the esaay of esssays
English 101.3732/3772/MAT 096 Cluster—Public Health and Nutrition
Spring 1 2009/ Andrew McCormick, Instructor
Final In-Class Essay: Fast Food Nation
Choose one of the topics below, and brainstorm, plan and write an argumentative, thesis-driven essay of at least 600 words. You may use your copy of FFN; you will have two hours. Your essay, as always, should:
Provide a short, separate introduction that presents the issue and then segues into an explicit thesis with several concrete reasons to back it up.
Develop each reason in a body paragraph that offers textual evidence (quotes and/or paraphrases) and your own analysis of the issue.
Provide a conclusion summarizing your main points and leaving a closing thought.
Don’t forget to proofread for grammar errors, as they can bring your grade down. Good luck!
Topic A: Fast Food and Worker Safety
In the Fast Food Nation chapter “The Most Dangerous Job,” Eric Schlosser describes the gruelling, exploitive, injury-laden, low-paying jobs of meat-packing workers who handle the cattle that eventually become hamburgers. Schlosser explains how—for different reasons—the OSHA has been unable to enforce effective safety regulations needed to protect workers. Based on this chapter, discuss why the OSHA must have stricter regulations for the meatpacking industry. How has the OSHA been disempowered? To what extent has this federal agency’s enforcement abilities been reduced, and with what consequences? How will giving OSHA more power benefit the employees and the general public? What particular industries and jobs especially need OSHA to be given more enforcement powers? Why? Provide several (at least two or three) specific reasons to support this claim, and, of course, quote and paraphrase from FFN to develop your argument.
Topic B: There’s S**t in the Meat!
As we have read about and discussed this semester, one major problem with the largely unregulated fast food industry is that—in the words of a character
Spring 1 2009/ Andrew McCormick, Instructor
Final In-Class Essay: Fast Food Nation
Choose one of the topics below, and brainstorm, plan and write an argumentative, thesis-driven essay of at least 600 words. You may use your copy of FFN; you will have two hours. Your essay, as always, should:
Provide a short, separate introduction that presents the issue and then segues into an explicit thesis with several concrete reasons to back it up.
Develop each reason in a body paragraph that offers textual evidence (quotes and/or paraphrases) and your own analysis of the issue.
Provide a conclusion summarizing your main points and leaving a closing thought.
Don’t forget to proofread for grammar errors, as they can bring your grade down. Good luck!
Topic A: Fast Food and Worker Safety
In the Fast Food Nation chapter “The Most Dangerous Job,” Eric Schlosser describes the gruelling, exploitive, injury-laden, low-paying jobs of meat-packing workers who handle the cattle that eventually become hamburgers. Schlosser explains how—for different reasons—the OSHA has been unable to enforce effective safety regulations needed to protect workers. Based on this chapter, discuss why the OSHA must have stricter regulations for the meatpacking industry. How has the OSHA been disempowered? To what extent has this federal agency’s enforcement abilities been reduced, and with what consequences? How will giving OSHA more power benefit the employees and the general public? What particular industries and jobs especially need OSHA to be given more enforcement powers? Why? Provide several (at least two or three) specific reasons to support this claim, and, of course, quote and paraphrase from FFN to develop your argument.
Topic B: There’s S**t in the Meat!
As we have read about and discussed this semester, one major problem with the largely unregulated fast food industry is that—in the words of a character