Reflection on Project 3

In this post, I reflect on project 3 by answering the questions on page 520 of Writing Public Lives.

Sullivan, Matthew "Something_to_see_here_3" 8/18/07 via Flickr.com. Attribution-NonCommercial 2.0 Generic

1. What was specifically revised from one draft to another?

I added content to the conclusion and the paragraph before the conclusion, I added a title, and grammatical issues were corrected.

2. Point to global changes: how did you reconsider your thesis or organization?

The changes done in the last two paragraphs put a heavier emphasis on the point that both sides of this debate need to work together to make this issue better. This appeals to a wider range of readers and takes heat away from this argument to try to do something productive.

3. What led you to these changes? A reconsideration of audience? A shift in purpose?

The purpose was always there, it was just underdeveloped. I was losing momentum toward the end of my rough draft and I just wanted to be done so it was half-hearted the first time through.

4. How do these changes affect your credibility as a writer?

This ending appeals to a wider audience and makes me more moderate as a writer. It shows that my purpose is to make this problem better and I chose a side that I think can best address the issue.

5. How will these changes better address the audience or venue?

My audience is against animal testing so taking a moderate purpose is going to appeal to them more than simply telling them they're wrong.

6. Point to local changes: how did you reconsider sentence structure and style?

I changed some sentences to be shorter because they were run-ons. I was just hauling out a rough draft and run-ons happen quite frequently for me, especially when I try to get ideas out quickly. This change makes my paper more professional, which is a big part of my genre.

7. How will these changes assist your audience in understanding your purpose?

I don't think it helps the audience understand my purpose better but it certainly makes my paper easier to read.

8. Did you have to reconsider the conventions of the particular genre in which you are writing?

No, I stuck closely to the conventions of my genre in the rough draft so I didn't have to change anything in that regard for the final draft.

9. Finally, how does the process of reflection help you reconsider your identity as a writer?

Reflection lets me analyze where my weak points are as a writer and take steps toward strengthening those points.

Publishing Public Argument

Here is the final draft of my public argument. Question 2 is different for mine because of the approach I took at the end. I want people to understand that alternatives to animal testing are not ready to replace but I urge the development of alternatives in the end. So my argument doesn't aim to make people change sides of the argument but rather accept reality and do what they can to change it.

1. Mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience currently stands on the issue (before reading/watcing/hearing your argument) below:

←----------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------x--------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly

for testing                                                                                                                    against                                                                                                                                       testing

2. Now mark with an "x" where you feel your target audience should be (after they've read/watched/heard your argument) below:

←-------------------------------------------x--------|--------------------------------------------------------->

Strongly                                            Totally neutral                                                    Strongly

for testing                                                                                                                    against                                                                                                                                       testing

3. Check one (and only one) of the argument types below for your public argument:

         _______ My public argument etablishes an original pro position on an issue of                                   debate.

         _______ My public argument establishes an original con position on an issue of                                 debate.

         _______ My public argument clarifies the causes for a problem that is being debated.

         _______ My public argument prooposes a solution for a problem that is being                                     debated.

         _______ My public argument positively evaluate a specific solution or policy under                               debate (and clearly identifies the idea I'm supporting).

         ___x___ My public argument openly refutes a specific solution or policy under debate                           (and clearly identifies the idea I'm refuting).

4. Briefly explain how your public argument doesn’t simply restate information from other sources, but provides original context and insight into the situation:

I refute the point that alternatives to animal testing should replace testing using sources. This isn't exactly a new approach but it's fresher than most arguments we see for animal testing. At the end, I propose that both sides of this argument cooperate to develop alternatives in the future using common ground.

5. Identify the specific rhetorical appeals you believe you've employedi n your public argument below:

Ethical or credibility-establishing appeals

                    _____ Telling personal stories that establish a credible point-of-view

                    __x__ Referring to credible sources (established journalism, credentialed                                          experts, etc.)

                    _____ Employing carefully chosen key words or phrases that demonstrate you                                  are credible (proper terminology, strong but clear vocabulary, etc.)

                    __x__ Adopting a tone that is inviting and trustworthy rather than distancing or                                  alienating

                    _____ Arranging visual elements properly (not employing watermarked images,                                cropping images carefully, avoiding sloppy presentation)

                    _____ Establishing your own public image in an inviting way (using an                                              appropriate images of yourself, if you appear on camera dressing in a                                    warm or friendly or professional manner, appearing against a                                                  background that’s welcoming or credibility-establishing)

                    _____ Sharing any personal expertise you may possess about the subject                                        (your identity as a student in your discipline affords you some authority                                  here)

                    __x__ Openly acknowledging counterarguments and refuting them intelligently

                    __x__ Appealing openly to the values and beliefs shared by the audience                                          (remember that the website/platform/YouTube channel your argument is                                designed for helps determine the kind of audience who will encounter                                    your piece)

                    _____ Other: 

Emotional appeals

                    _____ Telling personal stories that create an appropriate emotional impact for                                  the debate

                    _____ Telling emotionally compelling narratives drawn from history and/or the                                  current culture

                    _____ Employing the repetition of key words or phrases that create an                                              appropriate emotional impact

                    __x__ Employing an appropriate level of formality for the subject matter                                            (through appearance, formatting, style of language, etc.)

                    _____ Appropriate use of humor for subject matter, platform/website, audience

                    _____ Use of “shocking” statistics in order to underline a specific point

                    _____ Use of imagery to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _____ Employing an attractive color palette that sets an appropriate emotional                                  tone (no clashing or ‘ugly’ colors, no overuse of too many variant colors,                                etc.)

                    _____ Use of music to create an appropriate emotional impact for the debate

                    _____ Use of sound effects to create an appropriate emotional impact for the                                    debate

                    ____ Employing an engaging and appropriate tone of voice for the debate

                    _____ Other: 

Logical or rational appeals

                    _____ Using historical records from credible sources in order to establish                                          precedents, trends, or patterns

                    __x__ Using statistics from credible sources in order to establish precedents,                                    trends, or patterns

                    _____ Using interviews from stakeholders that help affirm your stance or                                          position

                    _____ Using expert opinions that help affirm your stance or position

                    _____ Effective organization of elements, images, text, etc.

                    _____ Clear transitions between different sections of the argument (by using                                    title cards, interstitial music, voiceover, etc.)

                    __x__ Crafted sequencing of images/text/content in order to make linear                                          arguments

                    __x__ Intentional emphasis on specific images/text/content in order to                                              strengthen argument

                    _____ Careful design of size/color relationships between objects to effectively                                  direct the viewer’s attention/gaze (for visual arguments)

                    _____ Other: 

6. Below, provide us with working hyperlinks to THREE good examples of the genre you've chosen to write in. These examples can come from Blog Post 11.3 or they can be new examples. But they should all come from the same specific website/platformand should demonstrate the conventions for your piece:

After searching for a while, I could not find a specific website that publishes research papers like the one I wanted to make. This kind of thing would show up on a database but I struggled to find an example of this genre on multiple databases. Here are some examples that capture the general idea.

Example 1
Example 2
Example 3

Reflection on Project 3 Draft

Here are my peer reviews for Kelly and Isabel's articles.

ekamanganese "Pond Reflection" 5/27/08 via deviantart.com. Attribution-Noncommercial-ShareAlike 3.0

1. Who reviewed your Project 3 rough draft?

Morgan is the only reviewer at the time I wrote this.

2. What did you think and/or feel about the feedback you received? Be explicit and clear. Tell me what helped or what confused you about the feedback you got.

Most of the feedback was helpful. I tend to write wordy sentences and a lot of the corrections on the draft itself helped to reduce that. From the rubric feedback, there is not much I will do to improve the Purpose and Argumentation sections. Those two sections got relatively high scores. There was concern that my audience may not know all that I write about in the text (i.e. micro-dosing) and that needs to be reevaluated.

3. What aspects of Project 3 need to most work going forward [Audience, Purpose, Argumentation, or Genre]? How do you plan on addressing these areas?

Audience and Genre did not receive acceptable scores. I will address the audience by clarifying any vocabulary word that I think my audience may not know. Genre received a lower score because I cited things in ACS. I will not change that. I do need to add a title but I decided to save that for the final draft because laziness set in toward the end of my rough draft.

4. How are you feeling overall about the direction of your project after peer review and/or instructor conferences this week?

My project is going well. My rough draft requires less revision work than previous projects needed. My genre is pretty boring compared to the ones that I peer edited but I don't really have the creativity to make my project visually appealing nor will I need those skills in an engineering career.

Draft of Public Argument

Here's the link to my Rough Draft of Project 3

Reneman "DRAFT ICON" 2/24/13 via Wikipedia. Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported.

This is the strongest draft I've created yet. It is a research paper, so don't expect to read something super exciting. The hook is weak and the thesis is a bit wordy, but beyond that, the first three paragraphs are good in my opinion. I burned out near the end of the third paragraph so my last two paragraphs are short.

Considering Visual Elements

I will consider visual elements in this post.

Smallman12q "A truncated bar graph" 6/28/12 via Wikipedia. Public Domain. 

Does the image inform or emphasize my argument in an important way, or does it seem superficial or unrelated to my argument?

For my genre, the only images that would help my argument are charts or graphs. Even then, most statistics on animal testing are estimations that vary greatly so presenting data with a high margin of error would not help my argument.

If the image is a graph or chart, does it clearly support a major point of my argument of is it superfluous?

As I stated in the last question, the data are estimations that vary greatly. If I try to use a data point without its huge range, that would harm my credibility and the credibility of my argument. Most data will not be able to clearly support one of my major points.

Is the image is close proximity to the argument that it is emphasizing or illustrating?

If I do end up using a graph, it will be pretty clear what it is expressing. The graph title and axes should make it obvious. Generally, graphs are placed just before the explanation in research papers, so that's what I will do if I choose to do so.

If your project contains large blocks of text, could they be broken up more effectively using text boxes, lines, headings, or images?

My essay will contain large blocks of text but that's part of the genre. There isn't supposed to be anything visually appealing about it, so I will not use boxes, lines, or subheadings. The only possibility of an image is a graph but I am not planing to use one in this project.

Do the different visual and textual elements come together persuasively as a whole, or are there elements that seem disconnected or out of place?

The graphs and their explanations will be obviously connected to the argument. Unless a graph can produce a shocking statistic, I don't think it will be anymore persuasive to my audience than just stating the numbers.

Looking back at your outline or a draft of your project, is the visual-rhetorical tone of your project consistent?

The only type of image that would be appropriate for my genre is a graph because this is a very formal and academic paper. As long as I stick to that, the visual-rhetorical tone will be consistent.


Reflection
I read the posts by Kelly and Isabel. Some parts of their genre are similar to mine, like the evidence based argument, but my genre is very different from theirs when it comes to visual elements. My genre leaves no space for creative freedom while both of theirs do and they are utilizing it.

Project 3 Outline

Here's my outline for Project 3

CloudNinesDesigns "Vector Guitar Outline" 3/26/09 via deviantart.com. Public Domain. 

I. Introduction
     1. Hook
     2. Introduction approach: frame the consequences
     3. Thesis

II. Body Paragraph 1
     1. Topic: Proposed alternatives cannot yet determine genetic level causes of disease or determine how a disease becomes resistant to treatments.
     2. Evidence 1 and explanation
     3. Evidence 2 and explanation

III. Body Paragraph 2
     1. Topic: There are no reliable alternatives. Such methods usually compliment, not replace, animal testing.
     2. Evidence 1 and explanation
     3. Evidence 2 and explanation

IV. Body Paragraph 3
     1. Topic: By law, replacements to animal testing must be used whenever possible.
     2. Evidence 1 and explanation
     3. Evidence 2 and explanation

V. Body Paragraph 4
     1. Topic: Legislation around the globe requires pharmaceuticals to be tested in animals for toxic reactions.
     2. Evidence 1 and explanation
     3. Evidence 2 and explanation

VI. Conclusion
     1. Restate thesis
     2. Conclusion approach: common ground

I chose "frame the consequences" as my introduction approach because I will frame the consequences of a good alternative to animal testing, which is what my audience would like to see (or possibly believes already exists). This will allow me to relate to my audience immediately and hopefully they give the rest of the essay an opportunity to persuade them. The common ground approach in the conclusion was an obvious choice for me. Both sides of this argument want to see alternatives to animal testing produced.

Analyzing My Genre

Here are some examples of my genre and analysis of it.

Forsyth, Ellen "Fiction/genre sign - Burton Barr Central Library, Phoenix Public Library" 6/4/11 via Flickr.com. Attribution-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic

Examples

• Example 1
• Example 2
• Example 3
• Example 4
• Example 5

Social Context

This genre can easily be found in a database. The subject of research essays vary. People that use this genre are scholarly. This genre is used to present and analyze evidence in a well constructed manner. It serves the purpose of presenting an argument in a formal and scholarly manner.

Rhetorical Patterns of the Genre

Research essays generally contain ample evidence and the only visuals the occasionally have are graphs. This genre uses appeals to logos most often and appeals to ethos second most. It does not have appeals to pathos. The texts are organized with an introduction, thesis at the end of the intro, body paragraphs ordered according to thesis, then the conclusion. Sentences in this genre do not follow a particular pattern. They vary from active to passive voice and from simple to complex sentences. They use whatever states the fact in the best way. There are no exclamation points and questions are used very very sparingly, if at all. Word choice in this genre simply picks the best word for the sentence. The tone is academic and formal.

Analysis of What those Patterns Reveal about the Social Context of the Genre

This genre includes people that know what all the words mean in the essay. That may sound like a joke but it's not. The vocabulary in these pieces reveal what the author assumes the reader knows and therefore the audience selected by the author. The writer is generally writing as a qualified writer in the subject based on the research and outside sources. The writer treats the reader as someone who knows less about the subject and explains the how the sources boost their argument. This genre assumes the reader values logic and credibility over emotion. Logic and credibility are the most valuable parts of this genre and emotion is the least important.

Reflection:
I read the posts by Jayni and Brandon. They are both doing a text based project like me and both are planning to appeal to logos and ethos like me. It seems like they both thought about their genre way more than I have but maybe that's just because I'm used to doing research papers and they're working in genres less familiar to a typical high school student.