Selected Works Portfolio

- Greene RR

This was the first reading response I did in this class, so I want to compare/ contrast how it is different from my final response to prove how my writing has changed over the semester.

- Project 1

I chose this because it was the first paper I had to write for this class. I redid this paper three times and I am proud of the final work I turned in. I am also going to be revising this paper because I know there is still room for improvement.

- Berger RR

Even though I remember this reading being lengthy, I liked Berger's idea and agree with it. I also made a personal connection to the text, which showed how much I understood the concept of the article while reading.

- Peer Response to Robbie's Project 3

I chose to put this in my selected works portfolio because I really took my time reading over an editing Robbie's paper. He said that my comments and suggestions were very helpful, and I was glad to hear that because I did try really hard to help him out with his paper.

-Alexander & Wallace RR

I found this article very interesting, therefore I got into my reading response. I like the connection I made, because I am sure not many people connected the reading to Berger because we read his article near the beginning of the semester.

- Heilker & Yergeau lesson plan

Since I did not know if I would be teaching the class or not, I took extra time on this reading response. That said, I really thought out what the meaning of the reading was, so I would be able to  easily explain it to the class.

#30 "Transgender Rhetorics..."

Alexander, Jonathan. "Transgender Rhetorics: (Re)Composing Narratives of the Gendered Body." 

     College Composition and Communications 57.1 (2005). Print.

Summary

            In his article, “Transgender Rhetorics: (Re)Composing Narratives of the Gendered Body,” Jonathan argues that trans theorists and pedagogical research can help us to understand gender performances through a material and embodied reality. He describes how he incorporates pedagogical activities in his classroom, and uses a majority of his article to discuss what his students’ different stories mean and how they can be interpreted. He concludes with the suggesting that trans theorists can help us to realize the additional extents of the self.

Dialectical Notebook

In this column you RESPOND to the quotes	In this column you TYPE OUT the quote
Alexander frames his article with Patrick Califia-Rice’s story on how he transitioned from a female to a male. This story gives a good representation of what the rest of the article will be about and is a useful way to keep the readers’ attentions (because it may be shocking for some).	“What is a man? Is Patrick Califia-Rice a “real man”? How can we tell?” (195).
This quote summarizes all of the quotes that Alexander used from Zawacki’s article/ essay “Recomposing as a Woman-an Essay in Different Voices.” Zawacki is basically suggesting to women to explore gender through writing and not just reveal the meaning or fundamentals of gender. She does not want writers to make a written voice manly or feminine; she wants them to manipulate language.	“Seeing writing as possibility for representing gender…” (197).
I chose to only put the last part of the quote because, while reading, I felt like that is the section that Alexander was trying to emphasize. He is saying that instructors cannot just make the students figure out and identify sexuality and gender all on their own. The teachers, similar to what Alexander does, need to perform different pedagogical activities that get the students to see first-hand our gender is perceived and to break the stereotypes.	“… it is important for both students and instructors” (198).
This is a very intense statement said by Leslie Feinberg. I had to re read it multiple times because it is such a broad, yet specific, sentence. I think that she is saying that we are taught how to talk and write at a certain age and distinguish that we are male or female. How we use our gender background and knowledge is how we create voice in writing.	“… gender is the poetry each of us makes out of the language we are taught” (203).
I like how he points this out before getting into depth about how it is an incorrect assumption. Many people probably agreed with the stereotype, or something like it, so then they would be interested in him proving that it is incorrect. He proves it is wrong by suggesting that the transsexual body has definite mechanism of attaining gendered embodiment.	“We know the stereotype is transexuality…” (208).
I have been relating a couple of our past articles to Berger’s article on women in the media, so any of those articles , such as Flynn’s (and including Berger’s), are able to be compared to Alexander’s. Unlike Berger’s article, Alexander has a much broader topic base, but he does touch on the idea that women’s image and portrayal are unfairly judged.	“… our bodies, particularly women’s bodies, are under scrutiny…” (210).

#29 "Politics of Teaching..."

Delpit, Lisa. “The Politics of Teaching Literate Discourse.” Freedom’s Plow: Teaching in the

     Multicultural Classroom (2003). Print.

Summary

     In her article, “The Politics of Teaching Literate Discourse,” Lisa Delpit argues against James Paul Gee. As we have already read, Gee believes that people are born into a certain Discourse and that literacy is not just what you say, but how you say something. As Delpit also points out, he believes it is “part of a larger political entity” (181). Throughout her article, she gives several examples of how different people have broken out of their primary Discourse, and entered a new, more powerful one. Delpit encourages teachers to not allow their students to think they are stuck in one social class/ Discourse throughout their entire life.

Dialectical Notebook

In this column you RESPOND to the quotes	In this column you TYPE OUT the quote
This quote, located in the opening paragraph, can easily be compared to Smitherman’s article “God Don’t Ever Change.” In that article, Smitherman is encouraging that blacks continue to keep their cultures original language and not think that they must convert to mainstream English. (Or as Smitherman would say, white English, aka WE.)	“Does it not smack as racism or classism to demand that these students put aside the language of their homes and communities and adopt a discourse…” (181).
This thought never even crossed my mind while I was reading Gee’s article about his ideas on primary and secondary Discourses. Delpit points out a very crucial, yet hidden, conflict with his statements. Also, as an education major it makes me upset if students were to think they would never be able to have the opportunity to switch class systems.	“… such a stance can leave a teacher feeling powerless to effect change, and a student feeling hopeless that change can occur” (182).
I chose this quote because the sentence right before it, which talked about how Marge was one of the most sought-out students in the program seemed a little too happily ever after for me. This particular quote shows that even though she may still not be the best of the best, her hard work paid off and that is what got her to where she is today.	“… even though [Marge’s] GRE scores were still low, she was accepted…” (183).
This is Delpit’s second example of how Gee’s assumptions about Discourses are incorrect. Even though the paragraph that goes with this example is kind of short, Delpit paints a quick background of the people, and then gets right to proving Gee’s point wrong. I like this example because it proves that literally anyone, even a group of 35 children born in the low (low) class can determine their future discourses.	“Almost all the children in the photo eventually left their home community, and almost all achieved impressive goals in life.” (183).
Once again, this quote directly relates to Smitherman’s ideas. Just because one wants to move to a new discourse, does not mean they have to abandon their primary one completely. Using the knowledge and language learned at home can help one to move forward in his or her life and be established in a new discourse.	“Acquiring the ability to function in a dominant discourse need not mean that one must reject one’s home identity and values…” (186).
I think that just this little snippet of the last sentence is crucial for Delpit’s ideas. Her audience is clearly teachers, who she emphasizes and encourages to take charge of their classroom. If the teachers are willing to help their students prosper in life, then they can’t expect to sit back and relax. They must be proactive, and encourage the, to use their experiences at home as a way to change their lives.	“When teachers are committed to teaching all students…” (188).

Response to Smitherman

Paragraph response to "God Don't Never Change" by Geneva Smitherman

     In her article, “‘God Don’t Never Change,’” Geneva Smitherman discusses how students in the classroom are taught grammar. She gives three different groups of language. The first one is white English (WE), the second is blacks using both their dialect and WE (which is referred to as bidialectal, or BD), and the third is standard Black English (BE or BI). While reading this article, I was trying to come up with different meanings for how the title is perceived or what the meaning of it is. At first, I really thought it meant that language has just evolved, not necessarily has changed. I thought this because she talks about how Americans were colonized by the British and learned language from them, and blacks learned their language from the whites. I also noticed how she said “Sounds familiar?” multiple times, implying that we have some time in our lives, showing how it is always revolving. But then, the last two paragraphs made me think that the meaning of the title is that language definitely can be changed, but that it shouldn't be. Everyone should be able to continue to use their own form of language. I think this because she states, “… language does not exist in a vacuum but in the socio-cultural reality” (193). Every culture is going to have a different form of language, and I think it is important for everyone to realize this fact.

Response about PR

    I think my peer review partner did nice job of evenly distributing comments that showed good things about my paper and things I needed to change. He really focused on the fact that I need to ask more questions to each of the women and that my conclusion needs to be longer. I definitely agree with him about the conclusion. It is very short and is lacking what a normal conclusion has (like some sort of summary). I'm not sure if he noticed the appendix, located at the end of my paper, because that shows the other questions I asked the women.  But I do plan on asking them all maybe one or two more so I can add to the language section. Overall, his comments were helpful and thank goodness he found some of the typos that I had previously missed while reading.

#29 "Composing as a Woman"

Flynn, Elizabeth. "Composting as a Women." College Composition and Communication 39.4 (1998). Print.

Flynn, Elizabeth. "Contextualizing 'Composing as a Women.'" From Feminism and Composition: A
     Critical Source Book, edited by Gesa E. Kirsch, et al (2003). Print.

Summary

    

     In her essay, "Composting as a Women," Flynn discusses the differences between female and male writing. She argues that female writing is more about relationships with others and how they are developed over a period of time. She argues that male writing is more independent and does not focus on how others helped them to reach their goal or task. In her follow up review (15 years later), she admits that some of her findings are incorrect and have definitely changed within the past 15 years.

Dialectical Notebook

In this column you RESPOND to the quotes	In this column you TYPE OUT the quote
This idea, which is in Flynn’s Feminist Studies and Composition section, is similar to Berger’s topic in his article (which we read near the beginning of the semester). Flynn argues that women’s views are suppressed and silenced, in order for the imbalanced social order to exist and continue to be carried out.	“Men become the standard against which women are judged” (157).
When Flynn first said this I did not think she was correct. She said that females grow and learn primarily learn for their mothers, therefore relationships are more potent in their writing. But I must admit, her examples do a nice job of proving how her point could be seen as correct.	“[Women] develop through and stress particularistic and affective relationships to others” (158).
Flynn was not the one that found this “discovery.” Belenky et al found this from their study. Maybe this was true back in 1988, but I know this is considered a false assumption today. I think that silent women know more than most would expect, they just tend to keep their ideas to themselves.	“Silent women have little awareness of their intellectual capacities” (159).
This is one of the examples that Flynn gives that I was saying was a good one to prove her point. Kim did focus on how all the women involved in the story bond over how the memories they made during the long drive down the country road. Now obviously, one example isn’t going to support such a large claim, but it is a good start and convincing.	“The experience solidified relationships and led to the formation of a close bond that was renewed every time the day was recollected” (159).
Flynn proves how Jim’s writing reflects her claims on male writing compositions. Like I said in the summary, she argues that males are more independent with their writing, and don’t usually include others in the writing. The fact that Jim only talked about how he achieved his goal and did not have help from others proves her idea.	“He as achieves his goal in the face of adversity” (161).
I actually really like this quote. Flynn encourages teachers (her audience) to not be afraid to let their female students to embrace their role. Just because they write about different relationships, doesn’t mean it will be bad writing. She also encourages them to not be afraid to try to break out of the role, and see where that takes them.	“But we must also encourage them to become self-consciously aware of what their experiences in the world has been and how this experience is related to the politics of gender” (164).

#28 "Coaches Can Read.."

Branick, Sean. "Coaches Can Read, Too." Writings About Writing: A College Reader. Boston:

           Bedford/St.Martin's, 2011. 557-573. Print.

Summary

     Sean Branick was a freshman student at Dayton University when he wrote his ethnographical paper. Branick wrote his paper on how coaches are a discourse community. He explained how they must form multiple literacies, such as interpersonal literacies, situational literacies, and textual literacies. He believes that textual literacy consists of the actual play designing; interpersonal literacy describes how they are able to read people (as in their players); and situational literacy is the idea that “… coaches much be able to actively read a game in order to put their players in the best possible situation…” (568). He also discusses how they have common goals, lexis, and genres.

Dialectical Notebook

In this column you RESPOND to the quotes	In this column you TYPE OUT the quote
I think Branick makes a very good and well thought out point. I would have never even considered “reading people” to be a form of literacy. During this section, I am intrigued by his notion, but not entirely convinced. He really convinces me during the section Multiple Literacies on how coaches have many different types of literacies.	“Here Branick makes an important connection between literacy and coaching. Are you persuaded by his connection? Why or why?” (561).
I think that Branick did a really nice job of transitioning from idea to idea throughout his entire paper, especially in this section. His last sentence of each section introduces what will discuss next in the paper. This makes it easier for readers easier to follow and not so choppy. He is clearly using Swales ideas of genre and lexis to exlpain the different aspects of the coaching discourse community.	“Note how Branick links elements of one characteristic (genre) to a previously discussed characteristic (lexis)” (564).
I like how he makes this paragraph of transition informal. It shows that he is trying to make sure the audience understands what he just accomplished and what is going to be discussed next. Like I said, it’s informal, therefore some people may not like the style, but I think it is an effective way to guide the audience through the paper.	“What do you think of Branick’s strategy here for transitioning to a new section/topic?” (565).
In his introduction, Branick does a good job of laying out his ideas to the audience. Then, through subheadings of specific sections, he is able to support his claims with specific evidence and examples. These examples are shown through many different methods, such as actual interviews or even on the field scenarios.	“Throughout the paper, Branick gives an overview of his claims and then uses those claims to organize his content. How well do you think this strategy works?” (567).
I find that his quotations are a very good example for how ours should be in our project 3 papers. He does not just drop quotes into the paper, he introduces them, and then explains. Also, I think it is important to point out how he only used 1 block quote. Many students (including myself) tend to use those more than necessary.	“Notes how Branick integrates direct quotes from his interviews in order to support his claims rather than simply listing one long quotation after another” (566).
I actually think that his conclusion is the weakest part of entire paper. It seems like he was just trying to “cut to the chase” too quickly. He needed to do a more thorough summary of each of his points. I’m not saying that he needs to go in depth with each idea, but he VERY briefly overviewed each of his claims in the conclusion.	“What do you think of Branick’s conclusion? Do you find it effective? What else might he have done here?

#27 "Memoria..."

Villanueva, Victor. "Memoria' is a Friend of Ours: On the Discourse of Color." College

     English 67.1 (2009). Print.

Summary

     In his article, "Memoria' is a Friend of Ours: On the Discourse of Color,” Victor Villanueva argues that many compositions of writing and academic discourses lack Aristotle’s idea of pathos. Right away, he introduces “Memoria,” which is known in Greek Mythology as the mother of muses. He promotes the idea of using her in writing by relating back to past experiences, culture, heritage, or memories. He even states, “We must invite [Memoria] into our classrooms and into our scholarship. He really emphasizes how she can help improve one’s writing, which will help writer to touch on every aspect of the rhetorical triangle (because they always seem to focus more on logos and ethos, but lack in pathos).

Dialectical Notebook

In this column you RESPOND to the quotes	In this column you TYPE OUT the quote
Even those this quote is small, and is within a story, I still think it is important. This story, and particularly this part, emphasizes the use of Memoria. Villanueva tries to get his children to learn about their grandfather’s past stories and about their heritage. He is giving readers an example of Memoria (without actually stating that it literally is an example).	(In one of the stories) “Push him for stories of Puerto Rico during his childhood” (171).
In this quote, Villanueva states what a large amount of authors have done in their writing. Some of these authors include, Adell, JanMohamed and Lloyd, San Juan, and several others. All of the authors back up his idea that a memory can create an identity, emotion, and a connection to audience members.	“… memory of an identity in formation, and constant reformation, the need to reclaim a memory of an identity as formed through the generations” (172).
Prior to this quote, Villanueva only discussed his idea of memoria, but in this quote he introduces a new idea. The idea that pathos is almost nonexistent in academic discourses. Readers are able to make the connection of the two ideas: using memoria in writing will help to make pathos stronger in the composition.	“Academic discourse is cognitively powerful! But the cognitive alone is insufficient” (172).
When I read the phrase “there is a common saying” I immediately underlined the sentences because that implies their lexis or language, which is one of Swales’ six characteristics of a discourse community. Language must be acquired in a DC in order to be consideres one. Those not in the DC (and without the translation) would have literally no idea what the phrase means, unless you are in the Puerto Rican and Cuban DC.	“There is a common saying among Puerto Ricans and Cubans: Te doy un cuento de mi historia, literally rendered as “I’ll give you a story about my history” : me, history, and memory, and a story” (175).
At first, one may think that Villanueva is talking about himself, personally, but he clarifies that this is not the case. He is talking about a discourse. (As I took it) he is saying that a specific discourse should reflect this statement, which describes a group of people that do not exactly know where they belong.	“I’m trying to figure this out, somehow: who I am, from where, playing out the mixes within” (176).
Villanueva is emphasizing that by using memoria to discover memories and heritages, it can eventually be used as a tool for the future. It can bring new emotion to discourses, which can help one discover themselves and how he/she relates and interacts with others. He then concludes with a call to action, stating that we can be instructors and encourage students to do the same.	“Looking back, we look ahead…” (176).

#26 "Autism and Rhetoric"

“Autism and Rhetoric” – Heilker and Yergeau

Vocab

·      critical mass: amount required to achieve a goal or result

·      neurotypicality: not autistic or otherwise diagnosed with an intellectual or developmental;

       difference

·      rhetorical analysis: analyzing subjects in a rhetorical way of thinking

·      rhetoric (as offered in the article): a way of being in the world through language

·      topoi (provide a few examples): a traditional theme or motif; literary convention; rhetorical

       convention

·      “types of rhetoric”: judicial, epideictic, deliberative

·      rhetorical listening (Ratcliffe): a stance of openness that a person may choose to assume in

       cross- culture exchanges

·      echolalia: a characteristic kind of language use among autistics (repeat stock words and

       Phrases)

·      disease model perspective:

·      relativistic empathy (or “relativism” + “empathy”): when neurotypicals empathize

       autistics

·      Asperger's Syndrome: autism spectrum, a form of autism; have difficult time in social

       Interactions and have specific patterns in behavior (ex: shaking of hands)

Class Activity

1.)    Has this article affected your view on autistics? If so, how? What about the “puzzle piece”? What used to come to mind when you would see that and now what will you think next time you see one?

2.)    What other discourse communities can you think of that are promoted by the public but misunderstood or can be thought of as rhetorical?

Authors’ Niche	Main Arguments that advance that claim	Sources in the Article
- “The new welter of voices exhorting the public to become more aware and increase our understanding of autism really has very little to offer” (261). - Autism is rhetorical - View language not as defects, but differences	- People raise money for autism, but still do not know what causes autism - It is rhetoric because is it a “way of being in the world of language” (262). - language through silence -language through common hand movement, rocking, long monologues, and variations in voice modulation (263).	- CNN: “‘Although autism will be diagnosed in more than 25,000 U.S. children this year, scientists and doctors still know very little about the neurological disorder’” (261). - Corder (several times): “‘Every utterance belongs to, exists in, issues from, and reveals a rhetorical universe’” (263). - Ratcliffe: “… contends that rhetorical listening ‘does not presume and naïve, realistic empathy, such as ‘I’m OK, you’re OK’ but rather an ethical responsibility to argue what we deem fair and just…’” (265). - Glenn: silence is a rhetoric - Burke: “… use language in an ultimately impotent attempt to bridge our biological separateness” (266).

Connections with other Readings

This reading connects with Alexander and Wallace’s article “The Queer in Turn in Composition Studies: Reviewing and Assessing an Emerging Scholarship” and Berger’s article “Ways of Seeing.” All three articles discuss how misunderstood different discourse communities can be viewed by the public. All the authors emphasize how society puts a label on the topics (women, LGBT, and autistics), and even if they may not realize it, they are judging those in each community based on the label. For example, Melanie Yergeau stated how the puzzle piece symbolizes how autistics are puzzling or need to fit in. This reading also reflects Wardle's idea on how identity is established within a discourse community. Paul states how viewing autism as rhetorical explains many of his sons actions, and allows him to understand and identify with him on a new level.

Connection with Project 3

This article shows how our topics for project three can expand beyond a sports team or a classroom. This allows us, as students, to get a better understanding of how to go about researching our topic of choice for the project.

So far with project 3...

Tonight ADPi (Alpha Delta Pi) had chapter, and I took notes on how information was discussed throughout the chapter. Also, new vocabulary, such as NPC, was introduced. I have been looking through the website, alphadeltapi.org, because it states all the goals of ADPi and how new members are brought into the sorority and how old ones can still contribute to the discourse community. I still need to set up interviews with exec members of ADPi.

intro & synthesis for proj 3

Stereotypes. They are everywhere we look around. No matter how much someone says, “I don’t place others into a specific stereotype,” the concept is still present. What about sorority girls? What is your first instinct about them as a whole? I am sure that most of you, like most people, automatically thought: fake, snotty, and wealthy. Many people would not consider them to be a discourse community, which is a group of people with a common goal. When one looks into what a sorority’s standards are based on, they may think twice about how they judge sororities and how they can relate the topic of “discourse community.”

            The actual term “discourse community” has several meanings to different scholars, and with those different meanings comes different aspects of the word. For example, Professor James Paul Gee does not refer coined the term Discourse, which has very similar concepts as a discourse community, but with a different name. Also, Elizabeth Wardle believes discourse communities should be considered activity systems because the members are constantly learning new ways to interact and communicate with fellow members. Unlike these two scholars, in his article, The Concept of Discourse Community,” John Swales discusses, what he believes to be the six characteristics of an actual discourse community.

Swales argues that a discourse community must meet every standard that he lists in order to be considered a discourse community. He directly tells readers: “I would now like to propose six defining characteristic that will be necessary and sufficient for identifying a group of individuals as a discourse community” (471). His six characteristics are as follows: a discourse community must have a broad set of public goals and objectives, it needs to have several mechanisms to allow intercommunication among the members, the mechanisms must allow members to receive information and give feedback, the discourse community must have one or more genres (topics and form that it uses), the DC must provide a lexis (vocabulary and language that every member can identify with), and new members must be allowed to enter, while old ones are still present in the discourse community. Swales distinctly explains his ideas regarding discourse communities to his audience. He focuses on the presumption that all discourse communities have his six characteristics.

Unlike Swales, Gee has a much broader sense of the term. He explains how there are four different types of Discourses. A primary Discourse, which occurs early in life and consists of home life and being with one’s family. A secondary Discourse, which is made up of public institutions, such as churches, schools, or other organizations. He also discusses the idea of dominant and non-dominant Discourse. He believes that dominant Discourses “... are secondary Discourses the mastery of which... brings with it the acquisition of social ‘goods’” (485), and that non-dominant Discourses “... are secondary Discourses the mastery of which brings solidarity with a particular social network” (485). Gee points out that different Discourses bring new knowledge to the people involved.

Similar to Swales, Gee does believe that language is an important aspect in literacy skills and social aspects. Although Swales believes each discourse community should have a distinct lexis, Gee emphasizes the language should be about what people, but about how they say it. To add to his idea, he informs readers that “it is not just how you say it, but what you are and do when you say it” (483). Gee is emphasizing the idea that language is not just grammar, but a way of life. Language can be misinterpreted by members outside of the Discourse. In the article “Materiality and Genre in the Study of Discourse Communities,” Amy J. Devitt writes about miscommunication among, what she refers to as specialists and nonspecialists. Specialists are members of a certain discourse community that are familiar with the genre, and nonspecialists are outsiders that try to understand the discourse community’s genre, but are not given enough information to comprehend the language. Devitt states, “Part of the difficulty when specialized communities write to nonspecialists users lies in technical language, a difficulty commonly... addressed through defining key terms...” (101). She wants specialists to realize that they must be able to fully communicate with nonspecialists to prevent confusion and misinterpretations.

In her article, “Identity, Authority, and Learning to Write in New Workplaces,” Elizabeth Wardle gives a crucial example of how miscommunication can ultimately affect one’s ability to survive in his or her workplace. Her idea of creating an identity and authority can be compared to Swales forth and fifth characteristics of a discourse community, which discuss genre and lexis. Wardle’s believes that authority “is bestowed by institutions, can be easily withdrawn by [members], and must be maintained through appropriate expressions of authority” (525-526). Also, authority can be withdrawn at any time. In her article, Wardle gives an example of how a man named Allen misunderstood his authority within the activity system and ended up leaving his job. The main reason for his misinterpretation of the position was because Allen never adapted to the group’s genre and language. He commonly used emails to get ahold of fellow workers, and he was unaware that they simply ignored the emails. Since they never responded, Allen thought he had much more power than what was actually the case. Similar to Devitt’s ideas, Wardle proved that miscommunication will cause confusion and ultimately affect a person’s life.