All Done! (pretty much)

Today you're turning in your final paper. Yay!! Plus, because I want to devote lots of time today to working on your multimedia presentation, there will be no more blog entries. I just wanted to post these pictures of adorable little baby animals. Visiting The Daily Puppy, The Daily Kitten, and Cute Overload keeps me smiling during finals. They are irresistible!

Passive v. Active

I know you've become accustomed to starting class with a blog entry, but today we're gonna mix things up just a little bit. Now don't worry. You'll still get to blog, but I've got something specific I'd like for this entry.

Somebody Alert Indiana Farmers!!

Scan through this article and summarize the author's argument. What evidence does he use? Now evaluate him as a source. Is he credible?

FreeWritin'

For the next ten minutes, I want you to just write about anything you want, but I want it to be persuasive. For example, you might write about your spring break and try to tell me why it was the best (or worst) ever. Or you could write about how stressed out you are right now and try to convince me that you are more stressed than me (good luck). Or try to convince me that your favorite movie/tv show/band etc. really is the best.

While you're writing, I want you to be aware of the language you are using. What makes it convincing? Why are you choosing to talk about these particular examples? Write a brief paragraph explaining your choices.

(p.s. This picture is from my own spring break adventures in Cleveland!)

Opinionated

Opinions are often excellent starting points for a paper topic. We all have them, but sometimes we hesitate to share them for whatever reason. Well, here's your chance. Write down at least 5 opinions. I'll get us started:

1. Veronica Mars is the best show on television right now.
2. Purdue doesn't spend enough money on the Liberal Arts.
3. U2 is the most overrated band ever.
   
4. Target is a better store than Wal-mart.
5. Blogs are changing the way the news is reported.

As I mentioned in class on Thursday, we often think that arguments have to be made about social issues. Even though my New Year's Resolution was to keep up with current events better, I still watch The Simpsons rather than the news, and I read blogs rather than CNN. Does that mean I'm screwed when it comes to picking a topic that interests me? No. I can still make an argument about the things that interest me. For instance, if I wanted to write about Veronica Mars, I could perhaps look at television and ratings and find out more information about the ratings system and how it works. This might lead me to a question about whether or not it's effective. While I probably couldn't find scholarly articles on Veronica Mars, there's probably something out there about ratings. For instance, I did a quick search on JSTOR for "television ratings" and came up with a great article from Management Science called "Scheduling of Network Television Programs."

Now that you've stated your opinions, think about how you could turn one of them into a good research topic. What kind of things would you look at? What questions might you ask?

Examining Sources

Take some time to browse through this article, "Evicted from Wikipedia," from Slate and then write a response that discusses the benefits and consequences of using Wikipedia as a source in research papers. Be sure to cite specific examples from the article to support your reasoning.

Exploring the Language of Communities

Take a look at one of the two websites linked below. Read a little bit about them, observe the visual rhetoric of the site, and then answer the following questions.

1. What words or phrases do you see repeated over and over again? Why do you think they would repeat these same ideas?
2. Who is the target audience for the site? (and, of course, why?)
3. How do the images support the text of the site?

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)

National Rifle Association (NRA)

(Hint: To get the best overview of the organization, try reading the About, History, or FAQ pages.)

Valentines

This may be hard to believe, but these are valentines. Choose one of them and use your image-reading skills to tell me about them. How does the image support the text? What do you think they say about their society? What is the tone of these valentines?

Text for "Shop Girl"

As the sidewalk you pass along, to and from work,
Your homely phiz wears a self-satisfied smirk,
For though you're as plain and ugly as sin,
Admiration you crazily think you can win.
You should know, when men smile, that they mean but to mock,
For they all say the sight of you gives them a shock.

Text for the Cad

Don't
Be a tough and insult
Respectable women
By your
Unwelcome attentions.
Try to be a
Gentleman.

Seeing the Bigger Picture

This photo contains an argument based on assumptions. Using your skillful powers of observation, determine what that argument is and the assumptions upon which it is based. Remember to give supporting evidence to support your claim.

Reflective Writing

Take a moment and think back to the last time you had to write a paper. Shouldn't be too hard, considering you just turned one in last Thursday. Now think about the process of writing that paper. What is your paper-writing style? For your response, I want you to detail how you go about writing a paper. (Do you finish a draft in one sitting? When you get stuck, what do you do to get moving agian? How do you get started?) Then tell me the strengths and weaknesses of this approach.

Example: When I write a research paper, I've obviously had to read a lot of books and articles. When reading them, I underline things and make comments in the margin; so when I get ready to start writing my paper, I go back through all the books that I've written and type up all the things I've underlined. Then I re-organize all of those quotes by placing them into subjects and headings. Afterwards, I create an outline that helps me figure out where I want to put all of those quotes in my paper. Then I typically stay up all night and write my paper in one long session, usually the night before it's due. (As a writing teacher, I should not be admitting to this, and I certainly don't condone it.)

Strengths to this approach: Typing up all the quotes might take a lot of time (honestly, I do it while I watch tv), but it helps refresh my memory and allows common threads to appear. This helps me come up with some new ideas for my paper and helps me to see the bigger picture.

Weaknesses: Obviously I don't give myself any time to look over my draft again. This is a huge flaw in my writing process that I am trying to overcome. I understand the importance of revision, but I have a hard time practicing it.

Quoting Beliefs

Respond to one of the following quotes. Do you agree or disagree? Remember to use "evidence" to support your position. Evidence might include personal experiences, current events, something you've read in a book, or even something you've seen on tv.

1. The love we give away is the only love we keep. (Elbert Hubbard)

2. The measure of success is not whether you have a tough problem to deal with, but whether it is the same problem you had last year. (John Foster Dulles)

Civil Rights Day

Hope you enjoyed your holiday. No posts were required yesterday, but we will start this blog for reals next week.

Welcome!

Hi! Welcome to our class blog.

Every Monday, you will start off the week by responding in the comments section of the blog to the question, quote, image, or whatever I end up posting up here. Sometimes there will be specific instructions to practice the techniques we learn in class, but most of the time, this is just an opportunity for you to express your thoughts.

I will send you an invitation to join the blog. Sign up using a name I will recognize (so you get credit for your responses) and then practice posting your comments by answering the following three questions:

1. Which season do you prefer?
2. What was the last song you listened to?
3. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?