<p>Only now, by preparing for my SAT and APEL test, do I realize the long term effects of not being an avid reader in elementary/middle school…
Anyway, I stink at English. I’m not that great at writing, and I suck at comprehending what I read. However, I’ve gotten better at writing this year because I now realize how essential being a good writer is. (high school, college apps, college itself…)</p>
<p>Could anyone, preferably someone who is awesome at writing/has taken the AP English Language test, critique my synthesis essay that I wrote for homework and tell me what I need to improve on in terms of structure, transitions, etc?</p>
<p>PROMPT: synthesize information from at least three sources and incorporate it into a coherent, well-developed essay that argues to what extent paranoia has played a role in many events, decisions, and/or other laws.</p>
<p><em>(This prompt wasn’t ever administered, my teacher made it up. We were required to use the book, In Cold Blood, as a source in the essay.)</em></p>
<p>In the midst of a threat, illusory or real, the effect of paranoia impairs judgment and causes people to change their beliefs based on instinctual feelings. It is people’s perception of danger and fear that often leads to a consensual paranoia, a psychological need to find an enemy in order to protect oneself from something he or she fears. In this way, even unsubstantiated fears can lead to dissension between different groups of people or individuals—usually leading to feelings of suspicion and intolerance. Nonetheless, throughout history, people have allowed these feelings to influence them in making myriad important decisions.</p>
<p>Such feelings of intolerance were prevalent throughout the 1940s and 1950s, when America became “overwhelmed with concerns about the threat of communism growing in Eastern Europe and China.” (Source B) During this period, dubbed the “Second Red Scare”, Joseph McCarthy essentially began a “paranoid hunt for infiltrators” known as McCarthyism through his public accusation that more than two hundred communists had infiltrated the United States government. Because of this mass outbreak of paranoia, many who were accused of being communist sympathizers had their passports taken away and lost their jobs. Around the same time period, a similar paranoia spread throughout the nation. “On February 19th 1942 Roosevelt signed Executive Order 9066. Under the terms of the Order, some 120,000 people of Japanese descent living in the US were removed from their homes and placed in internment camps. The US justified their action by claiming that there was a danger of those of Japanese descent spying for the Japanese.” (Source G) A troubling parallel can be drawn between these two demonstrations of “consensual” paranoia. In both instances, during the era of McCarthyism and the period of time after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, those affected by the consequences of the nation’s paranoia were found to be innocent of what they were accused of. Likewise, in both instances, the mass fear of an attack caused a burgeoning paranoia which ultimately led to negative consequences. As the author of Source B refers to it, the era of McCarthyism is “one of the most shameful moments in modern U.S. history.” </p>
<p>Paranoia, however, is not limited to only causing distrust between peoples of different racial and cultural differences. Paranoia, when brought to surface by feelings of fear, can cause feelings of distrust between close friends and neighbors. In his novel, In Cold Blood, Capote underscores the effect that fear can have amongst neighbors. “This hitherto peaceful congregation of neighbors and old friends had suddenly to endure the unique experience of distrusting each other; understandably, they believed that the murderer was among themselves.” (Source H) In the novel, the citizens of Holcomb are so distressed by the murder of the Clutter family that they begin to question old neighbors, indicating that the power of paranoia is strong enough to sever even the most familiar ties. Although the paranoia Capote conveys in his novel is not one that causes people to be unwillingly displaced from their homes or lose their jobs, Capote shows that fear and paranoia can destroy relationships and instigate feelings of doubt between even the closest of friends. Paranoia often causes people to make decisions that they otherwise might not have made. In this case, the people of Holcomb decide to distrust each other because of their fears. One must ask, however, are these decisions always mistakes? To what extent should people continue to allow paranoia to influence their decisions about something that may cause them harm?</p>
<p>The paranoia about terrorism in the United States is still very prevalent, even a decade after 9/11. The USA Patriot Act, passed in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, was designed to strengthen domestic security and broaden the powers of law-enforcement agencies in order to identify and stop terrorists. The Patriot Act was essentially rushed through Congress, curtailing individuals’ freedom in favor of national security. Source E, a partial document of the Patriot Act, states that “the act improves [our] counter-terrorism efforts in several significant ways.” Although this may be true, many believe that the Patriot Act allows government too much power and threatens civil liberties. The Patriot Act demonstrates that paranoia has a powerful influence on how people make decisions and what they are willing to sacrifice in order to ensure safety. </p>
<p>Paranoia can alter people’s views entirely, causing them to believe things that they would have not otherwise believed in order to protect themselves from the things they fear. Because its effect is so powerful, paranoia has played a vital role in decision-making in history. Although the decisions made based on paranoia are generally viewed as mistakes, people sometimes believe that certain measures must be taken in order to prevent something worse from happening. Paranoia is necessary, for it is paranoia that allows us to be aware of the dangers around us. However, people’s tendency to form decisions based on solely their fears calls for concern.</p>