Ms.

Hunter Medicine & Literature

Fall 2017 C, E and F Blocks

Rumination Paragraph (TE/EA Structure)

Select a quote for rumination and to write about over the weekend. Record your quote in your notebook or
planner.
Ruminate- (verb) think deeply about something.

Structure of paragraph:
T - Take a stance in reaction to the quote (do you agree? Disagree? Are you surprised? Disappointed?
Inspired? Angry?). Make sure youre also interpreting the quote - saying what you believe it means.
E/E- Explain why you had this response to the quotation/how your thinking about the quotation
developed. Use at least TWO specific reasons or examples to show your thinking or make
connections (things youve read about/witnessed/experienced).
A- What is the take-away from this quote? What is an important effect or message that this quote can
have on our thinking and/or understanding?

EXEMPLAR PARAGRAPH:
"As long as there is no law in Burma, any individual here can be arrested at any time."
- Aung San Suu Kyi
This quote by Aung San Suu Kyi surprises me because it seems to say that there is a big difference
between a country having law and having a security force. For most people, interactions with the law are with
officers of the law, particularly the police. Kyi is saying that those officials actually have more power and
operate more freely in the absence of law. This sounds like a paradox, and it makes me think about how easily
the power to imprison people can be abused. Kyis quote reminds me of times in history when a king or queen
could do whatever they wanted to anybody because there was no force more powerful than they were to make
them behave according to certain standards. The quote also reminds me of news stories describing CIA black
sites where, because they do not officially exist, officers do not have to follow human rights standards and
laws against torture. Overall, this quote challenges the common perception of law as a power possessed by
officers with the power to arrest, and instead reminds us that a country with a good, functioning system of law is
actually supposed to offer us protections and rights against the overuse or misuse of power by security forces.
Kyi is telling us that the word law is more than just a term meaning rules and the punishments for breaking
them; it is a term that can refer to a broader, orderly political system that offers equal protections to all citizens
of a country.