EVALUATING AN ESSAY FOR COHERENCE

question 115

Short Answer

EVALUATING AN ESSAY FOR COHERENCE
Read the essay below and then answer the questions about coherence that follow.
Labeling Animals
a In some ways, the human race seems to be in its childhood. The conventional attitude toward animals, for example, makes humanity seem like a tribe of seven-year-olds pulling the wings off flies. Instead of respecting all animals as important parts of the chain of life, humans rate them according to their usefulness. Historically, humankind has failed to recognize animals as anything other than products, toys, or monsters.
b There are the products. These are the animals, such as cattle, pigs, and sheep, that provide much of the world's food. For this reason, people tend to think of them less as living creatures than as growing crops, fattening them up, herding them into slaughterhouses, and carving them into edible portions. These animals are "useful," so the general population has typically positive feelings about them. Humankind's actions show that most people are not actually fond of them. People are willing to lock baby calves into dark boxes for months and then kill them for veal, or cram thousands of chickens into tiny pens and allow them to live for only six weeks. Increased production, not humane treatment, is the bottom line.
c Perhaps the most harmful label that humans pin on animals, though, is that of monster. The general population has use at all for these creatures. They are taught from birth that sharks, snakes, bats, and alligators, for instance, are evil and dangerous. The facts about these animals make no difference to people's emotions. The fact that being attacked by a shark is less likely than being struck by lightning does not stop fishermen from holding shark-killing contests. The fact that a snake is harmless does not stop sadistic hikers from crushing it. Very few will ever be mauled by a grizzly or bobcat or torn apart by wolves, yet many support the extermination of these animals in the name of "safety."
d Advertisers label some animals as toys. These are the lucky ones-the puppies, kittens, pandas, koala bears, bunnies, and porpoises that children consider cute. Toys make people feel sentimental and protective. Many are willing to devote five minutes on the evening news to a baby panda, they stock their children's room with stuffed bunnies, and watch movies about friendly, funny porpoises. No one in their right mind would advocate a puppy-shoot or a koala-killing contest. Toy-like animals may occasionally be neglected or abused by individual owners, but polite society does not allow them to be destroyed on a wholesale basis.
e Labeling animals is not a harmless little quirk that humans have. In separating the animal kingdom into products, toys, and monsters, society has made it easier to brutalize these defenseless creatures. The practice of categorizing has dulled humanity's respect for other living beings and even led to the destruction of entire species. As people dominate animals, they forget to behave as caretakers. This results in a loss of dignity and humanity-not only for the victimized animals, but for their human counterparts as well.
-What word is a synonym for animals in the second supporting paragraph? ______________

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Definitions:

Sexually Restrictive

Societies or policies that place strict rules and limitations on sexual behavior and expression.

Nuclear Family

A family unit consisting of two parents and their children, living together as a single household.

Foraging Peoples

Societies or communities that rely on the collection of wild plants and the hunting of animals as their primary means of subsistence.

Residence Pattern

A rephrased definition for 'Residence Patterns': The customary spatial arrangements for households or communities, influenced by social, legal, and economic factors, determining where people reside within a society.