Free Write: me

I am so tired this morning. I have been doing so much school work and of course, trying to have a social life at the same time. My friend's birthday is today. But I'm just glad that the school year is winding down to a close. 18 hours is a lot to take all at once. I just want to stop doing homework and studying for tests and quizzes for a little while. But that's not going to happen for another month. I am taking a maymester here at TCU. So not only do I have to pack up and study, but I have to move to a different location for a month. It is so weird. I don't like this. And I don't even know where I'm going to live for sure. My roommate is graduating and trying to get a job in the area but hasn't had any luck yet. She just started getting serious about looking at all possiblilities last week. It's kind of frustrating that she waited so long to do this. I just want to know if she's staying around so I can live with her or not. I wish she would figure it out. I think I'll be deciding by Friday no matter what.

Unit 3: Texas Gun Bill

Well it’s about that time to choose our topic. Last week our group made the decision that we were going to argue against the bill that would allow students on public university campuses in Texas would carry handguns. Students would have to have their Concealed Handgun License and must be 21 years old. I think that this is a scary proposition. I also find this a little daunting because I would not like to be in a class with a student who receives an F on a test and has a Glock 9 mm in his backpack. I have always believed that one of the scariest situations in college would be someone with a gun on campus who is mowing down students in front of the library. Also, carrying a gun in a backpack would not be too different from the Plaxico Burress case when he was in a New York nightclub and he shot himself in the leg with the pistol that was in his pocket. You just never know when a gun may go off. For our visual argument we are planning on doing a series of signs that would be read as students walk. This message would be conveyed in five or six signs placed in a row that could reach a high amount of people because of the amount of activity that occurs on campus. Also, one argument that could really help us convey our message would be a list of student’s names that have been killed on college campuses. This could also be used in a paragraph form and may be more effective.

In Class: Visuals

When dealing with visual texts, the medium can be very important. My group is doing the project on the Texas college gun ban. I know that pictures of guns send very different messages to different groups of viewers. The atmosphere around a gun can also change someone's point of view drastically. If you have someone holding a hunting rifle in the middle of a field or forest, one might not make a big deal about it unless they love animals. But if you take guns and just put them next to each other in a store, they seem a bit more threatening because there is no context in which to put them. But if this picture were in an NRA magazine, then you know that the picture is going to make the gun seem cool and flashy to those in the U.S. who like them. But if you take a picture of guns and put it next to a picture of college students, you will more than likely think of the recent school shooting that have occurred. The presentation plays a big role in how viewers will be affected by what they see.

In Class:

The book talks about style and structure. By glancing over the information, it's about how you put the information together in your argument to express it in the most effective way. Some of the topics were about sentence structure. When writing a sentence you want to make sure that it doesn't read like a second graders book. It is effective to flip the word order/ sentence structure. If you do that, the sentence should flow more smoothly. You want to make sure that other things are correct to. Punctuation should be correct, because that will make it more effective.
The information will be beneficial to unit 3 because it shows us how we can effectively put together an argument. It will help us decide what style works the best for our topic. This in turn will give us our most effective argument. I'm excited about starting up on unit three with my group. I think that we can do wonderful things with whatever topic we pick.

Unit 3 Jobs

My job title is the Researcher. I am to find the three sources that we will use for our group project. I plan on finding quite a few once we have our topic and media genres decided so that the group can decide on which ones we should use. This is the probably the most important job for the beginning of the project since it is based off of figuring out what the arguments for our topic are. Everyone's job for tomorrow is to generate ideas for our topic so that we can get a good start.
My group members are Shawna, Will, and Rachel.

In Class: Group Work

Alright, so I have been in both good and bad groups. When I've been in a bad group, there's always at least one person who doesn't show up to the group meetings. That person is usually also the person that is completely slacking on the work, making the rest of the group wonder if they have to start divvying up that person's share of the work. And then, in a couple of groups, there is always the person who doesn't like your ideas or your work. You have to convince them that what you have done is correct and will fit in with the rest of the group. I try my hardest to not have to work in groups because it just seems easier to do what needs to be done yourself and get graded on your work alone. It drives me crazy when a teacher says that the entire group will get the same grade. In no way is that fair. It should always rely on if all the group members were actually working on the project.

The ideal group work situation would be one in which everyone was working. The group would also have good communication skills so that everyone is aware of the common goal. When having a group meeting, everyone would show up with all the necessary materials that they have acquired so the time can be spent talking about the topic and putting the materials together that the group believes will work the best for their argument.

Within a group there are many different roles. Everyone needs to do research and find materials for the group to work with. There also needs to be someone who is in charge will set meeting times and make sure everyone knows what work is to be completed and brought to the next group meeting. There also needs to be someone who is willing to take notes and sort the ideas that the group members are coming up with. Then there also needs to be the person that will put the project together in its final form. The group itself needs to be flexible and understand that everyone needs to be putting in time and making sure that the group is successful.

In Class: My Thoughts

As I look over the things that I have written in the past, I realize how much I have learned. My thoughts about what an argument is have expanded. It's no longer something that involves two people, but more of one person with an opinion that want's to make his or her case.
I have enjoyed doing many of the in class writings as they were created just to get my thoughts out of me. I was able to do write about some things because they were fun and what was on my mind, and others were to share my ideas on what we had learned. We talked so much about rhetorical thinking and the ethos, pathos and logos of ideas. I don't usually look for the arguments in papers that don't seem to be opinionated, but then again, everything is opinion. Statistics are even skewed to the person's liking who is writing about them. Now I know how to look more closely at arguments to see what exactly the writer is trying to get across to us and how he is doing it.

My 3 texts

How do these texts fit together?
These texts fit together as they are all in agreement that The Dark Knight is a record breaking movie. They also all think that it is a great movie.

How are they the same?
The are the same as they are all done by film critics of well-known sources (the New York Times and Rotten Tomatoes).

How are they different?
They are different as each discusses different reasons for why The Dark Knight is such a hit in the box office. One writer goes very in depth about the movie while another barely give supporting reasons to why it was good. One article just uses the current record numbers to have The Dark Knight prove itself.

Unspoken Values and Assumptions:
It is thought that because the writers write for the New York Times and Rotten Tomatoes, that they are reputable sources. Many people will think highly of whatever the New York Times has to say, even in an opinion section.

Cultural of Assertion:
Americans are likely to listen to what the New York times has to say. We hold that paper as a reputable source. Those who are familiar with the Rotten Tomatoes web site are likely to also think of that as reputable. It often will not even matter how much information there is to back up what the writer of the article has said for the public to trust the source.

Unit 2 Proposal

I have decided that I would like to do my case study on the release of "Batman: The Dark Knight." I want to focus on how the death of Heath Ledger effected the release of the movie. I really want to focus on the controversy of the weekend that it came out and how people reacted to it. I believe Ledger's death played a huge roll in the success of the movie. I'm really curious in seeing what I find in terms of people saying the movie should or should not have been released when it was. The death of an actor during filming is rare and is always hard on movie goers. I remember wondering myself if it was honoring him to show the film or if Warner Brothers was just going to try and profit off of it.
I guess that a bit of my motivation for choosing this topic is because I'm an RTVF minor (and the Film aspect of it is the part I love). I love watching action movies. I never really have been interested in the movies that have grown out of comics like Batman, the Hulk and X-Men, but when all the hype started up about "The Dark Knight", I knew it was a movie that I would be watching along with a great portion of the nation.
I intend on looking for a variety of sources. I would like to have one source from a local paper such as the Star-Telegram or the TCU Daily Skiff. I would want one to be a national paper or TV source. I also think that a source from a film magazine would be good to see the perspective of the industry on the subject. Looking at polls and political cartoons would also be interesting.
It took me a while to think of this topic, but now that I have, I am excited to start. I am eager to see all the different reactions and opinions I come across with respect to the release of this film.

In Class: Free write

Well, I haven't really even thought about the Unit 2 proposal yet. I think the last time I thought about it was last Tuesday. When I was thinking about it then, the only thing that came to my mind was the bill that is awaiting approval or dismissal in Texas about being able to conceal carry guns on college campuses. But then I think about how much I don't really want to write about guns. It's one of those weird things. Because I'm on the Rifle Team, I feel like I am conditioned to think about every gun law there is, but the politics of it does not really interest me at all. So, I'm going to have to look through the paper or something and find a more interesting topic. One that I don't know much about, but seems more exciting.
So anyway, the reason I haven't thought about anything is because I was in Hawaii from Wednesday to Sunday. I either haven't caught back up on sleep or with the time zones yet. Wouldn't you think that Hawaii is supposed to be relaxing? Not when you're trying to see as much as you can in three days. We were so busy going to the beach and shooting that I was worn out at the end of the day only to hear my teammates say that they wanted to leave by 830 the next morning. Well, hopefully I get back on track soon...after my two tests tomorrow.

Rhetorical Analysis

I chose a picture about cell phones.  In it, there are five high school or college age people sitting around a table all talking on cell phones.  Many of them also have a Starbuck's drink.  Then there is a caption in the upper right hand corner that says, "Everyone has it.  Everyone needs it."

This picture makes the argument that all young adults have cell phones.  Even when they are in each other's presence, they all seem to need to be on the phone.  There is even a deck of cards on the table between them, but it doesn't look like they will ever play cards with each other.  The audience is obviously young adults like the ones pictured as the ad is saying that we all needs phones and use them constantly even though we are with our friends.  

I think that this argument is effective.  It definitely has emotional appeal because it is showing friends being together but not talking to each other.  I guess, almost in the same way, it is making a logical appeal because when you are with your friends, why do you need to be talking with others that aren't with you?  We should be able to spend time with our friends in person and talk to others on the phone when we aren't with other people.  It is also a realistic image.  You see many young adults, as well as those of other generations, constantly talking on cell phones.  It lets us have more communication with others, but at the same time, it takes away from some of that personal connection that you get when you are actually with someone.  

In Class: Rhetorical Thinking

Rhetorical thinking is talking apart an argument and really analyzing it. But of course the arguments that use ethos, pathos or logos are most effective. When you analyze it you should look at both sides and see who wrote it and if someone was sponsoring it. Then you can get a bigger picture on what is happening. The book gave an example when they were talking about the anti-war pictures and how some people use close-ups but that might not really show the whole picture. I thought the argument using Bob Dylan was really funny and I do wonder why VS chose to have him on their commercial. The more you can analyze who is saying something the better. But if you are going to write something yourself you need to make sure that you can draw everyone's attention. And you want to make sure that when you do this, that people will be willing to listen to you because they can see that you know what you are talking about. We have to make sure we pick our audience and see if we want what we say to be said in a comical way or to be really serious. An example of a very serious add the book gives is the one of the drunk driving poster. The book puts it in the Ethos section, but it is also a very serious topic because it has changed the injured girls life forever. If you are super effective, you can show both sides at the same time fairly equally and still prove your point.

Bookstore Appeals

I believe that the TCU Bookstore is full of many logical, ethical and emotional appeals. Let's start with the emotional appeals. From the outside, I think that the Bookstore looks rather glamorous as it is on the corner and has huge windows facing the street. When you walk in the store, you see its two escalators in the middle of the store. That definitely makes a statement. The Bookstore has been built to invite you upstairs and present a very open space. Currently at the top of the escalator are many stuffed animals with hearts on them or hearts that they are holding. They are just waiting for someone to come by and pick them to be given to a loved one on Valentine's Day. Another emotional appeal would be the school spirit felt by someone who walks into the store. Along with all the TCU merchandise, there is a banner like printing on the overhang between the first and second floors that expresses the academic life of TCU, the old days and also the athletic side of TCU. It is really neat to look at and just soak in the meaning of the pictures.
The Bookstore is also full of many logical appeals. The way it is set up is a basic one. The majority of the Barnes and Noble books are on the first floor in the front. They back up to the Starbucks cafe with the magazines being the closest. Next to the cafe on the other side are the snacks and small necessities. Then upstairs is all the school supplies and school books, along with female oriented accesories like Vera Bradley purses, jewelry and dorm room items.
One ethical argument I noticed is all the posters of famous books they have on the wall. The Bookstore is telling you that these books they have chosen to display are the best and most likely also classics.
Now, obviously these are not the only ethical, logical and emotional appeals made in the Bookstore, but that is because there are endless possibilities.

In Class: Visual

My attention is immediately drawn to the girl's face. The girl holding the cigarette does not look the least bit happy. She also has a white dress and light bouncing off her hair which helps to fram her face and draw even more attention to her. Her eyes seem to be looking right at me, full of emotion. I feel like something is wrong but I don't know what.
Then you look at how she is standing with a cigarette in one hand and the other crossed before her. In the front corner, there is another girl. She isn't well lit. It's actually almost hard to see her, and at first glance you would completely miss her. She looks kind of upset because her hands are on her hips. The girl with the cigarette looks older than she really is too. It's like she's already lived a hard life. The fact that she is wearing a white dress and the girl whom we can't really see is wearing a darker dress seems almost backwards if we think of white as being innocence. I find the lighting to be quite interesting. The most lighting is on the cigarette girl's face.
This image is about a lot of emotion. She's kind of depressed and seems like things are just hard for her. The little girl seems like she's almost more authoritative with her hands on her hips. It's almost like she wants to help the girl with the cigarette.
The creator of this image definately wanted it to be striking. I think it shows a side of life that we may be afraid of. Maybe that we see many things in our lives in a negative light and so we often feel like the girl in white. We need to notice that there is always that other person telling us that we've gone the wrong way and need to change. The creator wants to draw out lots of emotion.

In Class: Logic

The one thing that I found odd in the logos chapter was the discussion of interviews. The interview they selected was about an arsonist. They were claiming that he was a terrorist and in turn he was saying that if he was a terrorist, then the companies doing the polluting should also be considered terrorists. I just kind of wondered what the logical argument they were discussing was. After reading the article, the book asks if the interviewer was being unbiased or if he was leading his questions on way or the other. So it just makes me wonder if we are supposed to think of the entire thing, the interviewee and the interviewer as both making or asking logical questions or if it's just supposed to be one or the other.
The analogies part also confused me. It seemed as if the book gave a good analogy and then said, no, wait, analogies aren't a good way to use logical appeal because they are overused and used improperly. The book says they are routinely abused, but personally, I thought the one in the book was good.

In Class: Ethics

I brought in a Coca-Cola bottle. I chose this because I believe that it makes an ethical appeal. They, like any company are promoting their product. The main color is red which attracts the attention of your eye. Coke's commercials are also very bright and cheery with young attractive people and have the occasional polar bear. But by promoting their product, they are promoting something that doesn't have any real nutritional value. That's what I think is the scary thing and brings up the question: Is Coke being ethical by selling such a product that does nothing for us, and by commercializing it in such a possitive way? Coca-Cola is know for disolving metal, decaying teath, and cleaning car engines. The Coke trucks that carry the concentrate have to be marked with hazardous material signs. This does not sound like something that I would want to put into my body. But yet Coke goes ahead and sells large amounts of their product all over the world. To get more people to buy it they offer rewards called Coke rewards where you can redeem prizes with codes online with ever purchase of their product. On another note, Coke is also being question about their ethics with sweat shops in places like Columbia.

My Public Space

I've decided that I want the TCU Bookstore to be my public space. I've decided this because it a building that looks very inviting with its big windows and doors on the corner of two busy streets. This building is obviously meant for college students, but I am wondering how many other people use this space and what draws them in. The Bookstore doesn't only have books, but also school supplies, TCU merchandise and a Starbuck's Cafe.
I expect to see a lot more college students there than adults. I would think that many students would be drinking Starbuck's coffee and either studying or hanging out with a friend or two, but of course I can't forget about the teachers and other adults that also love a Starbuck's drink. I also expect to find the majority of the people buying TCU merchandise to be students. In the Barnes and Noble section, I expect to find a large range of people as there are novels, magazines and also children's books.
As a TCU college student, I am a part of the target audience. I, however, do not use this space often. This is because, though the bookstore is a convient place to buy things, I think that it is too overpriced. I don't really have any preconcieved ideas about what I will find other than what I've said above. I'm excited to get started on this project so that I can find out who uses this space at various times of the day and what they use it for. Maybe I'll even find something that draws me in more too.

In Class: Public Space

So my first idea for a public space was to go to the BLUU. But then I started thinking ab0ut how big of a space that the BLUU is and that I might need to narrow my area down. So I thought that I would sit on the first floor on the north side. I figured that this would work, but then realized that with all the entrances to this building that it could still be very hard. There would be large amounts of people going places that I would never know since they could be going to the cafeteria, a meeting hall, just meeting up with friends, or the little shops on the first floor. So, then I thought that the student room on the second floor on the south side might be a good idea. I've been in there twice when they prepared meals for the kids on campus, but never since. So I kind of wonder who even utilizes this space. I also thought about the computer work room on the first floor; the area that sticks out of the building and has a round shape to it, but I've never been in there before. Then someone mentioned that I might use the bookstore as my public space. I guess that that would be kind of fun, at least the cafe area, but then again, so would the section of school supplies and also the area that has all the TCU logo stuff. So maybe I'll try that. I really don't know yet. I thought about doing the Coliseum breifly, but no one really goes in there unless there is a game. The only people that are there are the people who have offices, the athletes for practice, and the occasional athlete that uses that path to get to another building. And of course you would have the occasional maintanence worker too.

In Class: My Day

I am tired. I have a long day too, but when my day is finally over, I get a break. I'm a little worried for my next class. I don't really understand the material yet. I'll get through it though. I am looking forward to lunch time. I'm going to Dutch's to meet up with my church group. It's exciting. I don't seem to hang out with them at other times during the week though, but then again, I don't really have the time to hang out with anyone during the week. Then I have to go to practice, the last one before a big match this weekend. We're going to Nebraska. It's going to be cold, but I really do enjoy the cold. I'm from Indiana and am excited every time that I go home for Christmas. I'm always hoping that there will be snow when I go home so that I can go sledding. It's always so much fun to go sledding. Most people think that it's just too cold to go sledding, but if you have ever gone down a big hill and then had to climb back up it with a sled, you will realize that you will actually be extremely warm in your heavy coat and cold weather gear. I usually have to shed my coat and just stick with the hoodie I have on when I sled. But anyway, our match is against UNL. I'm excited to go; I've been doing really well in shooting, but it's just the hastles of traveling and things that I don't enjoy. Then there is also all the homework I have to take with me and hope that I have the time and energy to do enough of it before I get back to school. That's the only problem I guess. I would like some down time. Some time to relax before I have to start my week up again. Sleep. It's something that I really enjoy and wish I could get more of. Then there is also working out. I'm not required by my team to do any work-outs. But, I know that if I can get my heart rate down and have good core muscles that it will be all the better. I just really hate working out. It takes so much time (not really) but I think so. But I've been forcing my self to make it to the rec and go jogging.

The Inauguration Arguments

President Obama, in his inauguration speech, gives many arguments about what Americans need to do to turn this country in the right direction. Early on in his speech, he lets us know that he has taken the oath of office "amidst gathering clouds and raging storms". By saying this, he is informing us of the situation that we are in. I would also say that he is trying to appeal to us emotionally as he paints a picture of nasty, stormy weather as we are not only in the middle of a war, but also an economic crisis. Both of these things sit heavily on the hearts and minds of Americans. He continues on with emotional appeal as he talks about how we need to make decisions to change the direction that America is going. In doing this, he tells us what has gone wrong; "Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shattered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many". Again, all of us are affected by these things. After President Obama tells us what is going wrong, he informs us through an argument of future that "the challenges...will be met". In this way he offers hope to all Americans. Then, later in his speech, Obama reminds us of our inalienable rights; "All are equal, all are free and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness." This statement is an argument of fact for all Americans as it is similarly written in the U.S. Declaration of Independence. It is something that we can all agree upon, a kind of baseline for the American public to come together. Obama also gives an argument of the past as he states what the people before us have done, from the settling of our nation to the major wars we have gone through. He wants to remind us that the people of our history were very ambitious for a better life and that we must carry on that ambitious attitude. Part of his speech is to convince us as he doesn't want us to worry about if the government is too big or small, but just that it works. He wants us to put our trust in the government; in the people who run it. I think this speech is a wonderful inaugural speech at this point in our history. It contains many arguments, many of which reach us on the emotional level as much of America is going through a period of hardships and wondering when it will end.

In Class: Argument

At first I really only viewed an argument as a sort of opinion where you have two sides fighting each other. Now, after reading the text, I realize that everything can be seen as one. One of the arguments I would not have expected is an argument to inform. It doesn't seem like much of an argument to me. It's pretty basic, a statement or fact about something. Like you need to go this way to find the hurricane or tornado shelter. Everything that people wear can be seen as an argument about who they are and what they stand for too. It's interesting to look at the small picture and try to see how it fits in to a larger picture, and what argument it is making. It is interesting to see how many arguments we think about in our everyday lives. We go to the supermarket and then have to decide whether we are going to buy our food based on price or packaging. Do the colors draw our attention? Does the price scare us away? Do we buy something just because we remember hearing about the brand name on a commercial or in the ads and coupons? When something says that it is better for you than something else, is it really? We have to use the information we have to decide if the argument that the company is giving us is a valid reason for us to spend our precious money.

In Class: Football

The argument that I brought in is about how TCU has an amazing football team even though we aren't in a good conference. It says that people have learned to start looking past conferences and just look at the teams that others are playing against. That is how football should be. We should be able to see the talent in a team and rank them respectively. It also comments on how the BCS is an unuseful way to really choose the best team. I picked this article because I'm a TCU football fan and agree with the author. TCU is good enough to be in a better conference, but then again, how much does a conference matter these days after what we have seen this year?
So yes, I'm greatly looking forward to next year to see another great TCU football team play. I'm also interested in seeing if there will ever be a better system for ranking and choosing the best team of the land. Standing in the student section of the stands is such an experience! Everyone is cheering and the whole place is just going crazy.

A little about me

Hey everyone! My name is Erin. I'm from Fort Wayne, Indiana. I found my way to TCU because of the rifle team. I am currently a junior math major at TCU and am also working on a radio/tv/film minor. In my spare time, I love to hang out and watch movies; the action genre is my favorite.
I'm in this English class because it is required, but I am really hoping to get some more writing skills from it. As I enjoy math, I don't really enjoy English or writing, but I want to use this course to work on this weakness of mine. I definitely don't write much as it is not required for the classes in my major.
In respect to the argument my blog is making, I based the colors on the shades that I like. Blue is my favorite color, while purple is necessary for TCU. The title to my page means that I am definatley a TCU frog while being from Indiana. The image is of me shooting as that is the biggest part of my life. I hope to compete on the international level on a regular basis soon and even make the Olympic team.
I have read, understand, and agree to the terms of the course syllabus.