Sallie Tisdale's Essay 'We Do Abortions Here'

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00 AP Comp Readers Response Journals for October 10 Sallie Tisdale: We Do Abortions Here In “We Do Abortions Here: A Nurse’s Story,” Sallie Tisdale use pathos with specific stories and vivid imagery. She uses imagery as well to convey the moral and psychological conflict that comes with working in an abortion clinic, before finally stating her position on the topic. Throughout her essay, Tisdale talks about her interactions with different clients at the clinic. She tells stories of “a sleepy-eyed girl, just 14... with a slight and goofy smile”, “an eighteen-year-old woman pregnant for the fourth time... [who] has been so hungry for her drug that she has taken to using the loose skin of her upper arms” , and “a 16-year-old uneducated girl …show more content…

Tisdale uses vivid imagery and descriptions of the procedure. She describes the actual fetus as such: “When I look into the basin, among the curdlike blood clots, I see an elfin thorax, attenuated, its pencil line ribs all in parallel rows with tiny knobs of spine rounding upwards. A translucent arm and hand swim beside”. And “just like a little kitten... Everything was still attached.” These descriptions remind the reader that although thwy may be a threat to the mother, these fetuses are still living things. The descriptions show how brutal the practice of abortion can be, which makes the reader share her …show more content…

Despite her internal conflict, Tisdale does come to a conclusion at the end of her essay that abortion is painful, but necessary. “Abortion, requires of me an entirely new set of assumptions. It requires a willingness to live with conflict, fearlessness, and grief. As I close the freezer door, I imagine a world where this won’t be necessary, then return to the world where it is.” She asserts that although abortions are difficult to live with, they are something that must be lived

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