English 015: Rhetoric and Composition Summer I 2015 ONLINE Instructor: Donna Caulfield Office Hours: Online – please see course calendar Email: dmc46@psu.edu mdcaulfield@aol.com Cell Phone: 267-994-0678 INTRODUCTION TO THE COURSE: The subject of this course is rhetoric, the effective use of language. Basically, rhetoric is about people communicating to other people who have an investment in the same issue or topic. This course introduces students to college-level writing and analysis. That means you can expect to develop critical writing strategies that should help you succeed in college. The focus of this course, however, is not only "college writing"; we will also address the kinds of writing and reading skills that are important in the world beyond college. Therefore, this course has a simple goal: to help you to become "critical citizens" inside and outside the university. The focus is this section of ENG 015 is to look closely the power of cultural myths. Culture shapes the way we think; it holds people together by providing us with shared beliefs and values. We must learn to be critical thinkers and get beyond the rigid cultural limits imposed on our vision of the world. I will take excerpts from Rereading America, which compiles essays about cultural contexts. We critically examine five cultural myths: Myth of Model Family, Myth of Gender, Myth of Education, Myth of Individual Opportunity, Myth of the Melting Pot. Ultimately, through composing
Rhetoric is a course in which students are taught the values of persuasion. And yet, behind this course is the utmost power to corrupt the world, changing it into a world of our own policies. This power, even though seldom discussed, has lead to many intriguing discoveries. One such discovery is how people are able to shape the world they live in simply by choosing the right words. Therefore those who would want the world to be a better place must protect this power. If in the wrong hands this power could cause serious damage. Several authors have striven to protect rhetoric and its power. Few agree on the matter of defining rhetoric, but they know that they must protect rhetoric from dark souls. A single definition of rhetoric must maintain a simplistic nature while incorporating every aspect of rhetoric. However, I argue that rhetoric is a means of persuading audiences of a situation and a particular reality through language and personal appeal. In order to prove this definition I will discuss how rhetoric creates a situation, the shaping of a different reality, the audience, the use of language, and the personal appeal. Finally, I will demonstrate the absolute need for rhetoric.
As supported by Jay Heinrichs in his book, Thank you For Arguing, rhetoric needs to make a comeback in importance in high school education, as it is a vital skill that could be used in everyday life beyond high school. Rhetoric is an important skill due to the fact that its use could become a constant in our lives. A vast array of rhetorical skills can help a student obtain and keep a job once they land in the working world. A keen eye and ear for rhetoric can be an invaluable tool in obtaining one’s goals in life.
RHET 1302 will prepare you for college-level writing while helping you develop your critical thinking skills. Rhetoric is the study and practice of how people communicate messages, not only in writing and speech, but also through visual and digital mediums. In this class, you will develop skills to analyze the way rhetoric, in its various forms, addresses audiences. By paying attention to the strategies that good writers and speakers use to persuade their particular audiences, you will learn to reason better and to persuade others in your own writing,
Rhetoric Review is an academic interdisciplinary journal of rhetoric. The journal issues in all areas of rhetoric and writing, and delivers a professional debate for its readers to reflect and discuss the topics and issues. The journal issues texts that investigate the extent and complexity of the discipline. We can conclude from the information that Porter’s main audience were college students mainly in writing classes. Porter’s motive could be helping college students by claiming that once the author knows how to write for a particular audience, they will be more likely to become a successful writer. Porter talks about how students should learn to write for a discourse community instead of writing to
Plato once said, “Rhetoric is the art of ruling the minds of men.” Through all the time that has passed since those words were first said, rhetoric has been used millions of times in millions of different ways, from a heavily thought out presidential speech to a kid trying to convince his parents to let him eat another cookie from the cookie jar. It is also used heavily in advertising campaigns. The purpose is to convince the audience that they are the best presidential candidate, that they deserve that extra cookie, or that they are providing a great product that you don’t just want to buy, but need to buy. Rhetoric rules the minds of men, and women, for that matter. Multiple rhetorical devices and persuasive techniques, such as color choice,
In my Rhetoric and Genre essay on, Ella Minnow Pea by Mark Dunn I honestly tried my best to explain how the use of genre was ideal to explain Dunn’s rhetoric in the book. I started of by bringing out what I believe were the main points that Dunn wanted to get to his readers. This points being the importance of critical thinking, communication and language and what would happen if we lacked on each of them. When it came to writing on why I believed these points were best told in an epistolary genre was without a doubt a challenge for me. Not because I did not believe that this points were best brought up through this genre but because it was became very difficult for me to explain myself.
My time in ENC1101 has been beneficial in many ways. Since the beginning of high school I dreaded writing all types of essay in English. So coming into this class I was not too fond of idea writing six thousand words within four short months. My inability to put my thoughts into creative and well worded sentence is the biggest obstacle I face when it comes to writing. I came into this class hoping it would improve my writing skills, which it did. Shortly after attending this class for a few days, the professor introduced the concept of a portfolio draft. My initial reaction was “wow, this is going to be a lot of work,” however, I realized that this would only benefit my grade due to the multiple edits my paper would go through. The portfolio reveals the amount of progress I have made throughout the semester with my writing. This portfolio really highlights on my ability to take criticism of others into account when it comes to editing my professional and portfolio draft.
In his article “If Technology Is Making Us Stupid, It’s Not Technology’s Fault,” David Theo Goldberg effectively informs the reader about the effects that computers in the home and school environment could have on the future education of the coming generations. Goldberg achieves this by executing defined organization and adding unique comparisons about the potentially crippling effects technology can have on a society when put into the wrong hands.
Transferring to California State University, Sacramento was the most optimal decision that I have made recently this year and so far, it has been an enjoyable yet compelling one because of the helpful environment around me. Compared to the other two colleges I attended in the past in Stockton, California, I believe Sacramento State University has better resources and opportunities to grow as a student. Some of the resources I have utilized here are the Writing Center and PARC, but I plan to branch out and explore many others I have heard about. Although my major is Mechanical Engineering, I still have other classes that I am required to take in order graduate in Spring of 2020, such as English 109W for my undergraduate GWAR. Before entering English 109W, my mind was set on just completing the course and getting a good enough grade to move on to my Writing Intensive course, the last English class I would take in college. I thought that my writing skills were above
Rhetorical knowledge was established in course lecture as a tool with useful consequences in establishing credibility with my audience. The application of rhetorical knowledge to writing requires some skill. Coincidentally, this skill was developed through specific developmental lectures that identified what rhetoric is, and how it can be divided into useful modules. Thereby, these modules can be individually applied to establish a foundation of credibility with an audience. Credibility, was identified to have a foundation in a variety of specialized skills that are based on common standards. One such common standard was identified and labored on extensively, ensuring grammar is effective and accurate was identified as the key. Consequently, the accurate use of grammar affords the audience an opportunity to be eloquently held captive by the effective flow of sentence and paragraph transitions.
Rhetoric is a necessity of everyday life,rhetoric is used worldwide because of the vast history and profound sensibility that effectively manipulates the human emotional state. For this reason, rhetoric needs to be applied to all High School AP English curriculums to be used in everyday life and protect oneself from other rhetorical devices.
As a student, it is important that we use Rhetorical Analysis as a strategy to communicate effectively. For example, when we write an essay, we need to show how the text convinces us of its position. As a citizen, it is important to use rhetorical analysis in our daily life since it is a great tool to sort out questions about politics and relationship. For instance, during the election period, we need to use rhetorical analysis when analyzing a candidate’s message to determine whether or not their words are true.
Scholarship in the field of rhetoric and composition is heavily focused on how to improve student writing and understanding (learning) in first-year composition classrooms and in the academy more broadly. This interest has led scholars to explore the experiences and struggles of faculty in rhetoric and composition, particularly the ways graduate students, adjuncts, and minoritized faculty groups (women and people of color) are relegated to carrying the heaviest teaching loads for the least pay, having few resources and little institutional support, and little or no training or professional development. While these areas have been explored in depth, very little research has focused on the training of graduate teaching assistants tasked with
The first chapter introduced the reader to the art of rhetoric. He describes how rhetoric works through real life examples. He demonstrates ways that rhetoric persuades us like, argument from strength, and seduction. He tells the reader that the sole purpose of arguing is to persuade the audience. He showed that the chief purpose of arguing is to also achieve consensus, a shared faith in a choice.
During this class I expressed the use of rhetoric in the four major essays I wrote, including the Narrative Essay, Rhetorical Mode Essay, Argumentative Essay, and Research Essay. Being able to think critically is a crucial part of success when it comes to writing these essays. At the beginning of this class, I had a much less understanding of this particular area. I struggled with being able to use research effectively to persuade others of a certain argument. I also had difficulty with grammar issues, and paying attention to my overall “voice” of an essay. I believe that I improved significantly in all of those areas because in each essay I have learned to put myself in the audience’s position and view the piece of writing in the reader’s point of