Writing Log 2A HOTSPOTS

PART ONE:

When reading this chapter, I learned a lot about all the different kinds of writing styles. The first hotspot I chose to talk about was, “In our experience, beginning college writers are often discomforted by the ambiguity of the rules governing writing” (p.6, A&B, 5^th paragraph). This is how I felt coming into college, I was so nervous to write any type of paper because I was unaware of what the professor would be expecting. There are so many rules when it comes to writing, whether you have a specific genre, using the right type of language, or simply writing in the correct pattern. When writing in college, the professor expects us to go above and beyond, meaning we have to be open-ended. When I say we have to be open ended I mean that we must answer every question that comes to mind, we are supposed to reach out and answer the questions of the audience and readers on the subject matter being presented to them. The next hotspot that stuck out to me was, “Good Writing varies along a continuum from closed to open forms” (p.26, A&B). This was interesting to me because I was unaware that there was even a continuum for writing styles. The different styles along the continuum have to do with how the thesis is delivered in the essay or speech. At the closed end of the form, the essay is thesis based from top-down structure. The thesis is stated and the following topics are based off of the original thesis. When going towards the open form, the narrative is no longer thesis based, but theme based.

When reading this chapter, as I said above I realized much about myself as a writer. When I would write papers before, I would stay towards the closed form on the continuum because that was all I knew how to do. I wouldn’t try and answer questions from the audience about the subject matter; I would just base my writing off of my thesis statement. I never knew that there were different reasons for writing, where teachers expected you to go above and beyond to answer rising questions. When reading this chapter I also realized that I too would ask a teacher a question, hoping to get just the direct answer and not a debate or discussion in class. When in college the teacher will answer your question with another question, simply to get yourself thinking. Based on how I used to present speeches, my audience may perceive me as not as intelligent because I used to do the bare minimum. Now I realized in order to reach my fullest potential as a writer and speaker, I must go above and beyond to get my audience thinking.

PART TWO:

The first hotspot I chose to talk about from this chapter was, “Learning to wallow in complexity”, (p.29, A&B, Paragraph 3). This is an interesting statement because this is exactly how I feel college professors would like us all to think. When we ask them a question, I feel as though they are hoping we come to realize the real answer. The meaning behind the wallow in complexity statement is for students to work their way out of the problem. Most new college students don’t learn to wallow their way out, and simply just comprehend the material in the readings and react to it. They generally shut down all of their creative thinking and just go straight for closure to the problem. While what is really wanted out of the student is to be able to comprehend the material learned, but also to attach it to a bigger meaning. Throughout this chapter, there are four more key concepts to which they want us to learn. All of the concepts are to help us become more proficient writers. One of the concepts is to use exploratory strategies to think critically about the subject-matter. When reading this concept, a hotspot came to me, “Another effective was to explore the complexity of a topic is through face-to-face discussions with others”, (p.35, A&B, paragraph 1). I chose this hotspot because not all face-to-face discussion groups are successful. Last quarter I was in a history class and we had a discussion group every Thursday, where we would bring a paper, proving that we read the reading for the week and we had to talk about what we wrote. Not ever did everyone in the class participate in the class discussion, even though it was worth participation points. When the classmates talked, people would disagree with what the other person was saying, and it would become a battle of who was right and who was wrong. In the reading, it said the best way to have a face-to-face discussion is to have dialectic talk, which means people who have different views on a subject try and understand each other. This chapter continued to talk about the placement of thesis statements within a writing, to make it a closed or open form. When people develop a thesis statement, they can leave it open ended to develop a question, or develop a thesis statement that is supported by different points throughout your essay.

PART THREE:

At the beginning of the third chapter the hotspot that stuck out to me was, “Messages persuade through their angle of vision”, (p.50, A&B, Concept 8). This is true because when thinking about all the different types of paper, we realize everyone has their own person view towards the same subject matter. In class if we were all told to write about what we believe stem cells represent, everyone would have their own opinion. Sure there may be some similarities, but people view things differently throughout our daily lives. Another example of people having their own angle of vision would be if the whole class was to write on their ideal woman/man. This ties into what we have been talking about in class. When people think about the ideal woman, some may not be able to because there are so many things a woman can do to alter her appearance. In class someone said that there is an ideal woman hairstyle, which would be a pony tail. To some, this is not considered to be the ideal hairstyle because women, when thinking of what to do with their hair, think about the highlights, if it will be a low pony tail, or a high one, pinned backed bangs, or not. There are many views towards such a small subject, which makes it unique when we hear from one person’s angle of vision. Another concept which is talked about in this chapter has to do with logos, pathos, and ethos. “We encourage you to ask questions about the appeals to logos, ethos, and pathos every time you examine a text”, (p.56, A&B, paragraph 3). Last quarter I was in a public speaking class and we had to make sure that each speech had credibility supported by logos, ethos, and pathos. When writing an essay or speech it is important that there is credibility behind what you are saying, so your audience trusts what you are telling them. Pathos in writing is important because it ties into the audience or readers emotions. Linking facts to emotions or ethos is an easier way for the audience to remember what was being said to them.