EaA 

 

Chapter 1:

             Through this chapter 1 have learned of the many different purposes for argument. In all honesty, before reading this section, I had no clue of the various ways argument is used in our everyday lives. The different types include, arguments to inform, convince, explore, make decisions, and to meditate or pray.  I usually just talk about what’s on my mind, I don’t stop to think of the different ways these conversations are arguments. In this chapter we also learn about the different occasions for argument. I think all this information is very useful to know for future conversations/arguments.

Chapter 2:

            After reading this section I have learned more about Pathos. The book refers to this chapter as Arguments from the Heart. In High School our English teacher went over this, but I had forgotten most of it. But basically, Pathos is an emotional argument.  It is through these direct appeals to ones emotions, the more convinced your readers become.

Chapter 3:

After reading chapter 3 I have learned about ethos, which is the character or emotions of a speaker or writer that are expressed in the attempt to persuade an audience.

Writers and speakers create their ethos in 2 ways, they accomplish this through the way they present themselves with posture eye contact and tone of voice. They can also use credibility. They can use their previous lives, work, and reputations. If they are known, liked, and respected it will contribute to the strength of their argument.

Chapter 4:

            After reading Chapter 4 I have learned about Logos. The textbook titles this section as Arguments based of fact and reason.  Logos is almost the complete opposite of Pathos. Aristotle described this as inartistic appeals. They are basically the cold, hard evidence, which are based on common sense. Aristotle also recognized artistic appeals, which come from the emotion-based argument also known as emotional. Some very useful tips include: facts, statistics, surveys, testimonies and interviews.

Chapter 5:

            After reading chapter 5 I have learned about thinking rhetorically. We perform rhetorical analysis by analyzing how the components of argument work together to persuade an audience. By using this strategy you can study arguments of any kind. Genres are also good to keep in mind when assessing an argument. This chapter shows you how to examine different genres of arguments such as ethos, pathos, and logos.

Chapter 6:

            After reading chapter 6 I have learned about structuring arguments. In this chapter we learn about the Toulmin Argument.  In the Toulmin model arguments begin with claims, which are controversial topics that you can prove. Claims worth arguing usually are controversial, because there is no point in arguing if both sides agree. Good claims often spring from personal experience. In order to support your claim you must have evidence and good reasons. The main points that Toulmin teaches are first; claims should be stated clearly and qualified carefully. Second, claims should be supported with evidence and good reasons. Third, claims should be based on assumptions readers will likely accept. And last, that effective arguments respectfully anticipate objections readers might offer.

Chapter 7:

            After reading Chapter 7 I have learned about arguments of fact. This chapter goes through how to characterize factual arguments, which tend to be driven by perceptions and evidence. It explains how to develop a factual argument, research your hypothesis, refine claims, how to chose and present your evidence and even the design and visuals to use. Towards the end of this chapter there is and even more in depth explanation for each topic.

Chapter 8:

            After reading chapter 8 I have learned about arguments of definition. In this chapter the book gives different examples of definitions. For example, it talks about formal definitions, which are what we find in dictionaries. There are operational definitions, which identify an object or idea not by what it is but by what it does or by the conditions that create it. And there are definitions of example, which define a class by listing its individual members. This chapter gives descriptive examples on how to develop your own definitional argument as well.  

 

Chapter 9:

After reading chapter 9 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about Evaluations. Quite similar to the title itself evaluations are everyday arguments. There are informal evaluations such as deciding what to have for breakfast, and there are professional evaluations that require much more elaborate evidence. For evaluations there is certain criteria, which can be obvious or complex. Analyzing difficult criteria can lead to important views into your values and motives.

Chapter 10:

After reading chapter 10 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about causal arguments. The first part includes understanding causal argument since they are the heart of major policy decisions and effects also help people make choices everyday. The next important topic that this chapter addresses is characterizing causal arguments, most causal arguments stand alone and address questions that are important to our well-being. And the last part, which I thought was very useful, was developing causal arguments. This section explains different approaches you could take when writing a causal argument, and the one I thought was interesting was a causal argument used for humorous purposes.

 

Chapter 11:

After reading chapter 11 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about proposals. The beginning of this chapter talks about understanding and categorizing proposals just like the other chapters there can be dramatic proposals and informal ones as well. An example of a proposal would be, that congress should repeal the Homeland Security Act. The next portion of this chapter includes characterizing proposals. Proposals are basically a call for action or response to a problem and they focus on the future and are centered on the audience. I though it was interesting how proposals can range from things as serious as government policy to simple suggestions to dilemmas. 

 

Chapter 12:

After reading chapter twelve of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about style in arguments. As Professor Gill-Mayberry has said on multiple occasions style and word choice are critical. The reason is that vocabulary helps create style and gives the audience an idea of the authors writing ability. Sentence structure and argument create style as well. I especially learned the most about this in this hybrid English 105 class since it was so greatly stressed by the professor and tutors, which I now greatly appreciate. Punctuation is also a very important part in writing style because it give your audience an idea of your writing skills.

Chapter 13:

After reading chapter 13 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about humor in arguments. This chapter explains that in order to understand humor in arguments one must first understand weakness or eccentricity in someone's character. This chapter also explains that sometimes humor is not easily understood by different ethnic groups, classes, or generations and can be touchy or controversial at times. 

 

Chapter 14:

After reading chapter 14 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about visual arguments. I never really thought about the actual power of visual arguments. Images make arguments of their own and have a motive. Human vision is very selective because we actively shape what we see. Images should be taken seriously because they shape behavior and change lives as well.

 

Chapter 15:

After reading chapter 15 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about presenting arguments. There are several methods that can be used to present an argument for example a printed presentation, and formal/informal oral presentations. All the methods that are introduced in this chapter are all topics we have covered in this English 105 hybrid class.

 

Chapter 16:

After reading chapter 16 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about what counts as evidence. This chapter covers in detail the criteria of useful evidence. It explains that the quality, purpose, and source of the evidence is crucial in having successful backing to support a claim. It proceeds to give the different types of evidence that can be applied, such as firsthand research, observations, interviews, surveys, experiments, and personal experience. I think this chapter will be very useful in writing our Ebonics, and images, media, and privacy papers so that we can determine if our evidence is accurate enough to successfully support our claim.

 

Chapter 18:

After reading chapter 18 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned more about intellectual property, academic integrity, and avoiding plagiarism. This chapter brings to light how to properly cite, and acknowledge sources, which is something I have a hard time with. So, I think that this chapter will be very helpful to me not only in this class but others as well.

Chapter 19:

            After reading chapter 19 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned more about evaluating and using certain sources. I feel like this chapter is very similar to the information we received at the class session we had with the librarian. It reminds us to check the relevance of the source, credentials and stance of the author. This chapter is needed to help us find strong, and relevant evidence to support our claims.

Chapter 20:

After reading chapter 20 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned more about documenting sources. This chapter explains how to cite things in MLA format. I think that this chapter will also be very useful in writing our Ebonics papers.

 

Chapter 21:

            After reading chapter 21 of Everything is an Argument I have learned how to break up an article.  In this chapter we are given an article to read, then the author proceeds to break down the article part by part. And in each section gives the significance and in depth reasoning as to why the author of this article wrote it. I think this will help us in breaking down documents we find online so we can use them for our Ebonics journals, and papers.

Chapter 22:

After reading chapter 22 of Everything is an Argument I have learned how the media stereotypes different races. This chapter is very similar to the first in class journal we wrote in our blue books on the first day of class. We are given several different examples of making visual arguments as well. It also shows us how we can implement statistics too. We can use these two methods towards our Ebonics papers.

Chapter 24:

            After reading chapter 24 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned more about what it is like to be bilingual in the United States. In this chapter we are given several different articles, images and statistics about bi/multilingual minorities in America. Being bilingual myself I understand and can relate to most of the things in presented in this chapter. The purpose of this chapter is to help us when we are writing our Ebonics paper to have a better understanding on the topic.

Chapter 25:

After reading chapter 25 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about what your language says about your identity. I think that this was one of my favorite chapters throughout this entire book. It has so many interesting articles that I could personally relate to and understand. This chapter will be extremely helpful in giving students more insight on how living bilingual in America really is, so that they can successfully approach the Ebonics paper.

 

The Best Writing Is Rewriting Journal

 

After reading the article, “The Best Writing is Rewriting,” I have learned about the purpose and requirements of the computer based English 105 hybrid course. I am looking forward to becoming a better writer through the teachings of Professor Gill-Mayberry.

The purpose of this course is to make us better critical thinkers, and writers in our future careers. We will be practicing interpreting texts, writing formal and informal assignments, and also technological, and traditional literacy skills. Specific targets for this class include: auto- ethnographic writing; rhetorical analysis; and, last but not least, the proper application of Aristotelian classical rhetoric through argumentative writings.

The requirements of this course include students becoming exceptional peer editors and tribunal judges through meeting weekly homework deadlines on the course calendar. After assignments are stamped, they are to be placed in a student writing guide, and reviewed by a tutor. Students must rewrite assignments and attend teacher conferences. Students must also have access to a personal computer.

As a result, the product: students who are able to bring strong critical writing and thinking skills to their future discourse communities.

 

 

Journaling Journal

 

After reading the article Writing Strategy: Journaling Improves Writing Skills I have learned that recent studies in composition research have proven that keeping a reading journal throughout the quarter will help improve our reading and writing skills. For a reading journal, you can respond to one of the questions in the textbook that is listed after an essay or you could simply record your opinions, ideas, and responses to a reading. After a visit with a tutor in the writing center I realized that I was trying to give a brief analyses of each component of the online pages, but TA Sean made me realize that this journal is about my own personal thoughts and opinions. Now I choose the things from the pages that I found interesting or that stood out to me. These reading journals help us to analyze, interpret and synthesize a reading assignment.

With the help of TA Sean I realized that I was making a repetitive mistake throughout all of my journals. I was just giving a massive list about all the information found on the online class pages. When in reality I should have only been choosing to write about the the things that stood out to me. Thanks to this help I feel that I am already improving my writing skills.

 

LBH: 

 

Chapter 5:

            After reading chapter five of The Little Brown Handbook I have learned that more about critical thinking when it comes to writing. Something I found interesting is the section on previewing the material beforehand. In high school I had a teacher who would always tell us to skim reading material before reading. In this chapter it mentions how useful that can be before diving right into reading. I just though it was funny because I never really understood why shey wanted us to read, before reading. This chapter also mentions going into depth about thinking and reading critically before, and during the process of completing a writing assignment, which can be very helpful when writing about a topic you are not to sure of.

Chapter 6:

            After reading chapter six of The Little Brown Handbook I have learned more about reading arguments more critically. Last quarter I took Com 204 and so much of the material from that class is what we are learning, and executing here in English 105. This chapter explains how to test claims, weigh evidence, separate facts from opinions and judging reasonableness. I believe that this chapter will be very useful, since they are all key factors for this class. I never realized how similar communications and English are.

Chapter 7:

After reading chapter 7 of The Little Brown Handbook I learned more about writing an argument. In this chapter the book give you very detailed instructions on how to compose a sound, and reasonable argument. I think that this chapter will be a very useful reference while writing our Ebonics scholarly journals because in order to follow the teacher dictated rubric exactly we must have a logical debatable argument.

Chapter 8:

            After reading chapter eight of The Little Brown Handbook my memory of several important computer skills was refreshed. The book went over managing files, spell check, using emails, and using a web browser, which are all very necessary things for this Hybrid class.

Chapter 9:

            After reading chapter nine of The Little Brown Handbook I have learned more about formatting academic papers. The book even gives you the exact pages on where more information for each different format is throughout the book. It also gives you detailed information on each topic along with an example, which will be very helpful when doing our assignments.

Chapter 10:

After reading chapter 10 of The Little Brown Handbook I learned more about creating a web page. It shows students how to use HTML, create online papers, original websites, and how to apply images, videos and audio to them. I think this is one of the most important chapters I have read so far. I am most definitely going to be using this chapter to complete assignment 1.

Chapter 11:

After reading chapter eleven of the Little Brown Handbook I have learned more about collaborating with others online, as this hybrid class often participates in on the Blackboard discussions. This chapter mentions forming bonds, which I have realized is absolutely critical for this class, and others as well. By exchanging information with several of my fellow classmates I have made great friends. And, whenever I have questions regarding the class I can contact them.

Chapter 12:

After reading chapter twelve of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about style in arguments. As Professor Gill-Mayberry has said on multiple occasions style and word choice are critical. The reason is that vocabulary helps create style and gives the audience an idea of the authors writing ability. Sentence structure and argument create style as well. I especially learned the most about this in this hybrid English 105 class since it was so greatly stressed by the professor and tutors, which I now greatly appreciate. Punctuation is also a very important part in writing style because it give your audience an idea of your writing skills.

Chapter 13:

After reading chapter 13 of Everything’s an Argument I have learned about humor in arguments. This chapter explains that in order to understand humor in arguments one must first understand weakness or eccentricity in someone's character. This chapter also explains that sometimes humor is not easily understood by different ethnic groups, classes, or generations and can be touchy or controversial at times.