Category: 2nd Unit: Genre + Rhetoric Assignments (Page 20 of 23)

Materials Needed:

1 Flat surface (preferably smooth)

1 body

2 Legs (legs are helpful!, but not required);

2 Arms (helpful as well, but you can manage without them)

1 Spirit (only 1, but a very broad and all-embracing 1 is best)

1 piece of Music

1 large compulsion to move when you hear or otherwise think of rhythm

1 Ego that can withstand the worry about how stupid you probably will look to other people

Self confidence (1 large bushel)

At least 1 sense of rhythm recommended (but you can get away without it if you have to)

ACTIONS:

1. Get some music. Listen closely to it. If you listen well, your dance will be good; if you don’t, you may well look pathetic.
2. Allow your body to sway/step or otherwise depart from the position in which you originally find yourself.
3. Feel free to repeat this movement many times in an order that corresponds with your music.
4. Smile. This helps you dance better. People often forget to do this.
5. Remember that good dance is not about “steps” but about “weight” and “form in space.” Think about how you distribute your weight when you step or otherwise move.
6. Respect the space of the people dancing around you — don’t hurt or otherwise impede them from doing their thing.

SERVES:

Up to 200 people on a club floor.

Tesha Donald

ENG 1121 E106

Professor: Schmerler

March 11, 2019

English Navigating Genres

Reading 2 is an article called “Navigating Genres” by a professor named Kerry Dirk. The link is here: Navigating Genres.

After completing Reading 2, please answer the following in writing. You can write in your notebooks for now, but be ready to post your responses to Open Lab under the same category soon after our next class:

1) This article (though somewhat old) mentions Facebook posts as a kind of genre. Can you briefly describe how comfortable you feel composing a piece of writing in this genre? Do you feel more comfortable than someone much older than you — your grandmother, for instance? Why do you think this older person might not write as well in Facebook as you do? What are some of the mistakes they might make? 2) Dirk gives a few examples of titles in The Onion (a newspaper that was founded in 1988 at a college, btw). What was your favorite title? 3) On page 258, Dirk describes the rules we carry around in our head before we start writing in a particular genre. What are some of the rules you carry around in your head? Is there a particular genre in which you struggle to write?

When you think of Facebook as a genre, it is not necessarily formatted or outlined in a particular way. Writing in this genre would be easy to write, most importantly because if your page is privatized then you generally know your audience as family, friends, coworkers and perhaps associates. You also know yourself, are you writing to get a response or are you writing to receive feedback or give a sneak peak in on your everyday life. In general everyone writes in a different way on their Facebook. When you speak of older generations, as someone who is younger I am a bit more tech savvy as it pertains to online social media so speaking to my audience might be easier for me versus my grandmother who will say she cannot see or she may need guidance. Even more interesting, my grandfather would say something along the lines of, “I do not have time for such nonsense” or “idle hands make fretful minds”. They would not know where to log in, how to submit or where to go. If they even could they would call for one of the grandchildren to type for them. More than likely they are not going online, they barely want to use a cell phone.

My favorite example in the titles would have to be “Amazon.com Recommendations Understand Area Woman Better Than Husband”. The slight ridicule is implying that married men have a hard time understanding their wives. I thought that was little funny and dramatic. Some rules I utilize in my writing is minimizing starting sentences with I. Writing should have structure start point such as an introduction and end point. Definitely the rule about not beginning a sentence with a coordinating conjunction. These are all good rules I use in everyday writing. Believe it or not I even use this when writing my work emails. I have done a lot of writing in my time and never particular struggle until I arrived to this class. I think writing with restrictions is a little difficult for me. I like writing free form and then going back to see the end result. In the case of writing with a word cap limit that would pose the most difficulty.

Tesha Donald
ENG 1121 E106
Professor: Schmerler
March 11, 2019

English Sh@$%y First Drafts Response

Re: “S@#$$y First Drafts” Response
After completing Reading 1 please answer the following and post your responses in Open Lab.
1) How many drafts do you typically make of a paper/piece of writing? Do you write a “down draft,” an “up draft,” and a “dental draft” like Lamott says? Were you surprised at her chapter’s title? Do you think you will have to change the way you write a lot if you decide to write a “shitty first draft”?
Typically there may be a few drafts, sometimes maybe more than three. The title did not catch me off guard but I do not necessarily think that it’s a bad first draft I think it makes mention of not the best first draft. Writing sometimes take so much work and effort and for me when I write there is always a piece of me so I just want my reader to be captivated by it all. When reading my work I want you to feel something and perhaps get to know me a little better. I feel in writings there is always a piece of me left with the reader. I do not think I change a lot I think I make adjustments often to my writing after reviewing the first draft. Sometime I find that even in the first draft there are things I just might not want to let go and by the final submission I would have tweaked it so much, why did I even need it in the first place? Writing if there is no intensity I do not want it.

When I start to write a paper or a piece of writing, I never think of doing drafts. I tend to go straight to it and make it the best I can, unless it’s asked to write a draft. I never heard of the “down draft,” “up draft,” or the “dental draft,” however, they seem to  be great ideas. I was surprised with the title, but it’s true. We all need that kind of first draft and this will definitely change the way I’m gonna start to write.

I never really post on Facebook just like most people, I am not comfortable with anyone knowing my business. Occasionally, if I feel passionate enough to share/repost  a video – something probably related to politics, education or just a meaningful life lesion video because I enjoy those. I feel like older people on Facebook love to write anything, even if its too much information or misspelled. My grandmother for that matter doesn’t, she just likes to scroll and watch videos. I do believe that are some older people who are better than young kids on social media.

My favorite title was “I Am Under 18 Button Clicked For First Time In History”

Rules I carry  are that essays, writing pieces, thesis statements, etc.,  are supposed to be formally structured yet that’s the thing I find myself to struggle in, to properly structure and not have it look like scattered thoughts.

I have never been very comfortable with making Facebook posts. My life is something I only share with people close to me. Also, the thought of it makes me anxious. There are so many unspoken rules about what you can post and how it should be done. I know a lot of older people who are very comfortable with making Facebook posts (they do it all the time actually). My aunts and uncles aren’t very good at conveying their emotions in posts, though. They sound way too professional.

“Amazon.com Recommendations Understand Area Woman Better Than Husband”  was my favorite.

I don’t carry many rules in my head for writing. I follow this feeling in my gut about what to change and how to convey ideas, thoughts, and emotions. I always struggle writing cover letters. They’re so formal, yet you have to somehow convince the employer that you have great work ethic but are also an interesting person.

Depending on the assignment I normally do two drafts, reading this article made me realize that I’ve always been doing “down drafts, up drafts and dental drafts” without even realizing but someone finally put it in words.

I wasn’t surprised by the title I think it was pretty straight forward. Shitty first drafts are supposed to be somewhat shitty, so I don’t think that will change. But I can see myself now focusing on lowering the voices when writing.

My drafts composes more of the “down draft” part. When I write drafts I usually go for two. When I write my drafts I like to write everything that relates to my title. I like to always come up with a unique title first. After gathering everything that I need, I write my second draft, which is getting rid of anything irrelevant, or errors. The chapter’s title from the author did not shock me because I can relate. When I start a draft I feel like it’s at the very bottom of everyone else’s. My perspective on writing better has changed because of the steps that the author uses in “shitty first drafts”. I believe that by using the downdraft, updraft, and dental draft, it will help everyone become a better writer.