The two letters below come from the internet and are about graffiti. Graffiti is painting, drawing, and writing on walls and public spaces - usually this is done without permission.
Read the letters then answer the questions that follow.
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Dear _______
I'm simmering with anger as the school wall is cleaned and repainted for the fourth time to get rid of graffiti. Creativity is admirable but people should find ways to express themselves that do not inflict extra costs upon society.
Why do you spoil the reputation of young people by painting graffiti where it's forbidden? Professional artists do not hang their paintings in the streets, do they? Instead they seek funding and gain fame through legal exhibitions. In my opinion buildings, fences and park benches are works of art in themselves. It's really pathetic to spoil this architecture with graffiti and what's more, the method destroys the ozone layer. Really, I can't understand why these criminal artists bother as their "artistic works" are just removed from sight over and over again. Helga |
Dear _______
There is no accounting for taste. Society is full of communication and advertising. Company logos, shop names. Large intrusive posters on the streets. Are they acceptable? Yes, mostly. Is graffiti acceptable? Some people say yes, some no.Who pays the price for graffiti? Who is ultimately paying the price for advertisements? Correct. The consumer.
Have the people who put up billboards asked your permission? No. Should graffiti painters do so then? Isn't it all just a question of communication – your own name, the names of gangs and large works of art in the street? Think about the striped and chequered clothes that appeared in the stores a few years ago. And ski wear. The patterns and colours were stolen directly from the flowery concrete walls. It's quite amusing that these patterns and colours are accepted and admired but that graffiti in the same style is considered dreadful. Times are hard for art. Sophia |
© OECD (2002). Reproduced with permission.
- The purpose of each of these letters is to
(A) explain what graffiti is.
(B) present an opinion about graffiti.
(C) demonstrate the popularity of graffiti.
(D) tell people how much is spent removing graffiti.
- Why does Sophia refer to advertising?
- Which of the two letters do you agree with? Explain your answer by using your own words to refer to what is said in one or both of the letters.
- We can talk about what a letter says (the content) and about the way a letter is written (the style). Regardless of which letter you agree with, in your opinion, which do you think is the better letter? Explain your answer by referring to the way one or both letters are written (think about the content and the style).