Writing 120 Reflection

It’s hard to imagine that just ten short months ago I was sitting in a classroom building a spaghetti tower with no idea what a rhetorical analysis essay was or what the word anaphora meant. Now, just a couple of months later, I have read and analyzed six different novels, learned to write an argument, synthesis, and rhetorical analysis essay, expanded my lexicon of literary terms, and sat through a three hour AP exam. This class has not only given me the skills to master the AP exam, but it has also given me knowledge to succeed in future English courses and in life. Through this course, I have experienced unparalleled growth in my reading comprehension and writing abilities.

The first step to successful writing is to understand the key components of ethos, pathos, and logos which contribute to the rhetorical aspect of one’s writing. Entering the course with a basic knowledge of these three rhetorical concepts, I learned how to further effectively analyze them and use them properly within my own writing. I learned how important it is to master the use of ethos, pathos, and logos because it is the key to connecting my writing with my audience in order to better persuade them and create a more effective argument. Without the use of rhetorical elements, an argument can lack that connection with its audience, therefore creating a less effective argument and defeating its own purpose. Alongside learning how to use rhetorical

In Mark Edmundson’s article Who Are You and What Are You Doing Here, published in the Oxford American on August 22, 2011, he talks about his college experience and what others need to do in college to be successful. Getting an education is hard because there are too many distractions, but find something you enjoy doing or else you’ll be bored and work hard to become that. There are a lot of paths to choose from in life and going to college is one of the best to choose. Edmundson must also agree with this since he is pushing kids to try harder in school. However, Edmundson points out some very key points as to what students need to do.

This school year has gone by really quick but I do feel that I grew and was successful in areas such as incorporating ethos and pathos into the introduction and conclusions of my essays. Writing is more widely appreciated when you can connect to it or with it and building ethos and pathos into it, which creates a relatable tone. Specifically in my Identity free response essay, I had improved my introduction with the use of the rhetorical appeals. I revised the anecdote to put the reader in the moment. This built up my essay and made it stronger, which is what the rhetorical appeals are made to do. Additionally, I have never really been a strong writer , but throughout my essays, I have greatly sharpened my analysis skills. I have learned to continuously ask "so what " on many different levels. On my rubric for the Lord of the Flies free response essay, support and development are one of my strengths. This reviews the addition of evidence that is drawn from any sources. I challenge myself to question further into why anyone should read my essays. Asking “what is the purpose?”

The challenging component this semester was the transition from high school English reading and writing level to college level. It is mainly because High school writing did not have many expectations from students, its main focus was on the ideal five-paragraph essays. As compared to college, writing is mainly geared and focused on one’s ability to thoroughly answer the assigned prompt. Initially, I was not sure if I was capable of handling a fast-paced course, however, I quickly adjusted to the change and I am glad that I chose to stay. In English 10, I have learned many valuable elements that I can incorporate into my everyday writing. I have included my writing from project 2 a rhetorical analysis on, “Black Lives Matter”, which effectively demonstrates my growth as a reader, thinker, and writer.

I did not have a firm writing philosophy before this semester, but I to some degree I understood the importance writing can have on a situation. Now I understand that writing has two outcomes: gaining support or losing support. When writing an essay it is best if the writing is as specific as possible. This way the audience is hopefully not left with a confused opinion about the topic. Since the beginning of the semester I have put a conscious effort to change my writing style. Instead of the box format that is learned in high school I try to use a more graceful approach while still being organized. Also, I evaluate the credibility of a source before I use the information to support my thesis and understand the roles of using ethos,

As a freshman at Roger Williams University in Bristol, RI, I took the writing class WTNG 102 Section 31, taught by Professor Ramey. All undergraduate students must receive at least a 70 as a final grade in the class prior to being enrolled in Critical Writing, WTNG 200 or 220. Entering college, I was most worried about taking Expository Writing because writing has never been one of my strengths. I have always struggled with writing transitions, and have made endless grammatical mistakes, including comma splices and tense changes. I hoped that Expository Writing would help me with these writing mistakes. Another thing that I hoped that WTNG 102 would do for my writing is that it would… Over the semester, I wrote a total of four papers with three different learning objectives and specific understandings. The first paper, “The Real Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet” shows my understanding of rhetorical knowledge. The second paper, “What is a Discourse Community?” shows my understanding of discourse community knowledge. The third paper, “Genre Analysis” shows my understanding of genre knowledge. Through these three papers, I have achieved the learning outcomes in rhetorical knowledge, discourse community knowledge, and genre knowledge.

In chapter one of “What It Takes” by Laurence Behrens and Leonard J. Rosen, it talks about summaries. It discusses how to use summaries and where they would be found in different types of writings. It also talks about the reading process and how most people don’t read carefully, which heavily affects their writing and therefore the grade they receive. It also discusses guidelines for writing a summary and how people have to read the passage carefully, reread the passage, write one sentence summaries, write a thesis, write a draft, and then revise your summary. The authors explain that “The first sentence of a summary is crucially important, for it orients readers by letting them know what to expect”(23). The authors then discuss that the length

A summary main point is to help a reader get the “big picture” of a report, essay, document, etc. Summaries should do three things according to John M. Lannon “(1) describe, in short form, what the original document is all about; (2) help readers decide whether to read the entire document, part of it, or none of it; and (3) give reads a framework for understanding the full document”. Summaries should have the main idea of the document in it. In addition, readers expect a few things from summaries. Some of this are accuracy, completeness, readability, conciseness, and nontechnical style. Creating a summary depends in the situation too. For example, when you need to explain how a nuclear power plant work to a public who is voting to accept it

A college education is the next big step for high school graduates. For these students, college requires major commitment and consistent motivation. The decision to attend college may have been easy. However, what is not so easy is the work that comes along with it. High school students that plan on attending college have to mentally, physically, emotionally, financially, and socially prepare themselves for this new environment. Georgia Military College helps their students recognize the importance within themselves and their college experience. By doing so, the college offers a college success class for all students who need help with mastering college with success at the highest level. PER 101 is the college success course that instructs Georgia Military College students on how to be

In high school I challenged my writing skills by taking advanced placement language and literature. Both courses assigned essays that required scholarly text to support my points and ideas stated throughout the paper. My biggest takeaway from these classes was that having textual evidence from reliable sources will help strengthen my writing, also known as ethos to persuade the audience. During my junior year I grasped the concept of ethos, pathos, and logos, how each could be used to shape writing concepts or perspectives. Personally it takes me a little bit of time to adjust from different writing contexts that need to be addressed, but I always thoroughly analyze instructions to reach success. I improve as a student when I practice analyzing

The summary writing strategy has helped me in numerous ways. This strategy helps keep all your information organized. I need to continue working on my grammar, punctuation, and use of transition words. The strategy and steps I plan to use are TAPFOR, brainstorming, and the graffic organizer. It is far more effective to keep a summary short. Summary writing is a great skill to have. Summaries are an important part of our everyday lives that help us share information

Growth, I believe, is inevitable when one is compelled to learn and apply that knowledge which has been presented to them. This semester has proved to be a time of development, change, and substantial growth. During my time in English 101 I have had the chance to really explore new genres of writing such as memoirs, rhetorical analyses, and persuasive essays. In this class I have been able to build upon old writing skills and cultivate new ones; and I have also come to recognize what I like and dislike writing about through the completion of the assignments we were charged with. Through this semester in English 101 I feel as though I have had the opportunity to enhance my ability to apply the rules of rhetoric to my work, convey my thoughts and ideas with greater clarity, and recognize the places where I can improve my work through the revising process.

A learner’s ability to communicate effectively through writing to his/her target audiences is a major prerequisite for academic success. It is also a major pillar of success in one’s career across all areas of practice. Even though, writing clearly is critical to one’s academic and career success, I have not always loved writing. In fact, for a long time I despised writing. At one point, I had a feeling that my writings skills were bound to remain stagnated throughout my life. However, time has proven that I was wrong. My attitude and outlook towards virtually all genres of writing has changed positively. The various helpful methods I have been exposed to by my English teachers through different grades have helped me

Summary One- Strengths, Weaknesses, and Readiness After completing several assignments for UNIV 150, I have found that I have been given several tools and exercises to help advance my writing skills. These experiences have helped me identify my strengths and weaknesses, allowed me to learn new ways to tackle college, but most of all, enabled me to acquire knowledge in ways to improve my written language. The first few journal entries and public discussion boards weren’t particularly challenging; I felt like I wouldn’t have a problem in this class.