Part-Whole Exercise Leading to Summary
The following is an example of two students' use of the part-whole exercise to write an effective summary of an essay by Ward Churchill. The essay proposes the idea that giving teams with Native American mascots or names, such as the Atlanta Braves, is racist.
Step #1: Identify the parts.
Identify the parts of the essay that seem to be focused on one point.
- Introduction: 497 - 498 top
- 498 1st paragraph - 499 bottom
- 499 bottom - 500 middle
- 500 middle - 501 after 1st full paragraph
- 501 2nd paragraph - 502 top
- 502 top - 503 last paragraph (middle of page?)
- Conclusion: 503 last paragraph - 504
Step #2: Label the parts.
Write a very brief summary of each part.
- Intro regarding inappropriate American Indian names
- Churchill makes a point on how other ethnic groups aren't bashed
- He gets serious on this topic
- Talks about Streicher as an example of someone punished for his caricaturing of a race
- How American Indians have been diminishing in the past few years and how they have been subjected to reservations and what not
- Speaks about genocide and how it is evil (speaks about how the history of genocide continues today)
- Concludes that American Indians culture shouldn't be subjected to hate crimes or to dehumanizing images of Indians
Step #3: Summaries.
Summaries should be both inclusive and elegant. Notice that Example #1 is clear and captures the gist of the essay, though it only takes into account 4 of the 7 parts of the Churchill essay Example #2, on the other hand, takes into account 6 of the 7 parts. Also, though it could be a bit more concise, Example #2 has sentences that flow into one another smoothly to capture the actual logic of Churchill's argument.
Example #1: American Indians, through media, are becoming "dehumanized." Like what the Nazis did to the Jews, images in the media are doing to the Indians. To destroy a human group through mockery is a "crime against humanity." (1,4,6,7)
Example #2: There is a very big problem in our symbols of Indians for names of teams and gestures people use representing Indians. It is not just good, clean fun but actually degrades the Indian culture. In a Native American's perspective, their situation and battle is much like the extermination and emotional fight of the Holocaust in the 1940's. The American government has also been a central assistant in the dehumanization of the American Indian culture. Understanding the embarrassment and humiliation the Native Americans go through could be the first step in putting a halt to American’s traditional crimes against humanity. (1,2,4,5,6,7)
