1. Brideau seeks to inform her audience of events that happened surrounding Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. Her purpose for telling this particular story, which she describes as the one that 'stays with (her) most', was 'probably because it represents the essence of hope and determination in the face of terrible adversity', which she states in the final sentence of her piece. She wished to share a personal and inspiring experience with others.
2. The author narrates her story in the third person, allowing the reader the opportunity to clearly visualize the story in their head. Taking on an omniscient trait, Birdeau feels inclined to share Lydia's feelings with the reader as the story progresses. As she describes Lydia's actions and thoughts, the narrative takes on a film-like quality in the reader's mind.
3. Birdeau chooses to include many descriptor words in her piece. Involving more of the audiences senses will allow her to story to have more of a resounding affect on the reader. She makes sure to include details that will feel familiar to a wide range of audiences- 'the cackle of a television', 'uncomfortably cold from air conditioning', 'chemical odor', 'fluorescent lighting'; these are all things that she assumes many people have experienced. From the very beginning she essentially helps her audience place themselves at the scene.
4. The narrative is more formal than many you may happen across. Using many concise sentences and including step by step actions add a certain amount of formality; 'She positioned the stool in front of her linen closet, propping one foot on the stool and the other on the doorknob; then she climbed to the top shelf of her linen closet'. Birdeau portrays Lydia as a very level headed woman, someone that the audience of a research and policy magazine may feel more inclined towards. The author uses words like 'strength and resolve' to describe her main character. Finally, Birdeau describes medical procedure that, to an audience of people who do not practice a medical profession, could be boring or confusing.
Thursday, October 1, 2015
Chapter 2 Page 23 Prompt- Rhetorical Situation
This past week I have written a critical thinking essay for my psychology class, texted my grandma, and jotted down a short personal bio. When it comes to rhetorical situation, each case deserved thoughtful consideration in a lot of different aspects.
Critical Thinking Essay
I was prompted to form an argument or opinion about a current world issue. My genre was clearly stated in the prompt. My tone was academic, and for this paper I organized it in the form of a short essay. My audience was my instructor, who I assume knows a considerable amount about the topic (seeing as he assigned it and all). I knew he expected a short, well informed and opinionated paper. I did my best to write it in my truest writing style, as it was my first assignment for this particular class and I wanted my professor to get a sense of my abilities. My motivation was to simply complete the assignment on time to aid myself in getting a good grade. I think he was probably not surprised by the stance I took- this particular issue has two pretty clear sides to it and I argued one. Because he was only expecting a short essay, I decided to simply print it, and I did not add any visuals or other media.
Texting Grandma
My purpose for this particular text conversation was to ask my grandma a favor. I outlined clear steps that needed to be taken (my purse is on the stairs, my wallet is in my purse...) and decided on an informative tone. Because I know my grandma so well, I didn't feel like there were any expectations surrounding how I should communicate. I chose to text her, as I was in a quiet study section on campus and felt calling was not the best way to go. She did not know much about my purse, so I made sure to include plenty of information to help her accomplish the task. In order to get the task done a quickly as possible, I was very straightforward in outlining steps that she should take.
Short Personal Bio
I was asked to write a short personal biography for my English class. I decided the best way to order this would be in chronological order. I took an informal tone with this particular paper, and tried to write it like I would have said it. My audience, my professor, holds considerable authority over me so I decided to leave out details that didn't make my personality sparkle like sunshine and rainbows. I chose to print my biography as I knew it was quite an informal assignment and was probably going to be thrown away in a matter of minutes. My audience did not know anything about the topic, so I just wrote about rather large ideas. My primary goal was to fulfill the prompt and provide a genral understanding of my life thus far.
In conclusion: I never knew I thought this hard when I texted my grandma.
Critical Thinking Essay
I was prompted to form an argument or opinion about a current world issue. My genre was clearly stated in the prompt. My tone was academic, and for this paper I organized it in the form of a short essay. My audience was my instructor, who I assume knows a considerable amount about the topic (seeing as he assigned it and all). I knew he expected a short, well informed and opinionated paper. I did my best to write it in my truest writing style, as it was my first assignment for this particular class and I wanted my professor to get a sense of my abilities. My motivation was to simply complete the assignment on time to aid myself in getting a good grade. I think he was probably not surprised by the stance I took- this particular issue has two pretty clear sides to it and I argued one. Because he was only expecting a short essay, I decided to simply print it, and I did not add any visuals or other media.
Texting Grandma
My purpose for this particular text conversation was to ask my grandma a favor. I outlined clear steps that needed to be taken (my purse is on the stairs, my wallet is in my purse...) and decided on an informative tone. Because I know my grandma so well, I didn't feel like there were any expectations surrounding how I should communicate. I chose to text her, as I was in a quiet study section on campus and felt calling was not the best way to go. She did not know much about my purse, so I made sure to include plenty of information to help her accomplish the task. In order to get the task done a quickly as possible, I was very straightforward in outlining steps that she should take.
Short Personal Bio
I was asked to write a short personal biography for my English class. I decided the best way to order this would be in chronological order. I took an informal tone with this particular paper, and tried to write it like I would have said it. My audience, my professor, holds considerable authority over me so I decided to leave out details that didn't make my personality sparkle like sunshine and rainbows. I chose to print my biography as I knew it was quite an informal assignment and was probably going to be thrown away in a matter of minutes. My audience did not know anything about the topic, so I just wrote about rather large ideas. My primary goal was to fulfill the prompt and provide a genral understanding of my life thus far.
In conclusion: I never knew I thought this hard when I texted my grandma.
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