Notice how both essays open. Wright begins her essay with the pronouncement: “Like a lot of American girls, I developed an eating disorder when I was thirteen years old. To be honest, I’m surprised it...

Notice how both essays open. Wright begins her essay with the pronouncement: “Like a lot of American girls, I developed an eating disorder when I was thirteen years old. To be honest, I’m surprised it took that long” (par. 1). Woodson’s essay opens with a reference to Jim Crow: “Even though Jim Crow was supposed to be far behind us, we spent our days in the all-black community called Nicholtown in a still segregated South” (par. 2). To what extent do you think that these openings are meant to affect or manipulate you emotionally? Were they successful in doing so?