How Plastic Almost Killed This Lowcountry Sea Turtle Summary

In Island Packet’s article “How plastic almost killed this Lowcountry sea turtle” by Delayna Earley, readers are informed about the discovery of a dead sea turtle that was recently treated at the South Carolina Aquarium in Charleston, South Carolina. The image is effective in responding to the rhetorical situation in which plastic debris are proven to be harmful to marine life and so articles like Earley’s are written to inform others about how damaging plastic is.

The exigence of the article is about how plastic pollution is harmful for the ocean. Throughout the years, there has been an increase in the advocacy being mindful of plastic waste and on using less plastic materials. The world is learning how to become more sustainable. Earley references to an interview conducted by The Post and Courier with John Weinstein, a physiology professor at The Citadel. John Weinstein points out that “the plastic pollution in out oceans is one of the most critical environmental concerns facing wildlife today” (qtd. in Earley). The image of the various pieces of plastic that are found in sea turtles catches people’s eyes and help’s the article invoke strong feeling

Because the publishing company is stationed in the Lowcountry, most of the readers and subscribers are native to the area. This proves to be a constraint because the likelihood of people who are not from the Lowcountry reading Island Packet is not great. Island Pocket are limited to their audience which are generally locals from South Carolina. This is showing throughout the article because Earley only mentions local resources, such as South Carolina Aquarium and The Post and Courier, in her article. In the South Carolina Aquarium’s website, it is stated that “If nothing is done, researcher predict there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by 2050” (par.