Angelo Wilson

Mrs. Kent
English 1020 (Monsters)
3-22-16
Outline for Assignment 3
I.

Title: Fishing and the Unprecedented Consequences

a. While the title may seem a little incomplete in its general nature, it actually serves
as a cleverly crafted opener for readers of my particular topic. Instead of being
presented with an abundance of information in the first section being the title, this
title leads the viewer with noticeable questions, thereby allowing them to long for

II.

more details regarding my position.

Introduction: A general description of my position, maybe in the form of a riddle or
something along that nature.
a. In order to maintain my readers attention and add meaning to the title, it would
suffice me well if I opened with a riddle or something that enhanced my
credibility on the subject. I could discuss the subject in a playful but serious
manner that keeps readers interested while at the same time, enabling me to be a

III.

trustworthy source.
Thesis: My thesis will cover exactly why over fishing is devastating to the
environment.
a. This is my whole argument and my paper will be centered on this idea. This is
also what I will be proving by using several different sources in order to get my

IV.

viewers to agree with my claim.

Descriptive paragraph (1).

a. For my first entry, since this is a serious subject, it would be beneficial to describe
exactly what over fishing is and how it is affecting our environment. Also, I can
provide some information from one of my sources as back up.
Graph (2).
a. By utilizing a graph directly after the descriptive paragraph, it just serves as

V.

another fact that helps me to consolidate my position in accordance to my

argument. The graph will provide figures in visual form that will further my claim
against over fishing.
Time Line (3).
a. Time lines are good, because they show factual information that have been

VI.

occurring all throughout history. The readers would be able to see a repetition in
VII.

the sequence of events related to the topic that I would be discussing.

News Paper Article (4).
a. Providing my position in newspaper article form would be good due to the fact
that people understand that something is important when it makes newspapers.
Well, this fact depends on where one lives, but thats generally an acceptable rule.
A newspaper article would help solidify the severity of the issue that is over

fishing. The readers would see just how important the issue is to our wellbeing.
VIII. Letter (5).
a. Normally, whenever the concept of a letter is introduced, its to be addressed to someone
of higher authority or maybe just a relative or friend. The letter might envelope a rant or a
distress that one has encountered recently in their life. By using the rant template, it
would allow me to vent my frustrations on the topic of over fishing and allow others to
see why it is such an important issue.
IX.
Cartoon (6).
a. For the cartoon, it would involve someone fishing with a very large off of a
fishing boat. And beneath them, the fish are having a conversation with
themselves about the whole incident. Saying something like Does he know there

arent many more of us? This would illustrate the point that fish are not an
X.

unlimited resource for food purposes.

Ad (7).
a. Ads in newspapers vary depending on what part of the world it is being read in.
But, as for television ads that get talked about the most are the ones who are
broadcasted on popular television networks. I will do the same for this ad, as it
will high light my argument on a respected television network of my choosing.

Bibliography
Cohen, Dave. "Decline of the Empire." 'Decline of the Empire' TypePad, 25 Jan. 2016.
Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
Dating the current year, this article explains that the fisheries have not been able to catch
as many fish in the past few years. Cohen claims that ever since 2010, national fisheries have
been in sharp decline with minuscule to no growth. Charts and graphs also support his claim as
the curves suggest that the trend will continue if we do not change our behavior. This source
would serve as a great current indication for my argument. To show that the problem still exists

today and that there are still negative repercussions to our actions, when fishing in mass
quantities.
Correa, Sandra Bibiana, et al. "Overfishing Disrupts an Ancient Mutualism Between
Frugivorous Fishes And Plants In Neotropical Wetlands." Biological Conservation 191.(2015):
159-167. Academic Search Premier. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
Due to the recentness of this article, its a great candidate for my argument. In this article
Correa discusses the potential dangers of overfishing a certain type of fish and what that does to
the ecosystem. This type of fish is the Frugivorous which lays seeds for the dispersal of certain
plant life. Companies recently have tended to go for the largest fish which are the best at laying
seeds because they have a greater capacity than the smaller ones. Thus, disrupting the interaction
between them and the plants. This also limits the plant life which serves as food for others and
puts the food chain in jeopardy for the remaining sum of the oceans sea creatures.

Croswell, Alexis. "10 Alarming Facts About Overfishing." One Green Planet.
OneGreenPlanet, 22 Nov. 2013. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
In this article Croswell discusses ten facts that detail overfishing and its accordance with
the destruction of the ecosystem. The most compelling point in the article is the idea of the top
predators in the ocean such as sword fish and sharks. At the top of the food chain are these
predators that help keep the ecosystem in balance and helps to keep the food chain from
becoming heavy sided due to an enormous amount of secondary fish being present. Because of
this, its projected or stated by this article that in the year 2048, all fisheries would have become
close to collapsing or collapsed completely.

Hilborn, Ray. "Book Review: Overfishing." The Fisheries Blog. TheFisheriesBlog, 16

Apr. 2012. Web. 27 Mar. 2016.
In this book review it is revealed that there are several definitions related to the
idea of overfishing. To go along with that, there are also varying viewpoints that suggests the
terms trivial nature. Each term is discussed and brought to fruition as the author details each
major conception of overfishing. And to further their argument, the author also provides evidence
in the form of case studies and the over exploitation of whales. The exploitation of whales is an
important source for the authors position, as whales are still being hunted today. Thus,
establishing the authors credibility and adding relativeness to his argument as well.

Jeston, Krysten. "Impact of Overfishing On Human Lives." Marine Science Today. Marine
Science Today LLC, 09 Apr. 2014. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.
Crucial to the development of my position on overfishing, its good for me to have an
actual definition of the term overfishing. This article allows me to do so, as the author, Jeston,
goes over what overfishing is and how that practice has a negative impact on our ecosystem. He
also gives several statistics that further the point that he is making. Such as fishing to population
ratios that are naturally being thrown off by our practices. This would correspond with my
descriptive paragraph entry and would help me to go into detail on the issues that overfishing
causes in present and past society.

Mercer, David. "Human Destruction Of The Marine Commons: The Case Of Fisheries
Collapse In The North Atlantic." Geodate 19.4 (2006): 5-7. Academic Search Premier. Web. 25
Feb. 2016.
Ideal for the graph entry of my argument, David goes into detail concerning what
happens to the ecosystem when we take more than whats necessary from it. The action really
reverses the natural population density of fishes in a certain areas of the ocean and leaves them
empty and void of their once stagnating beauty. To further this point, he uses graphs that show
figures that have changed over time as a result of our actions towards the environment. Since I
have a section that covers graphs, I could use the data from this source and implement it into my
argument in the form of a reliable visual aid.

Plumer, Brad. "Just How Badly Are We Overfishing the Oceans?" Washington Post. The
Washington Post, 29 Oct. 2013. Web. 01 Mar. 2016.
When it comes to fishing, we have invented several different contraptions that have made
mass fishing an easier task than ever. In fact, Plumer goes over some examples such as large
fishing nets and large boats that multiply the rate of fish being caught at once. Also, Plumer goes
over the consequences of such endeavors but also what we can do to perhaps reverse the damage
we have done and save whats left of the ecosystem. Coinciding with my ad entry, the ad would
emphasize a new piece of fishing of equipment and then I could go over negatives to that made
up piece of equipment.

Tatewalton. "Overfishing Timeline." Timetoast. Timetoast, 27 Mar. 2016. Web. 27 Mar.

2016.
Overfishing as it is today, is predicted to get worse over time if we continue in the same
way without changing anything. This is proven in this sources timeline created by Tatewalton. In
the time line, it claims that by 2050 the fishing industry will cease to exist if fishing continues in
the way it is going now. The time line even encompasses the beginnings of overfishing when
others started to exploit whale meat as a use for lamp oil drastically. Reducing the whale
population. This would go well with my time line source, as I could explain the start of fishing
and the future effects of our behaviors.

Tsikliras, Athanassios C., et al. "The Mediterranean And Black Sea Fisheries At Risk
From Overexploitation." Plos ONE 10.3 (2015): 1-19. Academic Search Premier. Web. 1 Mar.
2016.
Located in other parts of the world, the same issue is still at hand. In the Mediterranean
Sea as well as the Black sea, the author Athanassios discusses the potential dangers of over
fishing on those said areas. But, she addresses different aspects of the issue such as primary to
secondary level consumers and how they offset each other and negatively affect the ecosystem in
its entirety. Because the issue is being dealt with in terms of foreign affairs, this would fit well
with my newspaper article. In which the title would reflect the contents of this article.

Velasquez-Manoff, Moises. "How overfishing can alter an ocean ecosystem." Christian

Science Monitor 18 June 2008: 14. Academic Search Premier. Web. 29 Feb. 2016.
Looking for one kind of fish thats in large demand by us for consumption, of course
limits that one species of fish. And whenever the food chain is considered, another kind of fish
may rely on that one species for its food. As stated by Velasquez, this puts a strain on the food
chain and causes an imbalance of fish on the ocean floor. Leaving other kinds of fish in helpless
need of food. Leaving a surplus amount of sea creatures that are supposed to be in a lesser
quantity. This would go well with my letter entry as I could discuss this fact in the letter that I am
addressing to perhaps a fishing company.