Rhetorical Activity I

Authors in each piece establish ethos by incorporating hard proof in their articles. This ranges from transcripts of interviews to quantitative data. They show a thorough knowledge in the field that they are writing in and the topic. The authors structure their articles in a way that is very sensible and assertive. They don't have any grammatical or punctuation errors in their works of text. As each literary style varies, it does so taking into consideration its readers. For example, articles in Rolling Stone have a different tone than say an article found in the New Yorker. With all the writers, it is evident that they have done their homework by the expertise they show in their writing. They present the facts without any sort of bias. It is up to the reader to reflect on the article and make up their mind about the issue, if there is one, or just think about the topic in general. At the end, the reader feels as if they have been informed with something they did not previously know or had given much thought to.

Rhetoric Activity 1

When a child asks for permission to go to a party and is denied the right to attend by their parent, both use rhetoric to get the other to understand. The child might state that they are never allowed out anywhere or that they have behaved well lately therefore they are entitled to go out with friends. On the other hand, the parent might decide to list dangers that accompany a night out without close parental supervision or maybe state a dislike for the child's friends. The contesting child might use an older sibling who is allowed to go out as an argument for fair treatment. The parent might decide to site an incident to exemplify how things can go wrong if the child does go to the party alone. Each party will use what they feel like would be the best strategy to use to persuade the opposing person. Facts may be used but just the same, in the end the parent may use seniority to end the argument. If they really wanted to they could perhaps just say that the child had to do whatever they said because they were the parent and that's the end of that.

Activity 6 & 7

After interviewing Justin I realized that at first it's a bit difficult to think of open ended questions but after a couple comments I think the interview improved. I think I have good people skills and that definitely helps when trying to make a connection with an informant to gather information from them. Making a couple of jokes about the subjects we were talking about helped the conversation flow and lessen the feeling of an interview. Although I tend to build a conversational tone, I am still able to acquire key information that's relevant and important.

In Class Activity

Of all the articles of clothing that Justin was wearing, his bold red shirt caught my attention. It is a red cotton Ralph Lauren polo with the logo in blue. The shirt is clean and without any wrinkles. It looked like Justin took care not to get any stains on the shirt and wash it properly. I know it's an expensive shirt that can go for up at eighty dollars. It wasn't surprising to learn that Justin had about the same shirt in various different colors, since it's a prominently fashionable polo. He got it at the Ralph Lauren outlet store found at the Potomac Outlets. After asking him if he paid full price for the shirt, Justin informed me that he paid only around sixty dollars per shirt. When he told me that he had the same shirt in different colors such as blue and yellow I asked him why he didn't wear the other cooler colors. He said that he likes to wear the lighter colored polos during the spring and summer. Red, a much darker color, is nice to wear during the cold winter. Justin said he saw the red shirt and that "Why not? I can do red, red's a statement." It was surprising that he kept in mind what season it was and chose from his wardrobe using that as a compass.
I wondered why he decided to get that specific type of polo, since I know there's other variations of it at Ralph Lauren. Justin's brother has one and so that's where he got the idea to buy them. Although they shirts are a bit pricey, Justin admitted that he sort of likes the status that comes with wearing an expensive shirt. They are instantly recognizable and bring together a nice outfit. They're very versatile shirts that can be worn with jeans, such as Justin was doing, or with a pair of semi formal pants. After talking about the price of the polo, Justin admitted that in retrospect it made him seem a little bit vain talking about buying expensive shirts because they look nice. I'm sure that's a thought that many people can identify with.
When I asked him if he'd be upset and if so how much, if his shirt was stolen or destroyed he said he would not be too upset. Although he recognizes that he did invest a substantial amount of money into the polos, in the end they're just clothing and wouldn't have a significant impact on his life if they were gone.

Blog VII : Activity 1a

The book Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students is made up of fifteen chapters that are broken down into 4 different parts in the book. Each of the four parts have a different theme and specific aspect of rhetoric that they emphasize and so the chapters that make up those different sections contain relevant information and excersices pertaining to the given subject. The book is set up so that it begins with "Part One: Invention," the seven chapters that compile that first section cover topics that explain to the student various things. The topics vary from kairos, to what questions to ask when thinking about what to write, to ethos and proofs. Next there is "Part Two: Arrangement" and the chapters under this section deal with how to compose and arrange a written work and also how to enhance it. The next part is aptly named "Part Three: Style, Memory, and Delivery." Each of these subjects has a chapter devoted to it under this part of the book. The fourth part is "Part Four: Rethorical Exercises" and this is the part that includes most of the activities for the students. They all tie in to previously explained concepts and are meant to reinforce and apply the theories that the student should have learned when reading the book. At the end of previous chapters in the books there is a small amount of exercises that can be completed by the student so as to be able to apply the notions they just read about. This book serves those people or students who want to improve their writing and want to seek ways in which to make it more appealing, more persuasive, or possibly evolve in their writing. There are specific concepts that are extensively probed, such as kairos and the use of logic throughout the writing process.

In the first chapter, rhetorics of ancient times are explained and delved into. There is also a comparison between rhetoric in ancient times and how it is thought of in the present day and age. The rest of the book follows a logical process. It begins with addressing which issues are important when writing a text and what kind of questions to ask so that the written text has a good quality. It follows through with how to arrange your thoughts and in which way to shape the written text so that is has the desired impact. Part three is related as well, with information on the details of written texts such as delivery methods and memory systems. All the previously given information and concepts can be applied when completing the rhetorical exercises. Each chapter and the parts that they fall under function seamlessly to provide the writer of a text clear ideas on how he or she can think of different topics. The arrangement of the four parts of the book allow the writer to follow a sensible path the the final written text. The book goes through the process of how one can write, arrange and revise, and finally deliver an excelling, well argued, logical and appealing work of text.

Blog VI: WWD Activity 3

For this specific activity I immediately thought of a great website, or what I personally think is a great website:

www.surfrider.org

As an avid surfer and environmentally conscious human being I think this website does a great job combining those two interests and has conveniently accessible and comprehensive information. On the Who We Are : Overview page, this grassroots organization develops impressive ethos. They have a list of the accomplishments than can be attributed to the Surfrider Foundation, upcoming events, a detailed plan on what their goal is and how it can be reached, financial reports, etc. As an active member of this organization, when I first thought about joining it was very important to me that I knew exactly how my donations were being used and how I could myself be an active part in this group. The website is replete with useful information about beaches all over the United States, links to other sites (such as surf weather reports for your local beach), and even information about earth friendly products that you can look into or buy. This website is laid out in such a way that even someone who knows nothing about oceans or surfing can have their interest piqued and perhaps begin to take action towards having better better ocean qualities and keeping the earth healthy. The information is labeled and nicely arranged so that you are not overwhelmed with data, reports, pictures or merchandise.
For people already involved with the organization, you can easily log in and view specific articles or parts of the website that interest you. Continuing or customizing your donation plan is easy as well as finding upcoming events around your community beaches. You can keep up with the latest literature about water quality in a myriad of beaches and find out about what's going on with your local Surfrider chapter.
The website is extremely informative and up to date. The language used is very inviting and relaxed. The visual content serves to further their cause and create a sense that this is an active organization worth your time and money.

Blog V: WWD Activity 1

Jack Selzer takes a very specific position in the field of research done on writing processes. He mentions past research done on twelfth graders, unskilled writers and of course professional writers. Selzer then points out that there is a lack of research on technical writing. The phrasing and language that he uses lets the reader know that Selzer thinks this is limiting what can be taught about writing in a workplace setting. Selzer relies on previously recorded research to build his argument that there is a hole that must be filled when it comes to looking at and analyzing technical writing processes and then goes on to explain how he will do so. He mentions Janet Emig's research on high school writers to point out what kind of research has been carried out so far. We can see the length of Selzer's article reaches Odell's Research on Composing. From this work, Selzer shapes his methods of investigating Nelson. It would not be an understatement to say that the different kinds of texts provided by Nelson are what makes Selzer's article itself possible. Selzer looks at written texts previously written by Nelson and also at newly written ones. He can see how they interact and influence each other, for example Nelson might recycle and compile old written texts to make a whole new document. Selzer also uses interviews and Nelson's own notes to figure out exactly what processes Nelson is using and to figure out which ones succeed and which ones fail. Selzer makes specific references to different works of text that Nelson wrote for a specific project. The different works of text that Nelson wrote are meticulously collected and analyzed by Selzer. It is through his reviewing and analyzing that he is able to find different patterns in the writings and outline the writing process that Nelson employs from beginning to end. The article written by Selzer adds to the mound of research done on writing and it's processes, yet is focuses on technical writing which until then had been all but ignored.