The week

What is one thing you learned this week from class and what is one thing that you still are not sure about?

-I think I came to understand a bit more about rhetoric and what is means to have a rhetorical argument. I did not really understand the idea before this week, and now I feel that I have a better grasp on the concept. Not to say that I'm still a little confused by it, because I feel like it is a big concept to try to take on, but I do feel that I have widened my knowledge of it. 

-I think that I still do not have a complete grasp on social discourse vs audience that we discussed today. It's a confusing topic for me, but hopefully I'll be able to come to understand it a bit better. 

Social Perspective questions

A.

1. The textual perspective they assume that it's static, that there is a formula for producing the genre.

-Study the text to identify how the text could be shortened or simplified.

2. The individual perspective is more interested in the writing process rather then the formula.

-They assume that the text is an individual creation. 

3. The social perspective assumes that the writer is trying to appeal to an audience to accomplish something. 

-Thinking about the purpose for the document, whose going to be reading it, what you want them to do about it. 

-The genre was created by people over time. They saw a certain purpose they needed to achieve, so certain documents came into being. 

A document in the workplace

In order to communicate effectively in a workplace, a writer needs to be able to participate in the continuous process of communication. A writer needs to know how to effectively translate language, making it easier for others to understand and learn from. A writer trying to explain a complicated idea, such as something in the medical or engineering field, they can not expect that their entire audience will be able to understand the terms. So a writer must be able to explain complicated ideas in a way that will be easier to understand.
The writer also needs to take into account how much an audience may or may not know about their subject beforehand, so that they can accurately inform their readers. This goes along with the previous idea. If a writer assumes that their audience knows certain information and does not include it, it can make their communication of a process unfinished. But, if a writer is accomplished at this, they can pass the information on to their readers, who can in turn pass the information on to others; a continuous process.

Rhetoric Activities 2 and 4

2) Arguments happen every day, in a lot of different situations. However, like Jon Stewart commented, some arguments can't really be considered proper arguments according to rhetoric. For instance, the book mentioned the use of facts and opinions. Ancient rhetoricians taught that op ions developed because a whole community, not just a single person. So they should be valid to an argument as well. Because I could not think of an argument I had heard lately in the news, I settled on one I heard between two of my friends.
Both of the girls were discussing the Olympics. When the topic of Michael Phelps, the swimmer who won 8 gold medals, came up, the argument started. Friend A made her point. While she felt that Phelps was an excellent swimmer and that he represented the United States well in Beijing, she had heard from her brother, who had heard Phelps talk, that Phelps was a very arrogant person. Friend B was instantly fired up. She argued that Phelps was the best athlete at the Olympics and that he wasn't arrogant at all. How could he possibly be? He was the best swimmer there. This is an example of what I feel is not a valid argument. While friend A made a point and had second hand evidence, friend B could provide none. She could only put forth her view on the fact that she believed she was right.
A theatrical argument is one that does not provide the time for everyone to speak. Like the example in the book states, a rhetorically engaged argument does not have people simply shouting over one another or interrupting each other to get the arguments out. A rhetorically engaged argument is not one that can be won, like in the case of a theatrical argument.

4) In my community, persuasion comes mostly from the television. There isn't a lot of things around my community that influences us all on a daily basis besides TV. I think that a lot of my friends are heavily influenced by what they watch, and it shows on thier day to day lives. From commercials, to the news, even to the show themselves, I think that thier influence can be found. The news espeically influences. I read MSN news everyday and am influenced by it. I read information about diffrent food items, as an example, and then decide that I won't eat it anymore, or that I should eat it.
As for arguments here is a random list of them as I found them. I don't agree or disagree with them, I simply found them interesting.
-Children shouldn't be allowed to read Harry Potter because it introduces themes such as human sacrafice, the occult and a hunger for power.
-Not vaccinating your child causes serious health risks. Risks that outweigh the risks of actually getting the vaccinations.
-Second hand smoke provides as many health dangers as actually smoking.

Selzer questions

1) Why did Jack Selzer want to study the composing processes of an engineer?
Jack Selzer wanted to investigate the ways the scientists and engineers actually went through the processes of writing and how they planned, arranged and drafted their writing. At the time, many study had been conducted on people who actually professionally wrote such as authors or jounalists, as well as students in academic settings. He also conducted his research for the purpose of helping teach technical writing to students entering the fields of engineering or science.

2) What did you find interesting/unique/suprising about his answer to this question? How did he convince you he was correct/on target?
It suprised me that Selzer discovered that Nelson composed a lot of his own work and melded it with other documents. But when it came time to revise, there was barely any. While most writers take a lot of time to revise whole portions of thier own work, Nelson did not revise his words. He simply made changes to the grammer. Selzer says he never saw Nelson "add material or reorganize it when he was revising" (184).
Selzer mentions that he observes Nelson throughout his writing process. Selzer also observed Nelson's work enviorment. Selzer asked Nelson to respond to questions about his writing before and after he completed it. He did not ask Nelson to compse aloud. Selzer also looked over Nelson's documents that he completed.

Blog 1: Professional Writers

The field of professional writing appears to be a very flexible job description. There are some people who choose to work for just one company, like an editor to a publishing company such as Penguin Books. Then there are the freelance writers, who can be contracted to write for various reasons such as articles for magazines, or screenplays.
Technical writers are writers that take complicated instructions or language and transform in to into easier reading for the public. The directions on the back of that PopTart? Probably written by a technical writer. They can work for companies, but can also be freelance and work from home.
Editors review and edit the work of other writers before publication can take place. In a publishing company, an editor may review the ideas with the author, as well as review their grammar. Then there are copy editors that do basically the same thing, but only in a news setting. A copy editor will review the material of a reporter instead of another author. The job of an editor requires the person to be creative and actively interested in the field of writing, as they may be called upon to bring forth ideas of their own.
Medical writers break down complicated medical terms into language that many people not familiar with the Field can understand. The American Medical Writer's Association has nearly 5,000 members that work to improve the communication of medical information. The AMWA has many workshops and conferences for its members to join together and improve. There is also a directory for the members that are freelance writers. Some medical writers can write information in text books and some choose to work on web sites like KidsHealth.org.