Week 9 Overview

During this last week of April we finalized our two pieces of rhetoric and started planning out our persuasive papers. I was absent Wednesday because I wasn't feeling well but I was able to put some finishing touches on my video and bumper sticker. I have gotten a little behind on my paper because I had  a lot of tests last week and didn't have much time for research but I have been able to plan more now for my paper and my planning is all starting to come together. I just need to find a couple more sources and figure out what my main points of my argument are going to be. Overall this week was a very hectic week for me but I was very happy with my final two pieces of rhetoric as well as my reflection paper that was due friday. Now i just need to start focusing more on my persuasive paper and starting bringing together my ideas to form my argument.

Week 8 Overview

The week of the 18th-24th,
During this week we worked on our NPO projects a lot and got them ready for our first rough draft that was due that friday. We also had a quiz on many of the different slides and class notes we had taken since the beginning of the year. For most of our NPO planning we were with our project groups and were aloud to give each other advice and help everyone out on there two different proposals.
For my two pieces of rhetoric I did a video and a bumper sticker. Most of my time was spent this week on my video because It took a lot of work. Recording a adventurous puppy is not the easiest thing to do and then on top of that the actual process of putting the different clips together was quite a challenge. But during this week I got it all done and was very happy with the overall outcome of the video. My bumper sticker didn't take as much work but it was something that I needed to appeal emotionally to people to make them think about the way they treat their pets and I was also very happy with it.

Week 7- Overview

Last week we spent a majority of our time with our project groups and deciding what are two pieces of rhetoric were going to be. We shared all of our ideas with the class and discussed what we could do better or improve on. We also discussed the different online sources that could help us with our pieces of rhetoric such as videos, posters, websites even t-shirts.
After this week I have decided what my two sources of rhetoric are going to be. My first one is going to be a video on the life of a puppy and what it takes to train and teach the puppy how to behave, then i'm going to show a video of my dog who is trained and how much it pays off training them. For my second piece of rhetoric I'm going to create a bumper sticker to appeal to people's emotions. Im going to have a cute picture of a puppy and then create some catchy quote to make people think about the responsibilities of having a new pet. Overall I'm feeling good about my two pieces and think there going to work good.

Photo Collage Maker

How does this collage represent my identity?
   This collage represents my identity because all the pictures sum up what I am like as a person and what i like to do. Most of the pictures in this collage are all taken outside, which is where I love to be, whether it is at the beach, on the lake, at the mountains or just outside in my own backyard. I grew up with two older brothers and no sisters ( picture in top right ) and I grew up around sports and activities my brothers loved doing which is why I love to fish, go shooting, and play soccer. From the time I was two I was on my first soccer team, of course it was nothing serious at that time but as I got older and better I went on to different levels of competition for soccer and ended up having many collage offers and played collage soccer my first semester at Lenoir-Rhyne University. However I ended up not liking the school as much as I thought I would and transferred here to UNCC. My family is very close, we all like to hangout together and go on trips to the beach and mountains, my brother is my best friend (picture on top in the middle) and I rely on him more than anyone I know. We grew up going to a church that my parents have been a part of since they got married, and have a really strong faith, my faith is what gets me through everything and I don't know where my family would be without God.  My mom went to Duke University so we are HUGE Duke fans, theres not one thing Carolina Blue that we don't hate. Haha. My friends are extremely important to me and I really don't know what I would do without them, were all really close and even though we all split off to go to different collages we all stay in close touch. Last but not least are my animals, I have a huge passion for animals, any kind. I love my puppies more than anything and wouldn't be able to live without them, Im hoping to do something in my future career that deals with animals.

What is the link between images and identity?
I think there is a huge like between images and identity, many people create or take pictures just to show that identity. Most pictures show who you are because you take that picture when your doing the things you love to be doing. If you didn't care so much about what you were doing then you wouldn't want pictures to be taken of them. I think the correlation is extremely strong in my case because all the pictures I have are of my doing the things I enjoy doing such as family, friends, faith, soccer, animals, food.

Week 6- America 24/7

When Cox writes America 24/7 captures "the true essence of American character and communities" I first think about the ordinary "american" ways and the pictures that illustrate Americans. Things such as cookouts, sports games, memorials, geography, family and friends. Many ordinary daily activities we partake in don't necessarily show our patriotism but being able to do the things in itself shows a hint of patriotism. Its difficult to wrap your head around but when many think of America, they think of the flag, the eagle, the colors: red, white and blue, the military, or even fireworks. But I think the only reason they think of those specific things is because you were grown up knowing what represents your country. There are millions of ways Americans live and revolve their life around and you can't really pick out one picture that represents all of us.
After looking at the his pictures I found that he looks at American character and communities the same way I would when taking pictures. Many of them are simple daily tasks, that without them your life wouldn't be the same. It could be the simplest activity such as reading the newspaper in a rocking chair every morning, its part of your life, and part of your American character. Everyone in this country has a way of living their life and when there is a picture captured of them enjoying what they love to do most, well I think thats as good as its going to get.

Ordinary?

Roomie caught me taking a nap.. something I do very often hahaha

Week 5 Overview

This week we finished watching a video on Capitalism and saw it in the point of view from someone who hates the system in which the government is controlled. He gave many reasons and examples to why he hates the system and backed up all those reasons with facts or true stories. Many of the stories had to do with life struggles and how some people get punished by the government in ways that they shouldn't, such as taking away property or land. I disagree with the argument being put forth but I also realise that there are going to be loopholes no matter what kind of government we run. We also worked on some pages in our english book and compared images from different point of views. That helped me to see the different perspectives a certain image can have. There are always two sides to the story and that is what this week has definitively shown me.

Week 4: Overview- Capitalism

This week we watched a video on Capitalism and how it is slowly destroying our economy. I enjoyed watching the video because I am very interested in politics and always up for a good debate. However I don't really agree with some of the arguments he tried to make during the video. Yes there are times when it seems like people aren't getting treated the same way because of their socio-economical status but that's just because the ones who are protesting and telling stories in the movie are the ones that got the negative effects of this depression. I feel like either way the economy would have taken a toll at some point, now people are stuck trying to point fingers and find someone to blame when that really isn't going to change anything. Its not George Bush's fault, just because the economy crashed when he was in term doesn't mean he himself caused it to. There are many different decisions in the past that have lead to our economy now and people thought change would come out of electing another president who is just really good at speaking and convincing when really nothing has changed. Yes now people in the lower incomes are getting helped out but you can't just raise tax on the wealthy I mean they have worked hard to get where they are at and deserve to keep the money they make. I just think people are to busy pointing fingers to even take a step back and look at what they could do to try and make things better, we don't more money, we need more hope.

Week 3 Overview

this week was a good one to start helping me find out what i want to research for my project and the best ways to obtain research. I learned how to identify the topic, conversation, and context in researching so I can get a better idea of what Im writing about. I also learned many different tips to help conduct research and to keep clear and open mind to what Im finding out and different points of view on my topic. I feel like I have all the resources ready and I'm prepared to start research.

Week 2 Overview

This week we learned about rhetorical appeals such as logos, pathos and ethos. These are used a lot in persuasion, such as billboards we see and commercials. Logos appeal to reasoning, pathos attempts to put the audience in a particular emotional state, and ethos appeal to authority or character. We also learned about logical fallacies and the exaggerated use of pathos and ethos. This week I also got to spend time with the class in the library and learned about how to use the library search to find articles and books and also got to pick out my topic for the project. Overall I feel good about the project and where I am starting at with my topic. I choose animal abuse in Charlotte because it is something that really means a lot to me and something I can put up a good argument with. I am very excited to start more of the research on my topic and see where it takes me with me research paper.  I was nervous at first because I didn't know where or how to start finding information about my topic but after the library class today I feel a lot better and am now looking forward to getting started.

Myself as a Reader and Writer

I have never been one to pick up a book, without having it assigned to me first. It would always be the last thing id do out of all my homework i had. As i have grown up i have started to like it a lot more as long as its an interesting topic, that starts exciting that way i will have to finish it. I would rather write than read, i like writing, its something i would do without being asked. Once  I have a topic i can write all day about it, as long as its something that interest me. I like to read and write depressing stories or books, ones that involve emotions are my favorite. I write off the top of my head, i have never done much planning but should probably start doing that more instead of making 5 or 6 drafts because I cant decide what i like. All together I enjoy reading and writing, definitely would rather write but if its interesting you can count me in. 

Week 1 - Summary and Reflection

This week was the introductory week to get prepared for the course this semester. We first reviewed many          important terms and ways of breaking down stories or papers by asking six main questions about the author and reader. We used examples from our life to reflect what we were taught in class. We also learned about the word rhetoric which is the ability to discern the available means of persuasion in any given situation. Rhetorical Situation and rhetorical analysis was what we talked about to day as well as how to construct and better our thesis statements, both of which will be extremely helpful.
I've learned a lot this week that will prepare me for the big project this semester, and i also think its going to be a very fun and exciting class. Im looking forward to what is planned for this class and interested in all the topics so far.

Image Analysis: What Would You Choose?

 IMAGE: http://www.google.com/imgres?q=funny+visual+rhetoric+examples+with+foods&hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&biw=1260&bih=699&tbm=isch&tbnid=Fqp5DrWk07kIuM:&imgrefurl=http://csheridan.edublogs.org/&docid=GYe2NofPw_PqjM&imgurl=http://farm1.static.flickr.com/25/43251048_f1a51509e7.jpg&w=500&h=388&ei=51QWT_v-FcTatweozdWIAw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=469&vpy=337&dur=5788&hovh=198&hovw=255&tx=154&ty=150&sig=111139700164758488454&page=3&tbnh=144&tbnw=166&start=38&ndsp=22&ved=1t:429,r:7,s:38

This image shows two completely different ideas, both of which are found right next to each other on two highway billboards. One of the billboards shows a doctor and the words: Childhood Obesity. Don't take it lightly. On the other hand, the billboard right below that one has a picture of a happy model holding two bags of McDonalds, saying "my kinda shoppin' spree" with the dollar menu title right underneath that. The funny part about these two images is that they contradict themselves, you either choose one or the other, there is no in between.  One image tries to alert the public of the increasing rate of obesity and the health threats that can occur because of it. The other image persuades people to go eat get fast food at Mcdonalds because it is cheap and easy.  This would put someone observing both billboards in a bad position, do you want to make the healthy choose and wait to make something at home? Or do you want to make the easy cheap choice and just go through a drive-thru and be done with lunch for the afternoon? Its a tough choice, one that even I would have a hard time making. One billboard is informing the public, while the other one is persuading the public, which one would you choose?