In September 11th- A National Tragedy, James Peck writes about how the tragic event, September 11th has affected our world today. Peck states that tragedy is a word that has commonly been overused by Americans throughout news articles and magazines when a significant event happens. When referring to September 11th, the crashing of the twin towers, this is a tragic event.
Peck states, “I do know life is life and theatre is theatre” (735), but we as Americans immediately turn life events into narrations where we ourselves play the roles of the characters and the plot is the problem that is affecting us in our life. Turning significant events into narrations allows Americans to replay events and go over them constantly throughout their lifetime. Many victims were injured on September 11th and in order to remember that day we tell the story frequently on the news and throughout the news paper remembering the disastrous event. “Stories are, among many other things, templates of behavior” (Peck 735). We as Americans have no choice but to put events into context.
Peck states “Tragedy is above all a genre of suffering and witness. A form of lamentation, it facilitates mourning and generates memories.” (735). By stating this we are able to understand that in suffering we continuing mourn while being able to recall the memories of our family member or loved ones that suffered from the twin towers. It makes people doubt opinions they stand by and believe they are failing them, whether it is religious views or a certain belief.
Although September 11th was a heartbreaking event, Peck states “I think this ought to be the tenor of our discourse in the wake of September 11th” (736). Many Americans have mourned over the loss of victims but many Americans lives were altered by this awful incident. We as Americans have benefited by having military personal patrol airports and having better security throughout the country. The attackers have been condemned allowing us to
Cited: James Peck. “September 11th-a National Tragedy?” Writing Analytically with Readings. 2nd Ed. Eds. David Rossenwasser and Jill Stephen. Boston: Wadsworth, 2012. 734-740. Print