According to the World Hunger Organization, 250 million preschool children are vitamin A deficient. An estimated 250,000 to 500,000 vitamin A deficient children become blind every year, half of them dying within 12 months of losing their sight. In the article Golden Illusion the Broken Promises of “Golden” Rice by Janet Cotter, many interesting points were brought up concerning how genetically engineered rice is a futile approach to solving the Vitamin A deficiency problem. The author’s main claim is that the high complexity of the genetic engineering can cause unpredictable results as well as major risks. Janet Cotter makes a persuasive augment convincing the audience that the genetically modified rice is not a valid solution for Vitamin A
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In the beginning of the article she states her main claim that “no commercial applications have resulted – largely because of the complexity of the genetic engineering. Exactly how the beta-carotene is made in the plant is not well understood, and the complexity of the genetic engineering is increasing the potential for unexpected and unpredictable effects.” (Cotter, 3) This claim definitely reflects the purpose of the article. It clearly shows us what the author is arguing as well as giving us an idea of how she is planning on proving her point. For one of the subsidiary claims, the author states that because of the complexity of the genetic engineering we do not have much information on how the golden rice would be processed in our body. With such unknown factors we face huge risks concerning our health. Going back to the main claim that there are many unknown aspects that will lead us to unpredictable, possibly damaging, results. Another subsidiary claim the author mentions is the fact that rice is a staple food all over the world and the contamination of the product due to genetic engineering is another huge risk. This furthermore proves that there are great risks which makes genetically modified rice, not the best solution to Vitamin A …show more content…
Janet Cotter presents her argument in a cogent manner, with the use of tone, structure and a targeted audience. Throughout the essay Cotter uses eloquent speech to convince the reader that genetically modified rice is not a valid solution for Vitamin A deficiency. In an indignant tone, she states that “the project appeared to be designed more towards helping the biotech industry overcome the widespread consumer rejection of GE crops, than to help overcome malnutrition.” (Cotter, 4) She addresses the issue voicing that for 20 years, millions of dollars have been spent on the development of golden rice and it’s still in progress. She claims that at this point it doesn’t even seem like this research is being done for the right reasons which is to help those with VAD. The author is targeting the general public, anyone who cares about our world and those living in it. She first starts off with a summary of the article addressing the main claims and introducing some of the subsidiary claims. Then she separates her ideas into different sections addressing each reason why genetically modified rice will cause a colossal amount of damage to the world and everyone who consumes rice. In the end Janet Cotter addresses the alternative solutions to the “root cause” of the problem. The structure of this article is very organized, making it effortless for the reader to understand what the author
In the beginning of the article she states her main claim that “no commercial applications have resulted – largely because of the complexity of the genetic engineering. Exactly how the beta-carotene is made in the plant is not well understood, and the complexity of the genetic engineering is increasing the potential for unexpected and unpredictable effects.” (Cotter, 3) This claim definitely reflects the purpose of the article. It clearly shows us what the author is arguing as well as giving us an idea of how she is planning on proving her point. For one of the subsidiary claims, the author states that because of the complexity of the genetic engineering we do not have much information on how the golden rice would be processed in our body. With such unknown factors we face huge risks concerning our health. Going back to the main claim that there are many unknown aspects that will lead us to unpredictable, possibly damaging, results. Another subsidiary claim the author mentions is the fact that rice is a staple food all over the world and the contamination of the product due to genetic engineering is another huge risk. This furthermore proves that there are great risks which makes genetically modified rice, not the best solution to Vitamin A …show more content…
Janet Cotter presents her argument in a cogent manner, with the use of tone, structure and a targeted audience. Throughout the essay Cotter uses eloquent speech to convince the reader that genetically modified rice is not a valid solution for Vitamin A deficiency. In an indignant tone, she states that “the project appeared to be designed more towards helping the biotech industry overcome the widespread consumer rejection of GE crops, than to help overcome malnutrition.” (Cotter, 4) She addresses the issue voicing that for 20 years, millions of dollars have been spent on the development of golden rice and it’s still in progress. She claims that at this point it doesn’t even seem like this research is being done for the right reasons which is to help those with VAD. The author is targeting the general public, anyone who cares about our world and those living in it. She first starts off with a summary of the article addressing the main claims and introducing some of the subsidiary claims. Then she separates her ideas into different sections addressing each reason why genetically modified rice will cause a colossal amount of damage to the world and everyone who consumes rice. In the end Janet Cotter addresses the alternative solutions to the “root cause” of the problem. The structure of this article is very organized, making it effortless for the reader to understand what the author