Plastic Bags Are Good For You Summary

In Katherine Mangu-Ward’s article, “Plastic Bags are Good for You” she argues that plastic bags are better than paper bags because they’re cheaper for stores to distribute, they can hold items that are twice its own weight, and they can be used for other household necessities. Mangu-Ward makes reasonable points and provides a lot of information in her article, but she does not have reliable sources that supports her claims. Also she does not cite the sources she is getting her information from. The organization of her article is not successful, and the language she uses throughout the article is not effective. Mangu-Ward claims that plastic bags are “one of the most efficient, resource-saving inventions of the 20th century”, however she does not cite the source she uses that supports this statement. Also in her research she uses a book written by journalist Vince Staten to help support her argument. Journals are popular sources to use. However, journals are mostly targeted at a specific audience, making it biased and not reliable. The organization a writer puts into his/her paper or article can also determine its success and reliability. The writer was successful in gathering as much information as she could, but too much information at once can make the reader lose
Rather than stating actual facts she jokes about environmentalist taking plastic bags too seriously because of animals health risk to pollution. Mangu-Ward says, “porpoises and sea turtles are undeniably charismatic megafauna- the pandas of the deep- and it’s understandable that environmental groups would want to parade them around in a bid to drum up sympathy”. This can give the writer a sense that she is not serious and or doesn't care. Also the writer admits that she is washing a load of reusable grocery bags while writing her article. This basically discredits everything she wrote and the reader will not take her