Revised Statement of Rhetorical Writing

After reading other students ideas on “what rhetoric writing means” to them, I was able to both confirm my thinking as well as add some aspects that I seemed to overlook. According to chapter one of the popular book “Everyone’s an author” (the textbook for this class), there are seven steps to both thinking and acting rhetorically. Step one, Listen. Take into consideration other viewpoints and ideas, you might be surprised of how little you may know. Step two, understand why others are saying what they are saying, this may help you weed out which are useful as facts and opinions. Thirdly, consider what you believe at this point in time and why. After you have a brief idea of what you think you know, do some research, you'll be surprised at what you'll find, they may help or hinder what you came up with for an opinion. Five is allways remeber to give credit, this helps with your own credibility. The sixth step is to be imaginative. What is mean by this is look at the situations from interesting angles, you may find things you never saw before. Lastly, after all this is said and done, go ahead and “put in your own oar.”

What Rhetoric Writing Means to Me

Good rhetoric writing in my mind, is as the name implies. Rhetorical questions are statements that have an answer implied. Rhetorical writing is writing that leaves no question to be asked. Good rhetorical writing means that the author has spent enough time articulating their point across to the audience through research and persona, that it is hard to argue with what they have to say. One may find alternative facts and figures for say, a research paper, but the underlying foundation of what they have written down is so well thought out that it is able to hold its own in an argument. A good rhetorical author takes into account its audience as the number one priority, and trailers to their every need to illustrate their (the author’s) point. In other context, thinking and writing rhetorically means learning as much as you can by listening to others, doing independent research and developing an understanding rather than an opinion. Opinions on topics are somewhat limiting to what you can learn on a given topic. Going into a writing piece with an already strong opinion, you might seemingly block out other valid points or facts that go against what you believe, this is what rhetoric writing and thinking try to avoid. The last step of the rhetorical process is “putting in your own oar”

2. Lydia Questions Similarities and differences:

• The main point we all gathered was to illustrate the hardships people faced at a closer, more personal level. She uses a specific example of a woman’s own story to make a disasters as large as hurricane Katrina and Rita seem real at an individual and personal example. It’s easy to get lost in an event so large and forget about all the small factors, all the small people actually affected by the situation.
• The perspective of the narrative as a whole is first person through Brideau. However, when she tells the story about Lydia, she changes to third person. This is because she is recounting the story told by Lydia, it isn't a direct telling by her. After the story passes, the perspective shifts back to Brideau’s first person.
• Given that we all read the same story, and with more or less the same around of background information on the topic at hand, our conclusions were all parallel to one another.

3. Connections between Chapter 2 and “Lydia’s Story” related to rhetoric:

• The genre Brideau chooses is a narrative. She also carefully writes to accommodate for the audience that she assumes will be reading her piece. The tone helps to project the main idea in the story: the deeper and more personal suffering and survival of individuals in the aftermath of the two hurricanes. The main idea is also a direct link to the purpose of the narrative: which is also to highlight the personal stories of people after the hurricanes.
• The tone of a narrative often has the objective to capture its readers at an emotional level.
• We are able to see the rhetorical guidelines said in Chapter two in Lydia’s Story. These examples help us better understand rhetorical situations in our own writing.

7. The general synopsis of our discussion was that we hear small narratives every day. We also hear stories in songs as long as we are listening to the lyrics. Some songs are literally narratives, that are written in a creative rhythmic manner. In our discussions with parents or friends, we constantly hear about their days or an exciting thing that has happened to them recently. We may not always draw meaning from the narratives, but if we listen with intent, we can understand the situation.

10. We were able to conclude that in this particular case, the videos were more powerful than the text, this was because it gives the viewer the ability to see the person's face, their tone, etc. An addition in the form of dramatic music draws the audience into an emotional state and uses it to the story's advantage.

12. Compare Narratives:YouTube Short Film vs. News Article (written version of short film)

Similarities: They both tell a sequence of events, both have characters, plot and setting, they both have a climax or point to the story.

Differences: One uses music to illustrate the intensity of the situation at hand, where as on the contrary, this is extremely difficult to do in a news article due to the brief nature of them.

Effect of the Medium: The video allows the reader to relax and enjoy watching while still gathering the context of the story entirely. Small details that make writing come alive are often overlooked and therefore in general writing (in this case) is less effective.

Summary: We compared a video to a written news article. We concluded that they both have many good aspects in their effectiveness of telling a story.

"Lydia's Story" Rundown:

1. Gathered from the text; “Lydia’s Story,” by Jan Brideau, she (Brideau) seemed to take a large issue, and pull a very small aspect of it into light to have an impact on the reader's heart. Brideau makes it clear to the reader that she witnessed first hand the aftermath and devastation behind the two storms (Katrina and Rita). Her main point however, of writing a small narrative of a particular woman’s situation gives a specific example of the damage she had discovered. She states this “thesis,” if you will, at the beginning of the last paragraph of the story. She states: “For me, the enormity of the double hurricanes became clear only after witnessing so many people left without homes.”
2. The primary point of view regarding “Lydia’s Story” is a third person perspective of the troubles “Lydia” faced. Using a third person perspective rather than first or a non-applicable second, gives the writer the freedom to weave background information in along with the touching thoughts of the actual victim. Another advantage to this style of writing is it makes the story more credible, were as if it were told in the first person, the reader might get the impression of some exaggeration and fable entangled in the tale.
3. The author does a good job capturing the reader's mind and connecting them with the main character. Key words and Phrases help illustrate and strengthen the story all while getting an emotional response from her audience. Describing how the table she initially stood on took three men to lift but was effortlessly uplifted by the rush of seemingly the “Colorado river” gives perspective on how severe the flooding was. Later she was described as waiting “cramped on the top shelf of the closet.” Once the water receded she waded to the front porch, then clutching one of the posts she screamed for help. From beginning to end the reader starts to feel connected with this “Lydia” woman and the author does a great job allowing to reader to visualize the traumatic events in Lydia’s life prior to her encounter with her (Brideau/author).
4. Given the background that this story was first published in “Health Affairs” journal, this structure of story captures the medical world due to the author's career (a pediatric nurse) as well as stating information on health issues of a “slender black woman” (who had an abscessed tooth). This draws the curiosity of medical minded individuals because they might have an interest of how this problem will be resolved. The author then goes on saying that the “$25 for an x-ray,” was too steep a price for this poor woman put out of her home. By giving this piece of information she (the author) captures the emotional interest of the readers because the begin to feel sorry for this “Lydia” woman. This allows the author to jump into a short narrative that might not otherwise be seen in this particular journal.

Writers Authors and Genres

2. Between the three of us, all of our writings say essentially the same thing in different ways. We all agree that today, the definition of an author is blurred with the introduction and popularity of the internet. The creative process has been boosted immensely, because we are given access to a wealth of information, stories and opinions. It is easy to reach a wide audience in minutes, because on the internet, nothing is hidden, and anyone can publish anything instantly.

4.

Writers:	Authors:
Can write privately - like in a diary	Authors must publish their work to be an “author”
Based off an original idea that fuels the literary piece.	Original work (plot, concepts, content)
Writing can be completely individual, or shared with a specified audience. (writer's choice)	On the flip side, publishing yields your work available to anyone.
Writers may try to hide their work from the public eye or protect it from any possibility of that happening, like a diary or top secret document.	Sometimes people become authors inadvertently, the perfect example of this would be Tamim Ansary’s email sent to a few friends went public.
Disconnected from the critique of others.	Work is public, therefore open for discussion.

5.

Type of Writing:	Why you Enjoy/Despise it:
Poetry	Creating flow and rhythm is satisfying. It can be difficult to express real meaning in poetry, and hard to have the writing flow smoothly.
Personal Narrative	Gives author the ability to express his/her own experiences
Persuasive Writing	Requires rhetorical listening, researching, learning, and writing. Takes more time, but is satisfying when you’re successful in making your point.
Original Fictional Story	It is difficult to create your own original ideas, but it is rewarding when accomplished.
Letter	Can be somewhat informal, but also sincere. sometimes difficult to write formal letters.
(Shopping) Lists	Simple and to the point, assures thoroughness

6.

Letter:

Dear Johnny,

I’m writing to you regarding the party next Saturday, and was hoping you maybe lend me a hand (you're invited of course). So far I've gathered some plastic utensils, plates and cups (for easy clean up), but have not bought any food. I was hoping you could make your famous spaghetti and garlic bread ;). I sent out the invitations that say the party starts at 4:00, but I was hoping you could show up around 2:30-3:00 to help set up the decorations. Speaking of which… could you bring your boombox and TLC mix-tape? Also ask your daughter if she would be interested in babysitting the kids for the night. If you think of anything else don’t hesitate to ask.

Thanks Johnny!

• Loui

List: Things for party - Will you buy utensils, plates and cups at Party City? - Can you help me set up the chip table? - I need help cutting the watermelon in star shapes. - Tie the balloons Bob’s chair, please! - I will put the candles on the chocolate cake, if you will cut the cake after we sing “Happy Birthday.” - Thanks for your help! :)

Shopping Haikus: Hello, John. Please buy Forks, spoons, knives, plates, and napkins. Thank you very much. Please go get flowers From the flower shop for Bob They are red roses To Party City For balloons and confetti It smells weird in there Stop by Sluy’s for cake Bob likes gooey chocolate cake Thanks for doing this.

Is Everyone an Author?

    Anyone who has communicated any information in the form of writing is by a loose definition, an author. Today the experience of becoming an author is available to almost anyone because of the ability to self-publish anything imaginable. The internet has given the average person to publish their own work, and hyper publish the work of others, through forwarding and sharing tools commonly seen in email and social media. This hazy meaning of the word author; defined as someone whose work has been “published,” truly fades the lines between writers and authors. To answer this question, a book by the affirmative title “Everyone’s an Author,” explains that most of today’s writing is part of what they call a “global conversation.” This is largely due to the fact than in today’s world it is impossible to have truly original ideas. All thoughts are influenced by what you have experienced, read, or heard from things in your life. This is explained by a poet by the name of John Donne in his words: “no man is and island, apart from the main.” This sense of connection is only getting stronger as technology advances. As things like blogs and social media getting more and more attention, our ideas and opinions become more sophisticated and concrete. This ease of access to masses of information gives anyone the opportunity to become an “accredited” author. By simply taking the time to do a little research before publishing your own work, you can appeal to a much more scholarly audience. Why not take advantage of the information, after all “the world is literally at your fingertips” (xxxii). Research is what gives writing authority. Authoritative writing is what makes a statement, in what Kenneth Burke calls “the conversation of humankind.”

    *Many of these quotes and ideas are pulled from the book “Everyone’s an Author” by: Andrea Lunsford, Lisa Ede, Beverly J. Moss, Carole Clark Papper, and Keith Walters.

Collaborative Writing on Writing

For people our age, the most common form of writing would have to be school papers and writing assignments, however smaller things like sending an informal text message or a social media post seem to dominate out of school writing. The persona swings pretty dramatically between formal literature and informal communication, with a massive consideration for the audience at hand. Our writing style is adaptive to the variety of audiences we write for to make our work appropriate. Writing a paper for your english teacher differs drastically from sending a quick text to your friend. Tying these two polar writing styles together is the “personal narrative” style, meaning writing where the author uses “I” and “you” freely throughout the paper to seemingly blur the lines between formal literature and informal communication. What we have gathered through our years of school is that if you can somehow weave in tone and voice into a formal piece, then it becomes second nature in everyday writing.