Take What You Learned and Run With It

We have reached the end of our journey, classmates. This semester seems like it's flown by, but now it's time to buckle down, take our few remaining finals, and prepare for the next one looming on the horizon. I don't know about the rest of you, but I feel I have definitely learned quite a lot about not only my writing style, but writing in general. I never thought things I would take away from a semester of English would be PEE value and the proper use of CRAP.

Unless many of us are pursuing a degree in English, this is probably one of the few English classes we will be taking in our college careers. For that reason, it is all the more important for us to take from this as much as we can to assist us in the remainder of our college career and our future job markets. What we learn here will help us in the many papers we will have to write for classes in our future, and even in our applications to graduate schools, and jobs.Where do we go from here? How do we apply what we've learned here? Honestly, I have no more of an idea than many of you. I do know I feel considerably more prepared for our future writing assignments and have learned how to now make my writing more organized and attention getting. Hopefully we can all Learn, Practice, and Apply what we've learned here, and it can make us better prepared for our futures.

To Say or Nay To Say

Here we are folks, our final paper of the semester. Is this one better than my first? Have I improved on my writing? After completing my self review, I realized, it's not the technical aspect of the paper I am having trouble with. My last few papers have diminished my bravado concerning my writing style and replaced it with a myriad of questions of insecurity. Is this a proper Rogerian Argument? Am I introducing my naysayers properly? Is my persuasion of my audience convincing enough? These are the questions I keep challenging myself with tonight. After convincing myself to not start over on this paper for the third time in these final hours, I can help but wonder, is this the paper I want it to be? I look down the list one more time, thesis, check, catchy title, check, introduction and conclusion, check; but I can't help but hear those nagging questions of what ifs in the back of my mind.

It's been a long day and I have reviewed this paper more than I have read many of my favorite books and still I can't say with certainty this is a GOOD paper. I think this is the time to use the lifelines made available to us by the university. Again tomorrow I will journey to the writing center and talk with someone who knows more about this style of writing than I so. I think from their knowledge I can find the confidence needed to revise my paper one final time into the absolute best I can make it. .

Herbal Remedies or Happy Pills

My research paper was on Psychological treatments throughout history. It is hard to find an argument within that field so decided that I would focus on one particular treatment, Psychotropic drugs, which has become very commonly used in our day and age. The primary naysayer to psychotropic drugs would be someone who favors a more natural approach to mental health such as with the use of herbs. In recent years the popularity of common herbal remedies such as lavender, st. johns wort, and chamomile has exploded as an alternative to the use of psychotropic drugs such as anti-anxiety drugs and anti-depressants. These natural advocates would exaggerate the possible side effects of certain drugs and their commonality and use this as a reason to not take any psychoactive drugs at all. Since very little study has been done concerning the empirical results of herbal treatments for mental disorders, there is a large area for debate over which of these two options would be more effect overall in their use as a treatment. Apothecary uses of herbs instead of mainstream drugs have been done long before and consistently after the introduction of psychotropic drugs such as lithium and valium. Because this treatment is believed safer and less invasive than newer drugs on the market, many would choose them as a preferred treatment. 

Mr. Rogerian's Neighborhood

It's a beautiful day in the neighborhood, a beautiful day for.... Wait that's not where this is suppose to be going. It seems the clock has spun around a few more times and again we find ourselves in the predawn of another writing assignment. Lucky for us this writing assignment will be using the same topic as our previous Research Paper's we have hopefully all finished up by now. Rogerian Argument, what is this, how does it work, and how do we go about making one? Hopefully by the end of reading this all these questions will be answered.

A Rogerian argument is named after Carl Rogers, who would try to see a debatable topic from various different viewpoints before deciding which viewpoint was correct and arguing it using information or rhetoric. A way to do this is through the use of a naysayer. A naysayer is a person who's viewpoint is contrary to your own or who objects to your viewpoint or argument to support that viewpoint. The details of this paper are: a minimum of 2000 words, at least 8 sources, and MLA format. These facts aside, the important information to keep in mind is the introduction of the naysayer and their opinion, and the subsequent rhetoric showing why your viewpoint is superior to theirs.

Psychopharmacology - Will Happy Pills be the Daily Vitamins of the Future?

Although the use of drugs to treat mental illness has been done since the 1800s, it was only after the introduction of Lithium by Australian psychiatrist J.F.J Cade that psychopharmacology became popularized. Current studies have found that one in ten Americans excluding those institutionalized are prescribes psychotropic drugs. IMS reports that antidepressant prescriptions grew by 12%, anxiety medications by 16%, antipsychotics by 35%, and drugs used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder by 37% between the years of 2002 and 2006. (Munsey 52) This merits the question, How far will this trend continue? In the 1960's as a large increase of psychotropic drugs began being used in institutions to treat mental illness, society developed the idea that these drugs were the answer to all mental disorders. This introduced a whole new issue in the field of treatment of mental disorders. The use of pychotropic drugs allows a person to avoid directly addressing mental disorder through psychotherapy. Through the use of psychotropic drugs many have avoided the shame associated with their illness in places where it is still stigmatized. This avoidance of the underlying problem and only medicating the symptoms means the patient will continue the use of their medication indefinitely. Through psychotherapy a patient can address the symptoms through supportive counseling. Cognitive therapy helps in the differentiation between major and minor issues in life and the changing of pessimistic ideas, unrealistic expectations, and critical self evaluations. Problem solving therapy helps the patient to change the areas of their life that act as stressors for their mental disorder and the development of better coping skills to handle these stresses. (Franklin) Through these uses of psychotherapy a patient would be able to in many cases minimize or even eliminate the use of many medications currently prescribed. 

Works Cited

Franklin, D. J.. N.p.. Web. 20 Nov 2013. <http://www.psychologyinfo.com/depression/treatment.htm>.

Munsey, C. "At least one in 10 Americans are prescribed psychotropics." American Psychological Association. 39.2 (2008): 52.

Is This C.R.A.P or just Crap

The Acronym C.R.A.P represents as seen above, contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity. These four elements determine the difference between an easily understood and navigated website and a difficult and confusing website. Contrast is making differing points very different in appearance to distinguish them from each other. Repetition is repeating the same style through out the page for ease of navigation. Alignment is the connection of all elements to another element to avoid things standing out alone. Proximity is the grouping together of like things and leaving space between dissimilar items to show their differences.

Through the use of these four design factors, a website is easier to navigate for everyone from the network administrator to the first time visitor. I'm sure all of us have happened onto websites that are hard to understand how to get to where we want to go or hard to find the information we are looking for. Websites such as these can deter us from using them again and encourage us to find other sources for the information we are seeking if available. On the other hand properly designed pages encourage us to use them again because of the ease it takes to navigate to our desired area or information. Through the proper use of the four above mentioned aspects in website design, the designer greatly effects the reaction of the visitors to his site in the future.  So always remember, use C.R.A.P if you want people to enjoy your websites in the future.

He Had a Dream That Lives on Even Today

I had a dream... these words rang out on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. They revealed the injustice being perpetrated against the Black community of their day. Dr. King in his own words said, "America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds. " The message contained in this speech is probably obvious to every reader by now. Dr. King was striving for equality, not equality for blacks, or equality for Chinese, Equality for ALL AMERICANS! He wasn't asking for special treatment, he wasn't asking for government action to make reparations for the decades upon decades of mistreatment at the hands of the very people who ran the government of this great nation. This message wasn't as much persuasive as it was revealing of what has to be done. He was revealing to all that would listen that love was the only answer to the hate and prejudice perpetrated by both sides on the issue. As he said, Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that. His use of all three styles of rhetoric throughout his speech displayed his excellent ability to share his ideas with his listeners through a peaceful logical means. He was an expert on the prejudice treatment of his people, because he seen it everyday. He used logic through out his speech by showing the white audience that if the situation was changed they would feel mistreated, and he made an emotional appeal by bringing to light the real treatment blacks were still receiving well after the signing of the emancipation proclamation. It would be hard to not be persuaded by this moving speech, but from the fact that prejudicial treatment is still an issue today, it would seem some were not.

The Reason You Believe It is Because He Said It

Politicians lie! This has become as commonly held public belief as the fact the sky is blue and the grass is green. Politicians have lied and mislead the public in America since John Adams and Thomas Jefferson first began slinging mud on each other's overcoats. This week we are supposed to discuss what are the causes and solution of this misinformation and both seem to be fairly simple answers. Politicians lie because they can. Yes it truly is that simple. If only 50% of people believe their misinformation or half-truths, that's 50% more people following their rhetoric than previously. The reason they can is just as simple. There are no consequences for lying in a political forum these days. In the recent presidential election, when either major party's candidate was found to be misleading in their campaign the consequence was the urging too remove the ad. That doesn't account for the millions of people who had previously seen the ad and taken what it was saying at face value. Even after these lies have been brought to light, researchers have found they can leave a "belief echo" than can stay around. Now that we have identified the cause what possible solution is there to this problem? The answer is just as simple. Public interest more in the exposure of lies than actual issues has spurred facts checkers in the media to heavily scrutinize everything political candidates say to find possible misinformation. This interest is who is lying although more than likely more for dramatic reality tv style entertainment purposes has made it easy for misinformation to be quickly ferreted out and exposed. Unfortunately this will not free the political area of their dishonest nature, but at least this is a good step in a positive direction.

Is the Truth Multifaceted or Are They Just Lying?

In Mr. Kruse's article he explains how government constituents have fallen farther from the honest truth and more into embellished half-truths. As long as our country has had a government, the representatives of our government have stretched the truth or taken some facts and twisted them to fit their own propaganda machine.  Although his article uses the shock and awe technique of embellishing the extremism of government misdirection, there is still an underlying level of truth to it. Politicians and their campaign workers have more often than not taken one fact and spun it to suit their purposes. This has been evident through out the life of American politics as well as most other political systems.

I found it hard to be surprised by the claims made by Mr. Kruse because the majority of people consider politicians dishonest and perceive the government as lying to them in one way or another. The difficulty in this is  differentiating between knowing about these behaviors and changing them. I can't conceivably think of a way to stop politicians from their dishonest behavior. As long as they get the reaction they intended from their half-truths, they will continue to use them to persuade people to their side. It's sad that we are ever falling into a period of less and less trust in what our representatives say, but it would seem there is no way to change this trend.

Hey! Who's in Charge Around Here?!?!?

Being the father of two teenage boys, technology has been a topic of conversation many times over in my house. I was shocked when my 10 year old son asked me for a smart phone when I had only had one for about a year at that point. Don't get me wrong, I use to work as a computer technician and did some hobby programming through out my life, so I have always had a fondness for technology. As I asked in my last blog though when is enough, enough? I remember hearing about the invention of the google glasses, and my first though was how far are we from star trek now? People are becoming more and more reliant on their technological devices. I appreciate how technology is "making our lives easier", but what would happen to our society if technology ever fails? I'm not sure how many of you will remember the Y2K scare as well as I do, but at that time many people believe on the new years technology would glitch and we would have to start fresh on so many things. Movies such as Terminator, Matrix, and many more all focus on the day technology turns against us. For these movies to have the appeal they do for their viewers, this has to be a legitimate scare in society. The question is will technology ever reach a point where, the creation no longer needs the creator?

Memory v. Memory

     BECAME 

In 1994, when I graduated High School, I could recite all important phone numbers in my life at the time. Currently as I sit here writing this blog, it occurred to me I don't know my son's phone number without looking at my phone. Technology, in its ever increasing involvement in our lives, is there for the purpose of freeing up easier tasks to allow us to focus on more important things. As a consequence of this though, the average citizen of a developed country has developed a strong dependency on this technology. This has become the theme for many current television shows, showing us exactly how traumatic it would be to wake up one morning to find all out technology gone. In a psychology class last semester, we discussed nomophobia, which is the fear of not having your mobile device, aka phone. In a recent study 66% of people suffer from this phobia. (http://www.securenvoy.com/blog/2012/02/16/) This fear extends to having your phone but not having service as well. The ever increasing dependency on technology is apparent in ever expanding aspects in our lives. An example of this is my recent training for 5k runs, the first thing I did after buying new running shoes was to download a good running app to track my progress in training for me. We use primarily our phones for a majority of our activities in our day to day lives. By these and many other examples I'm sure all of us can relate that technology has drastically changed us as people and as a society. 

Is Big Brother Watching Me, or Am I Just Paranoid?

It's almost like a thought from a Sci-Fi novel that we are being watched and tracked and our actions are being recorded for future use, but this has become the case in our day and age. This innocuous action is reminiscent of the movie The Matrix. In the story it wasn't the development of a robot race that could take over the world, but rather a helper to make our lives easier. These helpers evolved and more were produced to help with other things until the point they surpassed the human race. Through the development of the "filter bubble" and online trackers we are edging ever closer to the realization of this story. I appreciate the usefulness of tracking our online activity and searches to help in our future searches, but at the same time, I find it hard not to be conservative about what information is left online for other to find and use. I think the question we have to each ask ourselves is how much is too much. As respecting the video involving Mrs. Turkle, a year ago I would have been shock and astounded by the information she provided. I was fortunate enough last year though to have had someone point this out to me, involving my children and how technology takes away from the quality in quality time with the family. After realizing how much time I spent with my children that we were all alone in our own activities, I have made huge leaps and bounds in trying to fix this situation. I realize adolescents need their own time and space, but I also feel they need the unity of a family as well.

The Proper Design of a Research Paper

Our third writing assignment is a research paper. This is quite different from our previous writing assignment. Unlike previous papers, we aren't suppose to try and persuade people about the information we are sharing with them. The first step in this assignment is finding a topic that interests us. After selecting a topic along these lines, we then do research into the topic. We should not include all the information we find. As our professor referred to this as an "info dump" it will more than likely be a unorganized mess rather than a cohesive source of information. The purpose of a research paper is to collect information and after digesting this, we then synthesize a report covering the important points of our research. The purpose of this paper is to inform our audience rather than persuade them towards one side or another of the argument. An important fact to keep in mind is that this topic will be used for our next writing assignment as well so choose wisely. Also keep in mind that your topic should be narrow enough for a short paper. Choosing too broad of a topic will either make our paper considerably too long or leave our points underdeveloped.   Remember the basic requirements of this assignment, 1500 words, MLA format, and 5 or more sources. Aside from these basic requirements, personally I feel I am focusing on my thesis statement being clear and straight forward, clear and concise supporting information, and a short but complete conclusion. I feel I have come up short on our last two writing assignments and hope to raise the bar for my writing with this one. Aside from a few select topic not allowed, the sky is the limit when it comes to choosing our topic for writing. I have been going over this for a few days now and want to be sure I made the right choice before starting my research. Realizing in our next writing assignment I am going to have to provide a persuasive argument for this topic, I want to be sure this is a topic I want to learn more about and feel strongly towards. This will make sure that I am interested in both writing assignments and motivate me to provide the best papers I am capable of. 

A Map to Finding the Droids You Are Looking For

Finding information on the internet is entirely too easy these days. An example of this was when I entered "Kent library" in Google to get the above graphic, I received About 86,800,000 results. The primary problem with this inundation of information is what is its actual source? Any person with a general idea of web design or any of hundreds of web design programs can create a web site stating whatever they want about any subject. The internet is not restrictive about the truthfulness of the information posted there, so finding information that is reliable is difficult to say the least. Through the use of the Kent Library web sight, this problem can be easily avoided. All information we find through this path is completely reliable enough to be used in our research. 

In itself this is a huge help to us in our research. We don't have to check and double check to avoid providing erroneous information. This is just the tip of the iceberg so to speak for this avenue to information. Through the use of the keyword search, we can take a topic and distill it down into a precise thesis for our paper. We can then also find addition supporting points for our topic as well as variation of the directions to go with our discussion and development of our supporting thoughts. 

To better learn the tricks and tools associated with the Kent Library site, I highly suggest the brief searchpath tutorial found on the library's page. This tutorial helps us to learn how to search for topics and ideas as well as how to narrow or expand our search to obtain the correct amount of information.  By improving our search, this shortens the amount of time it takes to find our source information and greatly simplifies our research part of writing.  

The Treatment of American Indians and Resulting AIM (American Indian Movement) Siege of Wounded Knee

In 1973 The American Indian Movement entered the township of Wounded Knee, South Dakota and began a 71 day standoff with FBI agents and U.S. Marshals. Stories vary as to how the actual siege came about. AIM only asked for three demands to end the siege. They were  (1) restore and honor 371 broken treaties made by the U.S. Government with Indians; (2) reform the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA); and (3) conduct an investigation of the corruption at Wounded Knee. (Culture Wars: An Encyclopedia of Issues, Viewpoints, and Voices) 

The article I chose to do my rhetorical analysis on is the speech given by Sacheen Littlefeather in lieu of Marlon Brando at the Oscars in 1973. Marlon Brando took this opportunity to focus American attention on the mistreatment of Native Americans by the U.S. Government and it's agencies. Brando refused to attend the ceremony and the Oscar to instead go to Wounded Knee to help with the siege. In my research about the siege of Wounded Knee I was surprised to find little information on it in the Kent Library Collection. I found a few small encyclopedia entries giving the general details of the siege and a reference to a small section in a book on culture wars. Although the internet provided considerably more information about the siege and the people involved with it, it was obvious much of the writings found were bias and leaned heavily one direction or the other on the right or wrong of each side. Although I found a much larger collection of information on the internet, in the scope of a research paper, much of it was not creditable enough to cite. Knowing what I found on the Kent library site was all eligible to be cited was reassuring when it came to some of the information conflicting others.  

Marlon Brando speaking out on the treatment of American Indians

This speech given by Sacheen Littlefeather, representing Marlon Brando at the academy awards in 1973. Brando had recently received the Best Actor Academy Award for his role in the Godfather. This speech was written during the American Indian Movement siege of Wounded Knee in 1973, and Marlon did not attend the event himself and refused the Oscar. In this abbreviated speech, as she was not allowed to give it in entirety, Littlefeather discussed the centuries of mistreatment of the collective American Indians by people of European decent, but predominately by the American government. She goes on to relate how the motion picture industry was heavily responsible for this by making a mockery of the American Indian, depicting them as savage, hostile and evil. A particularly moving statement made during this speech by Mrs. Littlefeather was, " What kind of moral schizophrenia is it that allows us to shout at the top of our national voice for all the world to hear that we live up to our commitment when every page of history and when all the thirsty, starving, humiliating days and nights of the last 100 years in the lives of the American Indian contradict that voice?" This clearly points out the hypocrisy of the American government by making empty promises to these people and feeling no obligation to follow through afterwards. 

In my analysis of this speech, I plan to show how Brando and Littlefeather, used Pathos to appeal to the emotions of their audience to stand up against the atrocities still being inflicted on the Indian people, Ethos to show the blatant disregard of moral ethics in the treatment of the American Indians, and Logos in a step by step leading argument to show how so much of their treatment to date was wrong and still continues to be wrong. Brando felt very strongly about this area of American history, even refusing to attend the Oscars in lieu of going to wounded knee himself to help in whatever way he could. Hopefully in my rhetorical analysis of this speech I can help infect others with his fiery spirit to want to right this wrong. 

Brandon, Marlin. "Letters." AMERICAN INDIAN MOVEMENT GRAND GOVERNING COUNCIL . 30 March 1973.  American Indian Movement. 4 Oct 2013. <http://www.aimovement.org/moipr/letters.html>.

Doctor! We need the paramedic method. Stat!

Long sentences are harder to read and can distract from the thesis of your writing. Although long sentences can sound intelligent they can be confusing and may need to be reread numerous times to gather the though they were suppose to share. A method used to help shorten sentences, yet still share the information it was suppose to share is called the paramedic method. This method breaks sentences down into small parts and reforms them with the basic information still contained. Below is an example of the paramedic method in action.

The first step is to find a long sentence that is in need of attention:

The large red book sitting on the hall table was a dictionary published by an encyclopedia company in the United States.

There we go, this one should do. The next step is to break this down into smaller parts. This is done simply by dividing the sentence at prepositions and forms of the verb "is".

The large red book sitting
on the hall table
was a dictionary published
by an encyclopedia company
in the United States.

Now we need to find the action in the sentence or sometimes hidden action and restate it in a simple action verb. Now we can state the subject and the action quickly and early in the sentence.

The red book is a dictionary.

Here we are using 6 words instead of 21 words for a  71% more efficient sentence.

The Essay Two Assignment and How it all works?

In this assignment we are given the opportunity to do a rhetorical analysis of someone's viewpoint on a debatable topic. During this process we will be analyzing their writing process and use of Rhetoric as well as how effective their argument is. Through making this analysis we are given the opportunity to learn ways to make stronger arguments ourselves.
In our essay assignment first we have to select a writing that was made to persuade our opinion on a particular topic. In our reading of this, we have to determine how strong was their argument? Did it sway our opinion on the subject and to what degree? After giving a brief summary in our essay of the article we have chosen, we then have to share our own feelings on the strength of their argument and it's effect on us. Then in the body of our essay, we have to break down the arguments or other important points from their writing and how it affected their overall persuasiveness in their article.
In this opportunity to break down someone else's rhetoric, we will be given insight into how our own use of rhetoric can be better improved or used more effectively in different situations of our writing. Through this effective learning from other's example or possibly from other's mistakes, we will become more equipped in our writing to use the available tools to move our audiences to a greater degree.

Writing and Rhetoric and CLTs, Oh My!

Rhetoric is defined as "the art or skill of speaking or writing formally and effectively especially as a way to persuade or influence people"(merriam-webster dictionary) as well as being defined by Aristotle as “the faculty of observing in each case the available means of persuasion”(Sentell, 2013) Content Lexical Ties are defined as were explained in our video for this week as words that "tie" together content. In our review of the analysis written by Tim Collins for the British paper, The Guardian, of the speech given by Marie Fatayi-Williams, there were many examples of each. Collins in his introductory paragraph points out the pathos used by Marie in her appeal to the values of her audience. Later in his writing, Collins explains how ethos was used by Marie when describing her words as being as free from hatred as they were from self interest. Collins also used many content lexical ties (CLTs) in his writing as well. He often compares Marie’s speech to that of Shakespeare as well as to Churchill, Lincoln, and an address at the steps of the gallows. Later in his fourth paragraph he likens her language to verses of the bible. In his fifth paragraph he compares Marie herself to a knighted veteran of the Royal Shakespeare Company. In his sixth paragraph he speaks of Marie’s appeal to her audience as important and momentous. In his analysis of Marie’s speech, Tim Collins showed both the rhetoric of her speech as well as used CLTs to convey his own feeling about the speech as well as the speaker. It is obvious from the way he describes Marie and her message that her speech moved him as much as it did the nation that had just undergone such a horrible meaningless tragedy. 

Tim Collins and Analysis of Marie Fatayi-Williams' speech.

In our textbook reading for this week, we were given the keys to rhetorical analysis. These six steps are identify the purpose, examine the audience, examine the author, examine the larger context, examine the rhetorical appeals, and examine the language and style. We were also shown the six steps needed for a good rhetorical analysis. These steps are: Find an interesting topic, Write a descriptive title and precise thesis, Analyze the immediate context, Analyze the larger context, Analyze the appeals used, and Analyze the language and style. In his analysis and commentary of Marie's speech, Mr. Collins did an excellent job of performing an analysis.

1. Finding an interesting topic. 
With the current events of the bombing of the number 30 bus and Marie's son becoming missing, this story was on the public's mind. Tim also showed his connection to this story by relating it to himself  before the invasion of Iraq.

2. Write a descriptive title and precise thesis statement.
Tim identified his subject in the first sentence of his review. His topic of "Straight from the Heart" showed the depth of emotion that was shown in Marie's speech and gave his audience a glimpse of the rhetorical appeals she would use.

3. Analyze the immediate content.
He was quick to identify his author as Mrs. Fatayi-Williams and the audience was the public there morning the loses of the people on the number 30 bus. He then went into the back story of Marie and her son and their travels from Africa in search of a better life.

4. Analyze the larger context.
He was restricted in this aspect because few would be commenting on the loss of Marie's son. He did make mention of her becoming an icon associated with the bombing that happened just a few days previously.

5. Analyze the appeals used.
This was done beginning with his topic showing the overwhelming use of pathos, she also uses ethos by showing her role as Anthony's mother, and logos, with her arguments about what the real purpose of terrorism was.

6. Analyze the language and style
Collins cited this as one of the primary aspects of her speech. Her personalizing of these historic events and showing the human cost of these actions spoke volumes to her audience. She seemed to speak directly to all her audience, either by comfort of their lose, as a warning to leaders, or as condemnation to the terrorists themselves.

As we can see Tim Collins followed each of these steps and showed his knowledge of a proper and effective analysis. His respectful breakdown of Marie's speech not only showed respect to her son, and her for her lose, but also to her audience and how this tragedy effected them as well. In conclusions I feel he did a very good job in this analysis of a very moving speech.   

Is There Writing After 35 or A Self Review?

For the majority of my life I have suffered from a perfectionist spirit about my work. I have always striven to do my best and always look  for any opportunity to do just a bit better on something I have done before. Because of this mentality, when I do complete a task I am usually very proud of my work and feel it is the best I am capable of. This is how I felt when I completed my draft of out first essay assignment. These feelings of pride and excellent work quickly diminished though as I began the process of the self review questions. 

Question two asked, " What is the paper's thesis statement?" I thought that's simple it's...... never actually stated. In all of my concern and care about making sure I covered all the areas that were written out in the assignment document, I completely forgot to consider the audience I was writing for. In this oversight I formed my writing in more of an informal style than the thesis and supporting point approach that was being questioned about in this review.

I first told myself, Do Not Panic! Realizing this was the whole purpose of doing this self review. Knowing what was desired from this writing and where I am so far, I now had a destination and a starting point. Knowing where I need to go with this assignment at least gave me an opportunity to improve on my writing and to avoid making the same mistakes on future assignments. I am currently in the process of revising my draft and am hoping through the clarification of my thesis statement and development of my supporting arguments that I can regain the pride and confidence I had when I first wrote it. 

Writing from my point of view and others

I thought my writing style was concreted by this point in my life. As I read about how others in this class go about their writing and the techniques they use, I realized I not only had ways I could improve on my writing style but found ways to simplify my sometimes complicated approach. Many of my fellow classmates and myself begin their writing by brainstorming. Katie introduced me to the idea of breaking this brainstorming down into smaller steps or questions to simplify it and open ourselves up to new or different ideas. Dr Sentell also mentioned in his comments that sometimes it's important to look at the smaller details instead of the bigger picture to avoid becoming overwhelmed and getting mentally blocked by it.

My next step in my writing is to arrange these ideas into my topic or thesis, my supporting points, and supporting information of those points. In the past I have always went about this through the use of an outline. Again I took a helpful point from Katie's writing approach of using the umbrella technique over the outline. This more fluid approach allows for easier rearrangement of ideas and grouping of supporting information together. Below is an example of how this umbrella approach wold look.

Now it is time to begin the actually writing part of our assignment. I have always jumped head long into my writing. I developed an introduction to my information then proceeded down the points in my outline and their supporting points, until I have covered all my outlined information. From reading about Tyler's approach though I realized it wasn't as much about my writing at this point as it was about my environment. He suggested to remove all distractions from around me to help to better focus on the task at hand. Although Katie mentioned putting something on television that she has seen numerous times before, I am more of the mindset of Tyler that regardless of the nature of outside stimulus, I would be distracted from my writing and topic. 

The final step in my writing process is rereading my draft and proofreading for spelling or grammatical error as well as sentences that are hard to understand or follow. Like many of my peers I have been lucky enough to have someone in my life who is willing to read my writing and give me constructive criticism and ideas on how to improve the writing itself as well as to help work out areas that are disruptive to the flow of my writing. After this last review, My writing is finally complete.

Temple Grandin and her mastery of Logos, Pathos, and Ethos

Since my son's diagnosis of Asperger's Syndrome, I have had an extensive hunger for information related to it and other areas of the Autism spectrum. Temple Grandin, has been a pioneer in understanding people in this spectrum and in helping others to better understand how Autistic people thing and perceive the world.

In her writing in the article "This issue we're thinking about..." she uses the persuasive techniques of Logos, Pathos, and Ethos to teach her audience about Autistic people and their perception of the world and also draws an emotional response from the non autistic people in the audience to want to learn more about this and to be active in their education about Autism.

Temple demonstrates  Ethos with the fact she has lived with Autism for her entire life and through her own understanding of it, she has a first hand ability to teach others about what it is like. She explains how she has never thought in words or ideas but instead see pictures in her head that she has associated with ideas. When Someone says horse, she sees numerous pictures of horses in her mind instead of just thinking of the word horse as many non-autistic people do.

Next she demonstrates Pathos by helping non-autistic people to put themselves in the shoes of an autistic person and experience the trials they have with innocuous situations or activities. Through helping to develop this connection and understanding between the non-autistic and autistic persons, she helps them to become more emotionally invested in Autism and the understanding of it. By forming this emotional connection to Autistic people, she helps to encourage people to become more proactive in their help for Autistic people and in their teaching them how to use this as more of a positive than negative effect in their lives.

Dr. Grandin uses Logos in her description of what it is like to live with Autism, thus helping people to go from once conclusion to the next to form their own personal understanding of what it is like to live with Autism. She uses logic and simple steps to change the way that people view the environment they are in to briefly see things as an autistic person does. She then takes this a step farther and helps them to learn how through seeing the world this way, how they can use this as a talent in their careers and future life choices to actually become better than the average person at some tasks. An example of this is in her description of Autistic people who are pattern thinking minds being more advanced in understanding of Geometry and mathematical patterns than the average non-autistic person.

Through Dr. Grandin's use of these three persuasion techniques, primarily Ethos and Pathos, she is able to help people not only learn about Autistic people and to put themselves in their shoes for a brief moment, but also instills a hunger for more information related to this field of study. If this interests you, I encourage you to read any of her numerous books, or watch the Temple Grandin story movie. 

Logos, Pathos, & Ethos and what it all means to you

As illustrated above Ethos, Pathos, and Logos are not Greek adventurers, but rather approaches to persuasion with our writing. Through knowing not only what these are, but how they work we can become more effective in our writing and in forming a connection with our audiences. Through the use of all three of these techniques we can approach our topic of persuasion from many different angles and become much more effective in the process.
Ethos is an appeal achieve through the use of our credibility based on our experience, knowledge, or character. Pathos is an appeal based on emotion. This can be done through the use of concrete language or stories. We have to have an understanding of what evokes these emotion in our audience to be the most effective at this style. Logos is persuasion through the use of logic. There are two main variation of this syllogism and enthymeme. Syllogism uses a progression of logic that leads from one logical point to another, while enthymeme uses unstated premise assuming the audience can understand the logical like from one argument to another.

Knowledge of these three techniques will help us become more effective speakers and writers, and give us a more extensive toolkit to appeal to our audiences with. Through learning how to effectively persuade our audiences through all three of these techniques, enables you to vary your approaches to an argument and to come at it from different angles increasing the effectiveness of your argument.

Adaptation of writing for the Audience.

                                                   
As Dr. Sentell mentioned in his video, know the audience, be the audience. To interest an audience about a purpose, if we have knowledge of this audience, we will be able to relate the information more directly to themselves and their lives. If you were speaking at the VMAs or in front of the Senate, you would obviously vary your approach to the information to make it more relative to that audience. To make information more interesting to an audience, it has to be in the vernacular of that audience, and something they can apply to their lives or that is related to them.  

Through the use of thesis statements and PEE structure, this relation to the audience is achieved with academic audiences. The thesis statement helps the audience to know what to expect from the rest of your discourse. It gives them the points you are trying to prove or convey, and peaks their interest for the rest of your discourse. Using PEE structure helps identify the points that relate to your thesis statement that you wish to convey to your audience. It then provides evidence for these points to support them and your thesis. Finally it relates this information to your thesis and your audience to encourage an interest in them about your purpose. 

Writing from my point of view

My writing process varies slightly depending on the subject. Usually I start with my topic and then list points that I feel are important to the ideas or thoughts I am trying to convey to my audience. I then list points about each of these ideas that help explain them and further my message. Afterwards I take these ideas and sort them into a logical order so that they flow from a beginning to end smoothly. Once I have these ideas sorted into their proper places, I am now ready to begin my writing. This set up procedure might seem like a waste of time and many prefer to just jump in and start writing, but preparation is extremely important to writing a clear concise article. As the old saying goes, failure to plan is a plan to fail. Here is a general idea of how this outline is set up.

As I begin my writing, in the first paragraph of the article I want to introduce to my audience, the general idea or ideas I am wanting to share. Wetting their appetite, so to speak, can peak their interest in what I wanted to share and encourage more intent reading of the rest of my writing. After this introductory paragraph, I begin with discussing the first sub topic in my outline. Using the subsequent topics under it, I explain the topic, it's relevance to my overall subject, and important information concerning it. I do this with the next subtopic and work my way down the outline until I have shared all the information I had outlines. As a conclusion, my final paragraph needs to recap the main ideas of my article and tie them into my overall subject.

An important step that is often overlooked is thorough proofreading of your writing after conclusion. I usually prefer to take a break before this to clear my mind. In my proofreading, I not only look for grammatical and spelling errors, but also check that my information is clear and understandable for my audience. Sometimes adding more explanation or removing run on explanations are necessary for a better flow of information. I have been lucky enough in the past to have a english major girlfriend who was willing to read over my writing and give me candid tips for improving and clarifying it.

Staying Engaged with online classes.

Maintaining engagement in an online class can be much more challenging than campus classes. The challenges with maintaining your attention are much more prevalent then when in a controlled environment, such as a classroom. The first step to being engaged in the class is being prepared. Having the materials and supplies you will need will help to avoid the distraction and stopping and starting involved with retrieving things. Materials for an online class would be your book for the class, your computer, and a pen and paper for writing notes or other important information. Gathering these materials all together before starting assignments will help you to be more focused on the assignment, and will limit the opportunity for distractions. 

The next step to being engaged is to avoid outside distractions. It is easy to allow yourself to do your homework in the room with the tv or radio on. Even if you consider yourself good at multitasking, these distractions lower your ability to absorb the information you are trying to learn and will lower your retention of the information when test time comes around. Finding a calm quiet place away from electronic distractions will help with your focus and will make your homework time less stressful and more relaxing. It is also advisable to put your phone on silent and setting it away from you, to avoid the ever present temptation to see how facebook is doing.

The final step to maintaining your focus and being engaged is active participation in class. As many of my professors have noted in their syllabus, the minimal required work will result in the minimal grade. Being willing to be active in your online classroom will show in your overall grade. Being diligent in your assigned reading and assignments will make studying for exams and the eventual final easier and less stressful. With online classes as opposed to campus classes, our forums and blogs are there to replace classroom discussions.  Putting forth serious effort in these areas will have an overall positive effect on your enjoyment of and learning potential from your classes. 

Introduction

Hello, my name is Sonney Warren. I was born in Lynchburg, TN, but have moved around for most of my childhood. I have lived in numerous towns and states, but spent a lot of my time in AL and MO. I graduated from Shawnee High School across the river in Wolf Lake, IL. Since this is only my second semester, I haven't yet declared a major, but am planning to pursue a Degree in Psychology focusing on counseling with a minor in Autism.

The most pertinent obstacle I've overcome would be the decision to return to college at the age of 37. I entered the flooring business in 1998 and have remained there ever since. I have owned my own business for the past 8 years. Hard surface flooring is a career that is rough on your body, and I realized that I need to be proactive about my future, rather than wait until my knees are severely damaged and I have numerous health problems resulting from years of abuse to my body.

I decided to return to school in pursuance of Psychology and Autism, after attending the snap meetings through SEMO with my oldest son, Mason who has been diagnosed with Aspergers. I hope that my education and future career in this field can help other children with Autism spectrum disorders, and also help to educate others about the positive and negative effects of these disorders.

I hope to use this class to improve my writing ability. Psychology is a field of many papers and writing, and the effectiveness of my ability in writing will directly correlate to my effectiveness in my career. If my writing is more fluent and attention getting, then the messages I am trying to get across have a better chance of reaching an attentive ear. It was brought to my attention last semester, that I have some flaws in my writing, and I hope through the use of this class, I can not only overcome these flaw, but excel in other areas to become much more effect in my writing.