Essay 2 1

“I’d Rather Smoke than Kiss” A Response to Florence King

Nurbatyrov Rauan rauan_147@mail.ru 11521917: ENG102 11 IN: English Composition II
Irena Shanahan
Summary/Response Essay October 31th, 2014

Writer and journalist Florence King tried to show smoking world with eyes of smokers. In her essay she is not afraid to speak her mind. At the beginning of the essay King explains how smoking appeared in her life and how her family concerned smoking from Florence’s childhood. Her mother started smoking at the too young age of 12, being a gesture of teenage, but King started this habit at the late age of 26 and at this moment she has 28-years’ experience of smoker. Although her mother was pregnant with Florence, she did not stop smoking and it was continuing during King’s upbringing and the child did not have problems with her health. Since King started smoking she has noticed that she got more pleasure from a cigarette than from others enjoyable things. Also she can claim that if she would not have been a writer, she had not started and needed in smoking. In the article she says to people that if they want to relax or get pleasure, they should smoke. What concerns King, she considers that our lives should be savored than lengthened, and rightly tells her own opinion about misanthropes among modern society, who are trying to make people choose: smoke or not. Then Florence includes this thesis in the essay that the most popular form of closet misanthropy in America today is hatred of smokers. Florence King surely calls “haters” smokers with the word “bigots”. She states her anger toward anti-smokers in the essay: “Rather Smoke than Kiss". The statement that smoking is one of the worst habits plays main role in society as it harm not only the health of smokers but also people around them. Although King claims that every person has own opinion and choice, smoke or not, but passive smokers cannot switch where they would be: among smokers or non-smokers. All the hassles existed owing to appearing passive smokers, who do not want to smell smoke, but they are forced. In my opinion I cannot understand Florence and other smokers as it is silly habit which causes many diseases and bad consequences. In spite of the fact, that Florence smokes enough big part of her life, she should not say to people that smoking is more pleasant than being healthy, because cigarettes damage people’s organisms moreover it was proved by medical researches.
In another hand I can understand some of King’s points, though I have never smoked any cigarettes. Nowadays most people smoke including my friends, that is why there are many reasons for starting not thinking of own health and the style of life. Many smokers say that it helps them to “unload” and stop thinking of their problems, or how Florence says: it can substitute usual life pleasures. Proceeding world statistics of diseased people from smoking, it was worth to note in Florence’s article some medical facts, how smoking harms and kills us. According to the statistics every six seconds tobacco takes one life and every year smoking becomes a cause of the deaths of 5, 4 million people in the world. By forecast, the quantity of deaths will have increased to 10 million people annually. Nowadays smoking is becoming more popular among young people, despite various videos and articles about nicotine harm. The reason for that is the influence of contemporary or older people around. It is important not to make a mistake in teen age so that not regret in conscious age.
I can distinguish one else significant reason; it is an advertisement of cigarettes and their variety. In daily life we often watch TV and movies; many artists smoke during films and it seems fashionable and prestigious. I can note this fact as one of the reasons for smoking.
Furthermore, now it is quite acceptable and easy to buy a pack of cigarettes in any market, especially smoking is allowed almost wherever. There is a tendency among colleagues or students to go outside and smoke a pair of cigarettes, apart from suggestion to smoke for “a company”.
In conclusion I want to confirm the importance of Florence’s article first of all because of her unique point of view. She exactly helped to understand feelings of smokers when they were under pressure of other non-smoking people. I can support her words and opinion in some cases, as she has been smoking for 28 years and she does not feel uncomfortable discussing this topic.
To my mind it would be better if nobody smoked but I cannot prevent that. Every person have own right to smoke or not.

I have used her words with indirect speech. Sources of Information
I have used statistic information about smoking “According to the statistics every six seconds tobacco takes one life and every year smoking becomes a cause of the deaths of 5, 4 million people in the world. By forecast, the quantity of deaths will have increased to 10 million people annually”. I found this information in this site: http://ne-kurim.ru/articles/stat/