Rebuttal Rewrite—jcirrs

Posted on November 20, 2015 by jcirrs

SeaWorld should not be shut down. If the park were to be shut down, the captive animals would not be able know how to survive.

All of the current captive orca whales were either captured more than 35 years ago or were born in the facility. Life expectancy for orcas in the wild depends nearly on the ocean they swim in. In the Pacific Northwest, “life expectancy for a female is 30 years and a male is 19 years” (seaworldcares.com). In Southeastern Alaska, the maximum age for females is around 50 and for males 30. SeaWorld’s captive whales ages range from their 30s to their 50s. They have proven that they do not change the life expectancy of orca whales.

If the current captive whales were to be released into the wild, they would have a very low chance of surviving. Since most of their whales have been in their hands for 35 years or were born there, they cannot remember or do not know how to fend for themselves in the wild. In captivity, the animals have a specific diet and are given their food; they have never had to hunt for themselves. They are given specific sleeping quarters and are used to their own salt water. Taking these animals out of their familiar home will mess up their entire life and they may not be able to survive in the wild alone.

SeaWorld workers are able to “provide scientists with access, research and data that would be difficult or impossible to get in the wild” about orca whales. The ocean is enormous; being able to find and actually conduct research about an orca is almost an impossible job. The workers at SeaWorld are able to work hands on with the whales to collect data and learn about them. Studies can include lifespans, living communities, their prey, and how they survive.

Works Cited

“Killer Whales.” SeaWorld Cares. N.p., 2015. Web. 06 Nov. 2015.

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3 Responses to Rebuttal Rewrite—jcirrs

  1. jcirrs says:
    November 22, 2015 at 5:06 pm

    Feedback priority please.

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  2. davidbdale says:
    November 26, 2015 at 9:24 am

    I’m sorry, jcirrs, I didn’t find this because the search string for “feeedback please priority” did not deliver your request for “feedback priority please.” (Yes, it is that sensitive.) Now that I have gone looking for it, I will follow through with feedback for this post. I regret the delay.

    Happy Thanksgiving.

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  3. davidbdale says:
    November 27, 2015 at 8:24 am

    I’m glad you asked for feedback on this post, jcirrs, because you appear to have misunderstood the point of a Rebuttal Essay.

    You did correctly understand that this is a chance for you to face down the strongest opposition to your thesis that you can imagine. However, a good rebuttal essay REFUTES that strong opposition. You have written this essay as if you want to persuade readers to shut down SeaWorld.

    One way to introduce a rebuttal essay is to name the strongest argument that refutes your thesis and then rebut it immediately. In your case, that might look something like this:

    Advocates for SeaWorld have argued that shutting down the park would be catastrophic for the animals living there that could never be safely returned to the wild, and they’re correct about that. The captive orca whales were either born in captivity or have lived confined for 35 years. Releasing them would sentence them to quick death. But that can’t be a reason to continue capturing or raising more animals in captivity.

    SeaWorld is responsible for those animals for the rest of their lives. They should close the park to visitors, immediately cease capturing more animals, and care for the animals in a humane facility that researchers can use to study ways to protect and increase the existing population of wild orcas.

    Of course, that may not be your actual argument or conclusion, jcirrs. I’m offering it as a model of how rebuttal essays work. Does this help?

    Reply, please.

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