They Say / I Say Intro and assignment - Essay Example

Legend The term “legend” is synonymous with “celebrity” or “fame” in many people’s minds. They see legends as having lived their lives in an exemplary and admirable way. The mere mention of the word legend makes people think of the many epic fighters, poets, playwrights and politicians about whom they have heard. However, legend does not always connote a celebrity, victorious or outstanding way of life. On the contrary, legend can also refer to a fake story that undercover law enforcement officers adopt in order to hide their identity.

Undercover law enforcement officers adopt fake identities in order to mingle with criminals and gather intelligence information that can help expose their criminal activities. A financially stable undercover law enforcement officer can take on the legend of a person living on the streets. He or she would live on the streets for as long as it takes to gather the information needed. For the truth, besides hiding one’s identity, legends help guide law enforcers not to make rush decisions in arresting suspects until they have a defendable probable cause.

Nonetheless, the continued use of different legends has a toll on undercover officers especially when they encounter difficulty outliving the aspects of a previous legend. In fact, some undercover officers have difficulty telling the end of a legend and the beginning of their real identity. This can be disruptive to the life of an individual. In this essay, then, the negative impacts of legends in an undercover law enforcement officer’s life will be examined (Graff & Cathy 14).Works CitedGraff, Gerald and Cathy, Birkenstein.

"They Say/ I Say": The Moves That Matter in Academic Writing. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Co, 2010. Print.