QUOTATION: We do not live alone. We are members of one body. We are responsible for each other.
This quotation, taken from J.B Priestly’s ‘An Inspector Calls’, is something I consider to be a statement that can be applied to everything we do. It emphasises that fact that we are a united body and should accept each unique person as they are.
Another matter, closely linked into homosexuality, is equal rights. People are fighting for equal rights worldwide and while many people living in our society are led to believe that everyone is treated the same, there are millions of cases of racism, ageism and sexism.
The legal age for homosexual sex in this country is 16, having recently been lowered from 18 in the past years. However, this has been an extensive battle for those who were fighting it. Initially, the age of lesbian sex was lowered from 18 to 16 in the House of Commons in June 1998, and despite this being a positive step forward, many felt the decision was injustice as it was discriminating against young gay men. Thus, in November 2000, the decision was made to lower the age for gay teenagers as well.
I believe that the decision to change the law was an activist move and feel that people that have a problem with this so-called ‘way of life’ need to look at it from another perspective. People don’t choose who they love, it comes naturally. It is for that reason that I consider loving a person of the same sex as you natural.
To accept but disagree with homosexuality is all that is expected of a person, as nobody should feel like an outsider in today’s ‘open’ society. To not accept it, and to ensure that you don’t discriminate against homosexuals, is yet again more than acceptable, as everybody should be able to pursue their own lives, as they want.
However, in my opinion, if you cannot accept or agree with homosexuality, a small factor that contributes to a whole person, and you discriminate against a person because they aren’t the same as you, then you are the one in the wrong, not anyone else, and definitely not homosexuals.
Holly Manning
614 words
Commentary on AS-Level Listening Piece
My piece is written for a listening audience, specifically a GCSE age class or 16 year olds. It is on the subject of homosexuality and takes the form of a speech. My intended purpose for the piece was to persuade my audience to accept homosexuality, and to take on board my opinions on the matter, but also to provoke their own thoughts on equal rights and homosexuality. I have included many of the traditional conventions used in persuasive writing in my speech, and through the use of my own opinions, and emphasising factual information, I have produced a well-balanced speech. I have found that other persuasive talks I have seen have been very hard-hitting and effective due to the use of sarcasm, which I have included in my piece, and the clear use of other linguistic devices such as adverbs to emphasise a point and elisions.
My intended audience for this piece are very influential to things they hear from their peers, and I consequently had to ensure that I did not patronise them when putting across my point. One way in which I did this was by using 2nd person narrative right from the beginning, in order to include my audience. I also made the speech less formal by using elisions such as ‘we’ve’, which are typical of spoken English. Also, being an inclusive pronoun, it includes the audience and persuades them to take on my point of view.
I have also included a number of discourse markers, including ‘however’, as this helps to structure the speech, and are also typical of an argumentative approach. I have deliberately not used simplistic language as this could have been patronising. The use of adverbs such as ‘unfortunately’ clarifies my opinions and emphasises my point.
In the introduction I have used personal experience to draw in my audience, and emphasised some of the key points by making them italic, to indicate they would be said in a certain way. It suggests a sarcastic tone, and sets the attitude of the piece right from the beginning. The introduction addresses the subject of homosexuality, and I have proposed a question, which I answer throughout my talk, to encourage the audience to keep their minds focussed on the topic.
There are some slang terms in the piece, such as ‘gay-boy’ and ‘weirdos’. These sarcastic comments are fashionable in today’s youthful society, and criticise the traditional homophobic attitudes and values that people once had. This is said sarcastically and is very specific to my audience. I would have liked the speech to be more universal and appeal to a wider audience, however, I found that restricted my use of language and I made more sweeping statements.
I have related my audience to what I am saying by name-dropping some leading figures in the music industry that are openly homosexual. This holds the audience’s attention, and makes them feel more involved as they understand what I am talking about. Later, I also use a quotation from ‘An Inspector Calls’. This quotation is rhetorically phrased, and requires no background knowledge of the play to understand what is being said. This is a very persuasive quotation to use and I feel it backs up my argument well.
Towards the end section of my speech I have a section of factual information on homosexuality and the rights and laws that have been passed on the matter, This gives me credibility as it suggests that I know what I am talking about and gives my audience some core facts to think about, rather than purely my opinion. In addition, it gives my piece some variety.
To conclude my speech I have given my audience something to consider, which could be seen as some kind of ultimatum. Additionally, I have used a long sentence structure in order to build the end of my piece to a climax. I have also returned to using 2nd person narrative