Rediscovering Central Asia

The whole essay bored me to tears. My eyes strained against the print, trying to digest each piece of information he threw at me without much success. As a lover of history, I was disappointed my my inability to keep focused on what I was reading. In terms of rhetorical devices, Starr used rhetorical questions (page 203), parenthesis (page 203), and a reoccurring theme of outer space.

Outdated

Why does Meddy suggest this is relevant?  What is one rhetorical strategy used by the video's creators?

In the video, we see a baby interacting with an Apple iPad and magazines. With the iPad, the baby's untrained and clumsy fingers can cause pictures to move and screens to change. When the same baby attempts to perform the same movements upon a magazine, she finds no activity. Pictures don't move and screens don't change. That's when the video creator asks the rhetorical question, "Is it broken or what?"


The magazine is, in fact, not broken. Magazines cannot be broken, unlike the iPad, only torn. When a magazine tears, you shrug and throw it away. When an iPad breaks? You might cry. It was expensive, don't you know? This video is relevant to what we're doing in class because it shows a remediation of writing. Print vs. electronic text. The new generation is growing up with electronics right and left, receiving the trendiest smartphones at the early age of five and the newest video game consoles the moment they're old enough to hold a controller. What will become of print text? Who knows?

Punctuation

Punctuation matters. A lot. 

The question of "Where does the comma go?" is, to me, one of the most important in Standard English grammar. Why? Simply because a comma can alter the meaning of a sentence. For example, let's take the case of direct address. 

I helped my uncle, Jack, off his horse.
I helped my uncle jack off his horse.

The lack of the direct address comma has dire consequences, as you can see. Another related common comma problem is the debate over the Oxford comma, which is used when listing a set of things. For example, instead of writing "Me, myself and I", you write "Me, myself, and I." Personally, I was taught to use the Oxford comma since I was very young and I faithfully advocate its use. Below are some other examples that show the difference it can make, taken from this website.

“I’d like to thank my parents, Jesus and Oprah Winfrey.” (Besides suggesting that a child was born to Jesus and Oprah, the lack of a serial comma also implies that Jesus’ last name is Winfrey.) 

"A notorious gambler, Charlie Sheen owed money to his ex-wives, Billy Bob Thornton and Hugh Grant.”

“This award is dedicated to my good friends, Young Jeezy and God.”

“…highlights of his global tour include encounters with Nelson Mandela, an 800-year-old
 demigod and a dildo collector.” (Note: this is a real example from The Times of London.)

I've been thinking about Project 3

I've been thinking about my own draft for Project 3 and I have to tell you that, quite frankly, I didn't know what I was doing. Coming up with metaphors alone took me hours of brainstorming. It got to the point where I quoted Forrest Gump. I believe my paper is a hot pile of poo. I apologize for the smell. :(

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I keep thinking about my Project 3, and I'm pretty sure my next rhetorical move will be to actually include rhetorical devices. I think the only rhetorical device I did include was metaphors. Next time, I suppose I will add repetition and ask questions.

A Sentence Starts Out Like. . .

An explorer who has only a vague idea where their final destination is. Even if they have a map, an outline of directions, they still may run into obstacles along the way. They know their starting point well, but sometimes these obstacles will take them on a path not shown on the map. Often enough, explorers will abandon the beaten path in favor of following clues they have gathered from their travels.

How do you reach the El Dorado? Go off the road and cross the river, where the territory becomes rather swampy. Watch out for annoyances, such as mosquitoes. Crocodiles and witch doctors are quite prevalent, so be careful!

The explorer starts out with an idea where they want to go. It's the journey they take that defines the experience. By discarding the map, the explorer can either overcome the obstacles and reach the destination they have only ever imagined, or they can find themselves lost and die among the aggressive natives who will tear them apart, ripping flesh from bone.

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Fun fact:

The extended metaphor of an explorer struggling to find their final destination is my favorite metaphor ever.

The Explorer's Villanelle
Explorers envision destination,
Losing themselves in the sands of time,
Searching for that unknown, vital sensation.

Brows furrow in frustration,
With each fruitless step they climb,
Explorers envision destination.

The Earth shakes with such vibration,
Water and Wind scream in an unholy chime,
Searching for that unknown, vital sensation.

With experience comes transformation,
Knowledge of the mind expanding to its prime,
Explorers envision destination.

Body and Spirit entwining in consummation,
Dusting the blackthorns, oaks, and wild thyme,
Searching for that unknown, vital sensation.

The travel ends at the fountain of salvation,
An illusion of the blessed sublime.
Explorers envision destination,
Searching for that unknown, vital sensation.

(Taken from my writing and photography blog, found here)

Relationship with My Reader

I pretend that my reader isn't there. I don't write to appease the reader, I write to find release. Writing is therapy, and I don't want to be immediately critiqued upon what I feel. Let me say what I need to say, then you can interrupt. At the same time, my writing is geared towards making the reader feel as if they are there, in my story. I try to describe the scene to the best of my ability, using simple and ungarnished words. My goal is to make the scene clear in the minds of myself and the reader, so we can both see the same landscapes, feel the same emotions, and have the same grasp of the characters. By purposefully ignoring the reader by making my writing easier for me to understand, I actually assist the reader in diving into the world of my imagination to see how the story was meant to be seen.

Stomp the Yard

The final battle sequence in "Stomp the Yard" compares to chapter 7 in Trimble's book. The chapter was about readability, and how it's alright to be informal with your reader. Trimble suggests that the writer must find a middle ground between informal and formal, quoting Somerset Maugham when he said, "good prose should resemble the conversation of a well-bred man." In Stomp the Yard, the protagonist finds this middle ground in dancing; he is on a "formal" step team, but uses "informal" crunking moves from his past dancing days to influence his routine. By mixing informality into the dance, he gives the audience something new to look at that has never been seen before in stepping. In writing, one can mirror this informality by writing a convincing argument using fewer adjectives and adverbs, powerful nouns, and conjunctions.