Craft of Writing Discursive Feedback

[liam.berkovsky]

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Craft of Writing Draft #3 - Discursive

Winston Churchill once said “History is written by the winners”. There are many individuals who have been forgotten or remain unknown in history. However these people are still important because of what we can learn from them as well as their past actions and contributions. these individuals have marked their place in history without ever having their identity known. This may have been for many reasons, perhaps they wanted to keep their identity anonymous or their names were withheld from the public. Or perhaps their name was lost over the course of hundreds of years, but their actions were remembered. As cliche as the saying is “Actions speak louder than words”, these individuals uphold this statement.

The Unknown soldier was one of the many losing soldiers at the gallipoli massacre in WWI but he fought for the Australian freedom and democracy and reminds us about the importance of peace and the things we take for granted. Agent 355 was a captured spy during the American Revolutionary War. Although she was arrested and imprisoned her contributions and findings greatly impacted the outcome of the war and while her true identity isn't known, she is remembered in history.The hidden figures behind a large part of America’s early space exploration during the cold war were African-American Women. Without the mathematical calculation of these women, many historic such as America's first space flights and moon landing would not have been achievable. Even through Racial and Gender based segregation and discrimination these women were able to thrive in their respectable fields and went on to achieve many great achievements and awards.

November Eleventh 1993, Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating begins his commemorative remembrance day address: Funeral for the unknown Australian Soldier. “We do not know this Australian’s name and we never will”. Australia could have easily chosen to commemorate and construct a funeral for one of our great military generals or war heros, but this simple soldier, an unknown civilian who volunteered and sacrificed his life for our country and our freedom and peace. As Keating later states “They were the heroes of that war, not the generals and politicians but the soldiers - those who taught us to endure hardship, to show courage, to be bold as well as resilient and to believe in ourselves and stick together” of Thousands lined up on the Anzac Parade and millions watched on television to watch the Unknown Soldiers and all others that had sacrificed their life before him to be honored and commemorated. The Unknown figure unified the nation and significantly caused us to rethink the lives we live and the things we take for granted. Keating’s speech is directed towards the next-generation, the audience primarily consists of those who did not experience the war and its hardships. The Unknown Soldier unites the past and present generations and reinforces the importance of peace and the sacrifices of Australia which brought us our democracy and freedoms.

It’s nearing the end of the 18th century, During the peak of the American Revolutionary War between Great Britain and its Thirteen Colonies, to declare the independence of the United States of America. Throughout the war and to this very day an unknown identity continues to be discussed: Agent 355. Even today we know very little about her identity or her background. We know she was part of a spy network known as the Culper Ring and that she reported her findings at one point to the George Washington himself. Agent 355 is remembered for her role of reporting the information of the treason of infamous traitor Benedict Arnold. While Arnold has secured his role in American Culture and History as the infamous double-crosser, Agent 355 is remembered as a brave and committed individual, particularly considering she was a woman in a time where much of western civilizations were dominated by white males, females and other races were the mistreated minority. Even 250 years later while the identity or many details about Agent 355 are unknown she still holds her place in history as an unknown figure who will be well known for a long time for the things sh represents and stood for.

As for a more recent and prevalent example of unknown figure, one cannot forget the young African-American women behind some of NASA’s most significant achievements in the later half of the 20th century and particularly throughout the cold war during the height of the space race. The West Area Computers group was a group of young African-American Women who provided programming and mathematical calculations for NASA. The West Area Computers Group had to work in separate locations and use “coloured” dining facilities and bathrooms, these things and the ignorance and discrimination made life very difficult for these young women but they were able to push through and achieve great things. They set a great example to all about the power of resilience and hard work and prove great role models for young aspiring men and women experiencing hardship themselves without ever having the name of their team let alone their individuals well known.

As Chilean Writer. Isabel Allende once said “Write what should not be forgotten”, these individuals have greatly impacted and left their contributions in their fields respectively whether it was in the field of science or in war. While these individuals have lost in a way and history was written by the winner, their names and identities have been forgotten unlike their actions and what they represented and stood for.