Final Reflection

    At first I was nervous to take an online English course but I’m glad I did.  The course was easy to follow and there was hardly any confusion.  The online conferences really helped me to improve on my writing.  My accomplishments were completing all of the assignments on time.  My struggle in this course was to learn how to critically analyze a text properly and how to reflect my views in the best way.  Another struggle was putting the final portfolio together and making sure that everything was formatted correctly, I had the workers cited page properly prepared and making sure it was the best I could do.  There isn’t anything I would change for this course everything was laid out perfectly and easy to follow

Reflective Essay

Reflective Essay

           

For my portfolio I decided to include my essays based on Kalman’s “Back to the Land”, and Neufeld’s “A.D. New Orleans After the Deluge”, because I believe that these essay best reflect my writing capabilities. 

The purpose of the Kalman essay was to inform my audience on why Kalman might be so focused on Americans changing their eating habits.  I did this by providing examples from the text and describing why they are so important.  I mainly focused on the aspect of fast food and why it might be a better idea to take the time to properly prepare a meal or eating more organic food in hope that my readers would take the time to really think about the way they eat and about what they are putting in their body (99110642940 1-2). I also bring up the idea of being a vegetarian based on a picture of a cow standing in a pasture (99110642940 2), in hopes that they would reflect if the current eating lifestyle they are living is they right one for them. 

Another important aspect that I included into my Kalman essay was her use of photographs in her text because when talking about something it is hard to picture it in one’s mind, but seeing it is another thing altogether.  To elaborate this point I am referring to the cow reference again, when eating a hamburger most of us are not picturing the actual cow but Kalman showing a cow in her work might alter someone’s thought for the next time that they eat meat (99110642940 2-3).  I also mention the importance of teaching important healthy habits young so they grow up eating healthy and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.  Also children are eager to learn new things and would like to share what they learn to others whether it is family and/or friends.

An important revision that I made in my Kalman essay was adding why a statement that I made was important, (Original, “Another photograph that Kalman uses is one of a meal that was made entirely of garden food from Bob Cannard’s Farm that shows you can grow your own food and from that cook a perfect meal. “  Added statement, “This is important because it shows that it is possible to create meal only using the ingredients you grew by yourself.”).

After reading the Kalman essay my audience would be positively affected by being more aware of their eating habits and how they might want to alter their lifestyle for the better.

The purpose of Neufeld essay was to show the audience about what the victims had to go through after Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans.  I did these by describing certain aspects that Neufeld showed in his comic because even though it might be viewed as negative, it is important to include.  An example of this is shown through description of the violence that some of characters exuded during certain situations 99110642940 1). 

Another important detail shown was the desperation that the victims went through and how they just wanted to start to move on from this fateful event and just wanted to rebuild their lives (99110642940 2-3).

An important revision that was made in the Neufeld essay was adding a statement to a paragraph.  Within the paragraph mention the desperation aspect of the situation I thought it might be a good idea to add the detail of death that was shown in Neufeld’s comic (Added statement- Also this comic brings the aspect of death during this time to the surface.  A child might not know what death is but by being surrounded by it, questions will be asked.  An example of this when an elderly woman has passed away a little girl asks her mother if that woman is sleeping (Neufeld 236).  By this situation a mother has to question to whether or not explain death to their children and it might be too early to do so (99110642940 3).

The audience of the Neufeld audience might be positively affected by this work by being more aware of what goes on in the victims’ lives after a disaster has struck.  Also that more things need to be done to help them move on from it so they are able to repair their lives and that every little thing that is done or donated is important and needed in order for the victims to rebuild their lives.

A challenge that I faced during this particular assignment was to critically analyze a comic, which is something that I never thought of doing before and was nervous to do.  However once I started to read the comic I learned that it was not that different from analyzing a text and wasn’t that difficult.  An aspect that made it easier to write about the comic was that the panels provided more examples to include in my essay, because it is easier to pick out certain aspects in a piece when pictures are being shown.

Assignment 4-5

    While I was writing my Kalman essay, I had to keep in mind that this essay is based on lifestyle choices and getting my audience to think more while they are choosing what types of foods to eat.  To enhance this I described the pictures that Kalman chose to put in her text and what they represent and the choices that come from the picture.  Whether is deciding to be a vegetarian or not based on a picture of a com in a field, or if it was choosing to eat a more organic diet based on a meal that was created entirely from a farmer’s garden.  My audiences can anybody but especially for those who do want to change their lifestyle and become more healthy and conscious of what they are eating.

    While I was writing my Neufeld essay, I had to keep in mind that this essay centered on the horrible conditions people lived through in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina destroyed their homes.  It was difficult at first trying to analyze a comic but each time I went through the comic it became easier to understand the purpose and I had an easier time picking out the examples I wanted to put in my essay.  I showed how much violence there was but along with the violence I also showed the caring characteristics that were shown in some of the people in the comic. My audience can by anyone but maybe for those who were not aware of the living conditions the victims had to go through and how their lives were changed because of this.

    While I was writing my Junod essay, I had to keep in mind that this was about one of the victims from the September 9^th attack in 2001.  This essay was the most difficult one to write because I had a hard time finding aspects in his article and forming a thesis statement that I could set up and follow up with examples found in the text.  In the revised essay I focused on how Junod might be slowing down the process of closure for the victims and reopens their wounds by seeing this man falling from the World Trade Center, which could bring up a lot of painful memories for them.  My audience is for anyone but those directly affected my 9/11 might find it painful and hard to read, because it stemmed from this man falling to his death and it might make them relive how their loved ones died on that day.

Assignment 4-2

Part 1

1)   1) The quote from Junod that I am using is from the section labeled “They began jumping not long after the first plane hit the North Tower”.

2)   2) In this quote Junod talks of how the “people never got used to and never wanted to see again”, those who jumped from the World Trade Center. Also how the people never could escaped seeing those people jump. (71)

3)  3)  “They were called “jumpers” or “the jumpers,” as though they represented a new lemminglike class.  The trial that hundreds endured in the building and then in the air became its own kind of trial for the thousands watching them form the ground.  No one ever got used to it; no one who saw it wished to see it again, although, of course, many saw it again.” (71)

4)   4) To me this quotes describes that those people who watched or saw those people jump from the World Trade Centers and fall to their death, will never escape those memories and will haunt them for the rest of their lives no matter what they do in order to move on or forget.

Part 2

1)   “The sight of the jumpers from the World Trade Center will follow the witnesses around where ever they may go and will never escape the horrifying memory.” (Junod 71).

Works Cited

Junod, Tom. “The Falling Man.” First Year Composition Reader.  Boston, MA: Pearson Learning Solutions, 2011. 69-80

Assignment 4-1

              For many others and myself the detail that stands out the most is the picture of the man who is falling.  The man seemed to be very calm and at peace with what is happening to him.  For me it seems like he might be thinking as long as I am dying, might as well go with it and do something interesting.  If I were in his place my body would definitely not be that composed.  My body would be contorted, I would be panicked and I would be trying to slow down some how or trying to do something.  I would not be as calm as that man and I would be trying to get my head up so I wouldn’t be looking at the spot where I am going to die in a very short amount of time.

            A pattern of repetition and contrast is that every paragraph that Junod writes is a completely different topic but they all conclude with the falling man and who exactly is this man.  A detail that does not fit the pattern is that the paragraphs do not seem to flow.  To me the paragraphs seem to be in somewhat of a random order and hard to follow along with all the information.  Also it seems like the paragraphs do not contain any transitional words or any transitional paragraphs that would make reading this article a little bit easier.

Assignment 3-5

           While I was witting about Neufeld’s comic, “A.D. New Orleans After the Deluge”, I focused on my introduction paragraph the most because what I wrote in the first paragraph will shape the rest of my essay.  The conclusion was the last paragraph I wrote and the one that took the least time because it is just restating and rewording my introduction paragraph.  The easiest paragraph for me to write was the second one talking about violence because I had more examples and evidence to support it. The feedback that I received regarding my essay was positive and the comments that I got are really going to help me in improving my work.  Professor Sullivan mentioned on she really likes how I” have the strategy of contrast identified alongside an implication of what’s at stake for the audience in reading this comic”.  My peer reviewer also stated that my first sentence was great which is really good because have I troubles in trying to decide what my first sentence should be and is something I worry about. 

            While revising I would like to add a paragraph talking about the death that was shown in the comic and how that could affect the audience.  I would also like to add more summary to my comic by adding to my introduction paragraph the who, what, when, where aspects of the comic. The concerns that I still have about my essay is mentioning why Neufeld shows what he does in the comic and what is the reason behind them.  Another concern is adding more information and examples into my essay.

Assignment 3-4

After reviewing my essay, I believe I need to work on my thesis and introduction paragraph so more.  I am not sure that it is not clear enough and/or easily understandable and might seem confusing to those who are not familiar with the topic.  Also in my later paragraphs I think that it might need some more examples and/or quotes from the text and go into more depth with what I am talking about.  Another thing that might need some more work is making sure that my paragraphs flow together and that the transitions are clear and make sense.

Assignment 3-2

Working Thesis: Neufeld shows the readers examples of people who are caring and contrasts them with people who are angry with the only way of coping is through violence and shows weakness in others through his work in "A.D. New Orleans After the Deluge".

Statement of Purpose: My readers are my fellow classmates and my course instructor.  My readers are familiar with the topic having read the material as well.  What my readers do not know is how I perceive the material to be.  I believe my readers will accept my writing with some discussions to go along with it.  After reading my work I hope they will view my writing in a positive way and know exactly where my evidence is coming from.  Also when my readers finish I would like them to think I understand where Neufeld is coming from and that I understand his point of view as well.  I would like my readers to feel that my work is important.  I also want my work to get my readers thinking about how their views changed on the material after reading my work.  I am not sure about how my audience's emotions are going to shift, are they going to feel angry about my work, are they going to enjoy reading my work, or are they going to feel neutral when it comes to my writing?  I just hope that they feel informed on how I feel about the material for myself.

Assignment 3-1

    While reading "A.D. New Orleans After the Deluge" I noticed three details that were revealing and significant for me, a binary and an anomaly.
   The first revealing detail for me was that the text contained moments of violence.  When reading a comic I automatically think comedy and not something that contains violence.  Also on a few panels I noticed that they contained guns, whether people were directly showing them or if they were simply there in the background.  Another revealing details was that one panel showed death, which once again something I would not expect in a comic.  Also in the next panel, a text box had a little girl questioning her mom if that person was sleeping when in fact she was dead.  This could also bring up the fact that now at some point she has to explain death to her daughter too soon.  A significant detail was that it showed a culture that maybe some people wouldn't be comfortable with seeing.  Many people don't want to think about the people that need help because it might make them feel uncomfortable that they have a home and everything they want, while these people in text just had everything of their's wiped out.
    The binary that stood out to me was that in one panel showed that people went and raided a rite aid store but then made sure that the older people were taken care of first.  This shows that a person can do the wrong thing but still be caring.  It was wrong to steal those things even though they were desperately needed but none the less they took care of the people that needed more than worried about themselves instead of keeping the items to themselves and wouldn't even think about sharing with others.
    The anomaly that stood out to me was the desperation that was in most panels.  People were desperate to leave where they were basically trapped, desperate for the buses to come that never did and desperate for water and these may have lead them to do things that they would never would of thought to do before.  Maybe a person would not think of stealing but when you need to in order to take care of your family it could lead one to panic and lead to drastic measures.  Also one may not use violence but when everyone is cranky, upset, or even depressed and people are not getting along it may cause someone to easily snap and threaten to solve the problems with different means of violence.

Assignment 2-5

    From reading another student's essay, I learned how to analyze someone's work properly.  From the student's essay I remember a statement that O could of used in my own which is, "that people once understood the importance of organic foods.  The inclusion of ideas from other classmates work helps bind relationships by seeing the others point of view on the subject matter and when reviewing your work, they are not trying to attack your work but trying to make your work better.

    When my classmate positively responded to my essay, it motivated me not to worry so much when I am writing and not feel afraid to write what I think.  I believe that I was successful at accomplishing my purpose in assignment 2-2.

    From the conference I learned that along with what the author states, I have to also write the reasons why behind it.  After the conference I no longer have any questions.

    My three most important revisions are my citation, editing a paragraph, and editing my thesis.  My citation needs to be edited into the proper format.  I have to edit a paragraph that is slightly confusing and a little bit wordy.  Lastly I have to change my thesis to make it more direct and I learned that I can do this effectively in two sentences.  

Assignment 2-2

Thesis Statement:           

In ‘Back to the Land’ Kalman’s goal is to sway people who live in cities or in a fast paced environment to stop eating fast foods, slow down and take the time to eat more healthy and organic foods, through her choice of words and strong photographs.

Statement of Purpose:

            My readers are my classmates and my course instructor.  They are familiar with the piece that I am reflecting on having read it themselves.  With that said, I will have to make sure that I point ideas out that they may not of noticed and not being too repetitive of what Kalman's text is about.   When done reading, I hope they understand how I view Kalman’s work to be.  They  do not have to agree or disagree with my point of view, but I would like them to respect my perspective on the subject matter and to take my writing seriously.  One last thing when my readers are done with my piece, I would like them to think that I know and understand what I am writing about and everything is clear to them and if there are questions about it, they can easily be answered.Also I hope my readers will have a positive response towards my writing and care about what I have to say.  I would also like my readers having to think about the points I bring up in my writing, because what is the point of writing if it does not get people to think and reflect on it.

Back to the Land

    While reading Back to the Land I noticed three significant details.  One of these details was that in the text the author used an elaborate typeface.  this is interesting because most authors use a very bland, easy to read font for their works to show that they are serious writers and should be taken seriously.  Another interesting detail for me, is that in the text the author does not use a set structure.  With no paragraphs it shows that maybe the writer just wants their piece to just flow without having to worry about having to follow a certain pattern or the typical layout.  One last detail of the piece that struck me as significant is the use of photographs in the text.  These photographs helps to convey or point out some extra meaning to the author's message intended for their audience.  Also it helps to show how the author perceives things in the world from her point of view.  All of these details come together to show that this text is not the typical piece.  I believe that the way it's laid out does a good job at grabbing someones attention.

    A significant repetition in the text is that use of the word fast.  The author uses the word fast to describe how she perceives some aspects about how she sees the world around here. According to her, we are fast walkers, fast talkers, and that we have fast food.  The mentioning of fast food could be to point out just because it is more convenient for our fast paced life, it is not better for us.  Also it shows that by mostly eating at fast food places we don't really care about what we put in our bodies and how it effects us in the long run.  By describing us as fast it could point out that we might not care or think much about our actions and that we don't take the time to think or consider what we are doing.  If we take the time to slow down, we might be able to enjoy life more and not be as stressed out as we would be in a fast paced world.

    When finishing this piece, I noticed a fact that may or may not be important but struck me as odd, which is that the author did not mention how she eats.  She talks about how different communities eat and meeting people like Bob Cannard and Michael Pollar and how their lifestyle is.  She also talks about the edible schoolyards that some schools are implementing and their benefits.  However with her explaining these things, she never mentioned does she eat only organic products, or only eats the foods she grows herself.  The author shares different lifestyles of eating but she does not share her own lifestyle.

Center of the Campus Quad

 During my time siting in the quad I noticed several things going on and how they affected me.
 I found that many people were running around, goofing around with friends, or simply reading against a tree.  From that it makes me want to be able to do those things to and become more active and outgoing with the people around me.  People in this space or observing the area would also want to be care free, able to relax, and capable of not worrying about other things going on in their life, like the people in there.  Assumptions made in this area by those in it and passing it, would be that they are simply there to have fun, let loose, or trying to get away from the stress that they may be feeling.

DK Handbook Observations

  While I was reading the the DK Handbook rhetoric section, many things came to my attention, but three of them caught my eye.
   The first one was about writing something that readers respond to.  This is significant because when a person takes the time to write about something, they should be able to know how their work altered someone's thoughts or a certain outlook on a difficult or controversial topic.  Secondly the purpose of writing interested me because it is a very important aspect of writing.  A writer writes so their audience can understand them and their views on certain subjects.  Also a writer's purpose is for their work to inspire people to act or do something about it.  Lastly writing in context to your audience mattered to me because it is revealing aspect to it.  If a local newspaper writes about something going on in a distant town or city, that community is not going to put that much care in reading about it.  However, if that paper wrote about something that could greatly affect that community, there will be awareness and something can be done to help that situation.