For our second formal assignment, the class was asked to write a research essay based on a question we had that related to the movie Where To Invade Next. We used our three previous blog post, the Annotated Bibliography , Where to Invade Next? An Argument, and Summary and Rhetorical Analysis of Where to Invade Next, to help us before we actually began writing our essay. My essay was based on the question, should the United States change the sexual education curriculum to match French’s sexual curriculum? My essay, “Sex Ed, The U.S, and You” is currently in it’s second draft, and using the reflective writing (Reflective Writing) definitely helps the essay improve.
Who did you work with to compose your research paper? Was this a good approach? I didn’t work with anyone to compose the first draft of my research paper. We were allowed to partner up, but I decided not to take advantage of that opportunity. In a way, I wish I did because I most definitely wouldn't have been late submitting my paper if I did. However, I’m also glad that I didn’t decide to do that because it let me do the research more freely and express my own opinion rather than a shared one. Also, if i’m late with an assignment, I only have myself to blame, but if it was my partners fault that we were late handing in our essay, I would have been furious. I’ve never liked the idea of a collective grade, because you’re assigned work meant for two people, and if the other person doesn’t care about their grade, than you’re left doing twice the work yourself. I would be fearful about that when doing a research paper. My second draft was looked over by my professor. I really enjoyed having his feedback. I’m very prideful person, so it physically hurts me to have some critic my work (I’ve been really trying to work on that), but I know my paper needed real help and he gave amazing advice! What rhetorical mode and genre are you using? The rhetorical mode is Argumentation and the genre is MLA Research Paper. When did you write this project? Good approach? I wrote this project super late. It was horrible. I stressed so much about getting it done, so I just kept putting off until I literally could not put it off any longer. It was a horrible approach that definitely lowered my grade to a B. Where did you write this project? Good approach? I wrote this essay at a starbucks in the city. I actually really love doing this. I can’t write long papers in my house because my dog cries and whines that I won’t pick him up, and to write a paper, I need to really go in. As in I don’t take breaks. It’s weird, but I much rather knock out a rough copy in several consecutive hours of working, and then going back and revising, then to do an hour of writing a night. With me, when I write any paper, ideas and concepts come to me as i’m writing. So, if i stop writing after an hour, not only will I lose those ideas, but i’ll actually feel mentally blocked when I try to go back and finish it. Anyways, I like taking a trip to somewhere like a coffee house to do my writing because I get left alone, I can get my coffee and a snack, and the trip to get to the coffee house, actually allows me to get ready to write my paper. If I just open my eyes and try to write, I don’t give myself time to prepare and relax and get ready to write my paper. Why did you choose to write about your chosen topic? Good choice? I choose this topic for three reasons. One, I enjoy doing research on very little things. However, sex and education are two of the exceptions. I’m actually planning to major in education, so when I was taking my professional field experience class at Upper Darby ( I go to an actual school and student teach), we had to write a paper a day based on a education article my teacher would send us. Secondly, this topic was only touched on in the film very briefly, I felt as though it deserved to be explained and researched. Lastly, I honestly didn’t want to pick something that was on the list, or that everyone else was going to do. I felt like if I picked a too common research topic, I would just end up using someone else’s paper with that topic, to help write mine. Also, it’s boring enough to read such a large collective number of research papers, I at least wanted mine to be different even a little from the pack. How did it feel to write this argument ("during, after, and since")? Do you have any "if only" moments that can help you revise the draft? During, it sucked. To be blunt, I put it off as long as possible. I hate doing research papers because they take so much time and extra work with the citations and quotes. It makes me want to scream after a while. After, was great because it was done! It definitely needs work and revision, but the large chunk of it, the information and cations are all finished. Revising the research paper doesn’t bother me at all, it’s collecting all the information needed for the paper that kills me. Since I wrote the paper, i’ve been revising it here and there over the week. I’m sure it isn't perfect but I know it's definitely better than it was. If I could go back in time, I wouldn't have put off my paper so long that I was stressing and it was late, definitely not letting that happen again. How will you revise your argument? I wrote down all the suggestions my professor made for my about my paper, I plan to keep going back and correcting the things he suggested to me, as well as have him go through it again when the second draft is up, which it is now ! Go check it out . Topic - Should America teach sex education the way they do in France?
Movie - Where to Invade Next Director - Michael Moore Published - Feb 2016 In the movie Where to Invade Next, Michael Moore travels to several different countries in order to ‘ steal’ their ways of success, to take back to America. In the movie, he travels to Italy, France, Iceland, Finland, Slovenia, Germany, Portugal, Norway, and Tunisia. From each country, he took a learned about how they succeeded in different areas of interest such as education, health, and law. Moore shows the audience how America can benefit if we decided to change. He jokes about how the U.S has no problem invading countries for oil but not stealing ideas on how we can make our country more successful. He shows the highlights of other countries rather than their bad parts. This is relevant to my topic because when Moore goes to France, one thing that is discussed is how the sex education in France is much different in the United States. They talk about how France doesn’t discourage sex because that’s unrealistic, but promote safe sex. The tell students that sex is a wonderful thing instead of shanming students into thinking that a perfectly natural action is bad. BOOKS When sex goes to school : warring views onsex--and sex education--since the sixties By Kristin Luker 2006 In the book When Sex Goes to School, Kristin talks about the birth of Sex Education, as well as how it is used in politics and the sex revolution. She explains how sex is taught throughout schools and how the education for it has changed. She also reveals how sex education in America is different for men and women. Kristin brings light to how so many factors actually play a part in sex education in America, how the government would use fear tactics to try to steer teens into abstinence. She is very focused on how sex in viewed in a political matter, as well as a educational matter. Her argument is more about if talking openly about sex, will change the country or a person politically. This book can be used for my research paper because it has a lot of evidence that supports my argument. It also allows me to explain how the American government wants to instill fear into adolescents instead of actually teaching students. Too hot to handle : a global history of sex education By Jonathan Zimmerman 2015 In the book Too Hot to Handle, Zimmerman explains how sex education is different in Europe rather than America, but he gives a deep history of sex education from WW1 to now. Zimmerman uses history to compare and contrast different views on sex education and how it’s taught. He explains how AIDS was used in the 1980’s to fear adolescents away from sex and how STD’s play a huge part in teaching sex ed. This book can be used for my research paper because it can add history as well as examples for fear being used in sex ed. It can give my paper a deeper background to explain my argument. WEBSITES European approaches to adolescent sexual behaviors and responsibility Linda Berne ED.D and Barbara Huberman M.ED 1999 The article by Berne and Huberman gives facts, statistics and an overview of the problems with sex ed in America. They explain how many factors such as religion, family, and a person’s community can affect what they learn about sex. They also explain sex education in the netherlands, Germany, and France. The article points on the favor that the American sex education system has been bad all throughout history. They explain that it’s time to change it so that our adolescents understand sex rather than believe it’s a bad thing. This resource can help my argument because it gives statistic on things such as teen pregnancy and STD rates, which always make a point stronger. Also, they provide information about the highlights of sex education in other countries for me to include. Adolescent health in Europe and the United States Sue Alford, MLS and Deb Hauser March 2011 This Article mostly states statistics of not just US teen pregnancy rates and STD rates and abortion rates, but also compares them to the rates in other European countries such as France. They also explain how a better sex education can actually save our country money. They teach facts and secrets about how to lower statistic in the US to match those in other countries. The article makes in very clear the the US has to change in order for our country to lower in teen pregnancies, STD’s, and teen abortions. This resource is useful for my argument because it shows stats of both counties as well as bullet point facts about how countries in Europe lower their states.I can use their recent statistics to support my argument further. In our tenth blog post, we were asked to pick three topics from the movie Where to Invade Next, and follow up those topics with a question and short response. I picked my three topics to be education, law, and employee rights .
Topic- Education Question - Should the American education system follow the same Sex Education teachings as the schools in France? Response - The American education should change the way they teach sex to follow to teachings in France. Throughout history, american schools try to shove abstinence down the throats of teens, and used fear to create the illusion that sex is abnormal or negative. This only makes it harder for teens to talk to adults when they are ready for sex. Abstinence never works, instead it just leads teens and young adults into being naive on how to stay safe during intercourse and how to use protection. France talks openly about sex, the good and the bad. They normalize it because sex is normal. If abstinence ever worked, we wouldn’t have one of the world's highest teen pregnancy rates. Topic- Law and Punishment Question- Should America model their prison systems after the prison in Norway? The prison system in Norway is based off of our American forefathers. They wrote in the Constitution the prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment. However, our country can’t seem to follow its own rules. The American prison system consistently treats prisoners as if they are animals. Prisons are suppose to punish criminals by restricting their freedom, not their humanity. Topic- Employee rights Question- Does America exploit their workers? In 1906, the meat industry was exposed in a film called The Jungle. It showed how workers were forced in such horrible conditions, that they would have to stick their feet in animal blood just so they wouldn't get frostbite. As much as we believe that America has come a long way from that, it isn’t by much. Discrimination against sex, sexual orientation, race, and religion are just as bad. Even with laws in place, women and minorities are still openly paid less for the same job as a white man. Employees in America are paid barley enough to live comfortably and enjoy life. This is shown by the endangerment of the middle class. In countries such as Italy, they recognize that people need time to not only live their lives, but they also need the salary that allows them to have a life. Blog post #10 - During class, we watched a documentary called Where to Invade Next. This blog post will consist of a summary of the documentary, as well as answering five questions that were assigned to us, about the film. Questions;
Michael Moore uses ethos in a nonchalant way. He didn’t try to gain the audience's trust by throwing celebrities in his film, he instead uses people that are actually creditable such as lead CEOs, ministers in health and education, police officers, and the president of Slovenia. Moore also interviews a normal couple in Italy, this allows the audience to relate and the audience then becomes more invested in what they’re saying. Moore uses more logos and pathos to appeal to his audience. By using statistics, as well as credible, reliable people, and gaining first hand experience by visiting their schools, and prisons, Moore is able to gather real information and facts about each country he visits. Pathos is used the most when he is comparing the United States to these different countries. When in Norway, Moore shows brutal scenes from American prisons that provoke deep emotions, these scenes include public humiliation, inhuman assaults and extreme disrespect. Michael Moore’s telos for the documentary Where to invade Next, is to inform his audience of the differences between these countries and the United States. I also believe his telos was to persuade change in not just our county but in the attitudes and viewpoints of our citizens. By telling us how we can make our country better, and showing an example of better. For Kairos, Moore picked an excellent time to realise this documentary. Moore realised this film in 2016, several months before the election for the next president of the United States. This film honestly should have been shown to everyone before they decided to vote. I believe that if more people saw it, it could of held a serious impact in the election. For our seventh blog post, we were told to do a reflection of our life choice memoir. A reflection is about digging deeper and asking yourself questions such as why did you write it, and how did it make you feel? A reflection is used with hindsight, using what you know now and applying it to your past situations. A reflection is important because it’s not only the way you become better as a writer, but it is a way of getting to know yourself. To learn more about the significance of reflective writing, you can watch the video “ Reflective Writing ” on youtube. Using my life choice memoir , and the blog post that my memoir was loosely written about, I was able to create an accurate reflection on my memoir.
For our fifth blog, we were asked to read and analyze Hills Like White Elephants (Ernest Hemingway). This short story begins with two lovers that are currently passing time by drinking and talking while waiting for their train to arrive. The conversation increases in intensity throughout the short four pages. Hemingway uses an iceberg effect, not telling the reader much, but leading the audience to understand that there is something much deeper that isn't being said. We were than asked to answer the following two questions.
Does she stay in her relationship with the man? I believe that she does stay with the man in the end. The conversation that is occuring during the story is about whether or not Jig, the woman, should have an abortion. The man is encouraging her to go forth with the operation, and that once she does, they can go back to being happy. While the man is trying to discuss this with her, the woman is simply dismissing his words by changing the subjects to the hills and the drinks. Eventually she becomes so overwhelmed by the conversation, that she begs him to cease talking about the subject. Jig says to the man "I know. But if I do it, then it will be nice again if I say things are like white elephants, and you'll like it?" This sentence shows her the dedication she has for their love. To say to someone that you would undergo such an operation just so you can the person you love can talk about the simple things in life without such worry, is a powerful testament of love. However, her hesitation to even talk about the subject leads me to believe that while she will stay with the man, and undergo the abortion to save their relationship, she will regret it because deep down she isn’t choosing the choice she really wants. She realizes she simply can’t have both. When have you made a important choice to stay in a relationship or leave a relationship -- OR -- stay or leave a difficult situation? A time when I have chosen to stay in a difficult situation, was when a family member I was living with relapsed. I don’t want to be too specific on who this person was because it isn’t my place to air their dirty laundry. My junior year of high school, a close family member relapsed on drugs. At first they tried to hide it, lie about it. I knew their behavior had changed but I felt as if I was going insane because I trusted them when they lied my face. I didn’t find out until my sister told me one night. The family member became irrational emotionally when their secret was out. They would throw class plate and bowls at me, scream and tell me how I was a horrible person. They continued to use and lie to me, and what hurt the most was when they told me they wanted to kill themselves because of me, that I would be happy if they were dead. I had to choose if I wanted to stay in that environment, or leave. However, if I left, I knew everything out change, and I knew there was a good chance I would have to leave the state and change schools or that this family member would actually kill themselves. Just like Hemingway, I won’t tell you the ending to my situation. What You Don't Know (Lulu Wang)
In the podcast, Lulu Wang talks about a time when her family lied to her grandmother. The grandmother was given a very short time to live, and her family has to decide if they should tell her or not. The class was then asked to answer the following two questions in a 200 word agreement.
For our third blog post, we were asked to read My Name is Margaret (Maya Angelou) In My Name is Margaret , Margaret was groomed as a servant for a white woman named Mrs.Cullinan, who decides to change Margaret’s name to Mary because it was shorter and more to her convenience. In protest, Margaret decides to break a casserole dish and two green cups in front of Ms.Cullinan and her white associates. After reading this, we were asked to answer the following questions below in around 200 words. I may have gone slightly over for both questions.
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