Monday, September 29, 2014

"Don't Go Near the Water" Rhetorical Arguement/ Stasis Theory


     The song "Don't Go Near the Water" by the Beach Boys was recorded in 1971 in support of the continuing environmental movement from the late 1960s. Anthropogenic ecological destruction obviously exists and can be defined as a broad term referring to all negative environmental impacts caused by humans. Humans have been greatly over-exploiting natural resources, over consuming, and under-appreciating the environment ever since the Industrial Revolution. The major consequence of ecological devastation was clearly mentioned in the lyrics, when the Beach Boys wrote, "Oceans, rivers, lakes and streams/ Have all been touched by man/ The poison floating out to sea/ Now threatens life on land". When we pollute our waters, the "poisons", or pollutants, have a huge impact on terrestrial and aquatic habitats alike. Eutrophication will occur in water polluted with nutrients (i.e. fertilizers), causing algal blooms and the death of aquatic ecosystems, contributing to a loss of biodiversity. On land, polluted water ends up in our and other species' drinking water causing illness and death. The money and time saved on poor waste water/sewage treatment, storm water drainage systems, and waste disposal techniques such as ocean dumping, is not worth these detrimental consequences. In their song, the Beach Boys suggested that the solution was to first recognize the harmful effect humans have on waters and then to take action, as they explained with their final lyrics, "Let's all help the water/ Right away/ Do what we can and ought to/ Let's start today". The song's main purpose is to try to motivate everyone to help save the health of our waters. Even though the song may not have been specific, it is safe to assume that some of the actions the Beach Boys were urging people to take included picking up litter and spreading awareness.

2 comments:

  1. I think that this song is a good representation of the environmental issue of water pollution. You did a good job explaining each part of the stasis theory, however, I would elaborate more on jurisdiction. I think the quotes that you chose from the song fit really well, and I liked that you linked out multiple things to give more information on the topic. Well done!
    -Allyson

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  2. I think you did a great job at linking out and taking advantage of what linking out helps you with in explanations of stuff. In the blog itself you seemed to have lots of background knowledge/understanding of what everything meant (ecologically) which is great but I feel like you should have emphasized more of the songs emphasis and explained that more in order to make the reader truly understand the stasis theory and how it is important to note in this song.

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