Drunk Driving: A Matter of Life or Death

Paper Summary:

A healthy balance between the different arguments of pathos, ethos and logos (emotion, value, character, and facts & logic) are found in this essay which which deals with the dangers of drunk driving. Included are interviews with those who have personally been affected by drunk driving, as well as personal anecdotes, and significant facts and statistics. All sections of the paper are strategically organized in order to better convey the message to the reader.

From the Paper:

"It was the first day of March. It was the type of day where the chill and dampness seemed to penetrate your soul. I silently watched as Jeremy's mother laid a blood red colored rose on the marble stone. Wiping a tear from the corner of her eye, she ran a hand across the letters of his name that adorn the cold gravestone. Jeremy Taylor (1982 - 2000). She said a silent prayer and turned towards the car. She glanced back once more before walking away. Today Jeremy would've been eighteen. He would've been able to vote or play the lottery if he wanted to. In a couple months he would've graduated " top ten in his class! He would've walked across the stage, gotten his diploma, and tossed his cap high into the air with all his friends. He would've made his plans to leave for college. He had already been accepted into an Ivy League school. How desperately he wanted to become a lawyer. His mom always said she could tell he would make a great lawyer by the way he argued with his sister".But all that changed within a moment. His life was ended at the hands of a drunk driver as he made his way home from school one fateful February afternoon. No longer would they see his smiling face. No longer would they laugh at the childish burping contests he had, as boys do. No longer would they hear the crowd cheer his name as he scored the winning touchdown or the sound of his voice as he excitedly told of his plans to become the best lawyer they had ever seen. All of that was gone now, because someone chose to drink and drive. Watching my friend's burial was one of the most emotional experiences I can recall. I think of how scared he must have been in his final moments. I wonder what he was thinking as he lay there dying. It was an eerie feeling to know that the casket could not even be opened during the service because of how horrific were the injuries that he had sustained. Now whenever "Tears in Heaven" by Eric Clapton comes on the radio, I think of him. I will never get the chance to say goodbye or to tell him all the things I wanted him to know. I can only hope he knows how much he was loved and will be missed. Rest in peace my angel."

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