In Sedaris' "Stand By", he is describing his experience while traveling by airplane (275). Overall the article is negative and points out very obvious things that most "air travelers" would understand such as poorly dressed people, crabby airline workers, angry passengers, delays, cancellations and even flights being over booked. Sedaris points out a poorly dressed family and stresses how this family presents themselves while traveling (276). Unfortunately for Sedaris, he was put in the position to listen to other people complain and bicker about flying and somehow it spiraled out of control and landed on the topic of politics, he was trapped in a line and was forced to listen to it (276-277). In the end, Sedaris finally makes it on his final flight and raises an interesting question, "But what if this is who we truly are, and the airport's just a forum that allows us to be our real selves, not just hateful but gloriously so?" (277).Sedaris, David. "Standing By."
First Year Composition Reader. Boston:
Pearson, 2011. 276-277. Print.
It’s definitely true that Sedaris shares his negative experiences. Does he seem truly displeased by everything? That final question is key for his essay. Do you think it relates to his purpose? What do you think his purpose is?
ReplyDeleteFor a more thorough summary, try to imagine telling a friend about this essay. What would they need to know to understand it completely?
Oh! And I challenge you to try to make citations for the pictures you use. (Look on page 328-9 in the DK Handbook to get started.)