Introduction
The piece of work written by Naomi Shihab Nye is called “To Any Would-Be Terrorists”. The author is an Arab-American freelance writer who has received various awards for her texts and has traveled a lot around the country and the world working as a guest writer in educational institutions (“Naomi Shihab Nye,” n.d.). The main point of Nye in terms of the current letter is her powerful allusion to those people who have become extremists or intend to be terrorists.
The work was written after the attacks of September 11. Naomi Shihab Nye provided numerous examples of why terrorism and violence had to be stopped immediately and why this issue was critical. Importantly, imagery and personification are the two approaches that allowed the author to create such a powerful open letter to terrorists. Overall, the essay carries a significant message; however, the author did not build her argumentation using strong stylistic or rhetorical devices. Nevertheless, the essay has an important meaning and is relevant for modernity. The purpose of this paper is to review this piece of writing by Naomi Shihab Nye.
Summary
Being an American citizen with Palestinian roots, the author tried to speak openly about the implications of terrorism. Notably, the letter did not only address those who wanted to join extremists but also those people whose families had suffered from violence and who had certain and understandable fears connected to their future lives (Shihab Nye, n.d.). The thesis can be concluded to the author’s statement that all people are made out of the same flesh, and all human beings have been born equal. The country of origin, race, religion, income, or any other factor plays no role, and it should not divide people.
Alluding to the events of September 11, Naomi Shihab Nye recalls the horrors and sufferings experienced by all people who were somehow affected by these actions (Shihab Nye, n.d.). While trying to address the extremist audience, the writer resorted to the strong methods of personification to be able to talk straight to each reading the letter (Hurley, 2014). Despite the character of the text, the writer is objective because she tries to consider both sides of the argument. Naomi Shihab Nye is a Palestinian residing in America; therefore, she can speak openly about the implications for both Arabs and Americans.
Evaluation
As it was mentioned above, the author wrote her open letter about the events on September 11. The accuracy of the information covered by the author was adequate since Naomi Shihab Nye, as well as her family members, have experienced the war in the Middle East themselves (Shihab Nye, n.d.). For that reason, the facts that she has described are indeed personal. Notably, she did not use complicated language or key terms for the letter to be as concise and clear as possible. The logic and organization of the text are also rather articulate (Hurley, 2014).
The writer recreated the events that have influenced her immediate family in a precise manner, and she supported her argumentation on the examples of her closest people, TV, movies, and religion, in general, to ramp up the scale and emphasis (Barnet & Bedau, 2013). The tone of the open letter is quite fair since Ms. Shihab Nye considers both of the opposing sides, which are Arabs and Americans.
Nonetheless, certain aspects decrease the strength of the author’s argumentation. For instance, the writer made a hidden assumption about America’s contemporary culture and values assuming that TV and media are politically biased. Ms. Shihab Nye stated that Arabs had to face misrepresentations caused by American media (Shihab Nye, n.d.).
That is to say, she overgeneralized the experiences of both Arab and American people assuming that all Arabs meet prejudice based on their religion almost daily and they need to fight for themselves to prove that being of Arabic origin does not automatically make them terrorists. Also, by examining the American culture from such a standpoint, she did not only used an argumentative fallacy but also made her open letter political (Hughes, Lavery, & Doran, 2014).
Response
I agree with the statements made by the author since the conflict between the two sides has become even more intensified at present. The letter emotionally targets the reader and intends to examine the motivation of both opposing parties. The writer has revealed an insightful perspective on the life and challenges faced by immigrants. Importantly, the core of the message lies in the strength of the human spirit that can combat the existing horrors and difficulties. The merit of the letter can be reflected in its character that aims to address every person reading it (Rainbolt & Dwyer, 2014). Notably, this work can be recommended as a credible source since the author’s background empowers her to reveal the perspective of both sides and invoke the reader to fight for peace and equality.
Conclusion
The topics raised by the writer remain critical at present. The writing addresses those people who consider violence a way to handle any existing differences in people and encourages them to reconsider the value of life and find another way to live (Shihab Nye, n.d.). The main strength of this letter is its orientation in common sense and the promotion of values, although, the writer should remain politically unbiased (Rainbolt & Dwyer, 2014). The author encourages people to be tolerant, understanding, and loving and reject ignorance and violence. The ultimate success of the work is that it is relevant at modernity and it glorifies humanistic values that are significant for all people notwithstanding their gender, origin, and background.
References
Barnet, S., & Bedau, H. (2013). From critical thinking to argument (4th ed.). Boston, MA: Bedford/St. Martin’s.
Hughes, W., Lavery, J., & Doran, K. (2014). Critical thinking. Peterborough, Canada: Broadview Press.
Hurley, P. (2014). A concise introduction to logic. Boston, MA: Cengage.
Naomi Shihab Nye. (n.d.). Web.
Rainbolt, G., & Dwyer, S. (2014). Critical thinking (2nd ed.). Boston, MA: Cengage.
Shihab Nye, N. (n.d.). To any would-be terrorists. Web.