Why I Am Not A Christian

This reading was very hard to understand. The author uses a lot of religious philosophers ( Plato,Socrates,Descartes) to try and prove that God doesn't exist. These philosophers spent their live dedicated to their cause and have studied Christianity extensively.The author however, also makes some good point. As far as his denial of Christianity that's up to him. This is as far as I would like to articulate on this subject at this time.

Practical

This section was a pretty good reading. I already knew a lot of what they were talking about, but somethings I didn't know about. I guess it became a new law very recently. It was kinda hard to understand at first. As you read longer it gets easier. I couldn't believe how many laws, I guess you would say, there was for writing. Overall easy to read hard to understand.

Practical Stratagies For Reading And Writing

This reading had a lot of things that reaffirmed many of the things I already knew,accept for the stuff on computer on line writing and visual aid. Since I'm just getting started using computers this section was probably the most interesting and gave me the most information. I didn't know there were so many laws to writing in different context and I hope I don't have to memorize all the different formats.

Analizing Rhetorical Situations

This reading was pretty good. It had a lot of good information, just like most of the other reading in Ede. I think there are the people out there that believe in different worlds and things of that nature. I think the Wizard of Oz was a great example. Many people have seen the movie and I believe there are probably some people out there who believe some way somehow this could actually be a real place somewhere out there. However most people know that these types of things are just made up and could never really happen. We all might have fantasies about different worlds or different types of things, but when it comes down to it we know what is real life and what is make believe.

Analizing Rhetorical Situations

I rather enjoyed this reading. The reading had a lot of good information. I had a good idea of most of the information but having something besides text to read in this book made the reading more enjoyable. The "Dungeon and Dragons" essay was real good , because while I was in the U.S. Navy the nights at sea can get very boring so I was one of the so called weirdos the auther was talking about. It realy can take some of the harsh reality out of life. My lord we've all watched" The Wizard of Oz" and I don't believe that any one believes a tornado will send them to a land where they will find talking sarecrows,a tinman and a cowardly lion. I think we all fight enough demons in reality. Sometimes I think we all have fantasys about being in a world that could only live in our own minds.

Strategies for Revision

This reading was very informative. It give many different and very good ways on how to revise a paper. I use many different techniques to revise my papers. the first thing I usually do is read through the paper myself to try and pull out as many errors as i can. The next step i use is having someone who is honest read through my paper. Getting someone who doesn't really care would not help much because they wouldn't tell you what was wrong with the paper. I think the reading gave a great hint when it says to plan a break in between writing your paper and revising it. Another good suggestion they gave was to read your work aloud. Overall this reading was informative and gave many helpful hints in the revising process of writing a paper.

Strategies for Designing Pages and Screens

This was a very practical reading. It makes sense to know how to be effective with writing in our always growing technology age. Making sure that your pages are formatted so that your readers can easily understand it is just as important whether it be written or visual. The step by step points on every possible topic helped a lot and the examples did as well. A flowing, easily read web page or brochure is much better for serving your purpose than a cluttered mess.

Letter From Birmingham Jail

Wow! That was one long letter! But it was also made a whole lot of sense. He used good examples to explain his ideas and how they fit into the clergymen’s views. Their ideas were really the same just came out into the open in different ways. I like his writing because it is strong and spirited. He does not use big words or vocabulary that no one understands. He also uses a lot of religious notations; this helps us fit the situations of the time to the situations of the past. We can then see how they are repeating themselves. Martin Luther King, Jr. goes on to say that the churches are not really following their teachings. They seem to be more concerned with social issues. He asked the clergymen and us for that matter, to step up to the plate and show everyone that the time for racism and segregation to end is now. These ideas are still troubling our society today and we all need to read this passage and realize that we can’t change the past but we can’t build a better tomorrow unless we fix today.

Letter From Birmingham Jail

Martin Luther King Jr. has always been a passionate writer as well as a person who knows how to get to the reader. But this piece of writing is one of the best pieces that I've ever read. I like the way he uses his own style just to talk to the clergymen, its just fascinating. The only thing that I didn't like was the fact that he didn't really get to the point of his writing until the last couple of pages. Other than that I really enjoyed this piece.

Stratages For Revision

As I was reading through the text it gave me some different ways of looking at revision.Even though I try to use as many techniques in writing as I possibly can.I tend to read my text over and over again when I'm writing.This tends to keep me on track and hearing some sentences over in my head again seems to helps me work out so paragraphs.Sometimes it helps you to put logic to the paragraph.I always have someone at least proof read any material I hand in for a class project.Getting others opinions seems to work well for me.Good criticism some times can make you look in a different direction.But keeping the reader interested and staying coherent is so important,because everyone knows if you can't follow the story you usually loose interest.At that point it doesn't matter what message the writer is trying to get across.

I Have a Dream

This was the first time I got actually sat down to read this full speech. I have heard pieces and parts but never the full thing. I have to say this piece is very motivational and deep. It is very strong and gets its point across very well as well as easy. I believe everyone knows of this speech and I believe everyone should sit down to read it also. Maybe one day all the points he talks about will come true and we can live in a better world. Martin Luther King Jr. was a very huge part in American history, and this speech shows why.

I have a dream

This is one of the best speeches that has ever been spoken. I once heard this speech in high school. The intensity and loudness behind the words he said was astonishing. I for one like this piece a lot its about the history of this nation. Its about the rights that Americans should get regardless of race and gender. It was a very good piece. It hit me in the heart and not a lot of pieces of work does that. It is flawless.

Strategies for Revision

I never really looked at revision in the way the book describes. I think I try to do my revisions as I go along more so than at the end. The guidelines for objective were very helpful. They helped me take a better look at my writing. Questioning ones self is hard to do but I can see how it can make you a better writer. I am very much a person who likes others to read my drafts. It gives me great insight and also can help me see critical mistakes. I always allow different people to read my papers, their response makes a huge impact on how I revise it.

I Have A Dream

Having read this before it was much easier to see things I may have missed the first time. The writing style is very good and easily understood. I think that is one of the best motivational speeches ever and that Martin Luther King, Jr. was an inspiration to all and still is a big influence today. He uses language that is easily understood and makes sense. We all want freedom and his words make us want it more. We all want to be treated the same, no matter if it is at work, on the street or even in a restaurant. I don’t think that this applies to just skin color either. I believe that the author tries to make us see that it can transformed into any situation. Disability, gender, color, wealth or any other separation we can make can be fit into I Have A Dream. The person in a wheelchair has a dream. The mother who wants to work outside the home, has a dream. The coal miner’s daughter has a dream. Different as their dreams may be, they have them and should be able to pursue them without interference.

I Have A Dream

This is my first time reading the full speech of Martin Luther King Jr., and I must say I'm surprised. His writing style is great. He persuades the crowd so well. As Christy said, I really thought it said "I have a dream about..." dozens of times. But in actuality, he uses evidence to support everything he says. This was a very interesting piece and I can't wait to read some other works just like this one.

I Have A Dream

Here is finally a reading that i completely understood. I had no problem reading King's speech, "I Have A Dream". This is my first time actually reading the whole speech, and it's nice to know that it wasn't all about, "I have a dream-this and I have a dream-that". His speech contained evidence (the lie in the Constitution) for his argument and a solution to the problem that America was dealing with at the time. I really enjoyed the metaphors used to compare the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution with a "bad check" to the blacks that came back as "insufficient funds". It's amazing how one man envisioned what he wanted the future to look like, and made a difference by sharing his vision into other's thoughts.

I Have a Deam

I knew this was going to be a very good reading because Martin Luther King was a great speaker.So naturally the writing was going to be pretty powerful. I'm not sure there's much I can say that hasn't already been said about the men.He clearly stays on topic and knows how to use words to get his message across. He uses some good fact to back up his claim of racial inequality.I know we have a long way to go before every human being on the planet no matter what race,color,or gender truly become equal.But I have faith in our youth.This is where I feel the dream can become reality for all mankind.

Whats wrong with animal rights

This reading was very confusing. I didn't understand the argument. Was it that he was for animal rights or against it. For example, when he talked about the humane society I still didn't understand if he was against it or not. I thought the humane society was a good thing, but purposed that they were bad and that they killed dogs. Which in some cases they do to stop the animal from suffering and in case the dog is to blood thirsty. Over all the writing was good but very hard to follow.

What's Wrong With Animal Rights?

To agree with Vickie, this reading was one of the more difficult I've read thus far. The author, often times, lost me with explanations of random things. I'm a firm believer in animal rights, but I think that this piece of writing was written poorly. I think if the author used sub headings, this piece would've been so much better.

What’s Wrong With Animal Rights

This was a difficult read for me. It seemed to be confusing and drawn out. I am all for animals rights but she seemed to make no sense. She uses big words, which I feel were to show intimidation. I guess I really didn’t understand it enough to make out what she was trying to say. I think my lack of understanding led me to not like this passage so much.

The End of the World as We Know Them

Now here was a reading that I very much enjoyed. I have feelings almost identical to the author’s so winning me over wasn’t hard but I bet he won a whole lot more over.

I liked how he used other societies and compared them to ours. It really does make sense. Knowing and seeing how the 5 piece checklist works sheds new light on how we are destroying ourselves. How we have become our own worst enemy. You can see how changes in our environment impact our future every day. Global warming is becoming more of an issue every day. Why build new dwellings for families and businesses, when there are so many of them available for use. Oh that’s right we have got this incesible need to have something better that the person next door. To keep up with the Jones’ so to speak. The author also mentions our interference in other countries problems. Do we need to take care of them or ourselves? We spend tons of money on wars that we should not be involved in and fighting other peoples battles that we don’t seem get the big picture in our country. We have men, women and children homeless, starving and barely surviving and what do we do about that? Absolutely nothing! We sit back and say that it’s their own fault. But is it? I don’t think so.

Overall, it was a very well written piece and I really liked it.

What's Wrong With Animal Rights

This essay has me confused now about what happiness truly is. The author explains happiness in human terms, and then went on saying animal rights group didn't understand what hapiness is to animals. I enjoyed the example used of the author's relationship with her dog Drummer. She showed how Drummer gets happiness from their trusting relationship. Due to their strong relationship she feels she should be the only person granting Drummer's rights. I'm not much of a pet lover so I didn't enjoy this reading.

Whats Wrong With Animal Rights

I am going to have to agree with Karl, the author does use many confusing words. I have had the experience of going through people giving me a hard time about a pet. I use to own a pit bull just as the author does. The people in my neighborhood did not like the fact that I had owned a "harmful" dog, even though it was the most people friendly dog you would have ever met. Because of these people i was forced to give my dog up or our we could of lost our homeowners insurance. I think people judge things way to easily. They think that just because it was a pit bull it had to be vicious and mean. Thats not always the case. With pit bulls they are naturally nice. The only reason that some of them are mean is because they are trained to be this way. It is a shame that we have many of these stereotypes about a lot of different things in this world. I hope one day we can all just get over things and learn to deal with things better.

What's Wrong with Animal Rights

I felt the reading was a little hard to understand.The authors use of some words had me confused.Even though I understand most of what she was saying.Having animals all my life and being subjected to many of the animal rights activist radical point of view and propaganda doesn't help rectify the situation.Unfortunately there are people in the world that shouldn't have pets.These people will always cause tension between good pet owners and pet owners that abuse animals.I truly feel the activists in thier hearts are doing the right thing, but sometimes in some curcumstances the lesser of two evils would probably same the animals life.

End of the World

Like Dan said I likes this reading because in high school history was my favorite subject. Like most of these readings it did get wordy but it shows you that history does repeat itself. This is an important thing to remember as we become the generation that controls everything. We have the power to prevent the past from repeating but will we use the power.

This is the End of the World

The beginning of the story is very depressing. I'm not very familiar with the Black Death, but I know of it. This is way too graphic for my taste. I could see the dogs devouring bodies that hadn't been put to rest. I had to cringe alot during this reading. This essay seemed more like a report than a story. I believe that the plague was a punishment from God, and the 14th century must had some secret sins.

The ends of the world as we know them

I thought this reading was a pretty good one. I like history and to know what happened back then. I liked in high school the history classes. You can say I'm a history buff. I never knew that there were people on Easter Island. It was a bit wordy and didn't get to the point, but having the back up points to help the thesis was very good. It also stay on topic very well. Overall it was a good piece of knowledge to be passed down to younger generations to learn that history always repeats itself.

End of the World As We Know It

This particular story had me thinking throughout. But at certain points in the story, it started to bore me. It almost sounded like a persuasive/informal type of writing. The author, to me, wanted me to think like he/she was. It was almost uncanny to read this, having a persuasive speech coming up. I did like the details that the writer had. The writer had immense details about Native Americans and the Maya.

The Ends of the World as We Know Them

This reading wasn't the funnest to read. I felt like I was reading and encyclopedia or just a history book. However even though it might of not been fun to read to did put out many facts that many people, including myself don't really think about. Many people do not realize what if happening to the world. Many things have happened in the past to make to world a little worse, and it seems that big events keep happening to make it even worse. People do not realize what is going on, because in my opinion they really just do not care. Many people in the world are self-centered and only care about what is happening to them. They don't stop to think of how what they are doing today could affect their children or just the younger generations in the long run. Personally I feel bad for the real young generations because we aren't doing anything to help their world that they are going to grow up in.

The End of the World as We Know Them

As I started to read this essay it struck me funny because my friend and I were just talking about the same thing the other day. In my opinion the author has a good argument and obviously has put some thought into this catastrophic event that has happened many times through out history.Population control is a big one for me because how can you control any of the other factors of world destruction.If it wasn't the Soviet Union,Cuban missle crisis and The Gulf War when I was growing up .Now I have to worry about meteors,asteroids,the polar ice caps,people eating up the planet. Although technology and understanding of the planet and how it works gives us a big advantage over our forefathers. If we are not careful our children will suffer the consequences of our stupidity.Unfortunatly China seems to be the only country taking this seriously.Look at thier economy since the went to having one child.I know this would upset many Americans,but to save future generations this and many other sacrifices may need to be made.

Split At The Root

I felt this writing was alright. I didn't see it as being very great but it had its part that were good. The author could not identify what religion she wanted to associate herself with. I felt like she was confused at this point. I think she wanted to be associated with whatever religion would let her be accepted. I felt her mother felt the same way, like when she was applying for colleges. Her mother tells her if any application asks for religion to put "Episcopalian" and not none. Also i was surprised to see that she didn't see the racism till she went off to college. I figured people would have been a little more mature by this time. But then again i guess it still happens today, although i don't know why. People should be mature enough to keep their comments and actions to themselves by the time they reach the college level. Overall this reading was decent, nothing to exciting happening though which makes it a little more boring to read.

Split At the Root

I didn't like this story. It was a certain twist seeing racism from this new point of view. I thought she proved a few stereotypical characteristics about jews true. Like the relation between Jews and money. I feel sorry for the writer. She doesn't know who she wants to identify herself with. I agreed with her father's message that people shouldn't be judged by their religion, but by what type of person they are. At the end she seemed to just be rambling about her different personalities. This part of the story bored me.

Split at the Root

This reading got a little menotiouse to me.If this is an excerpt of her book "Blood,Bread and Poetry,"it probably has dozens more racial inuendows.I feel she has a lot of issues to deal with not only racialy but socially too.She talks about her father retiring comfortably,which suggests that they lived a modest maybe even in the upper scale of society.Maybe that is why she never heard the racial slurs until she went to college.Unfortunately the Jewish race along with so many cultures have had to endure persecution and some persecuted to the point of extintion.This, at times made me wonder if her parents did not want to accept thier own heritage.Why her father never told her about he "roots".I could tell that there was some conflict with her nationality, being both Jewish and White.I have seen this in biracial children of all races in my life time.I do not know how much of this goes on in society today.Hopefuly the auther will see this end in her lifetime and mybe she will findout her real identity.

Shooting a Elephant

I was not a big fan of this story at the start. I found it to be very boring and it kind of confused me a little bit. However the end is when I started to get interested. There is part of me that understands why he was killing the elephant, because like he said people have to put their dog to sleep if it goes mad and attacks a human. But the other part of me feel very bad for the elephant and feels like it does not need to die. Another part that interested me was at first he said he did not want to kill the elephant and how he had never wanted to kill an elephant, but he goes and does it anyway because of the crowd watching him. He wanted to be accepted by the older men. however in doing so he risked the chance of the younger men being mad at him, which ended up happening. The end of this story to me is the high point of the story, but it is also the saddest part.

Shooting a Elephant

I thought this reading was a very sad, but very understanding reading. It showed that if while under peer pressure from people, people will do about anything to be accpeted. If its killing a elephant or drinking at a party for example. The guy didn't want to kill to the elephant but he said he had to to be accpeted by the people watching him. I didn't understand the reading of why he was going to shoot the elephant until he looks back to see if anyone was looking and they were. I understand what he was thinking the gun was for his safty, but I also understand what the people thought since the elephant has killed someone that it should die or that he would kill it. Overall the reading was good not too wordy or long it got to the point fairly quickly.

Shooting an Elephant

I didn't like this story's beginning. I'm not a fan of government-like fiction unless the writer makes a way to help the reader understand the story. There was way too much Latin lingo. The story was very graphic when the elephant stumped the Dravidian man into the ground. It really starts to get too graphic describing the Dravidian's death. I've looked at most elephants as harmless, but I won't anymore. Now I would probably fear them as much as I would a tiger. I don't understand why the main character felt that he must shoot the elephant just because the natives expected that of him. All in all, I didn't enjoy this reading about a man killing an elephant to stop from looking like a fool. This story was overall depressing.

Shooting an Elephant

At the beginning of the story, the author paints a grim picture of the darkside of the law in the early 1900"s in Burma. His perspective is from one of a police officer during this time. He even said that he was stuck between hatred of the empire but his spirit seems to have been damaged by the society he lived in. It is important to understand that he lived in an Imperialistic society and the government functioned as such. The day he had to kill the elephant, made me think of the way peer pressure makes kids today feel compelled to follow along with everyone in their group and to do things they normally wouldnt do. Even though at the end I understand why he had to kill the elephant.The end of the story bothers me because, the author was glad to justify killing the elephant because the elephant killed a Coringhee coolie. That just seemed a little creepy to me.

The Rake:A few scenes from my childhood

I enjoyed this reading. Although it is a sad story it is written well. The author talks about growing up in an abusive family. Even though I did not grow up in this kind of family, I have seen many stories and heard many tales about these type of things. It really is very sad. The writer does a good job of describing how his family actually is by giving specific examples such as the part where his grandfather refuses to tell his grandmother that he loves her. This gives you a good idea of how he family functions and how they live everyday like this. All in all good writing even though it is sad.

The Rake:A few scenes from my childhood

This story made me sad for the author. Having grown up in a loving and caring family, it is a shame to hear about families members that abuse other family members. Even though as a child I did have freinds whose parents were abusive. I am certain it was hard for the author to grow up in the envirinment he grew up in. It seems that he grew up in an upscale type of home and probably had to hide the abuse he and his siter endured. Growing up through the years, I have witnessed the outcomes of abuse on a first hand basis. Even though this is not a disease, it seems to follow a gentic pattern.

On Stuttering

 I enjoyed the beginning imagery of what stuttering is like.  I have seen many encounters with stutterers and non-stutterers like the ones mentioned in this story.  I believe this stuttering ultimately came from nervousness.  It was sad and funny when he described his scariest moments.  It was amazing how he suddenly loss his stuttering when his vision was lost.  It seems that the balance of senses could become a new theory for some scientist to study.

On Stuttering

This reading had its ups and downs. I thought it got off to kind of a slow start. I know people who have trouble with stuttering and I did not realize how hard it could actually be. I wasn't aware of all the things that could trigger the stuttering. I sometimes have trouble with stuttering when i get nervous, just as he did when he got nervous. I think many people have this problem. The up part in the reading i thought was toward the end when he began to go blind. He has to rely on his speech to get him by in the day. This makes his speech better until he gets his sight back. I think that if there would have been more to read it would have turned out to be a better reading.

On Stuttering

I enjoyed the reading, at times in my life I also have been in situations to where it seemed as if I couldnt get the words out. After reading further into the essay, the author does an excellent job of making you realize how difficult it is to live as a true stutterer. It was nice to see the author making light of himself in the reading passages. Towards the end of the reading, he does again show how difficult it is to live as a stutterer. In the passages in which he went partially blind and had to rely on speech to communicate when he had almost never talked before. He had virtually eliminated his stutter when he was blind and when he regained his vision he went right back to stuttering which made me feel sorry for him. I myself know people that this has happened too.

Split at the Root Blog

This would be a complicated life to live. Torn between religion and what was deemed correct. Between sexual orientation and your family’s fear of exposure. Having so many different sides coming in on you cannot be easy. To sort all of it out and to decide to let others see those sides had to be stressful and a sometimes dreaded task. You could really see how she struggled with being Jewish but pretending to be a gentile or even struggling with being a once-married, mother of 3 and being a lesbian. I could see where she got the phrase, “Split at the root”. I think that we could see this in ourselves at some point in our lives but not nearly as much as she did or anyone else in shoes for that matter.

It was a very well written piece and it made sense of an era that many of use don’t understand because we did not live in it.

Shooting the Elephant

This was a hard passage for me to read. In fact, I didn’t even finish it, I just couldn’t.

The passage was very good. It put a perspective on peer presage. You got to see him and what he wanted to do but also got to see him with the struggle of thoughts of what the crowd wanted to see him to do.

It was difficult for me to read because of how detailed the actual shooting was. I guess I’m too emotional but I just couldn’t read anymore. I could really find a reason to shoot the elephant and I guess that’s what I didn’t like or even understand. What reasoning did the crowd have for wanting this done? We probably will never know.

As for the actual writing itself, it was strong, detailed and very good.

The Rake: A Few Scenes from My Childhood

What an intense reading! It jumped around which made it a little confusing but was really powerful.

I can’t imagine growing up in that sort of fear or finding out that your mother had been beaten as a child on a weekly basis. I wonder whether he broke the cycle of abuse. He seemed so devastated when he hurt his sister. It truly makes you look at how abuse can continue within families, when that is the only life that is known. It seems to be thought of as normal. You wonder how many times the table top had to be replaced. How his sister must have felt when her mother called her drama teacher and would not let her be in the play. Or even how they both got through those years of fear, not knowing what would set off their stepfather. It leaves you with lots of questions and wanting answers.

I would definitely like to read some of his other writings, to see if they have the same powerful, intense feel.

On Stuttering

I had read some of this previously so it was nice to get a little more. Hoagland really helps you understand his life as a stutter. He tells you his fears which are a great way to help a reader to put themselves into the author’s place and look at the situation through their eyes. I have always wondered how people who stutter seem to be able to control it and he explains this as well. I know that it is not actual control but when someone like Mel Tellis signs you would never know that he too is a stutter.

I enjoyed this reading and it was very informative.

What's Ya Name Girl

I really liked this selection from Maya Angelou. I felt very sorry for her [Mrs. Cullinan] because she obviously has low self-esteem from being overweight and pain due to not being able to have kids. I felt like the only reason she decided to start calling Marguerite Mary is from peer pressure from her wealthy friends. It disturbed me how loyal Miss Glory was to a lady who totally disrespected her name, and how she was encouraging Marguerite to get over the disrespect. I liked how at the end Mrs. C came to her senses when angry and corrected the freckled friend who insisted on renaming Marguerite, Mary.

Notes of a Native Son

I thought this essay was very sad. The bitter, yet strong ways of his father made him a memorable character, which made this a tearjerker for me. It was overwhelmingly sad to have to "celebrate" his birthday and recieve a newcomer into the family; while losing a loved one all at the same time. I think that the fact of his father's passing while another riot was going on made the author feel as though he regretted not talking to his father as much. Considering most of his father's built up paranoia was due to racial conflicts such as the riot. I feel that his father's sickness made him change any hate he had in his heart. It was healthy for him to take a new positive outlook on life. Baldwin made peace of his father's memory by covering his pain and forcing good memories in his thoughts. He even reconsiders his interpretation of a verse in the bible that he and his dad disagreed on. I feel like his father was so full of stubborn pride that he just wouldn't allow himself to be seen as agreeing with someone. When the riots occurred Baldwin understood the fury and smashing in the streets, as a native of Harlem, whom had seen and felt all of the mistreatment. I was surprised that he didn't add to the mess.

How it feels to be Colored Me

I love the beginning of this essay. It was humorous how innocent and sneaky the author was to welcome the tourists and northerners into her home state. It was also funny that she felt that authority should "take notice" of her patriotism. As the essay goes on her innocence is continously overwhelming in Eatonville, where she was a spirited little girl. I can relate when she talks about how she didn't have to be like other blacks who were mad about the way things were. She decided she would rather focus on becoming a better person.
I admire her confidence and positive outlook on life. She seems to not allow anything to get in her way She's definitely a lover of the chase. She really feels sorry for the person who can get something taken from them. And she's proud of the surprise that she is to people.

How It Feels to be Colored Me

This story had its strong points and its low points. For most of it, I was very confused. The author kept jumping back and forth between the colored me and the white me. I really didn't know why the author did that, but I guess it was to create substance. Overall this story had me guessing for a while, which is a good thing in my book. But in the future, I hope that confusing stories end up being clarified in the end, which this story lacked.

How it Feels to Be colored Me

I like this reading. It was short, but you got enough of it to understand it. I am still confused on all the colored me and the white me. I didnt understand if people looked at that kind of way. Or maybe she was acting that way. She talked about being in a Jazz bar. And when she is with a white person, her color comes out. What does that mean. How she is acting. How she loves that music. It seems to me that she is sterotyping "colored" and "white". She says she starts yeooooowwwwwww and stuff. As the white person just sits there. Is she saying that "colored" means more colorful personality. Overall I like the peice it was short but a very good one. You can get a lot out of this. You just have to look.

Native Son

I think this is a very good writing but like most o the writings we do it gets kind of wordy. It got a little confusing with the jumping from adult to child and visa versa. It also pulled you in with the way it was written by correlating two things together and making you want to keep on reading to find out why they are exactly related. In the end i like the reading but it was a little wordy for my tastes

How it feels to be colored me

I agreed with this authors position about society. I like the way that she presented a different aspect of colored viewpoint. She held the belief that people are people irreguardless of their history and that they should take repsonsibility for their own actions as a race. She believes that the colored race needs to move on and take responsibility for their own advancement. She basically is saying that the past is history and the Colored race needs to move past the discrimination.
Ms. Hurston, still claimed to be more at ease with people of her own color. She felt thatshe was out of place when around whites. This makes her understand how it feels to be on the other end of the sword. She can relate to Whites feeling out of place and uncomfortable in a reversed situation.

Notes of a Native Son

I thought the reading was a little long. But it needed to be long to be a good piece. I thought when he went to his father's funeral drunk, thats the way I would go to my dads or familys. I really didn't understand what the main plot of this piece was. Because it jumped around between his childhood and his present day. It was a good subject since we are in black history month and also I never knew about the Harlem riots. Overall it was a good piece, lengthy, but good.

Strategies for invention

When I write i ten to think aboutit alot before i write so i know what i am going to write down. It seems like once I start it either is just a bunch of random ideas or i leave out information that i wanted to get in because i over analyze it. When I do write it is usually Brainstorming or free writing i dont ever really loop it gets me all confused and jumbles up in my thoughts cause i would tend to get unorganized. I think it would help me to do alittle less braing storming and just try and get all of my thoughts out so i dont erase something because it is worded wrong.

Notes of a Native Son

This story really took me by surprise. I was really astonished by the way James Baldwin wrote this story. I really liked the fact that it had so many transitions. From "One", to "Two", and so on. This clearly represents how I was brought up after my father left me. I really didn't understand it like James did, but I still trudged on knowing that it was only me and my mom now. We just had to make it and make sure that I made it through high school without incident. Having a father walk out of your life, unlike James, is very traumatic, and you tend to have misplaced anger.

Overall, I really liked this story and hope to read something more of this caliber

How It Feels to be Colored Me

This was an ok writing for me. It seemed like a long statement of self confidence. I am not saying that being confident is bad but there is such a thing as too much. I didn’t get much from it except an understanding of who she was. I do agree that color shold not have anything to do with a job, education or anything else for that matter. We all put our clothes on the same way.

Native Son

Part One

In this passage, the intro again helps you to prepare for the excerpt. It sounds like he had a very hard time because of his color and his father. It really shows us that without living in the time period, what things were actually like. As he remembers his father, he sees how his teacher changed something in him and yet his father saw her as the enemy. It explains how his treatment by whites caused him to want to commit murder. Does thos show up in today’s society? Absolutely! Bullies in schools today are why we have some of the violence we hear about everyday.

Part Two

This section takes you through his father’s last day , his last visit with him and the birth of his sister. It seems to concentrate more on the chaos around them than their actual activities. But all in all it gave me, as a reader, a very good sense of what was happening in a time that was so historical for our country.

Part Three

This section is very intense. You can see how he feels about all sorts of things and how his father’s funeral, his birthday and the birth of his sister bring back memories and start to raise questions for him. When the riots start, he starts to realize how hatred can overcome someone and he begins to remember things that his father had said and I believe finally starts to completely understand him and his words.

Over all this reading was insightful and can really make you want to examine your relationships with those you may feel you hate but truly love.

Notes of a Native Son

I enjoyed this reading. I have never read any of James Baldwins's work but after reading this short story i would not mind reading another one. He uses great details and really makes you understand what is going on at that time. I also like that it is about his own life and his own growing up, I think this makes stories like this much more interesting because they can talk about what actually happened instead of using facts from other people. I think people that write about their own experiences can just go into a lot more detail and depth.

This short story hooked me with the first couple lines," On the twenty-ninth of July,in1943, my father died. On the same day, a few hours later, his last child was born.". This just made me want to keep reading because I wanted to know what that meant. The other interesting thing about this story that I liked was his relationship with his father. Just the way he talks about it makes it intense just to read. Like when he said he did not want to see his father because he wanted to keep the hatred, and how people were so stubborn about hate because they don't want to feel the pain anymore. I like this statement because I think it is very true. It is a lot easier to deal with something you hate or dislike, when it is not around you.

Notes of a Native Son

I enjoyed this reading. James Baldwin grew up in New York City during the black segregation period. Mr Baldwin does a good job of portraying the type of life that his father lived. He tried to teach his children that white people shouldnt be trusted. Later in his life this would come to be true. Even though he associated with whites, he was segregated as a black man evn though he was discrimanatory towards whites. It wasnt that he hated white people, but he was brought up to distrust the white race and later in life lashed out at the white race.

I thought the part about negro boys going to war rather than staying in the south was a very powerful statement. It was evidence of the hardships and rough existence the black race had to endure during time period. Reading about his father passing away brough back memories of my own Parents' death. All of the things you resent your parents for goes away when they die. After their passing, the grief is very difficult to handle as an adult and even more so as a child. During the funeral scene, I was reminded of all the people that you had not seen in a very long time and probably wont until another death or tragic event that will bring family members together. I also feel it is hard to reach out and find answers when your parents are gone and now you seem to be alone and always missing their advice and Love.

Strategies for Invention

Whenever I start writing I don't brainstorm at all I just let it flow. Maybe that is the probelm with my writing. I do it too fast. I usually sit down wait for a couple of mintues to clear my head and then I'm off. But when your writing about a thesis, and you have a lot to do. For instance looking up material, or resources, for you paper to prove that your thesis is right. You have zero time to brainstorm. I see it as most of the time you don't have time to brainstorm. Why should you waste your time with it. After reading this chapter I understand that brainstorming is very good. Also freewriting and looping, which I've never heard of looping before. Pretty much this reading was good, but I rather read the short stories.

Strategies For Invention

Before I write my papers, I never really think about what I'm going to write. Basically I just write and see what happens. The only thing that I have to go on is my experience with the subjuect. However, by reading this section, I may have to change my writing style.

As I read this section, it gave me new strategies to consider. I knew about the journalist's approach, but never really knew the freewriting nor looping. I must be doing that on the norm because I can remember these things so easy. Brainstorming I used to do when I was younger, but when you have to outsource a paper in a short amount of time, then you can't brainstorm. Clustering, which I learned a few years ago, takes too long for me. I just like to write and think on the fly.

Overall, I really enjoyed this as it improved my vision as being a better writer.

Strategies for Invention

Before i read this article i had no idea that invention had anything to do with writing. I guess i never sat down and thought about what invention actually means. Like what we are doing right now,blogging, i would have never thought of this as an invention in a million years until i read this article.

I always have a real hard time coming up with a good topic to write about. But then again most of the time i hate being assigned a topic to write about, because most of the time I can't relate myself to the topic in the least bit. However, I like to use the clustering strategy when I do figure out my topic. I think I use this method the best because most of the time I am not very organized and this method allows me to get all my ideas out and not be very organized. It still works though, when i go back and read what i wrote it all makes sense to me and helps me out big time as far as not losing any of my good ideas and sometimes weeding out the bad ones.

As far as helping me become a better writer, this section does the job. It gives a number of various questions to help me give more detail in my paper. I believe that the "Journalist Questions", Topical questions, and the questions for exploring the topic can help anyone out greatly.

Strategies For Invention

Often times I too have difficulty finding inspiaration. There are other times that get inspired about topics that are interesting to you. Learning your topic through insight and others. This allows for a more accurate writing design to support your claims.

Personally, I have done a lot of free writing and brainstorming throughout my adulthood. Looping sounds very interesting. Because it has some advantages. It forces you to free write but you also can locate your intriguing and compelling ideas. It provides a starting point for connecting new loops or ideas.

Even though clustering may be beneficial to other writers, I dont like it personally. I feel this because, when I write single words sporadically, I tend to forget the brainstorm that feeds me the information I want to write. It is much easier for me to take my brainstorm and free write as long as I have the Ideas fresh in my thoughts at the time. Using journalist questions makes me give definitive answers to the who, what, when, where and why questions. It is productive for my writing skills.

The rest of the reading was good. I understand the importance of research in backing up your statements and writing ideas.

What's Your Name Girl?

I really enjoyed this particular reading, especially anything written by Maya Angelou. This story basically depicts life for a black person during the time of post slavery. It was actually interesting to hear from Maya that she got raped as a child. That's something that I really didn't know. I thought she would've responded better after the lady for whom she was working for started to call her a different name. She took offence to it, but didn't respond aggressively as I thought she would. But I guess that's a good thing due to the ending. All in all, I really enjoyed this reading.

Whats Your Name

This reading is about a young black woman and what it was like for her. I think that its hard at this time for young black women to get anywhere with all the discrimination. But that was just the way it was then she was nothing to Mrs. C. Thats why she didn't even hesitate to say that clumsy Ni**er Because it was just another person to her. No one special she was a black woman. All Mrs. C cared about was her stuff she was selfish. I am personally glad that alot of the discrimination is gone but it is still there in our everyday life but just not as bad.

Overall this was a good reading and it really shows how life was back them for young black women.

"What's Your Name, Girl?"

I'm going to have to agree with Vickie, the introduction paragraph helped me out with this reading a whole lot. If it wasn't for that I think i would have been very lost. I like it because it shows a brief background of the writer and it gives you a little idea of what kind of things you are going to be reading.

As far as the story goes, I think it was well written. there are many great details that give me a better idea of what is going on. An example of this is when she talks about Mr. Cullinan's daughters and their hair. She gives great details in this part about how their hair is always straight no matter if they go in the rain or if they just wake up. I can relate when she talks about all the different plates, bowls, cups and silverware. I had no idea that there were so many different kinds, and I think many people feel the same way.

Overall I thought this reading was very delightful. However, I really would have been in trouble if it wasn't for that introduction paragraph.

What's your name girl

I enjoyed this reading a lot. It was really weird that she couldn't write in her own home. I'm betting on that there was a lot of distractions. I was very thankful that I had that beginning paragraph talking about her writing ways and what this reading is about. I think in life that you should meet someone new everyday of your life. Talk to them learn their name and make sure they know your name. Because sometime in your lifetime you are going to meet them again. Maybe it's to help out a charity or maybe its just for a favor. I try everyday to meet someone new because you never know what knowledge or wisdom they have to pass on. When that Mrs. C went and couldn't even remember her name. That's horrible. It's pretty funny that when you do something nice, like how that guy saved the other guy in the subway when he was having a seizure. Like Mary taking out the tea and setting up for dinner. People know them for about year. But when someone does something stupid or wrong, they go down in history. Like how Mary went and dropped her favorite dish and called her a n*****. I bet she will remember Mary for as long as she lives because of that.

Whats Your Name Girl

Well, It isn't Anne Frank. I hope everyone appreciated my analysis of Anne Frank. Anyways, Maya Angelou was a black woman that lived during nineteen twenties and survived in a poverty stricken area of the south. It appeared as if Maya had to take on the role of an adult at an early age.

Black women did not have any of the available cultural activities. The life of a black women during this time was one of segregation and discrimination. This was the environment she grew up in. She talks about the people in her life and her every day life experiences. Ms. Angelou wrote from the negro perspective during the nineteen twenties. Her writings seem to express the culture and the problems that were endured by black people during that time period.

Diary Of A Young Girl

Anne Frank was writing this during the second world war. As a child in this environment of inhumanity she was first of all lucky to be alive. She felt as if she was being alienated by her parents. As a child of World War Two it was a different time and a different society. She had to be extremely worried about every day life in her society and also had the normal emotional feelings of a thirteen year old school girl.

Because of these feelings she had I can understand her dilemma. I understand why she would write a diary in the first place. Her diary helped her deal with her every day life. The diary helped her her face the war environment and gave her the reinforcement she needed to cope with every day life. I also feel that it made her feel totally at ease. It helped her survive in a war torn environment.

In a "Sweet Secret" she wrote about being upset with entire family emotionally. It appears to me that she is going through a transitional period and is fighting the urge to want to be a woman but also remain a little girl for her father. This period of her writing also shows her sexual maturity and how she fantasizes about other women and lesbianism.

Strategies of Invention

Well, another chapter of great insight. Discovering ideas does tend to be difficult but the strategies given help you get started onto the path of a great paper.

Free writing, looping, and brainstorming are things that I already use and they are a productive part of my personal writing process. These all help me get my ideas together and start to organize them.

Clustering is something that is confusing to me. For some reason, it seems messy and very unorganized. Though that's definitely just my opinion. I’m not sure that this technique would work well for me.

Who, what, where, when, why and how are great questions to ask yourself. I believe that it helps put your thoughts in perspective and helps you see what you already know and what you need to research more. This goes along with the topical questions as well. They both cover the same concept in different ways.

Researching helps you find things out that you may have otherwise left out because of your lack of knowledge. A well-researched paper can help you and your reader(s) get a better understanding of your topic and arguments. This accompanied by a discovery draft can bring about a much better paper.

All in all, this was very helpful again and I can see where some things may work better for some people and maybe not so much for others.

"What's your name, girl?"

This reading was very enjoyable for me. I found that the introduction helped me get a better understanding of what I was about to read. It also gave me insight to the author’s writing style and how she found it easier to write in a hotel room than at home. It really does show that everyone does have his or her own style.

As for the sample from the story, it was an interesting portal into the past. When you don’t grow up in times such as these, it makes it much easier to put yourself into the place and situation of the author when it’s well written. The details were fabulous and really helped you. I never understood all of that stuff about plates, glasses, and silverware either. The image she had of her mistress, without organs, was funny, as was her thoughts on why she drank from unmarked bottles.

The reading was very good and I liked it. It really puts into a perspective on life during the slavery years.

Analyzing Texts and Contexts

Analyzing Texts and Contexts

Once again, this chapter has helped me by providing information and tips that I had not thought of before. Understanding your audience makes a huge difference and being able to analyze and evaluate information can make all the difference in whether or not your reader(s) can understand and gain something from your writing. Being the mom of an Autistic child, I really understand how people take things out of context. There are some that are literal and others that are laid back. Depending on which type of person your reader is will depend on whether or not your ideas are being understood properly. You must ask yourself, “Do my ideas make sense?” and “Do my experiences help my reader to relate to my writing or maybe I should just stick to the facts”. Making sure that you know how to apply Aristotle’s Three Appeals and Toulmin’s Framework, can help anyone to become a better writer. I like that they give you samples of different writings. I think this helps even more to see what point they are trying to get across.

I think doing our group project last class, helped me understand the visual text section of this chapter better. What draws you to a certain magazine or book? Probably the picture, colors used or a word in large print. As the book shows us, a picture is worth a 1000 words. Iwo Jima is a perfect example, as is the image of the firefighters of New York raising the flag at the World Trade Center. These are images that don’t even need text to ensure a proper understanding of them. Think of a picture you have seen and what thoughts it has brought to your mind. Then analyze those thoughts and see if they are what the author intended them to be. When you can use images and text effectively, it can enhance the impact of your message.

Analyzing Texts and Context

At the beginning of this chapter you really see how analyzing plays a role in all professional areas. When I noticed this I immediately thought of high school math classes when every time a student was having a hard time they'd try to make a point with "When are we ever going to need to use this in every day life?" Sooner or later all of this things we are learning will come back to play some type of role in our lives. Analyzing is something everyone does- you analyze someone's mood, different ways to solve a problem and so on. For instance with my elective program (ROTC) I analyze ways to fix tactical problems.
After reading through Aristotle's 3 Appeals, I believe that Pathos has the strongest hold on today's society. Yes, we should be more interested in Logos or factual information but what grabs the attention of people of today are the emotional stories. I would pay more attention to a story that is emotional and what could be fake to get more attention than one that has factual information. Something over exaggerated is much more interesting. Overall this book is helping my identify my writing and it has some really strong points throughout.

Analyzing Texts and Contexts

In the beginning of the reading I really didn't understand what this book was talking about. I thought that I would never going to need to analyze anything in my career. Through the reading I understood what they were trying to get across, finally, that is your going to have to analyze in any or even every career at least a couple of time. If you want to be in art or business or even EMS. Aristole's three appeals logos, pathos, and ethos was one good thing I got out of this reading. I didn't know you had to think like a advertisement rep. when writing a essay or a piece of work. In Amitai Etzioni piece of writing he is absolutely right with how we think we have privacy but we really don't. Just think someone is watching you in the shower for saying bomb on the phone last week. Or someone is hacking into your computer to look up your records. This government of ours is supposedly the best one in the world and that we are free. But there is always a price to be paid to be free. Over all this piece has opened up my eyes. It was a good piece.

Analyzing Texts and Contexts

This was another chapter that was filled with information that I was not aware of. It all starts at the beginning of the chapter under Understanding Your Audience. It talks about understanding your readers values as well as their goals. Like i said before i never took the readers values nor their goals into perspective in any of my writing. i usually just write about what i feel about a subject and don't think about what other people are going to think. This chapter also talks about Understanding How Analysis Works. This part of the chapter really helped me out as far as, how much i really need to analyze a subject before writing about it. Most of the time I just study the subject for maybe a few moments and without really thinking just start writing about it. By reading this i have learned that analyzing is many not just one skill but a group of skills put together, and that you need to take time and actually think about a subject for a moment. I also think i will be a better visual reader now as far as texts. I have learned to again think about what the actual message is in a picture or something of that sort, instead of just flipping by and looking at it and not really thinking about it very much. All together this was another great and helpful chapter for me.

Analyzing Rhetorical Situations

When reading this chapter, it really made me question my own writing style. I never asked myself any type of rhetoric questions on any style of my writing. All I did was just write to the subject and hope for the best. This chapter has really brighten my eyes to the point where I really need to start asking myself these questions. Ranging from "writer, reader, text, and medium", these are the things that I need to adopt to my own personal writing style. The only thing that really bothered me was when Aristotle was introduced. His wording of the preliminary goals, Pathos, Logos, and Ethos, really simplified what I need to do.

Arguments

Arguments

Guidelines for Developing an Arguable Claim
- Choose an issue that has no easily identifiable solution and that has something significant at stake. (Pick a subject that is actually going to make an impact on people’s thoughts or actions.)
- Choose an issue or problem that readers might have varying perspectives on. (In other words, don’t argue about something that everyone already agrees is fact. IE. Don’t’ argue that the sky is blue. Everyone knows it is.)
- Attempt to persuade readers to believe or do something. Your ultimate goal is to change the way the reader thinks or feels on a subject. It is the purpose of your writing.

What makes a Good Argument
- ¬A good argument has a strong and clear thesis. “A clear limited thesis is vital because it indicates (for you, and for your reader) what is at stake” (Ede 124). It also keeps you on track when you are writing. All of your statements thereafter should be directly related to the thesis.
- Your thesis is your claim.
- You must support your claim with evidence. (Do not state something without providing examples of and/or evidence of it.)
- A good argument also acknowledges possible counterarguments. (Demonstrates you have analyzed the argument from a variety of perspectives.

Making and Supporting Claim

This chapter helped me see that the more your support your claims, the better the academic argument. I got a better understanding that you can write your paper and still contribute your views, as long as it is brought together in a reasonable fashion. The guidelines that were provided for analyzing your own values and beliefs, I found useful and very helpful. I think when we write, we tend to make it one sided when it really should take on the emotions and beliefs of the reader as well. I know that I find it hard to make sure that I get my point across without getting on a soapbox. Backing up your arguments with facts, can help your reader(s) to better understand your point of view and even help them create their own opinion on whatever the subject may be. The use of pictures has always been a large part of my writing. I feel that the more information you can provide to support your arguments or someone else’s, the better your paper can be. Pictures, tables and any other visual aids, can help your reader(s) to better understand what they are reading. This reading was informative and helped me see what areas that I might need to keep a closer eye on when I write.

Making and Supporting Claims

I personally thought this reading on Making and Supporting Claims was very helpful. It has many great details and many great examples on different arguments. I wasn't aware of all the different views, a person had to take in when they are writing and argument. Something else i wasn't aware of was how hard it was to focus on your beliefs and values and also write a good paper at the same time. Before reading this article I did not think about how much i should actually take my views and think about what other people think about them. I think this reading is going to help me out a lot with my writing. I believe it will help me gets my thoughts together better, because it says make sure you analyze your thoughts before writing. I usually do not think much before I write, unless it is a research paper and I have to do outside research. The reading also talked about thinking of counter arguments, which I knew nothing about. All together I think this reading is going to be a huge help in my future papers and writing in general.

Chapter 2- Thank you Gates!

Throughtout the reading in Chapter 2 I come to realize that I am someone that really looks in depth into the text given. Someone who writes notes, makes ideas about what the writer is saying and compares it to my own life experieneces. After reading the short essay written by Mary Ellen Gates I understood my weaknesses of writing, self doubt. I felt the same way she did when she came into her first day of a college writting class. Possibly scared, nervous and even worried that I couldn't get all my thoughts and ideas out on paper in a proper and correct form. But after reading her story about how she succeeded in that class leads me to believe I can as well. Knowing that I as well send many letters home, being that I am out of state and away from home, tend to struggling with saying what i'm thinking and writing it down. Her ideas about how she at first (just like me) dreaded those essays. But then saw that through time, helped her become a confident writer who is no longer nervous or scared but a student eager to learn and become a better writer. So thank you Gates for giving me more confidence and drive to become the writer I know I can be with a little practice and help from this college writing class.
P.S This chapter also inspired me because of my belief in art (being an art major here) and the ideas of how you practice and get better through time. Because in beginning of the chapter artwork was related to writing and this leads me to believe that my writing can actually improve alot more then I thought.

Chapter 2

In chapter 2 I caught on and identified with the types of writing styles that people have. I think that I am most like the heavy planner. I have trouble writing in class essays because I think about it too much. With this comes the problem of not being able to check what I've written. When it's time to turn in my rough drafts I haven't even checked spelling or grammer.In the end, One draft turns into two or three once everything is checked and fixed. I also have the problem of procrasination. I have the problem of doing my work the night before or even the day of. I get caught up easily in other things and know that I'll eventually do what I have to even if it means waiting until the last minute. Overall, this chapter really got me thinking of the writing process and how everyone has different ways of writing.

Welcome

I'd like to take this opportunity to welcome everyone to the blog. Every journal assignment you write, should be posted here. Your posts should be approximately 300 words, and you should respond to someone else's post at least once a week. These posts are informal, but they should be of substance. Don't just say that you like, or dislike a reading. I want to know why. This is a part of your grade, so take the assignment seriously.

Prof. Howard