Read and Response for April 13th

The Ecology of Writing

By: Marilyn Cooper

“The metaphor for writing suggested by the ecological model is that of a web, in which anything that affects one strand of the web vibrates throughout the whole.” (Cooper, 370)

            I thought that this passage was very important because I thought that the author used a great metaphor to explain the ecological model of writing.  It states that writing is like a web and any little change can affect the web as a whole.  I completely agree with this statement because writing is a very delicate process and your writing as a whole can be affected by the smallest change in detail.  Cooper also talks about how writing can be put into a model in order to organize the writing and make sure everything is correct and in the right place.

Murder! (Rhetorically Speaking)

By: Janet Boyd

“Herein we might find our definition of genre, which by necessity remains perpetually loose: when the traits or attributes considered normal to or typical of a particular kind of creative piece, such as in literature, film, or music, make it that kind and not another.” (Boyd, 97)

            I thought that this was important because it explains how we classify genres by their attributes and that is important for us to recognize the things that make up a piece and place them in the right category.  In this piece, Boyd does an exercise with her class that is suppose to be comparative to writing.  She makes them solve a murder case by investigating and finding out facts that can help them solve the mystery.  She relates this to writing because you have to really examine the writing and have certain techniques in order to be the best writer and reader.  She also uses the exercise to explain how to find out the genre of a work and the ways in which to do it.

Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics

By: James Paul Gee

“At any moment we are using language we must say or write the right thing in the right way while playing the right social role and appearing to hold the right values, beliefs, and attitudes.  Thus, what is important is not language and surely not grammar, but saying (writing)- doing- being- valuing – believing combinations.” (Gee, 6)

            This passage is talking about the combinations which Gee calls discourses.  I completely agree with this passage because when you are talking to someone, you do want to have good grammar but it’s more what you say that is more important.  You can have the best grammar in the world but if you don’t know how to use the language then it is pointless.  I think you had us read these articles together because all of them talk about the underlying techniques to look at writing and all articles talk about the things you can do to make you a better writer.  It is important to not just look at writing as just something you do, but you have to really think about and study writing before you can be good at it.  Rhetorical situations can be related to discourses because rhetorical situations are ways of using your head and imagination to simulate something in order to make a point or figure out some kind of information while discourses are your thoughts in your head such as your beliefs and values that are used for the same reason.

Read and Response for April 11th

Resume Article Response

By: T. Shane Peagler and Kathleen Blake Yancey

“ To illustrate this argument, he briefly outlines the resume as a genre of social action, arguing that the key is to balance the impulse for personal expression with the needs of a socially constructed world.  It is useful to think of writing not as entirely socially or individually motivated, but as a mode of discourse particularly suited to learning how to manage information, ideas, conventions, and intentions.” (Peagler & Yancey, 153)

I thought that passage was very interesting because it provides a thoughtful prospective on writing.  It says that writing is not just motivated by people but is a way to keep a record everything that goes on in the world.  By learning how to write we learn the basic skill that the majority of our country uses for communication which is essential to a person’s success in life.  A resume is one of the most important forms of communication and writing a person can do   because it determines whether that person is going to get a job or not and be able to support themselves.  We use our resumes to manage our information on background in relation to work and education and communicate that to the employer in such a way that is most appealing to them.  In regards to the first portion of this passage, it says that the key is to balance the impulse for personal expression with the needs of a socially constructed world.  I thought that this meant that our personal expression is only limited by ourselves and the way we perceive what is except able in the world around us.  We tailor our writing to what is socially appealing to make our readers more into whatever it is we are trying to get across.  Especially in regards to writing a resume, we must take in account our reader and what they want out of their possible employee.

Read and Response for April 6th

Beyond Black and White: Document Design and Formatting in the Writing Classroom

By: Michael Klein and Kristi Shackelford

“This consistency allows readers to become accustomed to certain conven­tions and increases readability. When a professor reviews multiple pa­pers formatted in the same way, for example, she can easily find the author’s name and class section on all of the papers (Klein & Shackelford 343).”

I thought that this passage from the reading was one of the most important because this portion of the reading explains why we use particular design with our writing.  As a student, almost every teacher has a preferred way for their students to write papers and this passage clarifies why the teachers have certain formats.  It makes life easier for not only the teachers when they are grading the assignment but also helps the students when they are revising and writing the paper.  I thought of a somewhat interesting comparison to use when talking about formatting with your papers.  I went to a catholic grade school when I was younger and we were forced to wear uniforms to school.  Now at the time I thought that it was a big pain in the butt to have to wear the same thing every day to school and not be able to pick out what you want to wear.  However, when I started high school I attending a public school where no uniform was required.  I realized that having a set uniform to wear was actually convenient because there was never a question or concern about what I was going to wear to school that day.  In a public school where there is no dress code you have to make decisions about what you are going to wear or if your clothes are dirty which makes life a little harder on you.  In relation to writing, if you have a set style such as MLA format, you don’t really have to think about setting your format or choosing how you are going to format your paper which makes things a lot easier.

Klein and Shackelford argue that we should think about design in all our texts; do you agree? 

            I strongly agree with both writers about thinking about your design in all texts.  For anything you write, there is a purpose behind it whether it’s a paper for school, a memo to a fellow worker, or just plain fun writing for your own entertainment.  In all these cases, before you start writing you want to think about whose going to be reading your writing and what is the acceptable format to use for it.  The design of your writing is the key to writing something that is easy to read, looks properly put together for the situation, and is getting the point you want to make across to your reader.

Having studied a little design now, what is the rhetorical effect of MLA style formatting?

            The rhetorical effect of MLA style formatting is having a format style that is pounded into student’s heads enough where it becomes second nature.  Almost like even if the teacher didn’t ask for your assignment to be in MLA format, you still do it by habit.  MLA style formatting creates a basic standard for writing which makes sure everything is properly placed on your page and makes sure your writing is easily read and understood.  Having this format makes things easier for both the student and the teacher when they are reading through or looking for a specific thing in the writing.

Read and Response for April 4th

Response to the First Six Chapters from our Design Book

“The result (from aligning the page) is similar to what happens when you (or your dog) pick up all the dog toys that were strewn around the living room floor and put them all into one toy box (Williams 50).”

I chose this passage because it stood out to me the most after the first six chapters of reading.  I thought it was important because it uses a great analogy that is easy to understand too explain the role and effects of aligning the page.  The passage means that by putting all the text (being the dog toys in the passage) in a specific place on the page (being the toy box) it makes everything unified and easy read.  If the words on a page aren’t somewhat aligned then the page would just look like a big mess.  Creating a specific spot where the words begin and end gives your page order and ties the related text together.  Even when text is aligned it can still be separated by changing proximity of the words.  The purpose of alignment is to tell the reader that all these words belong to a whole.  I thought this passage did a great job at simply explaining the concept to the reader and also did it in a unique fun way.

Why do you think we are studying a book on design in a writing in professions class?

            I think we are studying a book about design in our class because it is important to know how to use simple concepts such as proximity, alignment, repetition, and contrast to catch your reader’s attention and to successfully portray your text in the way you are intending to.  Looking at ways to group words together correctly so that your work is as organized and easy to read as possible is important for any writer in any profession.  For me, I feel like a lot of these concepts were introduced to us several years ago and with our technology today we don’t really need to pay attention to some of these concepts because computers do it for us.  However, I think it is good for me being a student to read about these concepts to get a better understanding about why we do the things we do in writing.

How might visual design be important in your profession?

            Visual design might be important in your profession because it each profession the way you design your writing may be different.  In any profession, there will be a standard of writing you must know basic design for writing before you can be a successful writer in your profession.  For example, if your profession involves writing memos then all factors including alignment and proximity of words are keys to a well written memo.  Another example of a profession where design is important is a job where people make flyers and use the concepts of visual design to catch people’s eye when they walk past.  For any profession, having your writings being more visually appealing is never a bad thing and knowing these concepts makes sure you do the things to make sure your work as appealing as possible.  My major is restaurant, hotel, tourism and visual design could be helpful in several things like writing a menu, advertisements for hotels, and anything that is going to be written for your customers.  For designing a menu in a restaurant, a writer uses concepts of alignment, proximity, and contrast to separate different dishes and different types of meals such as appetizers, entrees, etc.

Read and Response for March 30th

“Reading Games: Strategies for Reading Scholarly Sources” by Karen Rosenberg               
“Even though it may seem like a solitary, isolated activity, when you read a scholarly work, you are participating in a conversation.”

            I thought this quote was very interesting because it puts reading in a perspective that I’ve never really heard before.  It says that reading is like a conversation which in my eyes I never looked at it that way.  I just thought it was just you reading what the author had to say without getting any feedback about your thoughts.  However, in the article they talk about how the author uses common issues and problems that everyone could face to relate with their readers and that these issues and problems should be further discussed, say with classmates or teachers.  The writing provides you with an outlook on an issue or problem and it is your job to take what the writer says and develop your own perspective by discussing it with others.  The articles also made a big emphasis on ways to read more academically difficult text.  The author explained how splitting the reading into parts in order to break it down so it is better understood.  For example, the author stresses the importance on establishing who the desired audience is, as well as taking a closer look at the title to give you an idea of how to read the writing, and lastly establishing the main argument or idea of the story.  This quote best explains the ideas in this reading.

“Instead of passively reading the text from start to finish, my suggestions encourage you to pull the reading into its constituent parts—the abstract, the introduction, the section headings, conclusion, etc.—and read them unevenly and out of order to look for the holy grail of the main argument (Bunn 219).”

Read and Response for March 30th

“How To Read Like A Writer” by Mike Bunn (p. 74)

“In 1940, a famous poet and critic named Allen Tate discussed two different ways of reading:  There are many ways to read, but generally speaking there are two ways. They correspond to the two ways in which we maybe interested in a piece of architecture. If the building has Corinthian columns, we can trace the origin and development of Corinthian columns; we are interested as historians. But if we are interested as architects, we may or may not know about the history of the Corinthian style; we must, however, know all about the construction of the building, down to the last nail or peg in the beams. We have got to know this if we are going to put up buildings ourselves. (506)”

I thought that this passage was important because it is a great metaphor for what the whole article is trying to get across.  The author’s purpose in this article is to stress the importance and the differences between normal reading and reading like a writer.  When reading like a normal reading we are only concerned with the information provided and what we learn from the reading.  Reading like a writer takes more of an architect’s point of view.  Reading like a writer involves more concentration on the actual words being used in context to the whole story.  Tate makes the comparison of reading to constructing a building and that we must know every piece that goes into the construction of the building for us to be successful in building our own.  Basically making the comparison that when we are reading like a writer, we focus on the words used in the text and the effects they have on the reader.  Going word for word and examining the way it is used the story as a whole gives us a better understanding of the way the author wrote the story and gives us guidelines for our own stories.

I believe that reading is a huge part of writing because they go hand and hand.  To become a good writer you must have read a lot because reading other peoples works is what gives you inspiration for your own writing.  Seeing how other authors used words in their text and their effects on the reader, possibly being yourself, helps you decide whether you want those same effects in your writing.  There is no possible way that someone could not be able to read but still was a good writer and vice versa.  This is evident by this quote from Charles Moran.

“When we read like writers we understand and participate in the writing. We see the choices the writer has made, and we see how the writer has coped with the consequences of those choices (Bunn 75).