Jordan Sazama

Olivia Stoltman

Op-Ed Reflection

English 110

Op-Ed Reflection Sazama 1

My overall intentions for this essay was to bring people to my cause and to bring

attention to climate change and edge the reader to begin to do something about the topic. I

gave examples such as recycling and spreading the word in order to start the movement. The

overall purpose was to educate the audience about what was occurring in the environment and

to help jump start a way for the reader to do their part. I want the reader to feel obligated to

start helping the environment and make them feel as if it’s on them to save the planet. In my

essay I started with putting the audience in a situation which made them think about how it is

affecting them personally which then brings the reader in closer and starts a change. I started

brainstorming ideas before I was ready to write the paper and I decided to pick issues close to

my heart and issues that I could strongly fight for in an Op-Ed essay. I eventually went with the

environment because protecting it is one of the key components in my personal life and it is

something I really care about. I started planning by writing the letter and then writing down the

key points I needed to make on a separate piece of paper. Then I took the ideas and acted like a

free write and then made edits when I was finished. The hardest part for me was sticking to 3

pages because there was so much more I could write and so many more pieces of evidence I

could bring to the table. The comments from my peers helped me greatly because they helped

me see and correct sentences that I thought were fine because I was able to understand what I

was attempting to say. When we have 2-3 people looking at our papers it gives an advantage to
 Sazama 2

finding errors I couldn’t have found on my own. I felt my argument was very effective because I

made the reader feel like it was their obligation to help fight the cause and by making them feel

obligated, they would be more likely to contribute.