TOW #29 - Letter to a New APELC Student

Dear new APELC student,

If you're reading this, that means you've chosen to taken APELC, which is a choice that will provide you with an enriching and challenging experience for your junior year. The course will teach you a lot about writing and reading different types of texts, and it will definitely make you think about a huge variety of topics. The beginning of the year is a struggle for all new students, but definitely don't be discouraged at your performance in the beginning of the year, because the only thing you can do from there is improve! Struggling in the beginning of the course is something that happens to everyone, and it shouldn't be discouraging. You're not a bad writer, the teachers have high expectations and you'll get increasingly closer to reaching those expectations throughout the year. Getting off to a rough start won't determine the whole year, because as the year progresses, you'll become more comfortable with the structure and expectations of the course. The important thing is not about whether you get an A or B in the class, but it's what you learn from the class. You learn to improve your reading and writing abilities as well as discuss important topics and learn to become a more informed and active citizen of society. You do so many different things, from symposiums to creative projects, and the course is about so much more than just writing. The practice and the timed essays really do help with improving your skills at analysis and argumentation. You'll develop your own writing style and thoughts on the topics and prompts that may differ from those of the teachers or your fellow students.

It is important to get help when you need it - especially for discussing essays before they're due. The teachers can give you excellent advice on your essays and guide you in the right direction if you're having a problem with your writing or maybe even just to get another perspective. While the homework that is assigned is usually not checked, it's still a good idea to do it so you can have a deeper understanding of the topic and so you can be prepared for class and not be confused as to what everyone is doing. The texts are really helpful, and by understanding what you read and learning the ideas of others, you can improve your own writing as well as expand your knowledge of the world. You'll have to do a lot of thinking and analysis, but it's definitely worth it.

Everyone starting the class has a lot to learn, and by the time the year comes to a close, you'll look back upon your work from September and be amazed by how much you've improved. The important thing is to have a positive attitude and know that a bad grade is not something to be upset about, but something that can be used for improving in the future. You have plenty of opportunity to prepare for timed essays or take home essays and get help if you need it. The class has many opportunities for you to succeed, and it's definitely possible to achieve your goals. The course isn't impossible, despite what some people may say. It takes work and thought, but you are definitely able to survive the work (and maybe even get an A while you're at it).

TOW #28 - Reflection

I noticed that as the year progressed, I did more focus on the strategies that the author used and how they were or were not effective in portraying the purpose of the text. I think I started doing well at identifying the different devices that were used and identifying the purpose of the text. In the beginning of the year, a significant portion of the TOW would be summarizing the content in the text or providing a more personal opinion on it than later in the year, when the posts became more focused on analysis and identifying strategies, which is an important skill for the course. Earlier in the year, most of the posts didn't identify the purpose of the text and by the end, I think it became more apparent. Overall, I think the depth of the analysis improved and it became easier to identify the strategies and the purpose of the text I was reading or viewing. I think I've become good at reading more closely and finding the things the author does in the text that contribute to a better development of the purpose. I think I could have done more analysis of the devices and how they were used to further the purpose. I identify the devices and their effect but not as much how it relates to the overall purpose. I also think I could have done less summary of the material and less influence from persona beliefs. On TOWs that related to a topic I was passionate about, I focused less on the analysis and more the topic of the writing, which was straying from the purpose of the assignment. I think I did benefit from these assignments because the purpose was to read a variety of texts and work on analyzing them in a way that would be beneficial in preparation for the exam. I think it was effective because I found different types of materials and I definitely did my best to improve my analysis, and I think I eventually did less summarizing and more analysis. I think it was definitely good practice for analysis and understanding a variety of writing styles and topics. I personally believe it was a useful exercise that helped me improve.

TOW #27 - How I Got Converted to G.M.O. Food (Written)

This article is from the New York Times on the topic of genetically modified foods, which is a controversial topic in modern society. The article details the benefits using genetically modified foods can have for farmers and consumers and why they should be more widely accepted as safe and something that should be used in order to solve some problems agriculture faces today. The author uses examples of ways that GMO foods have been beneficial, such as the example with the farmer and the eggplants, and how it has removed the need to use chemical pesticides, which can be harmful to humans, while these new organisms are generally considered to be safe and the new chemical this eggplant would produce would be toxic only to the pests that are destroying the crops. This helped in appealing to logos as well as pathos, with the mention of the children and how they appeared to be suffering from malnutrition and poverty and how the introduction of these new crops could help the impoverished farmers in developing countries. The article uses many statistics, including the number of times farmers spray their natural crop with pesticides in a single season (140) or how most scientists believe these crops are safe for consumption while a much smaller part of the general population believes this. The author also compares the controversy surrounding this topic to the reaction to global warming, and how scientific evidence should be the most important determining factor in these sorts of issues. The author used a lot of information such as the status of GMO foods in many countries in order to address the scale of the problem. The author also attempts to establish his own ethos throughout the article. I personally think it could have been improved by addressing the counter argument more, mentioning some of the reasons that certain people believe these organisms are not safe and should not be used, as there is still much we don't know about their effect on the environment or the effect lowering the populations of pests will have in the future, and these are definitely problems that need to be considered.

TOW #26 - Celebrating 21st Century Feminism (Written)

I really enjoyed this article I read, and I found it interesting because it talks about the issues in a very modern context, in fact it was posted the day before I read it. I found it interesting because it addresses many feminist issues that I don't see mentioned often, such as rights for trans people and the reasons that we still need feminism today, even though some people insist it is unnecessary. People like to think society has achieved gender equality but there are still many problems that exist like the wage gap between men and women as well as the harmful stereotypes that have been projected upon both men and women. The article also brought up a major problem facing feminists, the facts that we have to struggle against already existing power structures and some ideas that are deeply ingrained in society, like some beliefs about women (for example, how women feel uncomfortable celebrating their own achievements). It described the progress women have made since the beginning of feminism, such as gaining the right to vote and more freedoms later. My favorite thing about the article was how it listed achievements that have been made by women recently, which may inspire readers to do more research on the topics, and other progress that has been made in gaining more equality for women. I liked how the article began with reservations about the things that have been changed, and the fact that there is still much more to be done. However, the article then shifts to the things that have been done. The author also uses specific examples of things that have been done in order to prove the point that feminism can make a difference. She also uses examples of things that have happened, such as Hillary Clinton's role in politics and the announcement that the Pope made in order to emphasize how progress is happening but there is still much to be done, because this is an ongoing fight and change doesn't happen overnight.

TOW #25 - McDonalds Ad - Visual

This is an advertisement for McDonalds. I found this ad particularly interesting because McDonalds is often portrayed by most people as serving primarily unhealthy and fattening foods. However, in more recent times, McDonalds has been trying to promote the good qualities of their food, including reintroducing chicken tenders, which are proudly heralded as containing all real white meat as well as offering healthier options in kids meals, like milk and apple slices. This campaign has become necessary as people are becoming more aware of their health and the negative effects fast food can have. The company The advertisement itself features the easily recognizable McDonalds French fry box, except carved out of an actual potato. This emphasizes that McDonalds fries are naturally cut from the potatoes, and that the food is natural and tastes good because of that. The caption at the bottom right of the image reads "Real. Good." This emphasizes that the fries, and therefore the rest of the food as well, is made from real natural ingredients like the potato and taste good, as well as being made of good ingredients. The image uses a minimalistic design in order to emphasize only the main focus of the image, the French fries. This is effective because the advertisement would not have been as effective had there been a lot of other material in the image - it would have distracted from the purpose. Also, I thought the color scheme was interesting - the colors weren't too bright and was easy for the viewer to look at. The actual idea of the advertisement was interesting as well, I found it clever and an interesting way of conveying the message that they were intending without having too many words - the image mainly speaks for itself. The advertisement relies on the basic assumption that foods made from natural and good ingredients taste better and are better for health.

TOW #24 - A General Theory of Love - IRB pt. 2

I finished the second half of this book, and there were a lot of concepts that the authors addressed that I found to be interesting. It primarily addressed interactions and relationships between people, which is primarily what love is. It focused on where attachments form in the brain, and how the way the brain functions is conducive to learning new things in a particular way, and it's very difficult to "unlearn" something when you become an adult, which the authors described as one of the problems that therapists face. This is because certain neural pathways become strengthened due to being used a lot and this can often lead to faulty assumptions like the illusion of a triangle in this image. 

It described how certain strengthened neural pathways (called Attractors by the authors) can sometimes overwhelm signals from less used pathways. The book described different ways the brain works and what causes some people to be attracted to each other - a common the me is that because they are similar. It explained why changing the way the brain thinks is very difficult, because of the power of the Attractors. The authors used numerous examples of the concepts they were describing, such as the example with the H and the much simpler neural network, and the example with drug abuse and the most effective ways to deal with the problem. The book explains emotions from a largely biological standpoint, which is interesting, because most of the time people don't think of relationships are regulating each other, but the book approaches it much in this way. It explains how people in a truly meaningful relationship make each other better and change each other. The examples made it easier to understand a potentially abstract concept. It explained how the mind is not shaped only by genetics but also by interactions with people and the nurturing a child receives. I thought it was definitely unique and interesting.

TOW #23 - The Search for Marvin Gardens - Written

This is an interesting essay from the 100 best essays of the century book, and I thought it would be nice for a change from my usual topics. This essay was written by John McPhee, an American writer who is considered to be a pioneer of creative nonfiction, which is definitely shown in this essay. The essay primarily features two people playing multiple rounds of the game Monopoly, along with descriptions of the realities in the places that are mentioned on the Monopoly board. I found it interesting because most people who play the game probably aren't thinking about the actual places that they see on their game board - they're more concerned with the actual game itself. I found the juxtaposition between the status of the game and the descriptions of many of the places to be really interesting, especially the descriptions of the jail and the people there. Throughout the essay, the game is described almost as simplistic, and hardly any attention is given to the actual locations in the parts of the essay describing gameplay. It was a pretty big contrast between the players in the game and their thoughts about the properties, to collect them for their own personal gain, as compared to the descriptions of the actual locations and the poor condition most of them are in, like with the description of St. Charles Place as being completely abandoned with barely recognizable sidewalks and vacant buildings. The essay is not about the game - it's about the reality in the country and how many of these things that are happening and real and can't be ignored. These are conditions that actually exist, and they won't just disappear. I did find the description of Monopoly as "chess at a Wall Street level" to be interesting, because it seems to be a pretty accurate summary, because there is definitely an amount of strategy involved, and it was actually an interesting analogy for actual development. The essay did seem a bit hard to follow at times, because it jumped around between different locations that were being described, and I was a bit confused as to the person who was actually seeking Marvin Gardens and why no one knew where it was. It was a unique essay, and I thought it was definitely an interesting glimpse into the actual places behind the game.

TOW #22 - Still Waiting in Selma - Written

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/03/07/opinion/still-waiting-in-selma.html?ref=opinion

This was an interesting article from the New York Times about African American rights, a theme that I've chosen after tumblr's #blackout on Friday, promoting equality and the end of racism. The article itself was about the voting process and African American citizens, primarily in the town of Selma, known from the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. It details the racism and restrictions for voting that exist, and the fact that African Americans do not receive the equal treatment that they've been promised in the past. It also emphasizes how slow progress has been, especially with all the current events with police brutality and discriminatory practices. The article describes some of the discrimination that exists to this day, such as with the changes to the voting laws, with the new voter ID law that would discriminate against minorities and poor people who don't have government ID, which the authors claim is similar to the literacy test and poll tax tactics that were used in the past. They also describe the lack of representation in the government and the essential segregation that exists in the school system. They use statistics as well as personal experience in order to support the argument - the number of African American representatives, the number of voters, and poverty levels. For personal experiences, they use the example of the segregated school. They also used the examples of all the different forms of legislation relating to voting rights, and voting equality that's been a goal for a very long time. The article was really interesting in highlighting the progress that has been made, but also the progress that will still need to be made, and how causing change will not be an easy process. It reminds us where we started from, where we are now, and where we need to be in order to achieve the equal treatment promised to everyone.

TOW #21 - Hunger Games Poster - Visual

This week, I thought it would be nice to do something different than my usual types of posts. This is an advertisement for one of the Hunger Games movies, and I found it interesting because although this is actually promoting the movie, it's presented as a propaganda poster for the Capitol. The artist used the strategy of making the image simple, with only one main thing to focus on - the child in the center. Under the District 12 logo is a message that says "The Capitol salutes its citizens of the mining district". This is an interesting choice because this would a time at which the citizens of the District would be angry with the Capitol and they often feel out of favor, both in the Hunger Games and in other things. This message would be meant to make them feel appreciated. It's also interesting to see the child dirty and in a miner's outfit, which isn't something you would expect. It is also ironic how the child has an apple which appears to be a reward for doing work, while canonically in the series, almost everyone in District 12 is starving and wouldn't have enough food. This child looks healthy and fairly happy, which may not necessarily actually be the best representation of the District itself but might have been useful in inspiring hope. However, it seems to be a bit contrary to the purpose, since the child is shown as dirty and messy, which contrasts with the innocence of the child and their face. It doesn't seem like a positive thing to allow children to be supporting manual labor, especially considering how dangerous the job of mining is. I don't feel like this ad would have been effective had it actually been used as propaganda, because the District would not have taken the message seriously, and they most likely would not have approved of the miner child, because they all risk their lives in the mines and the Capitol would be trying to trivialize that. As a movie poster, it's completely different. It makes the viewer think about the advertisement and think about it in relation to the movie, which would probably be more effective than just the actors' faces.

TOW #20 - A General Theory of Love, pt. 1 - IRB

I found the first half of the book to be really interesting. It explained the different parts of the brain and how they developed during evolution to serve their specific function - the reptilian brain is basic functioning like breathing and heartbeat, the limbic brain is emotional and social, and the neocortex (the most recently developed part of the brain) is primarily for logic, reasoning, and communication. After this, the authors described the need for social interaction and the effects isolation can have on an animal, and how animals interact with each other, primarily social animals like humans and the way they can communicate through facial expressions because humans have the ability to tell emotions from other people and have universal displays of emotion, like happy smiles or angry expressions. I found it was interesting to approach emotions from a scientific and biological standpoint, and the parts of the brain that influence emotion and interactions. The authors also investigated what happens when these mechanisms go wrong, like with Aspergers syndrome or anxiety disorders. The authors used a lot of examples in the book, with different studies that have been done about the brain and how they demonstrate the authors' arguments (like the example of the monkeys who didn't have care from their parents or the twins who were raised apart) and individual people who demonstrate their points, like the man with no explicit memory as well as hypothetical examples like the boy with Aspergers. The book explored the different parts of the brain and how they relate to human emotion, and so far, primarily love between parents and children and how that can be affected by altering the chemistry of the brain. It not only explained how the brain functions with emotion and social connections, but also what happens if these mechanisms are not functioning properly and the way people can be fundamentally changed if this happens. Primarily, the first part of the book was concerned with describing the functioning of the brain and how evolution has created the ability for humans to experience the complex emotions that they do.

TOW #19 - UNEP advertisement - Visual

This was an interesting ad that I found online, from the United Nations Environmental Program to raise awareness for global warming. It shows the melting of icebergs that would alter sea levels, and that the raising of sea levels would cause destruction to coastlines and the sinking of coastal cities. There was juxtaposition between the city skyline and the icebergs, which aren't something that is usually seen together. This made it quite unique, as most people don't connect the melting of glaciers with destruction of cities. I found the contrast between the ice and the blue water/sky to be effective, because it clearly separates the two parts of the image. It was interesting how the sky was composed of ice, because if the ice in the top of the image melted, the image of the city would be destroyed, which would be an interesting parallel between the melting of real glaciers and the destruction of the cities because of rising sea levels. It is interesting how if that ice melts completely, the image of the city will be completely gone, in order to emphasize the damage that can be caused by global warming. Also, I thought the caption was interesting - the message was short, but memorable. If the icebergs melt, the skylines sink. At first glance, I wasn't entirely sure what the image was, I had to read the caption first. It would have been more effective to make it more clear what the image was - maybe making the caption bigger, or making the skyline more immediately obvious. I also thought it might have been better if the ad provided a way for people to prevent the melting of the icebergs. This is an interesting way of raising awareness of the issue of glacial melting, and the problems it could cause for the future, like the sinking of coastal cities like New York City and will make people want to learn more about environmental preservation and global warming.

TOW # 18 - Madam C.E.O., Get Me a Coffee - Written

This article was written by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant for the New York Times about women in the workplace. The article explored the misogyny and gender stereotyping inherent in the professional world, with how women are supposed to helpful and caring, assisting others with their tasks while still managing to do their own, while men aren't expected to do this. I found it interesting that this phenomenon is based on what should be antiquated stereotypes that women are supposed to be more communal and helpful, and the belief that women who aren't like this are selfish or uncaring. The authors used a personal story in order to support the argument, with the example of the manager who did more than her share of work and still didn't receive the promotion she clearly deserved. There was also another specific example, where the a female senior executive was asked to fetch a soda for someone who had a lower position.The authors also use lots of statistics in order to support their claim, with the research that shows these trends that still continue today; women are expected to be altruistic and helpful while men are supposed to be doing the most useful work and anything extra is purely optional and praise-worthy. Women are supposed to do the trivial things, or things that aren't their responsibility. The data shows that women receive less praise when they do additional work, and they also receive more backlash when they don't volunteer to do extra work. This data supports the argument because without statistical evidence, the article would have been less convincing, and it is important for a claim like this to be substantiated. The authors also used support from people as well as numbers, like the reference to Rosabeth Moss Kanter and Joan C. Williams, and their opinions on the issue, as they are credible sources. As well as addressing the problem, the authors provide a possible solution for the problem. It is easy for men to offer to do some of the "office housework" as the authors called it, instead of leaving it to women, and this will help to end harmful stereotypes and internalized misogyny in the workplace. Women who seek power and leadership are "bossy", but men who do this are "driven". Men are supposed to make important contributions to society, while the contributions of women are hidden in the background. Women should be done with being second best. It's time that men learned women don't owe you anything.

IRB 3 Intro

This marking period, I chose to read "A General Theory of Love". I want to read this book because I don't usually read these sorts of books and it's a topic I don't know much about. I think it'll be an interesting exploration of love from a biological and social view.

TOW #17 - "My Zombie, Myself" - Written

This is an essay that was featured in The Language of Composition. It was written by Chuck Klosterman, who has written for many newspapers and also essay collections. I found it really interesting, as it analyzed popular monsters as their relevance to different aspects of society, and relevant concerns about society in the past, and that continue until today. It explored why people today are interested in zombie stories, by suggesting it's because many aspects of zombies are similar to things in real life, the way life can seem to get monotonous and seemingly pointless, like killing zombies. He compares normal life to zombie killing, in a way that's interesting and understandable. He used comparison and contrast throughout the essay, first comparing other monsters to aspects of life, such as Frankenstein and fearing unrestrained science, and the things that humans might create if they were allowed to experiment as they chose, resulting in bioethics and other ethical problems that result when considering the future advancement of science. He compared zombies to answering voice mails or filling out paperwork, because the actions of fighting zombies (as well as normal work) is often tedious and relentless. Klosterman also uses examples of the monsters in popular culture, such as Twilight and Dracula, as well as popular TV shows today, including True Blood and The Walking Dead. By referencing popular entertainment, readers understand what the author is saying, and see the relationship between these popular shows/books and how the monsters are not just for entertainment but also provide a message about society, which the author argues is why these monsters appeal to us. I think it was effective, because the reader understands the author and his claims about monsters, as well as relating to what the author says about working, with the repetitive nature of most peoples's work. I also like how in the end of the essay, the author says that we don't have to live like zombies. We may live in the world of zombies, but we make our own choices and can choose to make our lives more interesting.

TOW #16 - How 'Je suis Charlie' makes matters worse - Written

This article was written on January 16th (the day before I'm writing this) about the recent "Je suis Charlie" trend. It was written by Saree Makdisi, a professor of English and comparative literature at UCLA and is also the author of "Making England Western: Occidentalism, Race and Imperial Culture". The author explains why he finds the "Je suis Charlie" trend to be ineffective and counterintuitive because it is just widening the antagonism between Muslims and "Westerners". It promotes the idea of Middle Eastern Muslims as intolerant and lacking the Western principle of freedom and expression. It would also suggest that all Muslims are terrorists, rather than just those involved in attacks such as these. It would continue to cause Westerners to have this view of Muslims, which is not the reality. It creates an "us/them" effect, as the author states. The author suggests that there is not true freedom of expression, even in the Western world, as there are laws against hate speech and speech promoting violence. The author cites examples of people who have been punished for these types of speech, such as Dieudonné M'bala M'bala and Maurice Sinet, who worked for Charlie Hebdo itself. However, hatred of Muslims, according to the author, is not only accepted but almost promoted as demonstrating the superiority of Western values, like freedom of expression and "tolerance".  The author also argues that the trend simplifies the issue. The author uses a strong tone in order to make his argument, primarily through his word choice. He uses phrases like "direct[ing] their barbs at reviled and vulnerable minorities" in order to make the actions seem unacceptable, and almost seems to be an appeal to pathos, suggesting these satirists are attacking these "vulnerable" people and this shouldn't be acceptable. Also, the author continues to use the idea of "us/them" throughout the article, explaining how these sorts of trends promote the idea of Muslims being different, even wrong, in their beliefs and actions. He also uses the example to explain a possible thought of the attackers, "'You' dare make fun of 'us,' they said, then 'you' will pay the price; 'we' will turn the tables".

TOW #15 "Your God and My Dignity" - Written

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/11/opinion/sunday/frank-bruni-religious-liberty-bigotry-and-gays.html?src=mv&_r=0

In continuing the trend of social justice, I found an interesting article from the New York Times about the claims of religious liberty in acceptance of homophobic and bigoted views. It also seemed to fit the current focus on arguments, and I thought it was a relevant topic today. The author of the article is Frank Bruni, the first openly gay op-ed columnist of the New York Times. The idea of religious liberty has often been used to justify homophobia, that being any orientation other than straight is a sin according to some Christians. The author explains the use of religious liberty as an excuse and why this should not be considered a valid argument. The idea of protecting religious freedom seems to be extended only to Christians, according to the article, since aspects of other religions such as Islam are not protected, as people are prejudiced against for wearing traditional Muslim clothing. The author also questions why only certain types of "sinners" are singled out rather than everyone that is considered to have done something that goes against the religion.

The tone of the article was one of the main rhetorical strategies used, as the tone was somewhat informal in order to be more interesting to people as this is a topic that is very personal to people. It also wasn't phrased as an attack of anyone in particular; the author didn't claim that all Christians who have this belief are evil or that religious liberties should not be protected, but rather that religious liberty shouldn't be used as an excuse to avoid giving many people basic human rights. Near the end, the author even says that he respects people who practice religion, but the right to marriage and equality is something everyone should have. You can have any beliefs you want, but you have to accept people who don't share that belief. Religious institutions can be good, but what they want should not be put above some people being able to enjoy the same privileges others do. There was also humor used throughout the article, with the joke about the book's title and Chick-Fil-A, as well as the one about the hairdresser.