I have chosen to focus my project on workplace discrimination and have decided to demonstrate my ideas through a photojournalism piece. I find visual mediums to be particularly striking, especially when representing civil oppression. As of right now, I am in the production stage. I have been setting up and taking photos for my project and attempting to put order to them to create a coherent story. Concerning the paper portion, I find myself writing in bits and pieces as I go along. I'm not yet sure how I will divide up my writing into my final project, but I do not pla

Describe your process thus far with the final project. Have you started the paper portion of the paper yet? Have you decided which of the required genres you are going to create for the project? Give details. What are your major obstacles thus far? Develop your plan for this week to finish the project and be ready to present next week. Everyone must be ready on Tuesday, even if we do not get to you. Names will be drawn this time as opposed to volunteering, so be prepared. 

         Our classmates provided us with many successful Decision 2012 projects on various topics using differing genres and during presentations, a select few had stood out to me for their own reasons. Sarah’s use of loaded genres, or genres that include both literary and visual aspects while appealing to both logos and pathos, made her project jump off of the screen and come alive in ways that not all projects were capable of and ultimately, it is these aforementioned characteristics that made her project as successful as it could be. 
          Sarah’s blog was highly accessible. The page by page layout provided a solid form of organization and made an almost Ikea like form of blog. She speaks to an audience that seems to be young and if not, she most definitely speaks to someone who falls on the liberal side of the political spectrum. Because of this, as I happen to be a member of both of her target audiences, I felt that her blog was very effective, easy to follow, and persuasive in its own right.
          She used appeals that followed both logos and pathos. The images that she included, even from the onset of her project in her prologue, appealed to the emotional side of her audience. She paid high attention to detail especially when considering the emotional appeal to her reader, wherein even her buttons that connect her pages read sayings like, “Help Start a Revolution” and “A Story of Love” as opposed to “Next” or something else generic.
          Her blog seemed as if it was constructed quite carefully. She was cognoscente of the fact that there are many people in our society that may not agree with the message that her project was promoting and, subliminally, made rather clear that this piece was not for them. She stayed true to her topic throughout and delivered a clear, coherent display of equality for gay Americans.
          Sarah's use of color and brightness worked well to substantiate her claims of a promising future and hope. Though her project served mainly as a vessel through which she was able to highlight the nation's flaws in providing equal rights to gay Americans, she kept the image of a promising future throughout. Her fonts were easy to read and helped to invite her reader into her project and there was no particular formatting issue that detracted from her work. Her project was clean and simple, especially because of her choice to create separate pages and hence, worked nicely to educate her reader. 
          Because of the written and stylistic choices that Sarah made in her Decision 2012 multimodal project and her use of logos and pathos to appeal to her reader, her final product was one that stood out from the rest of the class. Her formatting approach was simplistic and effective and her genres were varied and loaded, wherein she appealed to many sense of her reader simultaneously. Consequently, Sarah has left her reader with one hell of a multigenre punch and in turn, an impressive statement on equa

In yours or other's projects, how have you used or seen social meanings, specific to a particular culture? When you compose, do you consider the specific social meanings of words, of letters, of colour and font-types with all their cultural resonances? Give an example.

          Specifically in my own composition, because of my English major, I find that I am often times predisposed to think about the way that I write and the implications that my writing has as I am writing. Again, because of my major, the stylistic elements do not usually play such a large role in the ways that I compose. I typically write in black ink, on white paper, and in an analytical fashion about some literary work. With my addition of a writing arts minor, I have found that these boundaries have become exponentially expanded as I now find myself writing on blogs and twitter as part of a school assignment. This compositional freedom is something that is still quite foreign to me.

Do you think that pictures can better convey your messages than words can?

          Yes. I have always been more affected by an image than I am by words. While there are specific exceptions to this, as I usually find when I am reading or listening to poetry, I often feel that images have much more bang for their buck. I enjoy the subjective nature of images, wherein writing is not always left to the reader's interpretation. Because of my major, I find that I often am drawn to imagery because I feel as if there is a greater form of meaning to be derived from it.

Does considering the meaning of the images chosen in the projects you're doing your rhetorical analysis on help you to better understand the project?

Yes. Sarah's project contains a well balanced mix of words and images, both of which work to enhance the validity of the other. Her inclusion of images brings a visual quality to her work and makes it even more appealing to her reader. The images help to draw her reader in and in turn, attract them to her writing. Arguably, without her inclusion of images, her project would not be as effective.

Lastly, list at least FIVE issues (not topics) that directly affect you and that you are passionate about.

• Civil Union Law of New Jersey
• Ridiculous ongoing battle between Church and State
• Nation's inability to recognize civil rights
• Women are STILL earning 71 cents to the male dollar
• Stigma attached to women's health care rights
• National need to categorize "liberal" and "conservative" viewpoints
• "Traditional" family values
• 
  

          So far as my grade is concerned, I can say with confidence that I am meeting the requirements for the B range in this class. At the same time, I am also certain that the plans that I have for continuing and completing my project will put me into contention for an A in the class. 
          This is the class I look forward to coming to most this semester and I feel like I am getting a lot out of it. The redundancy issue that I tend to run into within the Writing Arts minor is not an issue in this class and what I am learning is practical. That perhaps is my favorite part. 

          Firstly, I would like to know if any elements in my project are not working.

          I intend on adding two more written genres to the column entitled "Romney's Thoughts". What genres would you recommend? I will also be adding one more 6 word story.

          I also have considered continuing past these five groupings of material. If I end up doing so, what other issues would you like me to address? Should I expand on one of the issues I've already mentioned?

          As for what I am looking to improve upon, in the upcoming few sessions, I will be focusing on adding to and completing my Decision 2012 page. In addition to adding new genres, I will hone in on the organizational aspect of my page as to make sure that the information that I present on it is as effective as it can be.
          So far as what I've done well, I guess I am most proud of changing it up and adding some artwork. Doing so was not in my original plan, though i think it is working out and benefiting the project as a whole.

1.      Assignment

Does the draft carry out the assignment? 
          Yes it does. It has a clear theme and is visually appealing through the use of pictures in combination with the words.

What could be done to better fulfill the assignment?
          I think that you are on a good track to having a really nice final product. If you continue to add genres - perhaps some that differ from the image-driven work that you have now - I think you will have a well rounded final piece of work. 

2.     Title and Introduction:

Does the title state what the draft is about? 
          Yes it does.

Is it interesting? 
          It is more informative than creative but is clear and to the point. Perhaps you could use the format of Title/Subtitle to add some creative flare.

How does it catch the reader’s attention?
          It appeals to the emotions of your reader by focusing in on a fairly touchy subject and by not beating around the bush.

3.     Supporting points:

List the main point(s) made in the draft, in order of presentation. Note particularly parts that were not interesting or that seemed unnecessary. 
          The draft goes through the ropes of why Romney is the lesser of two candidates [both personally and professionally] when it comes to animal rights. Your Prezi was particularly interesting and was a nice break from conventional presentation forms, however, your poem about Obama seemed a bit out of context through it was a nice piece. I don't think that eliminating it from your final product will work to your benefit, though perhaps introducing it somehow and placing it in context with your theme will help it make a bit more sense to the project.

Do any genres/modes need to be explained more fully or less fully? 
Should any be eliminated? 
          Explained Above

Are any confusing to you? 
          Explained above

How well are the main points supported by evidence, examples, or details?
          Your project is clearly based on emotional appeal which works well to bring your reader in. Your Prezi, with all of the statistics you provided, adds some factual legitimacy to your work. As stated above, if you continue doing this, your final will be a well rounded, well supported emotional appeal to your audience.

4.     Genres (not as applicable for those producing a documentary):

          Included in answer to question 3

5.     Modes:

Read through draft and choose two modes you consider the most interesting or the best drafted because they are stylistically effective, entertaining, or memorable for some other reason. 
Then choose the two you see as weakest, whether confusing, awkward, or simply uninspired. 


          Your modes all have their own appeal for different reasons. Your images are visually appealing, you Prezi is factual, and your poem tugs at your audience's heart strings. 
          Your first image and your Prezi work the best for you. They are clear, concise, and I feel as if I have learned something after viewing them. 
          Your poem about Obama and the story about the dog are also string; however, as stated above, it would help if you provided some context for your poem and the words that are overlaid on the picture of the dog are not entirely easy to read.



6.     Words & Sentences:

Are verbs active and vivid? 
          Yes. Your word choice enhanced my experience of reading through your project.

Are sentences varied in length, in structure, and in their openings?
Note words that are particularly effective--those that draw vivid pictures or provoke strong responses. 
          Yes. Because your genres are different in nature, the words that you use within them are inherently different as well. Your use of first person in you dog's testimonial is extremely effective and if possible, I would like to see more of this in future genres. Otherwise, your direct nature helps your audience because they do not have to read too far to understand your point. Your language is direct and that works very well for you.

Then note words that are weak, vague, or unclear. Do any words need to be defined? 
          There are no specific words that stood out to me as weak. My only suggestion would be to go back through your current genres and reexamine the language you use and elaborate on it. In the case of the Prezi wherein you are presenting factual information, perhaps enhance your diction to represent the cut and dry nature of statistics. Likewise, take a look at your creative forms and dare to go towards the bent of creativity. Push some boundaries - doing so may make your language more effective.

Are any words potentially offensive, to the intended audience or anyone else?
          Nope!

7.     Conclusion:

Does the conclusion or concluding genre end the project in a memorable way, or does it seem to end abruptly or trail off into vagueness?
          Due to the fact that this is a draft, the conclusion seems to be relatively absent. I am curious to see how you end up bringing this to a close.

8.     Final thoughts:

What are the main strengths and weaknesses in the draft? 
What was the single most important thing said?
          Your biggest strength was the accessibility of your writing. You include a strong emotional appeal in your work and it comes through to your reader. You also include a good variety of images, text, and sources and this works to help create a nice, well-rounded piece. 
          There was no one particular thing that jumped off of the page so far as weaknesses are concerned. Your modes are strong with minor faults as I stated above, though no issue on your page is insurmountable. I enjoyed reading your project and look forward to seeing where you take it as it progresses.

          The effect that computer based technologies has had on the ways in which our society writes today are vast to say the least. Considering the speed and accuracy with which we can produce writing alone highlights the impact that computer based technologies has had on our writing. Long gone are the days of pen and paper. Handwriting is a thing of the past and instead now, we have thousands of fonts to choose from to suit our needs. In this way, technologically based forms of writing have leveled the proverbial playing field. One's ability to create has been aided by computed generated organization, cut and paste, and of course, spell check in programs such as Microsoft Word. 
          In it's own way, the computer is very much so the pencil of our generation. Though simply a tool, the pencil did revolutionize the way we wrote and even more so, the way we edit. Erasers allowed us to change mistakes that we had made, as does the backspace key now, and in turn, we are adapting to become more critical writers and readers. Computers also open up writing to a whole new consumer. Those who did not take to traditional forms of writing, whatever their reasons, are now provided a completely new outlet through which they are able to venture into their own WWW - a wonderful world of writing.
          When considered in relation to our upcoming Decision 2012 projects, the computer and digital composition obviously play an integral role in the production of our final pieces. Without this digital medium, we would in fact be completely unable to finish [or begin for that matter] this project and the likelihood of the class still being offered would be reduced to slim to none. 

A Public Address From Romney to His Fellow Chauvinists

A Declaration of War [On Women]

I'm done with this hell;
I've known no such pain.
I'm one step away
From completely insane!

My focus's gone;
My attention's diverted.
Worst of it all?
The kitchen's deserted.

There's bread to be cut!
There's meat that needs carving!
There's sandwiches to be made, America
and I'm fucking starving.