Think carefully about the issue presented in the following excerpt and the assignment below.

Quotes Included Above Prompt:

“We live in an era of individualism. The individual is celebrated and praised in every way ― for being special and creative, for making an original contribution, for competing with others to be the best. Nowadays, individualism is a guiding idea for many people and has many benefits. But focusing on individuals has caused us to neglect our sense of community, our feeling that we are part of a harmonious group. The importance of belonging to a community has been long forgotten.”

―Adapted from Piero Ferrucci, “The Power of Kindness”

Assignment:

Has the emphasis on individualism in our society caused people ... (part 1 of prompt)

... to forget the importance the importance of belonging to a community? (part 2 of prompt [indicated by preposition]) Plan and write an essay in which you develop your point of view on this issue. Support your position with reasoning and examples taken from your reading, studies, experience, or observations.

Brainstorm:

For this question, it may be important to remember the importance of belonging to a community. What benefits have you seen from being a member of a community, neighborhood, group of friends, or family? Next, consider whether you have experienced excessive emphasis on being unique and individual. Have popular culture, foreign culture, or modern ideas excessively emphasized individualism at the expense of belonging to a community? What examples can you think to support this idea? What examples can you think of that are against this idea?