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Week #1 Response/Week #1 Response

Weekly Response # 1

Posted by mohamed layachi on

The authors of Understanding Rhetoric walk us through the history of the word and its deeper meanings. What is rhetoric exactly? Rhetoric comes from the greek word Eiro which means to say. But it is far more than just speaking. It is a culmination of logic, memories, and feelings. It is as they say “ a way of THINKING about how we talk that takes into consideration the entire situation in which that talk takes place”. They walk us through the understanding of rhetoric through two lenses one which posits it as a negative state of thinking who Plato so famously believed that teaching rhetoric was to instruct a student in ways of deception rather than betterment of their state of conversation. Luckily Aristotle came along and flipped the script. Aristotle believed that rhetoric was a vital tool in putting across a broad range of ideas. I agree with Aristotle and believe that rhetoric is a integral tool of thinking and speaking so as to persuade and enlighten an audience to your thoughts and claims. Rhetoric is split into three categories. Ethos, logos, and pathos which respectively represent ethics, logic, and empathy. These three concepts need to be considered to be an effective communicator because they target the most sensitive parts of our psyche when listening to a claim somebody is making. I like to think of rhetoric as a structurally sound plan. You must target all important aspects of the idea from different perspectives so that you cover all grounds for which somebody may try to challenge your claim. If an idea of yours is of value and you strive to convince somebody of it then you should make sure it comes across logically sound while also ethically intact. The last aspect of your claim that needs to be clear but a bit more difficult to quantify is the empathetic chord it strikes within the person receiving this claim. If you cover all three concepts then you can rest easy knowing that you presented a complete argument.

 

Week #1 Response/Week #1 Response

Week 1

Posted by Gabriel Almonte on

Gabriel Almonte

In “Understanding Rhetoric” I agreed with the ideas Aristotle had on rhetoric. I believe that rhetoric is bad for the progress of people. I view it as a negative because people will be closeminded if it’s used often. Everyone can have their opinion but without having discussions and being open to hearing other’s views how can someone expect to learn about any topic. I agreed with a lot of the ideas in “When Your Grades Are based on Labor”. I go to class to learn if I knew the criteria, I wouldn’t need to take the class. Therefore, I agree that mistakes shouldn’t be viewed negatively because the class is supposed to teach the concepts. You become a better writer by practicing your writing, if you get a reasonable grade while making a few mistakes you will want to revise the writing because constructive criticism leaves a writer in a positive state. I also agree that writing should be for the writer not the teacher. Students will be using writing concepts learned in school for their entire work careers. School is very important but isn’t where your writing will be used the most, the workplace is. As a student I love the idea that revisions have no penalty. Many teachers don’t like this concept because it leads to more work for them, but I believe if we put in the effort to try and correct our wrongdoings it should be rewarded. Some students are better at writing then others so it would be unfair for the struggling students to not be able to practice their writing for a revised grade. In “Labor Log” I disagree with it because it stated students would receive no grade if they didn’t hand in the assignments on time. I believe that’s unfair because although students should be aware of deadlines, we take many classes and once behind it makes students unmotivated if we are not allowed to do the work late. We are still putting in the effort but should be penalized as well.  

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Reem’s Week #1 Response

Posted by Reem Malek on

The writers primary concern was to reveal insight into the historical backdrop of how rhetoric came to be about and how to utilize them recorded as a hard copy through models in the comic. I see that the creator demonstrates that amid the early occasions, individuals did not truly like the prospect of talk and did not grasp it till Aristotle. This leads into the primary concern that rhetoric has been around for a long time and has dependably been a piece of composing. Another primary concern that was found in the comic was that to be powerful at thinking of one must have three components. These segments are ethos,pathos, and logos. I concur with this case because I am also learning the significance behind these terms in another class I am also taking this semester. This can go to demonstrates that I utilized these three segments of composing without knowing the name of them. This demonstrates rhetoric has been around for some ages and that we generally use it involuntarily when we compose. Another point made by the creator is Kairos. Kairos is the planning of your composition. The writer points out that we should ensure that our composing is not hurried or else it probably won’t turn out just as we would anticipate that it should. I concur with this in that I have composed exposition the night prior to the due date and things received a better than average evaluation. Notwithstanding, when you plan out your composition and sort out the entirety of your thoughts on paper, things end up less demanding and the thoughts stream effectively on the paper and the outcome is superior to  something that was hurried. Reporting our work is additionally critical on the grounds that it enables us to return to our work later on and ensure that we did not miss anything in the event that we continued composing. This is another point that was made in the work log. It is dependably a smart thought to assess yourself and thusly you can get your slip-ups quicker.

Week #1 Response/Week #1 Response

Geetangalie’s Week #1 Response

Posted by Geetangalie Goberdan on

The comic, Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Writing, was constructed to help readers understand the idea of rhetoric in a simplified way. The comic first introduces the negative conceptions of rhetoric, in particular, those of the past. Rhetoric has always had some negative connotations as people perceive it as something used for debate or other intense conversation where you are trying to shut down someone else. This being caused by the incorrect understanding and definition of rhetoric being passed around. To correct this misconception, the authors explained a few main points which encompass rhetoric; ethos, pathos, logos, and kairos. Ethos meaning ethics, which is used to prove credibility, earning the audience’s trust. Pathos meaning empathy, in which the speaker or writer invokes emotion commonly through images. Logos meaning logical, as in the statistical evidence which can help in the development of your argument as it supports your points. Kairos is based around timing and its importance, whether it be not rushing an assignment or completing a piece while an event is still relevant.

The article labeled Labor Log serves the purpose of teaching how to keep track of the work you complete. Recording your labor done for the course helps to trace your progress and helps the instructor to be aware of your strong points and weaknesses. Maintaining an account of all the time and work you put into assignments and projects are important in proving your credibility. Labor Log shows you how to properly record your data by explaining what is necessary to document no matter how you decide to showcase this work. When Your Grades Are Based on Labor summarizes into five points how you should work when your grading isn’t penalized for mistakes and isn’t based around tests and quizzes like a typical classroom. This article teaches students to focus on remembering their purpose while completing an assignment, don’t be shy to broaden their horizons and work to their highest potential.

Week #1 Response/Week #1 Response

Sameer’s Response #1

Posted by Sameer Kunwor on

Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Writing, this book seems to be first of its kind in composition and rhetoric which is a writing textbook presented in the form of a comic book. The book bids a contradictory message, while it is composed in the form of a comic book, it tries to teach mostly print-based writing. Understanding Rhetoric suggests an interest in textual, visual, and artistic aspects of composing. It lists four authors: two are teachers and scholars in rhetoric and writing (Losh is the director of the Culture, Art, and Technology program at the University of California, San Diego, and Alexander is director of the Center of Excellence in Writing and Communication at the University of California, Irvine); Kevin and Zander Cannon (not related to each other) are established artists and cartoonists. The illustrations and overall approach as a comic book are visually interesting and informative. In terms of structure, the book presents seven chapters, or “Issues” each chapter is color-coded and includes a three-part structure, first section in which the teachers present an issue and “illustrate” it with examples; a second section, titled “Reframe with Luis and Cindy,” in which two imaginary freshman students work through an assignment; and finally, a two-page “assignments” section that proposes a sampling of possible class projects inspired by the chapter’s content.

The main idea is Rhetoric analysis where terms are, Ethos which is the credibility of the speaker, Pathos which is the use of emotion in debate, Logos which is appeal to reason and Kairos which is timing. In the second section, titled “Reframe with Luis and Cindy, when Luis was writing an email for the class that he would miss, he wrote in an insulted manner where he doesn’t mention why he needs to be gone and instead he was implying that her class time might not be important in insulted manner. But later Cindy tells Luis about the rhetorical writing and analyzes all the proper writing for the email he sent which was much better way of writing.

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Sambeg’s weekly Response#1

Posted by S Raj on

Sambeg Raj Subedi
ENGL 21007-S
Prof. Jesse Rice-Evans
Weekly Assign#1
02/11/2019

The comic article “Understanding Rhetoric: A Graphic Guide to Writing” was quite informative in nature. In this article, the author mainly focuses on the definition of Rhetoric, views of ancient people and it’s importance in today’s writing and communication. Rhetoric, being a broad topic covers Ethos, Pathos, Logos, and Kairos. During ancient times, people had a mixed opinion regarding Rhetoric. According to Plato, ancient Greek philosopher “Rhetoric is intended only to hide flaws, not to encourage self-improvement” which clearly reflects his negative view about Rhetoric. He believed that it negatively impacted the young peoples by disabling their ability to speak the truth. In his opinion, sexual and violent crimes committed by actors on the stage helps spectators to imitate bad actions. I am quite unsatisfied with his views because it is not true that people will always grab a negative aspect of the play and try to imitate it. It totally depends on the individual’s ways of thinking. Unlike Plato, Aristotle is quite positive about Rhetoric. He considered Rhetoric to be one of the foundations of education. He believed that to be effective in communication and writing, three aspects Ethos, Pathos, and Logos must be taken into consideration. Ethos means credibility that speakers or writer brings to the subject. Pathos means the use of emotion on the subject and finally, Logos means the use of logic behind the argument. In order to make a complete meaningful argument, there must be the inclusion of all those factors. I am totally impressed by his opinion because while reading this article, an image of a Political leader appealing his citizens to vote for him came into my mind. If we deeply analyzed their speech then we could find the inclusion of all three factors. Apart from this, the author also highlighted on Kairos which simply means doing the right things on the right moment. It is obviously true because it makes no sense if somebody tries to make fun in a funeral ceremony. Things will be effective only if it is done at the right time.
Two other articles “When Your Grades Are Based On Labor” and “Labor Log” were basically about the grading system. It was mentioned that student is graded based on time and labor which means as long as the students put their effort on their paper and submit on time, they can expect a good grade. In order to improve students writing skills, students are allowed to revise their paper which is excellent because I think in next attempt students will certainly use their previous experience and be more creative to do better than previous.

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Jaspreet Weekly #1 response

Posted by Jaspreet Jaswal on

The term ‘rhetoric’ simplifies into a broad understanding of how we interpret dialogues and conversations. By analyzing “Understanding Rhetoric” by authors: Elizabeth Losh, Jonathan Alexander, Zander Cannon, Kevin Cannon, we can observe the correlation between the instincts of psychology and how it attributes to the ‘rhetoric’ performance carried out by individuals like us. As the text states, ” Rhetoric is only meant to hide flaws, not encourage self-improvement.”  This statement expresses the understanding of the psychology behind the term ‘rhetoric’ as people justify their use of this exercise solely to boost their self assurance. Little do people know that this execution will create a conflict as they’re demarcating the border of actually understanding and interpreting, rather than the self affirmation of the knowledge they have gained. This performance also plays over with ethos logos and pathos since it intervenes with our feelings, logic, and moral.  Moving forward, the authors also made key reference to the term ‘Kairos’ which simply coincides to the lack of patience. I’ve personally done this many times and I’m doing it right now since this assignment is due within an hour. I will however, re-read my comment to make sure there aren’t any grammatical errors.

Week #1 Response/Week #1 Response

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Posted by Carlton Yuan on

The main point of Understanding Rhetoric was that rhetoric is important in writing and conveying ideas. The author first introduced rhetoric by explaining why some people believe that rhetoric is bad. The negative ideas that people have today can be traced to Plato who was an Ancient Greek philosopher. Plato believed that rhetoric is bad because it is used to deceive people and distract people from important issues. I can understand why Plato believed this because rhetoric is used in order to persuade people. By using rhetoric, people can be persuaded into doing bad things. Aristotle, on the other hand, believed that rhetoric can be used for good. He believed it can be used to educate people to become good people. I agree with Aristotle because today, rhetoric has been used in order to make people better. For example, the use of rhetoric in advertisements in America against smoking and drinking have persuaded many people to not engage in those activities. Many kids and adults have stopped smoking or drinking because of the negative effects that ads talk about. Another point that the authors emphasized was the importance of ethos, pathos, and logos. Ethos is the credibility of the speaker or writer. Pathos is the use of emotion and logos is the use of logic. Using ethos, pathos and logos are really important in persuading the audience. I once watched a video on Facebook on how to sell anything. The video said that people buy stuff based on emotions and justify it with logic. Consumers will also buy products if the sellers are credible, usually from well-known brands. After reading this comic I realized that sellers use ethos, pathos, and logos in order to persuade consumers into buying things.

The main point of When Your Grades Are Based on Labor and Labor Log is to describe a different way of grading assignments. Assignments would be graded based on the time and effort that students put instead of mistakes. The author’s main point is that this grading system will help students become better writers. I like this grading system because it allows students to try new things without having the risk of receiving a bad grade. Also, students will receive a good grade as long as they work hard. I remember a lot of times I would work really long on an assignment only to receive a bad grade.

Posts/Week #1 Response

zhihong week one response

Posted by ZhiHong Li on

 

After reading the cartoon, I think the idea that the cartoon reading is trying to express the point that people view the word or idea differently. Some think it is positive and some think it is negative. On page 36 the way people using the word “rhetoric” make Elizabeth Losh(one of the character in the cartoon) feel annoying which indicates the negative connotation of how people don’t understand the meaning of the word rhetoric. But it means the way of writing or speaking technique. In the cartoon Aristotle think rhetoric is about ethos, pathos and logos which his teach think he is in his own idealistic world (false world). The rhetorical question is the way to let people think of the important point in the question, but just like the cartoon showing how people think the rhetorical question is to end the conversation. The way people understand the idea make the “rhetorical question” to have the different connotation. I have experience that when I first learning English as second language, my teacher told me that when asking a “rhetorical question” there should not be an answer to the question. And I try to use rhetorical question to end the conversation in the discussion and my teacher ask me what the question is and what is the point of the question then I told my teacher that is the way I understand the rhetorical question. So, this will be different understanding of the idea because of the way people function over their brain. I agree with the key point that people view the word/idea differently according to the understanding of the explanation of the word/idea. Which the language barriers and the differences between people proceed the different connotation of the word/idea, the meaning people apply to the word/idea will depend on the way people understanding it.

Week #1 Response/Week #1 Response

QianXing’s Week 1 Response

Posted by QianXing Ou on

In “Understand Rhetoric:A Graphic Guide to Writing,” it talks about  many elements of writing such as rhetoric, pathos, ethos, logos, and kairos.  Rhetoric was originated from the Greek meaning to say. Basically, it means to give a space to a person to express their ideas. These includes shows, speeches and debates.  One of the Greek philosopher named Plato thought negatively about rhetoric. He thought that shows such as tragedy has negative effects on teens because teens might pick up some negative things from it.  On the other hand, Aristotle believed performing tragedy in front of teens will let them know the dangerous of doing so, which prevents them from doing it. In this case, I agree with both of them because I think shows are not the only factor that affect teens.  While it might be true that teens might pick up negative aspect from the show such as smoking and drinking alcohol, it doesn’t mean teens will always absorb these negative things, and some might even resist that. For example, when I was little, I keep watching shows about how a person betray another person. That doesn’t affect me.  I hate betraying. Therefore, even though I don’t think rhetoric in a show affect a child’s growth, sometimes it is true since child are most likely to be affected by his/her surrounding. ( I stay neutral) Also, the author is also trying to show us the importance of pathos(use of emotion), ethos(credibility), and logos(logical) in the writing. I agree with that because we need credibility, emotions and logical in our writing. Even though pathos might not be that effective in a lot of writing such as research paper, it is very effective during speeches, shows, or sometimes debate.  Personally, I think emotions are the most powerful weapon in the writing. If a speaker is having a poor background or any forms of tragedy, the speaker will mostly likely to receive more attention compare to other speakers. Also, when a character in a movie is having a poor family background, the audience will likely to feel pity about this character and want him/her to complete his/her goal. The author also introduce Kairos, which is about the importance of time. We don’t want to say any negative things during a birthday party.

The article “When your grades are based on labor” has 5 main ideas. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, take risks, don’t write to impress others, redo the assignment might be a good thing and work harder!  I agree with these, because I was afraid of making mistakes before, so I never learn. However, right now I don’t care about mistakes, I just try , try and try until I am satisfied about my assignment. And it worked.  I learned more things and I feel more confident about myself.

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