The Writer’s Role: Acting As a Spectator

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 Analyze 
Use the basic features.

Profile writers can adopt the role of a spectator or the role of a participant. In the student essay at the beginning of this section, Cable takes on the role of a spectator when he talks to Howard and Tim and takes a tour of the Goodbody Mortuary. To become a participant, Cable would have had to help the funeral director or embalmer in his daily activities.

ANALYZE & WRITE

Analyze Edge’s dual roles of spectator and participant in “I’m Not Leaving Until I Eat This Thing” and then write a few paragraphs explaining what the two roles contribute to his profile:

  1. Skim the essay, and note in the margin where Edge uses the spectator role and where he uses the participant role.
  2. Give an example of each role, and explain how the examples show which role he is using.
  3. What does adopting each role enable Edge to do?

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