Reflection on open letter draft

I peer-reviewed Bailey and Joy's  open letters.

I will now answer the questions in the revision process section of A Student's Guide:

I think that I did do a good job of demonstrating my ability to think about my writing and myself. I provided analysis, concrete examples, and why I made certain choices.

The peer reviews that I got helped me to narrow the focus of my letter and organize all the paragraphs around a central theme. They also helped me to realize that I need to include some more concrete examples and do a little more hyperlinking. I also had a paragraph about my time management and over-commitment this semester that I realized needed to be pared down and focused more on my central idea.

Webb, Michaela "cracked earth" 2015

Draft of Open letter

Here is a draft of my open letter. As you read it, please pay attention to the cohesion of the different paragraphs. I feel like it might be a little scattered and not fit together very well. Thanks!

Webb, Michaela "Muir Woods" 2014

Reflecting more on my writing experiences

1. What were the biggest challenges you faced this semester, overall? My biggest challenge this semester was an overall lack of motivation and excitement about school. For some reason I really lost some steam this semester. I think that it may have had something to do with a lack of direction about what I'm even in school for. I also worked alot this semester, especially in October. This contributed to pretty high stress levels and not as much importance placed on my classes.

2. What did you learn this semester about your own time management, writing and editorial skills? I learned that the entire process is more enjoyable and efficient when I care about what I'm writing about and put focused effort into my writing. I did a fair bit of bullshitting to try and finish blog-posts faster, but looking back I wish I would've just put the work in. I think that I would've gotten more out of it, and the process would've been easier if I had just buckled down and put effort into everything. Producing mediocre work doesn't feel very good.

3. What do you know about the concept of 'genre'? Explain how understanding this concept is central to being a more effective writer. Genre is the format and conventions that one uses in writing a piece on a specific platform for a specific audience. It's important to understand this concept as a writer, because your job is very different depending on what genre you're writing in: A scientific research proposal is going to have different conventions, style, and language use than an article or a creative writing piece.

4. What skills from this course might you use and/or develop further in the next few years of college coursework? I think that I need to learn the conventions of all the different genres that I might be writing in, especially some of the more practical styles. I would like to know how to effectively write a grant proposal, conference proposal, hard science research paper, and newspaper article. I also need to work on being concise and not over-wording.

5. What was your most effective moment from this semester in 109H? My most effective moment was when I got pretty excited about the last project and actually put good work in. I'm proud of my final product for that project, and it's because I put effort into it.

6. What was your least effective moment from this semester in 109H? My least effective moment was some of the early blog-posts that I didn't put a whole lot of effort into.

Webb, Michaela. "Compost Farm" 2015

Revisiting my Writing Process

As I look back on my first few posts of the course a few thoughts come up. To answer the question for this post, I don't think that my writing style has changes drastically since then. I have had to approach writing differently for this course, simply because of time constraints in my life this semester. Many of the blog posts for this class were an exercise in speed-typing and divesting myself from caring about quality. This is because I was working too many hours and I was prioritizing spending time with my friends over school work. I think that once I return to a saner schedule, my writing style will return to normal. Reading the calendar reflection makes me realize that something was off this semester. In the calendar reflection I say that I have "good work ethic" and have never had a hard time focusing and getting things done. This has not been the case this semester. I have had an incredibly hard time just sitting down and studying/focusing on one thing. My mind is always going in 10 different directions, and I'm rarely productive in the way that I used to be. I'm hoping that this is a temporary problem, because poor work ethic is one of the things that I hate the most in other people and hate even more in myself!

Webb, Michaela "Floodwater Canoeing on the Santa Cruz" 2015

Reflection on Project 3

1. What did you revise globally from one draft to another? Why? How do the changes that you made affect your argument, audience, and credibility as an author? My main revisions were global: I moved some paragraphs around to make the logic of the piece flow better. I also added two paragraphs about the San Carlos Apache's connection to Oak Flat once I decided that my purpose was to convince climbers to stand with the Apache. I think that adding in more information about the history of destruction of San Carlos sacred sites helped my argument gain strength because it highlighted the importance of the area and the need to join together with the San Carlos. I think that adding these sections increased my credibility because it showed that I have depth of knowledge on the subject its historical context. Although my audience isn't directly connected to the San Carlos Apache, and awareness of Native American struggles is part of our culture today. Whether you're a climber, a scientist, or a barista at a coffee shop it's likely that you're aware of the historical disadvantages that Native American groups face and that you care at at least a little bit.
2. What local revisions did you make? How did they improve clarity for your audience? Did you have to reconsider conventions of the genre? I didn't make a whole lot of local revisions to this piece. I read it over a few times to make sure there weren't any grammar errors, but I feel that it came out pretty well the first time around. I typically write using more words than necessary, and so my local revision process is mostly paring down and getting rid of clutter words. TNB columns typically have a conversational, narratice, informal style, so I didn't have to pare it down the way that I would for a lab report or a more formal essay. 
3. How does the process of reflection help you consider your identity as a writer? I've recently been writing in a lot of different styles. I've been blogging, and writing in different genres for this class, and I just finished a research grant proposal for money to investigate the potential of certain anthropogenic compounds in our finished compost. I've also been writing lab reports for soils. Switching between these different styles has been a little challenging for me, but I've realized how important audience and purpose are. When I write science stuff I just have to remember that the purpose is to convey objective information as clearly and concisely as possible. No flowery language, no more words than necessary. When I write something like the public argument about Oak Flat I have much more creative license to convey the information and employ rhetoric however I want to. I would like to develop both styles of writing so that I can be effective in both. 

Webb, Michaela "San Fran from Alcatraz" 2014

Publishing Project 3

Here is a PDF version of my final draft. The PDF contains captions for the photos, and is formatted exactly how I want it. Unfortunately the hyperlinks don't work in that form, so here is a google docs version in which the hyperlinks work.

Below is my self-evaluation of the purpose of my public argument. My opinions are added in blue:


1. Mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience currently stands on the issue (before reading/watching/hearing your argument) below:

←-----------------------------x----------------------|--------------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly

agree                                                                                                                          disagree

2. Now mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience should be (after they've read/watched/heard your argument) below:

←----------x-----------------------------------------|--------------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly

agree                                                                                                                          disagree

3. Check one (and only one) of the argument types below for your public argument:

         _______ My public argument establishes an original pro position on an issue of debate.

         _______ My public argument establishes an original con position on an issue of debate.

         _______ My public argument clarifies the causes for a problem that is being debated.

         ___x___ My public argument proposes a solution for a problem that is being debated.

         _______ My public argument positively evaluate a specific solution or policy under debate (and clearly identifies the idea I'm supporting).

         _______ My public argument openly refutes a specific solution or policy under debate (and clearly identifies the idea I'm refuting).

Although my argument contains multiple elements, its main goal is to convince the climbing community to join together with the San Carlos Apache in the fight to protect Oak Flat


4. Briefly explain how your public argument doesn’t simply restate information from other sources, but provides original context and insight into the situation:
There is almost no public discourse or meaningful action within the climbing community to protect Oak Flat. My article is original because of the audience that it addresses. I use information from other sources to explain the issue, but my argument that the climbing community needs to join in the fight to protect Oak Flat is original. 

5. Identify the specific rhetorical appeals you believe you've employed n your public argument below:


Ethical or credibility-establishing appeals

                    __x_ Telling personal stories that establish a credible point-of-view

                    ___x_ Referring to credible sources (established journalism, credentialed experts, etc.) (only through hyperlinking)

                    __x__ Employing carefully chosen key words or phrases that demonstrate you are credible (proper terminology, strong but clear vocabulary, etc.)

                    __x__ Adopting a tone that is inviting and trustworthy rather than distancing or alienating

                    ___x_ Arranging visual elements properly (not employing watermarked images, cropping images carefully, avoiding sloppy presentation)

                    _____ Establishing your own public image in an inviting way (using an appropriate images of yourself, if you appear on camera dressing in a warm or friendly or professional manner, appearing against a background that’s welcoming or credibility-establishing)

                    _____ Sharing any personal expertise you may possess about the subject (your identity as a student in your discipline affords you some authority here)

                    _____ Openly acknowledging counterarguments and refuting them intelligently

                    _x___ Appealing openly to the values and beliefs shared by the audience (remember that the website/platform/YouTube channel your argument is designed for helps determine the kind of audience who will encounter your piece)

                    __x__ Other: I gain credibility with the climbers through use of climbing lingo ("sport and trad lines" "pocket lover's paradise" "weekend warriors"). In my experience the climbing community is a very tribal group, and they are more likely to trust what I have to say if I'm speaking their language.

Emotional appeals

                    ____ Telling personal stories that create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    ___x_ Telling emotionally compelling narratives drawn from history and/or the current culture

                    ____ Employing the repetition of key words or phrases that create an appropriate emotional impact

                    _____ Employing an appropriate level of formality for the subject matter (through appearance, formatting, style of language, etc.)

                    _____ Appropriate use of humor for subject matter, platform/website, audience

                    __x__ Use of “shocking” statistics in order to underline a specific point

                    __x__ Use of imagery to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    __x__ Employing an attractive color palette that sets an appropriate emotional tone (no clashing or ‘ugly’ colors, no overuse of too many variant colors, etc.)

                    _____ Use of music to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _____ Use of sound effects to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _x__ Employing an engaging and appropriate tone of voice for the debate

                    _____ Other: My main rhetorical appeal is emotional. I really want to make the readers feel the importance of the area, both as a climbing area and a sacred site for the San Carlos. I try to do this through vivid descriptions of the beauty of area and historical evidence of the continued destruction of San Carlos Apache sacred sites. The photos that I chose to incorporate are intended to elicit and emotional response: The one of climbing shows how incredible the area is, and the one of the protest is an emotionally charged image. 

The pull-quote that I included is also part of my emotional rhetoric. 

Logical or rational appeals
                    ____ Using historical records from credible sources in order to establish precedents, trends, or patterns

                    _____ Using statistics from credible sources in order to establish precedents, trends, or patterns

                    _____ Using interviews from stakeholders that help affirm your stance or position

                    _____ Using expert opinions that help affirm your stance or position

                    __x__ Effective organization of elements, images, text, etc.

                    _____ Clear transitions between different sections of the argument (by using title cards, interstitial music, voiceover, etc.)

                    ____ Crafted sequencing of images/text/content in order to make linear arguments

                    ___x_ Intentional emphasis on specific images/text/content in order to strengthen argument

                    _____ Careful design of size/color relationships between objects to effectively direct the viewer’s attention/gaze (for visual arguments)

                    _____ Other:

6. Below, provide us with working hyperlinks to THREE good examples of the genre you've chosen to write in. These examples can come from Blog Post 11.3 or they can be new examples. But they should all come from the same specific website/platform and should demonstrate the conventions for your piece:

Example 1
Example 2
Example 3

Webb, Michaela "That way!" 2015

Reflection on Project 3 draft

I wrote peer reviews for Alex's and Austin's drafts. Bailey peer reviewed my draft. I found Bailey's review to be very thorough, helpful, and positive. The most valuable suggestion was that I should provide some tangible ways that climbers can get involved at the end of my piece. I think that this is great advice, because the main goal of my piece is to convince climbers that they should do something about the issue. I also still need to cite the images that I used.

Overall I'm feeling pretty good about the project. I really like writing in prose style, which is something that I was able to integrate into this project. I have gotten positive feedback about the descriptions that I wrote from everyone who has read it.

Webb, Michaela "In High Places" 2015

Draft of Public Argument

Here is the rough draft of project 3. The thing that I struggle with the most in writing this is that the formate that I'm writing in is very informal: it's essentially a blog post. I want to make sure that I'm constructing an effective argument while still adhering to the informal, narrative-style of the Tuesday Night Bouldering weekly column. So, as you read my draft, please let me know how you think I could've done this better or differently. Thanks!

Webb, Michaela "morning in Bishop" 2014

Considering visual elements

In this post I will answer some questions about the visual structure and elements of my project:


Is the theme that the image produces relevant to the theme of my argument?
I want the images to evoke the importance of protecting Oak Flat, especially for recreational purposes. I also want an image to evoke distrust of Mccain and Flake and to highlight the tactics that they used to open the area to mining.  

Does the image inform or emphasize my argument in an important way?
My plan for my project is to use images in the same way that the genre typically uses them. I will use a couple key images to evoke the natural beauty of Oak Flat, as well as one of the rock climbing there.

Is the image in close proximity to the argument that it is emphasizing or illustrating?
I plan to place images close to the parts of the argument that they are connected with. I will put an image of rock climbing at oak flat next to the paragraph about the climbing there. I will do this for all of my images.

Do the different textual and visual elements come together as a whole?
Ideally they will. It will be easier to answer this question after I actually write the article and put the images in. If they don't, I will do some revision to make sure that they do.

Are your images sequenced in the most powerful way possible?
I plan to sequence images in a way that builds up the natural beauty of Oak Flat in reader's minds, and then shows what it might look like after mining. I want to visually illustrate what will be lost if the mine is built.

Are blocks of text broken up by images?
I will make sure to break up the text with images. That's a convention of the genre that I'm writing in, so it's especially important.

Webb, Michaela "bark" 2014

Project 3 outline

In this post I will create an outline for project 3.

Introduction:

• Begin by framing the consequences of the issue: That another rock climbing area is likely going to be destroyed/ climbing access will be restricted. I will use an example of this happening in the past (maybe cave rock at lake tahoe, the Virgin River Gorge in Utah, or Little Cottonwood Canyon in Utah.) 

Body:

• Major supporting arguments:
• Oak Flat is a rock climbing treasure and should be protected. There is an annual bouldering competition there (Queen Creek bouldering comp). It's one of the main outdoor areas for the Phoenix area.
• The tactics used by McCain and Flake to give the area to Rio Tinto for mining were underhanded and sleezy, not to mention that both get a large chunk of campaign contributions from the mining company
•  The mine will destroy a San Carlos Apache spiritual and cultural treasure. This is not ok.
• Major Criticisms:
• The economic benefits of a mine
• Rebuttals:
• The economic benefits don't outweigh the value of the areas a a natural, cultural, and recreational treasure to the San Carlos Apache, the climbing community, the ecosystem, and the people of Arizona.
• Evidence:
• I will take evidence from previous research.

Webb, Michaela "Oak Flat" 2015

Conclusion:

• I will use a call to action to conclude my argument. Climbers need to be more involved in this conversation and fight. If we get all the stakeholders together to fight this, we may be able to win.

Analyzing my genre

In this blog post I will present 5 examples from the genre that I'm going to write project 3 in, and answer the questions in the photo below to further analyze my genre:

Webb, Michaela "Screenshot" 2015

Example 1
Example 2
Example 3
Example 4
Example 5


Social Context:

• The genre is always in Rock and Ice magazine website. It's a weekly blog column that addresses the hottest issues in the climbing community. The readership is entirely rock climbers. The column serves to casually raise awareness about issues, sometimes make people laugh, sometimes pay tribute to a climber who recently died. It ranges alot. 

Rhetorical patterns:

• The content ranges from very serious to very silly, but the tone is typically casual. They often include narrative elements. The most consistent norm of the genre is that they are all written using climber's language. Climbers have a very specific vocabulary that isn't understood by the general population, and these blog posts are obviously written by a climber, for climbers. There is lots of quoting in the narrative sections, but it varies post to post.

What do the Rhetorical Patterns reveal about the social context of the genre?

• This is a blog written for climbers. They care about climbing, and a large majority of them care about the environment (especially as it pertains to rock climbing). Climbers are generally liberal, but often spend too much time rock climbing to take political action or be very involved in grassroots movements. I can't blame them, rock climbing is fun!
• 
  

considering types

My argument will be a combination of a Causal Argument and a Proposal. I want to explain how Oak Flat got sold off to a mining company, and then propose action that needs to be taken to protect it. I may draw from past examples of land being threatened by development and then rescued.

Webb, Michaela "rainbow" 2014

My Rhetorical Action Plan

Webb, Michaela "screenshot" 2015

Audience: I want to write to an outdoor/rock climbing audience. 

Knowledge: Those in Arizona have probably heard of the Oak Flat controversy, but might not know many details. Most of them are probably familiar with and passionate about the issue of wilderness areas being destroyed for economic reasons.

Values: Rock climbers are generally very liberal and progressive, especially when it comes to environmental issues. They value the protection of rock climbing areas, and probably also the protection of native american cultural treasures

Standards of Argument: the most important arguments that I can make for this audience are going to be that oak flat is a cultural and environmenal treasure, has great rock climbing, and is being taken for development in sneaky ways.

Visual Elements that highlight the natural beauty and recreational value of Oak Flat will be the most persuasive, because that's whet my audience cares about.

The purpose of my article is to raise awarreness within the climbing community about the fight for oak flat, because they are one group that hasn't done much to act  yet, but should care about the issue.

Genres: 
Tuesday Night Bouldering Column on Rock and Ice Magazine website:  http://www.rockandice.com/lates-news/tnb-raphael-slawinski-firsthand-acccount-of-everest-earthquake
http://www.rockandice.com/lates-news/tnb-forgotten-hero-frank-sacherer-1940-1978

Informational Article  on a climbing or hiking website:
http://www.climbing.com/news/special-feature-the-libecki-brothers-explore-vertical-greenland/
http://www.climbing.com/news/teen-charged-in-ten-sleep-climber-shooting/

Actions/responses:
Positive: become more aware of an issue, understand the complications involved in the Oak Flat controversy, possibly do something.

Negative: "This is a politically biased article!" "The economic benefits to the area outweigh the destruction of the environment" "there are lots of other places to rock climb!"

Analyzing Purpose

In this blog post I will address and explore the purpose of my public speech act.

I want to address the potential ulterior motives involved in politics, and specifically in the Oak Flat controversy. I think that the fact that Mccain and Flake have recieved significant campaign contributions from Rio Tinto and other mining companies really says something. I think that it degrades any accountability that they had with the people of Arizona, and any arguments that they make insinuating that they're looking out for people's interests rather than corporate interests. I think that the best way for me to express this idea to my intended audience is through a short op-ed piece in an Arizona University newspaper. This has the potential to raise awareness about Oak Flat in a demographic that is typically action-oriented and excited to get involved in things

Plausible actions/ reactions: I could see some people thinking that I'm just an angry hippy. I need to be careful not to come accross as too pissed off. If I do a good job I might be able to begin or continue the conversation for some people about campaign financing laws and their immediate effects on an Arizona issue.

Not Plausible: I don't think that my op-ed piece will spark any immediate action. It's purpose is to start a conversation and get people thinking, not necessarily to create immediate change. These issues are incredibly complicated, and no one act of public speech can create noticeable change.

Chain of likely consequences: My article could get people thinking more about campaign financing, and has the potential to impact people's stance on the issue of Oak Flat. It has the potential to spark some action at a university level. It also has the potential to get people thinking about the issue of campaign financing on a larger scale: the upcoming presidential elections.

Possible audience: I want to reach out to other university students because they're a demographic that generally cares about things and wants to be involved in action.

Webb, Michaela "Purpose: Nap Time" 2013

Analyzing Context

Webb, Michaela "sleeping brother" 2012

1. Key perspectives and schools of thought? Major disagreements? Major ideological disagreements? The two main schools of thought are that there shouldn't be a mine build on Oak Flat, and that there should be. Within those there are many different groups that think those things for different reasons. There's the San Carlos Apache who generally believe that their sacred site should be protected and that their culture and beliefs should be honored and should not be destroyed as they have been over and over throughout history. There's the environmentalists and recreators who believe that Oak Flat has value as a beautiful wilderness and that a mine would ruin that. There's the politicians who are the reason that Oak Flat is in jeapordy who say they value economic growth. With a little more digging, though, it becomes evident that there are ulterior motives involved in their decisions. 
2. Possible common ground: The only possible common ground that I see between those who want a mine and those who want to protect Oak Flat is that probably even the San Carlos Apache value economic growth. They just don't want it as a result of a mine that destroys so much.
3. Actions requested from the audience: Those who want Oak Flat to be protected are asking for the audience to join with them in trying to make that happen: to sign petitions, come to rallies, pressure lawmakers to make the right decisions. Those who ant the mine to be constructed don't really have to ask anyone for anything: They have the power in this situation.
4. Perspectives useful to my argument: I think that I want to focus on the ulterior motives of the politicians and the sneaky methods that they used to pass the bill that opened Oak Flat up to mining. I think that because of this the perspectives that will be useful to me are those that critique corporate campaign financing, as well as those that exemplify the value of Oak Flat from a social and environmental perspective. 
5. Perspectives that threaten my argument: The main perspective that I will need to refute is that of the economic growth potential of the mine. I think that this is the only potentially valid argument for building a mine on a piece of pristine wilderness with cultural value to a group of people. 

Audience and Genre

In this blog post I will discuss two possible audiences and genres for my public argument. I will identify 4 different places to publish my argument, and I will identify 8 different examples.

• Audience 1: Arizona College Students. They would be interested because they are a typically active group and this issue is happening in their home state. 
• location 1: Daily Wildcat op-ed. This is a good place to publish my work and have it read by many students. 
• Example 1: You Can't Shoot Yourself If You Don't Own a Gun
• Example 2: Mental Health
• Location 2: The State Press: ASU student newspaper
• Example 1: Food System
• Example 2: Bern
• Audience 2: Climbing Community. Climbers are interested because there's rock climbing at Oak Flat that would be destroyed by mining development.
• location 1: Rock and Ice Magazine Tuesday Night Bouldering column
• Example 1: Why Comp Climbing is Not in Our Future
• Example 2: The Outsiders
• Location 2:
• Climbing Magazine article
• Climbing in the Next Olympics
• Half Dome Route 

Webb, Michaela "Uinta Mountains" 2013

Extended Annotated Bibliography

"The Arena: - Rep. Jeff Flake Bio." The Arena: - Rep. Jeff Flake Bio. Politico, n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2015. This is an unbiased biography of Flake's political career. It will give me a better idea of the context for his involvement in Oak Flat, as well as a history of things that he's supported in the past.

"The Arena: - Rep. Raul Grijalva Bio." The Arena: - Rep. Raul Grijalva Bio. Politico, n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2015. This article is important for my paper because it gives an unbiased account of Raul Grijalva's political career. I will use it in my paper to give political context for one of the key players in this controversy.

Grijalva, Raul. "Text - H.R.2811 - 114th Congress (2015-2016): Save Oak Flat Act." Text. Congress.gov, n.d. Web. 28 Oct. 2015. This is the bill that Grijalva introduced to the house and senate. It will give me specific and primary information on what the bill is asking for an how it's constructed.

Jordan, James. "People's World." John McCain's "midnight Riders" Put Borderlands at Risk » Peoplesworld. People's World, 15 Sept. 2015. Web. 28 Oct. 2015. This article sheds light on all of Mccain's sneaky tactics over the last 30 years. It provides a key piece of information, which is that McCain was also involved in the last land grab from the apache people: Mt. Graham. It states that he used the same tactics for that as he is for Oak Flat.

Webb, Michaela "Chicken On a Bike" 2013

Narrowing My Focus

In this post I will choose a few questions and explain why I want to explore them more for my public argument:


Where have Mccain and Flake's campaign financing historically come from? What have they historically fought and advocated for?

I want to explore this more because I think that they aren't interested in how the things that they fight for effect people and the environment, but rather how they effect their primary campaign contributers. I think that this is going to be the basis for my argument.


What exactly happened legally with the midnight rider addition to the bill that allowed this to happen? What would need to happen legally and politically to save Oak Flat?

I want to understand the legal circumstances better because I think that that's where the biggest hole in my knowledge is: I don't know that much about our legal system and how these bills work.

Webb, Michaela "Narrowing" 2014

Questions About Controversy

For project 3 I will write about Oak Flat and the plans for mining that will likely destroy it. In this post I will write questions about the different aspects of my controversy.

• Who:

1. Who is Senator Grijalva and why does he care about these issues?
2. What is Senator Flake's history with issues like this?
3.  Has he made sleezy decisions in the past that align more with the values of his campaign contributors than the people of his state?

• What?

1. What is the involvement of outdoor recreation in the debate?
2. What exactly happened legally with the midnight rider addition to the bill that allowed this to happen?
3. What would need to happen legally and politically to save Oak Flat?

• When?

1. When is the mine going to be constructed?
2. When would it be finished?
3. When?

• Where?

1. Where are Jeff Flake and Mccain from?
2. Where is Oak Flat in relation to the San Carlos Apache Reservation?
3. Where did the San Carlos Apache historically live?

• How?

1. How has the climbing community reacted to the proposed development?
2. How have Flake and Mccain reacted to the pushback?
3. How has Rio Tinto historically treated land and people? 

Webb, Michaela "I am insane" 2013

Reflection on Project 2

In this post I will reflect on my revision process.

• What was revised from one draft to the other? What global and local changes did you make?

I focused specifically on making my intro and conclusion more interesting, and making sure that I was making an interesting argument. It's easy to write a 5 paragraph essay with a thesis and some bullshit in the paragraphs, but it's harder to say something that's actually thought provoking. If I'm going to take the time to write something, I want to engage my readers in the reading and myself in the writing process.

On a local level I focused on eliminating wordiness. I often find that the individual sentences in my first draft are wordier than they need to be. In this kind of essay, I want to get my point across as clearly and concisely as possible. This is especially important when considering the audience for this piece: it's an example for younger students. I want to exemplify clear writing.

• How does the process of reflection help me reconsider my identity as a writer?

Despite being incredibly stressed out right now, I'm actually enjoying the process of reflection. I like writing, and I think that reflection is important to identify my strengths and weaknesses for consideration in future projects.Writing right now makes me feel like it's something that I want to do more often. It's a skill that can be applied to any discipline.

Webb, Michaela "Death Valley" 2014

Reflection: I read Steph and Zayla's blog posts. Steph and I both focused on making our writing more clear. She worked on this on a structural level, while I found that on a sentence level my writing was not always as concise as it could've been. I went through and took out unnecessary words.

Project 2

Here is a link to my final project #2

Webb, Michaela "Bullets and desert" 2015

Punctuation part 2

For this post I read the sections unnecessary commas, the semicolon, and quotation marks.

Unnecessary commas:

• don't use a comma after the last item in a series.
• My general rule for commas is to use them when it feels right and not use them when it doesn't. I think that this generally works out pretty well. All the examples from the book of where not to put a comma are instances that sound weird to put a comma anyway.

Semicolon

• used to connect parts of a sentence that could stand alone but are related.
• the book gives a handy list of words and phrases that signify that a semicolon should be used

Quotation marks

• used for titles of short works
• no quotation marks for long indented quotes
• use single quotation marks for a quote within a quote

Webb, Michaela "desolation wilderness" 2013

Paragraph analysis 2

Here is a version of my Rhetorical Analysis with comments and analysis of all the body paragraphs. Overall It was pretty ok, and alot of the work is going to be on a sentence-level. There were a few paragraphs that need organizational help and are messy idea-wise.

Webb, Michaela "Cactus" 2014

Reflection on Project 2 Draft

I read and commented on Chad and Austin's essays.

I will answer the bulleted list of questions on page 197 of "A Student's Guide"

• Yes, I do have an identifiable thesis. I think that I do a pretty good job of being specific about the rhetorical strategies used. I don't use the words "ethos, logos, pathos" in my essay. I think that my thesis could be cleaned up a little bit. I'm still a little confused about how to go about creating both a rhetorical analysis and an exploration of how rhetoric is used in my field. It feels like there are two distinct parts of my essay right now, and I think it would be more effective if both aspects were more integrated into each other.
• I think that I could explore some more interesting ways of organizing my body paragraphs. As it is now, I'm kind of falling into the trap of just going down the list of rhetorical strategies that the author uses and writing a paragraph about each. 
• I need to add a paragraph that analyzes the context a little bit more. I focus too much on the rhetorical strategies.
• Yes, I did a good job of this
• I think that I could cut down the long quote that I included. It takes up a big block of text, and is visually overwhelming. I need to find a couple other key quotes to illustrate my points.
• I do answer the so what question. I think that my new conclusion is much more interesting and big-picture than my old conclusion

Webb, Michaela "close up of the road" 2014

Revised Conclustion

In this post I will revise my conclusion. I think that my new conclusion is more interesting and adds the broader significance of my topic.


Original Conclusion:

Mckibben is a masterful writer as well as an expert in the field, and it shows in this article. That being said, I think that the article is so opinionated and politically charged that his argument is only accessible to a small fraction of the population. This group probably already agrees with him. Anyone who isn’t already environmentally minded might stop reading after the first paragraph. This is partly a function of the stratified nature of politics in the United States right now. People connect environmental issues with one side of the political spectrum even though they are going to affect us all in the future.  If people don’t see themselves as “environmentalists” or “liberals” then they don’t want to talk about the environment. Mckibben’s argument is that Obama isn’t doing nearly enough for the environment, and many people are unwilling to look as far left as Obama let alone further left. I’m not sure if there’s anything that Mckibben could do rhetorically to overcome this obstacle and reach more people. This is a problem that anyone arguing something controversial is going to run into.



New Conclusion:

Understanding how rhetoric is used to persuade audiences is invaluable for trying to address environmental issues. Persuading people to change their personal behavior as well as fight for policy change is, and will continue to be, one of the most valuable skills for environmental change-makers and leaders. Bill Mckibben is a master at this. He has been a key player in rallying people to engage in public protest and has helped start numerous university divestment movements. One of the most important jobs of environmental writers is to leave readers feeling hopeful enough to act. In Mckibben's article "Obama and Climate Change: The Real Story", he does just that. He begins by engaging readers emotionally with facts and imagery, and ends with hopeful tales of successful environmental movements. Powerful and effective use of rhetoric in environmental writing and speaking by people like Mckibben has the potential to positively impact the future of humans on this planet.

Webb, Michaela "Monsoon over Mexico" 2014

Revised introduction

In this post I completely re-worked my introduction. I think that my new version uses less broad generalizations, and more effectively lays out the importance of the issue as well as the skill of rhetorical analysis in my field. I also think that the 2nd version eliminates the need for an introductory section explaining the project.

Original Intro:

In 300 years will there still be rainforests in Brazil? Will it snow in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California? Will the Colorado river still run? What can we do as a society to ensure that the answers to these questions are favorable to humans?  The issue of how to address Climate Change is the biggest public environmental discussion of our time. Scientists almost unanimously agree that Climate Change is happening and that it is a direct result of human activities, and that the consequences of inaction will be devastating. Because of this, one of the main jobs of environmental activists today is to write about these issues in a way that gives readers hope and spurs them into action rather than overwhelming them into apathy. How do climate activists make arguments that are both compelling and accessible to the general public about a topic that is societally controversial? Bill Mckibben is a leading climate activist and environmental journalist writing and thinking about climate change and how to address it. In his 2013 article titled "Obama and Climate Change: The Real Story", he employs compelling and clear language to push for action. He uses shocking facts about the direness of our environmental situation, and potent language to emphasize that Obama has let us down when it comes to climate action. He ends with emotionally-charged stories of grassroots action and a hopeful tone for the future to leave readers feeling empowered to fight for change and pressure politicians into doing the right things.

Revised Intro:

President Obama recently travelled to Alaska to see firsthand the effects of climate change. In his travel log from the trip, he stated: "It’s my hope that decades and decades from now, when this generation has long since left the planet, we will have acted decisively. We will have left those generations with a planet they can continue to thrive on." This is a nice sentiment, but how much has Obama actually done during his time in office to combat climate change? This is the question explored by leading climate activist and environmental journalist, Bill Mckibben, in his 2013 article titled "Obama and Climate Change: The Real Story." An understanding of rhetorical strategies, how they are used, and how to use them, is vitally important in environmental fields because addressing environmental problems on a large scale will require convincing and mobilizing large groups of people for change. In this article, Mckibben uses shocking facts and about the direness of our environmental situation and powerful imagery to engage readers emotionally in the issue. He lays out stark contrasts to illustrate his main claims, and emphasizes them visually using bullet points to make it very clear to readers what he's arguing. He ends with emotionally-charged stories of grassroots action and a hopeful tone for the future that leaves readers feeling empowered to fight for change and pressure politicians into doing the right things.

Webb, Michaela "direction" summer 2015

Punctuation Part 1

Webb, Michaela "sunrise moonset" 2015

For this post I read 3 sections form the Grammar part of "Rules for Writers".

Run-on sentences:

• Independent clauses that haven't been joined correctly (they could stand alone in a sentence)
• They should be joined by either a comma and coordinating conjunction or a semicolon
• To revise, you can either use a comma and conjunction, insert a semi-colon, separate the run-on into two different sentences, or restructure the sentence.

Make Pronoun References Clear

sometimes issues occur when a pronoun:

• Could refer to two possible antecedents
• Is placed too far away from its antecedent
• This, that, which, and it should generally refer to specific antecedents rather than to whole ideas
• Pronouns shouldn't refer to implied antecedents. 
• Use who, whom, whose to refer to people

Choose adjectives and adverbs with care

• Be careful with adverbs and adjectives and their different applications.
• Adverbs end in -ly
• Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs

My general feeling about english grammar is that it should be engrained in the minds of native english speakers. I don't find it very valuable to explicitly learn english grammar because I can usually tell if something is gramatically wrong by the way it sounds. 

Reflection:
I read Chad and Austin's essays.
I noticed a few instances of ambiguity in pronoun references. I think that this is a pretty common problem for writers. Chad wrote:

 "By analyzing Trump's policy for immigration or any other candidates policies, we can get a better understanding of what that person stands for and how they plan to convince other nations and the official here at home to support their ideas."

I think that he could've used a pronoun rather than saying "that person". he has already established that he's taking about Trump, so he could just use "he".

Draft of Rhetorical Analysis

Here  is the draft of my Rhetorical analysis. I would like to know specifically what you think about:

• The way I structured it by introducing the essay to my audience, writing the essay, and then analyzing my own essay for my readers.
• The thoroughness of my rhetorical analysis: could I get more from it?
• The internal organization of my essay

Thanks!

Webb, Michaela. "Alex on OP" 2014

Practicing Summary and Paraphrase

In this post I will be practicing paraphrasing 

"None of that (grassroots movements to combat climate change) cures the sting of Obama's policies nor takes away the need to push him hard. Should he do the right thing on Keystone XL, a decision expected sometime in the next six months, he'll at least be able to tell other world leaders, "See, I've stopped a big project on climate grounds." That could, if he used real diplomatic pressure, help restart the international talks he has let lapse. He's got a few chances left to show some leadership."

My paraphrase: Environmental activist and journalist Bill Mckibben argues that the people of this country need to continue to pressure Obama to make the right decisions for the planet. Obama has a few key decisions coming up, namely whether or not to approve the Keystone XL pipeline. He has the opportunity to make a bold statement to the rest of the world and use the diplomatic power of the United States to move the world forward, rather than backward, in climate action. (Mckibben)

My Summary: Despite past failures, it's not too late for Obama to show leadership in climate action.

Webb, Michaela "Photographic Paraphrase" 2015

Project 2 outline

I thought that the section in the reading about conclusions was the most valuable part. I remember being taught to just re-state my thesis in the conclusion, but when you read any good writing, the conclusion is always more than that. A conclusion should open a topic up to readers to think about more rather than closing it down. That's why I will provide some thoughts on the effectiveness of Mckibben's rhetorical strategies in persuading the audience in the conclusion.
I'm planning to use a fairly unconventional structure for this essay. Because we are explaining how to write a rhetorical analysis in addition to writing a rhetorical analysis, I'm going to structure it as a meta-analysis of my own rhetorical analysis to show but also explain how it's done.

P1) I will start with a paragraph explaining what a rhetorical analysis is and how write one. I will then explain that later in the essay I'm going to do a rhetorical analysis of an article in our field.



P2) Here I will begin the actual rhetorical analysis of my article.

• Introduce topic, idea, and author of article. 
• Thesis: In his 2013 article titled "Obama and Climate Change: The Real Story", Bill Mckibben, a prominent climate activist and journalist, employs compelling and clear language to push for action. He uses shocking facts about the direness of our environmental situation, and potent language to emphasize that Obama has let us down when it comes to climate action. He ends with emotionally-charged stories of grassroots action and a hopeful tone for the future to leave readers feeling empowered to fight for change and pressure politicians into doing the right things.

P3) Focus on rhetorical context of article...

• Bill Mckibben's story and information relevant to the article
• Specific readership/audience of Rolling Stone Magazine: Liberal leanings.

P4) Shocking facts and stories... 

• They engage readers (especially those who care about the environment) emotionally.
• They provide an engaging narrative framework for the article
• They might be alienating to some readers who are already anti-environmentalist. 
• He uses these strategies to emphasize how weak Obama has been environmentally.

P5) Societal viewpoints on the topic: the shocking facts and stories are effective because people care about the environment right now. 

P6) Potent language

• Engages readers emotionally and build's Mckibben's credibility as a writer and authority on the topic.
• Gives mental image of the environmental destruction.

P7) He also uses emotionally-charged stories of grassroots movements at the end to give readers hope for change and empower them to fight for what's right.

• Importance of ending on a positive note in environmental journalism: Don't overwhelm people into inaction.

P8) Conclusion of Rhetorical Analysis:

• Say something interesting that I haven't already talked about to leave readers thinking. 
• Final reflection on effectiveness of Mckibben's rhetorical strategies in accomplishing his goal.

P9) Meta-analysis

• Explain how I went about the project process-wise (using examples from the essay that they just read), and how to identify the use of rhetorical strategies in a parer from our field.

Webb, Michaela. "Clouds" 2014

Reflection: I read Zayla and Austin's blog posts, and noticed that we did some things similarly. Austin and I both feel the same way about conclusions, and Zayla and I are both using a similar structure for our essays. 

Draft Thesis Statements

In this blog post I will be drafting 2 or 3 thesis statements for the Rhetorical analysis of my text.

1. In his article in Rolling Stone (a liberally-leaning magazine), Bill Mckibben uses direct quotes from Obama and acknowledges counter-arguments to establish credibility. He then uses shocking facts about the direness of our environmental situation, and potent language to emphasizes how Obama has let us down when it comes to climate action. He ends with emotionally-charged stories of grassroots action groups and a hopeful tone for the future to leave readers feeling empowered to fight for change and pressure politicians into doing the right things.
2. In his 2013 article titled "Obama and Climate Change: The Real Story", Bill Mckibben, a prominent climate activist and journalist, employs compelling and clear language to push for action. He uses shocking facts about the direness of our environmental situation, and potent language to emphasizes that Obama has let us down when it comes to climate action. He ends with emotionally-charged stories of grassroots action and a hopeful tone for the future to leave readers feeling empowered to fight for change and pressure politicians into doing the right things.

I think that from here it's going to be hard to organize my essay to hit all the points in my thesis in an intuitive way. I will need to revise and rethink my thesis as I work into the writing process.

Webb, Michaela. "Where am I going to go?" 2015

Reflection: I read Stef and Olivia's posts. I felt like they did a good job of explaining the goals of their articles but could've done a better job of talking about rhetorical strategies used to accomplish those goals.

Analyzing Audience

In this blog I will be analyzing my audience for this assignment.

• I'm writing for a group of new students in my major (environmental studies). They care about the things involved in our major, but they don't know much yet.
• They are really just looking for information: they want to know how arguments are constructed in our field. 
• If I do a good job in this paper, they will be grateful because I helped them learn how to do a rhetorical analysis of arguments in our field. 
• I am trying to relate to them as an older and more experienced student to some newbies.
• I will need to use professional but not cryptic language to relate to them in this way.

Webb, Michaela. "audience" 2014

Reflection: I read Stef and Lia's posts. They were much more thorough than me, but I feel that I was detailed as I need to be to have a full understanding of my audience. I have very limited time the next three weeks so I'm going allocate the most time to the aspects of rhetorical analysis that I have a harder time with and to actually writing my draft.