Approach of Cancer Patients - Case Study Example

Positive Thinking: From a Cancer Patient’s Perspective Barbara Ehrenreich, a cancer patient, talks about how her angry and negative feelings toward her diagnosis made her aware of the “positive” approach of cancer patients and how other people undergoing difficulties, try to escape their sufferings. From her book “Smile Or Die: How Positive Thinking Fooled America And The World”, is an excerpt entitled “Smile! You’ve Got Cancer” where the author talks about her views about having cancer and how positive thinking may or may not be of help to patients. In the said essay, the aforementioned author honestly and courageously presents her views about the so-called positive approach to cancer as opposed to what would generally be expected from her and other patients. Ehrenreich narrates how she discovered the exaltation of cancer as something that is rather a blessing than a curse to which she strongly disagrees. Her stand about the issue is clearly reflected in the article and she cites examples from the two perspectives to drive her point and show how America has been fooled in the “positive thinking” approach. The article was written with the author appealing to readers through logical reasoning. She uses pertinent examples to give her arguments some strong backbones, making her a reliable writer. Her balanced consideration of her thoughts and other people’s claims gives an interesting quality to her work that simply grabs the reader’s attention. What makes the essay more interesting perhaps is the fact that her argument is not in unison with the more acceptable norm in the cancer community. Rather, she tries to encourage her readers to face their trials head-on, whether it is physical, financial, emotional or otherwise; through an honest emotional approach, saying that such manner is more beneficial to the person involved rather than sugar-coating and hiding the bitter realities of life. Such approaches make Ehrenreich’s argument quite strong and efficient. In the aforementioned essay, Ehrenreich states that when she was diagnosed with breast cancer, she has been reading various materials from different authors about the disease and how to cure or even cope with the struggles, especially with anger. However, she soon found out that no one seemed to share her feelings toward her sickness. Instead, she discovered that most patients and survivors offered positive attitudes toward their fate. She even observes that “The cheerfulness of breast cancer culture goes beyond mere absence of anger to what looks, all too often, like a positive embrace of the disease”. Nevertheless, Ehrenreich looks at having cancer from an entirely different point of view. For her, she has always approached her situation with anger, full of questions that she wants to be clarified logically. She is quite thankful that she did not go with the waves and deal with her sickness just as others approached their dilemma. She believes that being angry with her situation made her stronger citing one study that claims that “in complete contradiction to the tenets of positive thinking, women who perceive more benefits from their cancer ‘tend to face a poorer quality of life- including worse mental functioning”. Therefore, she writes the essay matter-of-factly, trying to expose that the “positive attitude” approach does not necessarily help in the healing process but might even give more devastating results than expected. An article with a title “Smile! You’ve Got Cancer”, sure is catchy not only for readers who are cancer patients but even for the cancer-free readers. A non-patient might think the title is ridiculous because no one sure wants to be sick especially with cancer. It is a dreaded disease because even though there are treatments, the process is known to be agonizing both physically and financially. To the patient who is going through the difficulties, the title could elicit anger. Understanding the author’s feelings about the disease, the anger is perhaps the very thing she wants cancer readers should feel. Therefore, the title could be said to be effective. It is both intriguing and affective. In addition, the introduction presents an interesting approach that draws readers to continue. The author hooks the reader by making a connection with the reader, using the first and second person pronouns. She seems to be right in front of the reader speaking face-to-face, a quality that makes her presence felt and real to the audience. Such characteristics do not simply give information but they also appeal to the emotions of the reader which is quite effective in holding one’s attention. Even though the author was efficient in her title and introduction, she did not stop communicating her thoughts and feelings well in those parts. Rather, she continues to indulge the reader by presenting a logical order with clear transitions. For instance, after connecting with the reader, she starts to narrate her story about how she found out that she has breast cancer. She transitioned from feeling nonchalant because she found no medical reason that she could possibly have cancer in addition to what her radiologist said that “80% of lumps detected by mammogram are benign”. Later, she talks about her feelings and then goes on with how she was compelled to read various materials to find out about the cancer and how patients are facing the struggles. The writing is well-organized so that it is easy to follow. When the author sees it necessary, she gives examples to explain further her point or to strengthen her argument. For instance, when the writer talks about what she discovered about the general, positive attitude of patients, doctors as well as family and friends of patients; she quotes several sources, primarily cancer patients, who talked about their positive attitudes. The writer leaves no opinion unexplained and this makes the essay more interesting and insightful. Aside from the examples, she makes it a point to explain her thoughts well and make clear what she wants to communicate with her readers. For instance, she seemed to have made it clear to the readers that she is not simply making a comment about the general attitude toward cancer or any dreadful illness but that she has well-considered her argument by giving a long and arduous discussion of the opposing argument before presenting her own. She started by pointing out the abundance of positive thinkers in terms of facing cancer. She explains that she read several blog posts and articles that reflect a positive and encouraging approach to cancer. Later, she links the positive attitude to other situations such as financial success. Ehrenreich also gives a short history of how positive thinking evolved in approaching difficulties in different aspects of life before she finally concludes by presenting her opposition. However, the writer was quite scanty in presenting her opposition. In contrast to her explanations about the opposing argument, she gave a quick reference to one study that claims that optimistic women patients are prone to “poorer quality of life”. Although the conclusion grows organically from the essay, it seems the writer was quick to end it. Still, it could be said that the final statements were quite strong, challenging readers to consider the author’s perspective as valuable and worth considering. Ehrenreich summarizes her point by sharing about what she learned about people’s perceptions regarding cancer by giving a report of what breast cancer did to her. The essay is very insightful because it does not simply enumerate the arguments of the opposing sides. Rather, the author approaches her writing with fervor, appealing both to logic and emotions. She makes it clear that she is not biased in her opinions by presenting a well-considered perspective of the opposition before she finally makes her own assessment. She covered every detail that needed to be made clear. For this reason, Ehrenreich appears to fully understand the argument of the opposition which further qualifies her to present her opposing idea. Her discourse echoes the effect of the result of popularized arguments in the medical and other fields. For instance, her discourse suggests that the generally accepted and expected attitude of cancer patients to be cheerful and optimistic is a mindset proposed by advocates of positive thinking through the media. Similarly, this can be seen in Jill Lepore’s article entitled “It’s Spreading” where the bird flu in 1930 caused a lot of medical concern because of published articles about it. The same is true with the spread of eating disorders due to media that Susan Bordo writes in her essay, “The Globalization of Eating Disorders”. The positive attitude of cancer patients is not necessarily helpful but it is popular and expected if not demanded from patients because it is what the media suggests. In conclusion, the essay was well-written because it effectively communicates the writer’s ideas in a clear and logical manner, covering all important aspects of the argument. The title was engaging and effective. The introduction is very catchy because of the personal approach of the writer, connecting with the reader and drawing him to read on. The arguments were presented with clear transitions, made clear though examples and explanations and discussed intensively and analytically. Reference Ehrenreich, Barbara. “Smile! You’ve got Cancer”. The Guardian. January 2010. Web. February 28, 2015. . Read More