Descriptive/group: The Migrant Mother

The photo of the Migrant Mother is a black and white photograph, taken in 1936, during the Great Depression, by Dorothea Lange. It depicts a woman in her 30s with her three children, one baby and two toddlers. Taking a closer look at her face, you notice that her hair is unkempt and her brows are knit together. Her wrinkled, sun-tanned face looks careworn and sombre and her hunched posture seems to express her wish to protect her children. The mother’s right hand is propped up against her chin, while her left hand is cradling the baby which is swaddled in a dirty blanket and appears to be sleeping. The children lean against their mother’s shoulder, facing away from the camera. Their dishevelled pageboy hairstyles and their slight bodies exacerbate the already present melancholic atmosphere. The family is poor as can be seen by their dirty and threadbare clothes. The overall impression is one of desperation and the quiet determination to carry on living.

[163 words]

A day in the life of...Monika

Unlike most days, I find myself being not entirely reluctant to the idea of waking up at this early time in the morning, even though I know I have a long day ahead of me. I stay in bed for a few more minutes to soak in the warmth of the sun that shines through the windows before I finally get up and ready to leave for university. It is such a beautiful sunny day that I decide to pass on the tram and continue by foot instead. Luckily, I arrive just in time for my first class and cannot help but notice that most of my fellow students seem to be in a good mood this day as well. 

The nearly eight hours pass quicker than I thought and I am faced with two options: Either going back to an empty apartment and getting some work done or taking a friend up on his offer to give me a ride to my family home in Vienna. Spontaneously, I choose to go with the latter, head home and pack a few things to hit the road. 

After a fun ride with my good friend, I am happy to finally be home and to find my sister about to make one of my favorite desserts: pancakes with ice and fruits. 

Before/after

Summary of ‘Europe already has on foot in ‘Japanese’ deflation grave’

Before:

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, in The Telegraph of October 23, 2013 discusses deflation and its disastrous effects on debt-ridden European countries.

Evans-Pritchard states that deflation currently appears to be insignificant in “low-debt” countries, such as Spain and Italy. However, as the debt ratio proceeds to rise over 300pc of GDB and inflation recently dropped to 0.9pc within the eurozone, causing a gradual fall in prices, these countries will soon be fully affected by deflation and, consequently, face a debt crisis.   

According to the article, this deflationary tendency pushes countries into a “runaway debt trajectory” that is impossible to acquit. These countries are faced with two options to prevent this predicament: Either implementing an austerity policy or increasing the inflation rate to ensure economic growth. Both solutions, however, seem to be doomed to fail as politicians do not make efforts to cut spending, and Germany refuses to cooperate to drift up inflation, simply because the country benefits from declining inflation.

The author believes that the best solution is for Italy, Spain, France and Club Med to join forces and persuade Germany to keep inflation high enough to avert deflation, as it will inevitably result in a “Japanese deflation grave” for all European countries. 

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After:

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, in The Telegraph of October 23, 2013 discusses deflation and its disastrous effects on debt-ridden European countries.

Evans-Pritchard states that deflation currently appears to be insignificant in “low-debt” countries, such as Spain and Italy. However, as the debt ratio proceeds to rise over 300pc of GDP and inflation recently dropped to 0.9pc within the eurozone, causing a gradual fall in prices, these countries will soon be fully affected by deflation and, consequently, face a debt crisis.   

According to the article, this deflationary tendency pushes countries into a “runaway debt trajectory” that is impossible to escape. These countries are faced with two options to prevent this predicament: Either implementing an austerity policy or increasing the inflation rate to ensure economic growth. Both solutions, however, seem to be doomed to fail as politicians do not make efforts to cut spending, and Germany refuses to cooperate to drift up inflation, simply because the country benefits from declining inflation.

The author believes that the best solution is for Club Med to join forces and persuade Germany to keep inflation high enough to avert deflation, as it will inevitably result in a “Japanese deflation grave” for all European countries. 

196 WORDS, NOT INCLUDING TITLE

My critique on an anonymous summary

Summary of Europe already has one foot in 'Japanese' deflation grave

In The Telegraph of October 23, 2013, Ambrose Evans-Pritchard warns against deflation.

Over the last three months, inflation has dropped in several EU countries, leading the eurozone towards a Japanese-style deflation. Such sustained deflation is destructive to economies since debt dynamics are sensitive to changes in inflation. The current development risks pushing Italy and Spain into runaway debt.

Europe’s debt crisis strategy forces indebted states to cut wages to be able to compete with Germany. However, Europe’s policy regime does this without stimulating economic growth. Despite economy measures, the debts of Italy, Spain, Portugal and Ireland have risen over the past two years. Private debts have also risen since the crisis began and businesses had to spend their liquid assets. Thus, imposing fiscal cuts is a self-defeating policy.

The solution to this economic climate is an inflation of at least two percent. However, the ECB is doing nothing to ensure this, as it is biased towards Germany, which is against inflation due to its strong economy.

The author recommends that the countries in need of inflation cooperate in the ECB’s governing council. They should assert themselves and call Germany’s bluff of walking out of the eurozone.

My comment:

Apart from the highlighted word (economic instead of economy), I can not see anything wrong with this summary; it is grammatically as well as textually well-written. The student: 

• seems to have understood the main points of the text, 
• wrote a good and concise introduction and conclusion,
• avoided redundancy, 
• used a good range of vocabulary,
• stuck to the facts and remained impersonal, 
• and was consistent register-wise.

All in all, a well-written, on-point, and coherent summary.