WRT 101S

“Writing is thinking. To write well is to think clearly. That’s why it’s so hard.” – David McCullough, author, historian, and lecturer and two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize

“Writing is hard work. A clear sentence is no accident. Very few sentences come out right the first time, or even the third time. Remember this in moments of despair. If you find that writing is hard, it’s because it is hard. It’s one of the hardest things that people do.” – William Zinsser, journalist, editor, and literary critic

In Class:

• Rhetorical triangle
• Read a classmate’s essay; comment on what their strengths are to their blog.
• deductive and inductive reasoning
• Rhetorical Analysis Conclusion: Example and Suggestions
• Go over student example as a class.
• call to action
• In Class Writing: Write your conclusion. Share in your groups.
• Essay 1 Rubric

In Class:

• Get Microsoft Office for free as a student.
• Go over Proofreading Editing Marks.
• Doing a reverse outline.
• In Class Writing: Peer Review. The goal is to complete at least three reviews of your classmates’ papers before the end of class. If you have time, do more.

Looking forward: The final draft of Essay 1 is due posted to D2L and your blog by 12:45pm next Thursday, October 3.

In Class:

• Go over “Revising and Editing” from Writing for Success
  • Writing an outline
    • Follow the prompt, rhetorical triangle
    • Creating a reverse outline
    • Constructing sentence outlines
  • Rhetorical strategies & language to talk about them
  • Rhetorical analysis process organizer
  • Building the introduction paragraph for the rhetorical analysis essay
  • Rhetorical analysis thesis statement examples
  • Body paragraphs & topic sentences
  • Paragraph structure – PIE
• Works Cited Guide
• Student examples

Homework for Thursday, 9/26: Finish draft 2 (at least 2 pages of Essay 1). Post to your blog, D2L, and print three copies for in class peer review.

In Class:

• Take quiz 2.
• In class writing: Read and answer the questions in the following document about the piece you are analyzing for Essay 1 – post to your blog for credit: Considering Audience in the Rhetorical Situation.
• Go over Turnitin—plagiarism check and feedback.

Homework: Continue working on Essay 1, using the feedback on D2L to revise and continuing drafting the essay. Draft 2 (2 full pages) is due Thursday (9/26/19) by the start of class.

In Class:

• Thesis statement: a sentence (usually the last sentence of an introduction) that states the ideas you will discuss within your paper and indicates the structure of your essay.
  • Rhetorical analysis thesis statement examples
• Topic sentence: a sentence that summarizes the main idea of a paragraph (usually the first sentence of a paragraph)
• Write for 20 min. Spend time finishing your essay 1 first draft, editing it, and/or adding to it.
• Share/read aloud to your classmates (at least once time). Ask for feedback and make edits as you read aloud.
• In Class Writing: 1st draft of Essay 1 (at least 1 page) is due posted to your blog and to D2L by the end of class. *Be sure to include your Works Cited page with citations in alphabetical order. Linked here is another Works Cited guide that shows you how to cite certain types of citations, such as songs and websites.
• Once you are finished, study your terms for quiz 2 on Tuesday.

Homework for Tuesday, 9/24: Study terms for quiz 2 on Tuesday.

In Class:

• Watch: Mr. Rogers and the Power of Persuasion.
• Go over MLA style.
  • MLA_Sample.doc
  • Works Cited Sample Page – Purdue OWL
  • Creating a Works Cited List – Purdue OWL
• Go over how to write a paragraph.
  • PIE example
  • More information about PIE paragraph formula.
  • Rhetorical analysis paragraph example.

Homework for 9/19/19: Work on your first draft of Essay 1 due by the end of class tomorrow.

• Go over the Rhetorical Analysis Process Organizer and Building an Introduction Paragraph for the Rhetorical Analysis Essay.
• In-Class Writing: Write your introductory paragraph for Essay 1 and post to your blog.
• Watch and discuss the award-winning short film Happiness by Steve Cutts.

Homework: Read “Freewriting, Mind Mapping, and Outline: Three Prewriting Strategies to Try.” Create an outline for Essay 1 and post the outline to your blog. Don’t forget to reference the prompt and process organizer for help/to make sure you are including the major and necessary parts.

In Class:

• Read and discuss How Words Mean from Language in Thought and Action by S. I. Hayakawa.
• Share findings from the News Analysis activity with the class.
• Go over language for analyzing rhetorical strategies.

Homework due by class time on Tuesday, 9/17: Pick the piece you’re going to analyze for Essay 1. Print or digitally annotate (and email me) a transcript or the lyrics of the piece: use different colors to highlight the appeals (ethos, logos, and pathos) and jot down the specific rhetorical strategy (author’s background, factual data, or emotionally loaded language, for example). If there is a video, note down the audience’s reaction and/or how the visual information is attempting to affect the audience.

“The profoundly biased individual…can see an enemy only as an enemy and a friend only as a friend. The individual with genuine skill in writing–and in thinking–can with imagination and insight look at the same subject from many points of view.” – S. I. Hayakawa

• Finish watching “Stan” by Eminem. Discuss as a class.
• partisan: a strong supporter of a party, cause, or person; prejudiced in favor of a particular cause
• polarization: division into two sharply contrasting groups or sets of opinions or beliefs
• Read from S. I. Hayakawa’s book Language in Thought and Action: Connotations and Slanting. Definitions: denotation, connotation, slanting
• Media bias: News Sources on the Political Spectrum – University of Michigan, News Quality Graph (evolution of the chart: https://www.adfontesmedia.com/evolution-of-the-media-bias-chart/; most up-to date graph: https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EDtRQk-XoAcbMFs.jpg)
• Political beliefs:
  • Conservative vs. liberal beliefs
  • Political Typology Quiz – Pew Research Center
  • From “How to have better political conversations”: “We find that liberals tend to endorse values like equality and fairness and care and protection from harm…and conservatives tend to endorse values like loyalty, patriotism, respect for authority and moral purity…maybe this moral divide might be helpful for understanding how it is that liberals and conservatives talk to one another and why they so often seem to talk past one another when they do.”
• Complete the activity for in-class writing in a group:
  • Choose a News Story (Pick one story covered by three sources: one more liberal, one more centrist, and one more conservative.)
  • Analyze Your News Source (Complete the first four questions per article in a group of 2-3. Post to your blog for in class writing credit.)

In Class:

• Let’s talk about ways to lessen writing anxiety.
  • Form a writing group.
  • On your blog for in class writing, list your writing strengths.
• Go over the  Essay 1 Prompt.
• Read sample student rhetorical analysis essays.
• Suggestions for finding a piece to analyze:
  • Do a google search for “most controversial,” “most influential,” or “most important,” and include a medium that interests you. For example, “most influential presidential speeches.”
  • Research a prominent public figure or historical figure who is of interest to you and pick something they wrote or a speech they gave to analyze.
  • Look in this database of influential American speeches.
  • Pick a topic in your field that is still under debate. Find an editorial presenting evidence to argue in favor of one side on the issue to analyze.