Knife Violence: A Comparative Text Analysis

The three texts all have some similar opinions on the topic of knife crimes, and knife violence. But while they all have similar opinions, how they show these similar opinions varies quite a bit. “Homicides in England and Wales up 14%” (2016) by Alan Travis, takes a very logical and very analytical approach to the entire problem. The article does this by reporting a lot of numbers and reports of how knife violence is going up. “The police-recorded crime figures include a 9% rise in knife crime” (p. 2, l. 3). The main focus of the article is that crime is going up in general, and especially knife and gun violence. The two other articles have a more human-oriented approach to the problem and looks at it in a more social-oriented way. Whitney Iles focuses on the fact that knife crime is a complex issue, but still, an issue that can’t be ignored. “This is a complex issue, one that too many of us have begun to shy away from, but as this summer shows, it cannot be ignored. “We must work together to find and implement the solutions, and fast.” (p. 4, ll. 6-8). But while she says that everyone must work together to find a solution to the problem, she does not really give an answer as to what could be done, the only thing she says is that everyone must stand together to find a solution, and fully acknowledge violence as a public health issue. In the last text “Why Myron Yarde’s death affects us all”, Emily Drabble agrees with a lot of points made by Whitney Iles but makes the point that Britain as a whole needs to change our view on knife crime, and youth violence in general. “There’ll be another stabbing next week and there’s nothing I can do about it.” (p. 5, l. 16). She mocks people for not thinking that there is a solution to the problem, and she believes they need to not just write off knife violence and gang violence as a given.