Rios 1 Isabella Rios Ms.

McLean English 11 Period 1 30 September 2013 My Artifact The artifact I have chosen to present is a popular illustrated book titled Stephen Biestys Incredible Cross-Sections. This is a book I have owned since I was a small child I loved looking at the amazing cross-sections almost every night before going to bed. The book has been a bestseller and has been praised for its immense attention to detail. There are a total of 18 cross-sections of objects ranging from trains to opera houses to tanks, each illustration showing the inner workings of a system in relation to its outer appearance. I chose this item as an artifact in part for its sentimental value, but also because of what I believe it means to be American. Much like a system portrayed in Incredible Cross-Sections, I am complex and have so much to contribute to the world around me, and in the same way, the United States is formed of countless different peoples and cultures and yet it functions as a single organism. The best example of this definition is the drawing of the medieval castle, the first object represented in the book. The castle is a functioning fortress, built for the purpose of protection. At first glance, the castle is one entity with a single function. The detailed crosssection provided, however, tells us otherwise. The inside of the castle is bustling with activity, filled with people and animals and hard work. The most notable aspect of this is that the inside is not of one kind, but full of variety in every way imaginable. Each person serves a function the castle is a living and breathing organism, filled with potential and

Rios 2 progress that lies just underneath the surface of its stony walls. Nearly every illustration in the book is similar in that they all portray two perspectives: on the outside, a single building or vehicle; on the inside, full of commotion and detail and life. As an American, I see myself as one of the small human figures in each cross-section. To the passing eye, I am insignificant, with no influence or importance in the grand mechanism. I am a pretty detail that was placed in the picture as a final, fleeting thought. The truth, however, could not be more different! Yes, the United States is a system that, on the outside, is composed and well-built. It is solid and silent, a stronghold in the ocean of the world. But this nation is nothing without its inner workings the farmers, the businessmen, the doctors, the teachers. Its the minute details that make this nation great. E Pluribus Unum goes both ways. We are in many, one, but in one, we are also many. I am valuable to my country and my country is valuable to me.