Travels With My Ex

Susan Straight recalled many events from her and her ex-husband’s life as she drove to Huntington Beach. She introduced her three daughters: “The Scholar”, “The Baller” and “The Baby” by telling why they were given these nicknames. They were going to Huntington Beach with The Baller’s friends and boyfriend to celebrate her eighteenth birthday. Susan and her daughters were discussing how more and more people  they knew were being pulled over. They believed this was because the police officers were trying to make “revenue”. Susan expressed her dislike towards traveling to Huntington Beach, and her dislike grew when they were pulled over. Her ex-husband believed that it was because they had a van full of  black kids. This act caused Susan to recall different events that occurred to her and her ex-husband because of his race. Susan expressed her belief of the racism that police officers possessed towards her husband. When they first began to date, Susan described a time in which the police officers yelled racial slurs at her ex-husband and told her she was in the wrong place. Both Susan and her ex-husband called the reason for them being pulled over as the police officers making “revenue”.

Susan Straight was trying to achieve her purpose of telling about her dislike towards the police officers because she believed that they were trying to make “revenue”. Susan recalled events from her past to help her audience understand why she possesses the dislike that she does. She sarcastically described her husband as being “scary”, as a way to sarcastically approve of the police officers’ actions. This helped her audience connect to her thoughts and feelings. Susan Straight has won many different literary awards for her short stories. This is why she was successful in achieving her purpose of sharing her dislike for the police officers trying to make “revenue” by using an argumentative essay.

Rodney King

Matt Sayles/AP Photo

Susan mentioned Rodney King in her essay when she mentioned the racism that her and her  ex-husband experienced from the police. The racism was one of the main reasons why Susan had the dislike that she possessed.