Blog Post 40

Dear Lekha,
I know it's been a tough semester, and you have every reason to be exhausted and stressed...constantly. I am so proud of you for keeping your head up and refusing to let all of the catastrophes in this semester break you down. I know you are so strong, and so capable of achieving every goal you put your mind to, you just have to focus and put the effort in. One bad test grade will not prevent you from fulfilling all of your aspirations; focus on the bigger picture, and you'll get there eventually. Hang in there, I promise it will be worth it in the end.
Love,
Lekha

Blog Post 39

If I were to write myself a letter from the beginning of the year, I would've told myself that simplicity is often the best route to take, especially with English 109H. Often times, I want to use all of the extensive words in my vocabulary, and write formally. I'm not sure why I write this way, but I always have. I have learned that high grades do not always result from this type of rhetoric. I also wish I would've told myself that college is 10000000000 times harder than high school, and to believe my older friends when they told me I would never have free time. I would've told myself that little things aren't worth stressing over; it's easier to move on and go forwards, instead of dwelling on the negative. I would have advised myself to completely outline, on paper, all of my essays. This is the only way I can write clearly, and I realized it during the third assignment.

Blog Post 37

1. What topic do I want to discuss with my readers? What do I want them to understand about the topic?

I want to focus on the process of becoming a writer, and my perception of myself as a writer. I want my readers to understand that writing is a means by which self-expression, societal analysis, and calls for justice can be asserted, despite the magnitude of an issue. Every argument has an underlying or implicit theme key to understanding the rhetorical situation and language of a a text; once a general claim can be clearly supported by evidence to reflect a greater purpose, the process of becoming a writer reaches enlightenment, with resulting effective, relevant, and meaningful work. 

1. Who is my primary audience? Who is my secondary audience?

My primary audience is Dr. Bell, our instructor, who has read all of my work. My secondary audience is my classmates because they have peer edited some of my work, and witnessed my progress as a writer. 

1. What do my audiences already know or believe about my topic?

My audiences know my writing style, as well as my strengths and weaknesses. They have seen my journey through this semester as a writer. 

1. How will I organize and develop my ideas to make them convincing to these readers?

I will organize each paragraph with a "what I learned" clause, "how I learned" clause, and "why what I learned is important" clause to reflect on my growth as a writer within my essay. 

1. How will I establish my ethos (relationship and tone) with my readers?

I will establish my ethos by speaking personally, and referencing specific evidence from my work. 

Blog Post 14: Thoughts on Drafting

1. What parts of the book’s advice on the above bulleted topics are helpful for writing in this genre?

The book asserts that a thesis statement should describe your purpose and rhetorical strategies to provide your audience with a clear perception of what your essay will focus on. The book also offers PIE paragraph structure which is very helpful in organizing ideals to convey evidence supporting a claim, as well as the implicit themes within the argument. An introduction, according to the book, should be short and concise; however, background information and a thesis statement are staples of an introduction to provide a framework for the rest of the essay. 

1. What parts of the book’s advice on these topics might not be so helpful, considering the genre you’re writing in?

However, the book states that the conclusion paragraph is a restatement of the thesis clause within the essay. This information is useful, but does not really help structure or organize the length and content of the conclusion paragraph; the book could've included more information on how to write the conclusion. 

Blog Post 15

Peer Review and Revised Thesis Statement


The peer review process we did in class really helped me understand which of my ideas read smoothly, and which don't make sense. The feedback I was given will help me alter my essay so that it is easier to understand and more clear. In my feedback to others, I noticed similar trends; there was a lack of organizational structure amongst most of my peers' papers. I think altering our essay structures will show the biggest improvements within our projects for our final drafts.

Blog Post 16

Final Link to QRG:

https://docs.google.com/a/email.arizona.edu/document/d/1W1SXEfxRkIAHLY52wEQ5YqLN9F8MeHFkCePOkeMlA1c/edit?usp=sharing

Blog Post 28

Link to my Final Paper: https://docs.google.com/a/email.arizona.edu/document/d/1qme34QVhyGOblhr3cYm_Whb4qZVhY90tja0Aegn7KTs/edit?usp=sharing

I shared this paper with my dad, who is the program director of the journalist department at the University of Arizona. He helped me organize my paper so that it read more smoothly, and he also gave me some word choice options that served as synonyms for some words that I was repeating. My dad gave me some ideas on how to clean up sentences so that they read more concisely, and did not run-on. His criticisms really helped me fix my paper so that it read in a clear way. 

Blog Post 29

1. 
   What did I learn from this assignment about my own writing process?

This assignment taught me how to extend the normal four paragraph structure of the standard rhetorical analyses I wrote in high school. I learned that I need to work on clearly structuring my papers to write effectively and in an organized way. However, I recognized my abilities to draw out implicit themes within Stanton's blog to reflect on the relevance of the issues on social media today and society today.

1. Is this a more successful paper than the last? Why?

This is a more successful paper than my last because I was more used to the structure, and felt more comfortable writing a rhetorical analysis. Never having written a QRG before, I struggled with the formulation and portrayal of my ideas. I feel this essay was more abundant in direct evidence that support my assertions.

1. What is one thing I wish I could have done differently?

I wish that I had edited the structure of my essay more to avoid run-on sentences. I really struggle with writing to-the-point, clear ideas. I also struggle with synonyms; sometimes I use the wrong words because I want to avoid repetition.

1. What did I Iearn about the importance of rhetoric and rhetorical analysis?

I learned that a rhetorical situation extends further than the argument of the author, but includes background information and research as well. Without prior knowledge, or information about a situation, an audience cannot fully comprehend the magnitude of an argument. I also learned that rhetoric is not only found in text, but photos as well. Basically every form of media has a rhetorical situation, it is just more abstract to determine a rhetorical situation from a photograph or image.

1. How can I apply these lessons to my work in other classes?

My new abilities to assess the rhetorical situation of multi-media mediums will allow me to have deeper insights and perceptions in other classes. I will be able to organize my ideas in a clear and effective way to determine the purpose and message behind almost all arguments and statements.

Blog Post 33: Background Research on Rhetorical Analysis 3

Most of my research was done through conversations with my advisor, and looking through the journal I kept in Costa Rica with Dream Volunteers.

https://docs.google.com/a/email.arizona.edu/document/d/1O-NVzPUIQdMUqTQf0ZAufsx_bJ--6rZP9tqJPEtAbTg/edit?usp=sharing

Blog Post 34

Thesis Statement for Rhetorical Analysis of Project 3:

Utilizing imagery, and personal narratives, I argue that the only way to break the cycle of oppression and abuse amongst impoverished communities is to provide a stable education for the children within them so they can become true leaders and agents of empowerment.

Blog Post 35

The context of the cartoon depicting a Pilgrim and a Native American combines both a historical setting and the current Syrian refugee crisis that is causing global controversy. The story of Thanksgiving is well-known, and symbolic of peace and cooperation between nationalities. When the pilgrims sailed to America, they encountered native Indians who, instead of turning their backs on the struggling migrants, accepted the newcomers with open arms. However, in modern times, America is not extending a helping hand to refugees in need; hence, "Sorry, but we're not accepting refugees." The cartoon is commenting on the hypocrisy of the modern refugee crisis in comparison to our historical migration.

Blog Post 38

1.) In writing the QRG assignment, my argument commented on the Death Penalty, and served to implicitly show my stance against the practice of capital punishment through the analysis of other scholars'' statistics, arguments, and evidence.

2.) Compared to my highschool AP Lang class, English 109H followed similarities in the focus on non-fiction materials, and rhetorical analysis; however, the complexity and length of the essays required for 109H proved to be more difficult and time-consuming than those of AP Lang.

3.) English 109H has illuminated my strength in diction and exploring implicit themes within rhetorical situations; however, I simultaneously recognize my tendencies to write unclearly and without a formulated structure, which ultimately weakens my writing.

4.) Two of the course objectives, focusing on rhetorical analyses and research components, were clearly reflected in my HONY analysis, which required me to not only search for statistics, personal narratives, and background information on the Syrian refugee crisis; but also rhetorically analyze each of the research components present to depict their influence and impact within the HONY blog .

5.) English 109H has taught me indelible skills that dig deep into the relationships of rhetorical situations and current events that not only provide the means to write an effective and clear paper, but reflect on the overarching applications and importances of these themes overall to pose an action that recognizes the magnitude of universal issues prevalent in modern society.