Page 78 - 2023-bfw-FLL-2e

6. Locate a particularly striking sentence or paragraph that captures the desperation of Cotlon’s
5
customers. Explain how his word choice and details make that desperation vividly real to his
readers.
7. Cotlon starts his narrative with a focus on his customers before turning to how the pandemic
is affecting him, starting in paragraph 8. How might this structure affect how readers perceive
Narrative
him and his narrative?
8. Reexamine the syntactical choices made throughout the piece, specifically the use of short
sentences at times. What are the effects of these choices? What tone do they help to create?
9. In paragraph 8, Cotlon refers to a notebook that he keeps near the register, and he returns to
that notebook several times throughout the narrative. What connections can you draw
between the notebook and the deepening crisis Cotlon describes?
10. What is Cotlon’s tone toward his customers? Which of his words and phrases communicate
this tone?
11. What is the effect of the figurative language in this statement: “Some people are already
standing in quicksand” (par. 12)?
12. Earlier in the piece Cotlon moves from descriptions of his customers to himself, and then in
paragraph 15, he shifts again, this time to larger historical and cultural forces that have
affected people in the Lower Ninth Ward. What important information is included in this
section, and what effect is created through the way he decides to structure his narrative?
13. Reread the final line of the narrative. What makes that last line so emotionally powerful?

Topics for Composing

14. Analysis. Explain what Cotlon means when he says, “Wearing a mask won’t protect us from
our history” (par. 15). What evidence from the narrative supports your interpretation of this
line?
15. Argument. What are the most appropriate steps that local, state, and national government
officials can take to support people in need like Cotlon’s customers? Using evidence from this
narrative and other sources, write an argument about a specific action or policy you would
recommend.
16. Connections. While you were likely fairly young when this piece was first published in 2021,
you probably remember some details about the pandemic. What was that time like for you,
your family, and friends? How were your experiences similar to or different from those that
Cotlon describes? If needed, ask family members and others to help fill in some details for
you.
17. Speaking and Listening. Cotlon told his story to Washington Post reporter Eli Saslow, who
likely recorded it and then wrote it down. Though it is safe to assume that Saslow’s writing
accurately presents Cotlon’s story, Saslow had to make some choices, including, for example,
where to apply punctuation and what punctuation marks to use. Meet with a partner and tell
each other a little bit of what you remember — or were told — about the pandemic. Each
partner will listen closely and then try to transcribe the other’s recollections as accurately as
possible, using sentence structures that most accurately reflect the telling of the story.
18. Research. Cotlon mentions Hurricane Katrina a couple of times in his narrative. Conduct
research to learn more about the hurricane’s lasting impact on New Orleans, the Lower Ninth
Ward in particular, and explain why Cotlon would reference it here in a piece about the
pandemic. Also try to explain why Cotlon says that there might be a recovery for Bourbon
Street, but not the Lower Ninth Ward.

176
Uncorrected proofs have been used in this sample.
Copyright © Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers.
Distributed by Bedford, Freeman & Worth Publishers.
For review purposes only. Not for redistribution.

06_SheaFLL2e_40926_ch05_130_243_6PP.indd 176 28/06/22 8:57 AM