosphere.net/2020/mild-covid.html/
http://somatosphere.net/2020/mild-covid.html/
http://somatosphere.net/2020/mild-covid.html/
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-rural-california
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-rural-california
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-07-28/imperial-county-coronavirus-rural-california
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/615637/
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/615637/
https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2020/08/contact-tracing-hr-6666-working-us/615637/
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-americans-cdc-data.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-americans-cdc-data.html
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/07/05/us/coronavirus-latinos-african-americans-cdc-data.html
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-support-groups-symptoms/615382/
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-support-groups-symptoms/615382/
https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2020/08/long-haulers-covid-19-recognition-support-groups-symptoms/615382/
https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
PERCEIVING COVID-19 DIFFERENTLY 9