In Peter Singer’s essay, “The Singer Solution to World Poverty,” the issue of donating to charities is discussed. Singer states that even though people have money to donate to children in need, they do not because they spend their extra money on luxuries that are not necessary for their survival. He also points out that people are looked down upon if they do not help a child who is in front of them and is in need of dire help. To reinforce his statement, he uses a paraphrased version of an example that Peter Ulgner used in his book, Living High and Letting Die. In the example, Bob, who is near retirement, owns an expensive and rare car, a Bugatti, which is not insured. At the end of the example, Bob is walking on some train tracks and sees that there is a runaway train on the tracks. He sees that there is a child on the tracks, but the child is too far for Bob to warn him/her. He then notices a switch, which will change the train’s path and move it into his Bugatti. Bob chooses to save his car rather than the child since his car provides him with financial security. Singer then connects Bob’s story to everyone, saying that people all face this situation every time they decide to buy something for their own personal gain.
Something interesting that Singer did in his essay was the way he only used one main example. The hypothetical story of Bob was prominent throughout the whole essay and how Singer connects this example was interesting. It is as if Singer is trying to say that we are all Bobs even if we do not a valuable and rare car. When Singer establishes a connection between the reader and the fictional character, Bob, he makes it easier for the reader to enjoy his essay since texts are more fun to read if the reader can put their shoes in a character’s, from the story, shoes. This enjoyment that the reader experiences from reading the text may help Singer get his point across about helping children in need.
Singer makes a good argument and one thing I like is how he does not generalize the essay by saying that everyone should donate to help children in need. Singer says that those who can donate should donate. He tells the reader that if he/she did not dine out, then he/she would save money to donate. Another thing that was interesting was how Singer uses the second person point of view in the fourteenth paragraph. When he uses this point of view, the reader feels as if Singer is singling him/her out. The reader will feel as if Singer is speaking directly to them and not making a generalized statement.
Overall, Peter Singer’s essay was very enjoyable to read.
Dear Belinda,
ReplyDeleteYou gave a very good reader response with a lot of good observations. You discussed the main argument of the article and stated how the author related it to the audience. I agree with your idea that the author makes the essay easier to read if the reader puts themselves in the character's shoes. I thought the author could have used more examples instead of just going off one every extreme example. I also enjoyed reading about your observation when the author uses the second person point of view. The author does single out the reader to seem as if the two are having a conversation without anyone else. Overall, I thought you did a superb job on your response and I really enjoyed it.