Persuasive argument

 

Claim – Government should mandate the inability for companies to terminate employees post a declarative facility closing date. All employees should be compensated according to employment longevity and position for the dedication to labor knowing that the position is terminal.

 

Disagreement – Government should not get involved in free enterprise. Too much regulation will hinder the economic progression of the company which translates into less jobs in the market.

 

Persuade – Providing employees with the means to transition post-closing will keep the local economy stable. It is when the sudden depletion of economic means in mass causes micro economies to collapse. No economic structure, no matter how large, is immune to these effects. Instability in the micro economic structure can translate into more government entitlement resources being spent to stabilize the local economy. These resources would be less if spent during the initial regulation phase of the shutdown. The compensation can be spent on skill training to transition into a different industry. Relocation for those that are specialized in the industry. Encourage small business start-up to generate jobs to replace those lost.

 

 

3 phases of writing

 

Invention phase – ask yourself questions that will lead you to your claim.

 

Important, impressive, or unusual about play? Focus one aspect as the Topic for your paper.

 

Transform topic into an argumentative claim. Transform your topic into a problem and make a claim.

 

Topic is inert and a problem is controversial. There can be disagreement.

 

Interpret the scene. Which are memorable. Which leave room for interpretation.

 

Informal outline of the paper

 

Make your argument clear and ordered. Communication is sequential. Process info one piece at a time.

 

Drama paper written in present tense – play taking place now, in front of you. Write from the point of view from the audience.

 

Footnotes/citations

Sometimes you need to cite act scene line numbers (4.3.21–22)

 

 

Intro – captivate – during gold rush mining towns. No more gold = ghost own. Learn from past. Limited resource. Later -> Reuse Recycle.

Support the claim in sequence.

1 – summarize the claim (problem) – morally wrong. Economically unsound.

2 – Move straight into a struggle – one of the most impacting – Fear of the unknown. If employment and compensation guaranteed there would be less anxiety. Citation – the foreman Reggie says “Like I don’t know the fear that’s come over all of us lately.“

HUMANITY

3 – Economic benefit – company needs a “skeleton crew” to maintain production until their operations can be transitioned. Increase chances of employees not leaving if they know they will have employment and severance. Citation – “Got offered a job over at the Copy Center on 8 mile. My cousin used to be the manager, but she movin’ offices. Said I could come take over.”

4 – Morally correct action – All too often companies use any excuse to exploit the labors of an employee until factory close, and then right before the end of their short tenure they get fired to avoid having to pay the employee’s severance package. “Two days before his last day of work, they fired him. Said he wasn’t working up to performance. Bullshit.”

5 – conclusion

 

BEGIN PAPER \/

 

Intro

You arrive. You look around. Buildings are slowly decomposing. The fodder was once precious belongings. This is the scene of a once thriving city. Victim to the all too common ‘Economic Recession.’

 

Before the flatline there are beats. Beats that give life. In this case, an automobile manufacturing stamping factory. This is the setting for the play Skeleton Crew.

 

Immediately the dramatic elements of light and music grab your attention. The dusty high contrast silhouettes ignite the mind to imagine what a production line would be like. What a great introduction to a powerful story. Unfortunately, this story is all too familiar to our country. Factories full of life, then suddenly the acts of a few affect the many leaving the factory lifeless. Personifying the factories is insignificant to the actual lives that supplied life to the factory. Real people had a symbiotic relationship with the factories, and when one dies, so does the other. You can only imagine the devastation they experienced. But before every fall, there is an awakening.

 

Humans gain comfort from familiarity and stability. When a situation arises that disrupts this comfort one begins to feel fear. Fear of the unknown. This unknown can either bring out the best or worst in us. Some step-up and unify. While others exploit and profit. [Citation – the foreman Reggie says “Like I don’t know the fear that’s come over all of us lately.“] This has historically been the case. When will we put regulation in place to moderate negative activities at the expense of the most vulnerable? It is my belief that government should require companies to adequately compensate and employ all those who are willing to work until the business closes. Laying off employees prior to shutting down to avoid paying our severance should be illegal and a violation at the least.

 

In Skeleton Crew we see the commitment and dedication that the community of Detroit has for its local companies. There is a strong sense of pride and contentment in their labor. These are the people that have building automobiles for this country for over a century! Yet when the economic climate changes for the worst they are considered dispensable. [Citation – But this? Being a highly skilled job-setter….that’s something I can stand on. Everybody can’t say that. Everybody can’t do what I do. I belong here. ] Not only does Shanita state her pride in her skill, but she also displays it by working while pregnant. If we are truly trying to make the world a better place we should rearrange our priorities and give those human attributes that deserve merit some value.

 

A breakroom is the perfect scenic design to reproduce real human interactions. The raw dialogue with the many 80’s references made the interactions believable. Many secrets and experiences happened here. One of the most impacting scenes for me was when Faye revealed that she was living at work! She had lost everything. Yet she never reached out for help. She never complained. In fact, she was trying to help in as many aspects as she could by keeping the calm and figuring out ways to support Reggie and everyone working at the factory. In the end she makes the ultimate sacrifice, as well as the ultimate heist. Retiring early and falling barely short of a larger compensation package was insignificant to the fact that she didn’t even have a place to live once she unexpectedly retired. This act of courage saved Reggie’s position because he had gotten enraged with the manager for suggesting he retire Faye early. Because of Reggie and Faye’s personal relationship, Reggie ended up threatening the manager and his position was compromised. [Citation: Real fast. And I ain’t touch him at all. Just got swole on ‘him for a sec. But I came close enough. I would’ve. And he know it. And I know it too.] Still this scene is not without dramatic irony. It was all too common for debilitating factories to get robbed at night. There had already been a series of robberies before Faye and left with full pockets. But those that worked the factory knew that it was Faye. The complexity of the instrumentation and its removal was the clear indicator. Companies can drive people to desperation. But it is my firm belief that it can all be mitigated with some common sense regulation.

 

Many will say that Government should not get involved in free enterprise. There is already too much regulation. That it will hinder the economic progression of the company which translates into less jobs in the market. It some instances this is true, but in extreme situations such as this one could have avoided a complete financial bailout.

 

Providing employees with the means to transition post-closing will keep the local economy stable. It is when the sudden depletion of economic means in mass causes micro economies to collapse. No economic structure, no matter how large, is immune to these effects. Instability in the micro economic structure can translate into more government entitlement resources being spent to stabilize the local economy. These resources would be less if spent during the initial regulation phase of the shutdown. The compensation can be spent on skill training to transition into a different industry. Relocation for those that are specialized in the industry. Encourage small business start-up to generate jobs to replace those lost. Anything is cheaper than a complete government bail-out.

,

 

Throughout this tragedy-stricken play you can always find comfort in the consistent exposition of lights before each act and the constant humming of the factory sounds. These uplifting moments along with the soul R&B, 80’s hip hop, and dance kept you a float before descent. These much needed transitions kept you engaged fully by experiencing a spectrum of emotions. The social realism conveyed in a series of suspenseful events made sure that the audience understood the full extent of the issue. Detroit factories weren’t the only things falling apart. So were the people. Let’s give honor to this play. Rise up and make a difference by demanding our government correct the cyclical mistakes of our past by being proactive. By being preventative. By showing the world we attempt to comply with the better side of our humanity.

 

SAMUEL RAY GATES

ACTOR – Reggie