“Not one person telephoned the police during the assault; one witness called after the woman was dead” (Gansberg 86).
Martin Gansberg’s essay, “Thirty-Eight Who Saw Murder Didn’t Call the Police,” describes a true account of witnesses allowing the death of a neighbor and friend. In this essay Gansberg uses various techniques, including language and tone, to catch the readers attention. Martin Gansberg begins his essay by luring the reader through the use of manipulative techniques: the author attempts to make the reader angry, shows the reader an apathetic public, and also forces the reader to consider what he / she would do. “Chief Inspector Lessen said, “If we had been called when he first attacked, the woman might not be dead now,” (Gansberg 86).
Gansberg’s use of this dialogue works specifically to try to make the reader furious.
The author then demonstrates how much time elapses and how many times the killer leaves and returns to prove that the woman dies because no one steps in. In addition, Gansberg reveals that Miss Genovese is not a stranger to the witnesses or an unknown neighbor; she is a friend who most knew as Kitty. Still, Gansberg shows an apathetic public by emphasizing that not just one person, but several hear and even watch this heinous crime without making the effort to help. There are no calls to the police and no heroic attempts to aid, simply Gansberg asserts, because no one wants to become involved. “”We went to the window to see what was happening,” he said, “but the light from our bedroom made it difficult to see the street.” The wife still apprehensive, added: “I put out the light and we were able to see better,” (Gansberg 88).
The Term Paper on Inspector Calls Lower Class Women
TASK 2 An Inspector Calls, by J. B. Priestly, is the story of the visit by an Inspector to an apparently normal family, the Birlings. They are celebrating Sheila Birling's engagement to Gerald Croft, who is also present, when the Inspector arrives telling them of the suicide of a young girl called Eva Smith. At first they deny any knowledge of the girl, but as the play goes on the Inspector ...
Gansberg’s characterization of the couple reveals that they even turn out a light to accommodate their view. Next, Gansberg’s technique of writing leads the reader to wonder what he / she would do if he / she ever faced the same situation. “For more than half an hour 38 respectable, law-abiding citizens in Queens watched a killer stalk and stab a woman in three separate attacks in Kew Gardens,” (Gansberg 86).
After the reader finishes the story and realizes the outcome, the reader reflects back to this initial passage and automatically judges his own character according to the behavior of these law-abiding citizens, asking; “what would I do?” In addition, Gansberg’s language to grasps the reader’s attention in terms of specific details, emotional language, and factual concrete images. First, the details of the crime scene. Gansberg specifically states the color of Miss Genovese car, the location in which she parks and the approximate distance her parking space is from her apartment.
Gansberg also incorporates dialogue so the reader can feel the emotions of Miss Genovese. “”I’m dying!” she shrieked. “I’m dying!” (Gansberg 87).
These words alone display how frightened Miss Genovese is, which allows the reader to also experience some of her fear. His final use of language is factual language, which allows the reader to recall the events as they happen. For example, Gansberg recounts what the police confirm as the exact times the attack begins and the moment it ends in death.
The final method that cath ces a reader’s attention is through Gansberg’s use of changing tones; the author displays a mixture of sarcastic, authoritative, and objective tones. “But the Kew Gardens slaying baffles him not because it is a murder, but because the “good people” failed to call the police” (Gansberg 86).
Gansberg’s use of sarcasm towards “good people” is effective, because the reader also contemplates why none of these “good people” help in some way. Quickly the reader forms and opinion of the foolishness of these witnesses.
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Good writing is never merely about following a set of directions. Like all artists of any form, essay writers occasionally find themselves breaking away from tradition or common practice in search of a fresh approach. Rules, as they say, are meant to be broken. But even groundbreakers learn by observing what has worked before. If you are not already in the habit of reading other writers with an ...
Next Gansberg’s use of specific time frames as; “It was 4: 25 a. m. when the ambulance arrived to take the body of Miss Genovese,” and his addition of excerpts from police reports, allows him to set an authoritative tone. The last type of tone Gansberg demonstrates appears to be objective. The author projects this false objectivity by sticking to the facts and times throughout the entire essay. He also never directly states his very clear opinion.
“It was 3: 50 by the time the police received their first call, from a man who was a neighbor of Miss Genovese. In two minutes they were at the scene,” (Gansberg 87).
In conclusion, throughout this essay language and tone become the author’s primary method of capturing the reader’s attention. Martin Gansberg wrote the essay, “Thirty-Eight Who Saw Murder Didn’t Call the Police” in 1964.
After the publication of this article in a newspaper, one would think that people would be more willing to help, but even today events like this still occur. Gansberg, Martin. “Thirty-Eight Who Saw Murder Didn’t Call the Police.” Patterns for College Writing: A Rhetorical Reader and Guide. 7 th ed. Ed. Laurie, G Kirshner and Stephen R.
Mandell. New York; St. Martin’s 1998.
