Every author aims for authenticity in their work, and Williams Tempest unquestionably achieves this goal in her article The Clan of One-Breasted Women. The report thoroughly informs the reader on how the Utah nuclear testing induced cancer in humans, which was a negative aspect that had a huge impact on the residents. The novel begins vividly with the narration of women who have died from cancer, including Williams' mother. The explosion of a nuclear weapon in Southern Utah resulted in the deaths of people who contracted cancer. Williams' writing shows honesty, which has made the essay more intriguing and appealing. Moreover, the intellectual conversation that Williams has with her audience is essentially inviting. Arguably, her straight forwardness makes her article to be critically compelling and easier to read and understand. She engages the reader in thinking about the horrific situations that culminated from the nuclear testing.
Equally, a profound strength that is evident from the document is the ability of Williams to gather past facts about her life events which effectively help to reveal her case. For this reason, the facts help the reader in elucidating any argument or pointing out the convincing truth from the writing. Simply put, no one can argue against the truth that is found in statistical evidence. Undoubtedly, these proofs evident from the facts builds credibility and therefore enables the reader to trust the author as well as develop the need to continue reading. For example, Williams uses specific names and dates of important events such as the September blast of 1957 to argue her case.
The use of pathos, ethos, and tone makes the author’s claims relatable and empathetic which are factors that have expressively aided to drive her points at home. Tempest Williams does this through utilizing emotional life experiences as well as making them personal to the reader. The mentioning of the names of people who died in bomb attacks creates disturbing emotions of sadness and stress. Additionally, she references the name of her mother, grandmothers, and aunts in the article and argues that they contracted cancer from the nuclear fallout in Utah. Undisputedly, the purpose of these names is aimed at making the reader feel empathy and create strong emotional feelings towards the situation describes. William writes “I watched the women in my family die common, heroic deaths….I watched beautiful women become bald as cisplatin, Cytoxan, and Adriamycin were injected into their veins. I held their foreheads as they vomited green-black bile…I witnessed their last peaceful breaths” (William 4). These statements arouse a feeling of sorrow and empathy.
Furthermore, Tempest William is magnificently descriptive, and this makes the reader picture the events of the situations that people including women she describes experienced. One of the primary triggers of emotion is pain which is highly manifested in the horrific description that Williams gives. The tone that she employs interests her audience through generating melancholy aspect while the ethos builds credibility and understanding which qualities are that make the article convincing. Ultimately, Williams writes her article through constructing her brilliant strategic thoughts and explains that nuclear testing is wholesomely damaging and thus calls for an action.
Work Cited
Williams, Terry Tempest. "The Clan of One-Breasted Women." Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place. New York: Pantheon, 1991. 281-290.
