Torri Burke Mr. Anderson AP English Language and Composition, Period 2 Wednesday, October 31, 2007

Are We Ready to Lose the Soul of America?

When we see pictures of the destroyed ruins of former New Orleans, it aggravates us that nothing has been done. The United Stated has not done enough to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina, when they are in a time of need. New Orleans is an icon of Southern life, it accommodates the culture and history of Jazz music, and it thoughts (throws?) the biggest party. New Orleans, now in devastation, needs to be rebuilt. Rebuilding New Orleans would be a chance for the city to improve and grow for the better. Tourism, the people that live there, and the historical district of the city will once again come to life once it is brought back to its former glory. People come from all around the world to see the history of the city. The history district of the city has helped build much of America’s culture. Tourists come and pay money to see and experience the history. Tom Piazza wrote in Why New Orleans Matters, “If you are adventuresome and you know where to go, you can find the houses of Jelly Roll Morton, Buddy Bolden, and the rest of the earliest generations of jazz musicians (Document B).” Jazz music, a popular genre today, was founded in New Orleans. Jazz fans travel to the city to walk down the streets Louis Armstrong once played on, and they pay to eat at the restaurants that King Oliver’s Creole jazz band used to eat at. People admire the city’s wealth of history, and the foundation of American music. Piazza states numerous fathers of jazz to emphasize the amount (WW) of history of music the city holds. The spirit of the music is found in the city. To keep the spirit there and the fans visiting, we need to keep the spirit alive by rebuilding the city. Additionally, New Orleans’ visitors will gain an understanding of American culture, which they will not have the opportunity to do if the city stays in ruins. In his book Why New Orleans Matters, Tom Piazza states, “Elements of New Orleans possess an astonishing vitality that has spoken to people around the world and has shaped much of the best of what we still think of as American culture. Jazz music, rhythm and

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blues, rock and roll, creole cooking, Mardi Gras, the architecture of the French Quarter (Document B).” Aspects of music, food, and literature coming from New Orleans pulls in many visitors. Chararistics (sp) of the city is what draws the attention of people. Learning form and experiencing the party of Mardi Gras, reading literature that was written or inspired there, and walking down streets where great architecture was built are (notice that you have three subjects in parallel, requiring the plural verb) what makes New Orleans real. Leaving the city in debris will take away characteristics from the city. Furthermore, when national disasters occur, many people have sympathy and like to help out with what they can. In Recovering New Orleans, Thomas J. Campanella stated, “New Orleans… will even benefit from a surge of “sympathy tourism,” such as New York did following 9/11 (Document E).” When there was a horrible event in New York, millions went and paid their dues to the people who lost their lives, and for the firefighters that risked their own lives to save others. Campanella believes that New Orleans will receive the same sympathy from people across the nation. Many caring people will do what they can, and they will not let New Orleans be left the way it is. After a national disaster, there is an abundance of money and power following (what?). New Orleans’ tourism was huge before Hurricane Katrina, and now that it has been destroyed, it has gained even more tourism, not for the same reasons as it did before, but to put the city back together. Even more than 9/11, the public will concentrate on building a new New Orleans. In Recovering New Orleans, Thomas J. Campanella stated, “Public attention will undoubtedly be focused on the rehabilitation of iconic New Orleans (Document E).” The cleanup of the city happened almost immediately after the city was drained. Charities and fundraisers were in effect promptly after the hurricane hit. People did not let this national disaster slip by in the shadows. If there was so much time and money spent by so many people, it would be immoral for us to just stop the process of the new construction now. People have lived their lives in New Orleans. It would be inhumane and wrong to force them away from the only place they have ever known as home. The residents of the city are the people that make the soul of the city. These people have houses, lives, families, and memories in New Orleans, and to force them away from that because the city was going to be left in rubble would be cruel. In Recovering New Orleans, Thomas

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J. Campanella stated, “Residents of these places may have been poor, but they were an essential part of the… culture and traditions (Document E).” The people who live there are the people who keep the history alive, and they are the people that know firsthand the culture of the South. If these people are (never, never use “get” as a verb in academic style) displaced throughout the United States, we will lose so much over time. The people will only remember the great city by stories and pictures that have been passed down (a memory cannot be passed down). If the city of New Orleans is left as nothing, and people are permanently sent away from their homes, they will have nothing to look back on. They will lose their childhood, and their children will not be able to share in the same experiences they had a chance to experience. People know the city will be rebuilt whether it has good chances of surviving another hurricane or not. In Rebuilding New Orleans: Iowans Join the Debate, Bonnie Harris and Jane Norman state (plural subject requires plural verb), “It will be put back together. In shambles now, New Orleans will eventually be rebuilt, one way or another. (Document C).” People will not leave a city so full of history, culture, and meaning in shambles. Americans feel the need to help out people that are affected by national disasters. There is no doubt that the city will be rebuilt. People know that America will be losing so much if the city of New Orleans is not reconstructed. New Orleans, an icon for the rest of American cities is in the need of our help. It needs, and will be brought back from the broken pieces Katrina left it in. Being part of America means to help others that are in need of help. If New Orleans goes any longer in the rubble it is in today, it will start to lose all the attributes it once held. Losing so much and not trying to gain it back is not American, and is not right. New Orleans needs our help, the people of New Orleans needs our help. The city needs to be what it once was! Torri, Your argument is well done. You state your subject well and keep focused on that subject throughout. Support is good as is explanation. Even though the explanation of the support of some reasons could be expanded, overall, you have done a great job and should be proud of yourself. Excellent control of language (but there are mistakes as I have noted). Style is academic throughout. A strong point.

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Grade 7 A- 97/100