My name is Molly McDonald and I am an undergraduate at Pennsylvania State University expecting to graduate in 2015. I was originally intending to pursue a degree in Asian Studies, but after a year at this university, I discovered my interests may lay elsewhere. It was because of rhetoric that I was able to speak up and voice my discontent with the major I was intending to chase. Often times, I have had trouble vocalizing my dissatisfaction to other people, but I have discovered that through the right approach and by being confident in yourself that I am able to get my thoughts across without seeming naïve or uniformed. Because of that, I am now currently enrolled in the College of Undergraduate Studies and I am excited to learn more about the options that are available to me.
With that being said, I have never taken the importance of language and rhetoric lightly. I have studied abroad in South Korea and I have experienced first hand how debilitating it truly can be to only be able to express yourself through nonverbal communication. Yes, you are still understood, but there seems to still be feelings and expressions not exchanged. By becoming a better speaker and writer, the chances of your feelings not being understood decrease. By becoming a more efficient and confident speaker, your words hold more weight and strength in them. Being able to communicate effectively is, unfortunately, not a strength held by many. I was once terrified of speaking in front of an audience but after learning the tricks of the trade in public speaking, I feel my confidence growing in a more public setting. Understanding that your words have value and merit to them is the first step to being self-assured in your delivery.
Through this e-Portfolio, I hope that my essays will show my skills as an effective communicator and that my opinions are conveyed properly in a formal arena. My blogs will give an insight towards my passions that are less education based and more geared to my interests. My speech will show my new found confidence in speaking my mind. Any suggestions to better my pieces are welcomed! Thank you!
Link to Molly McDonald's e-Portfolio
Sunday, April 29, 2012
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Ah, Facebook Fights
As I was doing my daily (read hourly) Facebook peruse, I stumbled across some rather interesting Facebook drama. The best kind. I must say I am rather intrigued by any argument or fight that erupts on Facebook. There is a slim chance of the argument ending amicably and it is posted publicly for all of the internet to see. Often times, the grammar is not correct and spelling is thrown out the door. I've heard of the saying that people talk because they like the sound of their own voice, but in the case of Facebook disagreements I think people just like to type and crave attention. One of my favorite types of status updates are the ones that claim the poster hates all the drama that's going on and that kids need to start acting their age, stop getting involved with issues that don't concern them, and to stop posting things for attention. Wow. Way to not get involved with the drama yourself or start a mini battle on your status.
Even on Twitter people like to rile others up. A few days ago, I saw a retweet by someone who goes to my high school. He was claiming that everyone who follows him should retweet this tweet if you think (insert name here) is the most annoying freshman. Okay. I could not understand why he thought this was necessary to do in such a public domain. Everyone is titled to their opinions, but that does not mean that everyone wants to listen to them or agree. A lot of people ended up tweeting back at him stating that it was an incredibly stupid idea and that if he doesn't like the kid then he should just unfollow him and get on with his life. People feel the need to express everything they are feeling or doing and share it with the rest of the world. We have that ability now. With Facebook, Twitter, and other social sites we are able to tell mass amounts of people up to the minute details about our lives. Most of the time, people don't think twice about the implications that may arise from posting certain quips about their musings of the day.
One kid that I went to high school today decided that it would be a good idea to post that he enjoyed the fact that Pitt was getting so many bomb threats and that it was yet another reason why Pitt sucked (he is a WVU student). Not the classiest status I have come across but believe it or not definitely not one of the worst. I scrolled by it without making a comment because it didn't need one. I knew that most of the people that would see it would understand that it was in poor taste and that the best course of action would be to ignore it and not give the kid any attention. Lo and behold three hours later there were about 50 comments and a Pitt student wrote a status about how heartless people are which in turn received 83 likes and 22 comments.
I read through the comments and it was pitiful. The first few were pretty civilized, talking about how he shouldn't write statuses like that and that many people were frightened. Then it started. The insults started flying. What should have been between the original poster and a few Pitt students turned into a a group of kids ganging up on WVU students in general and making huge judgments about everyone there. Four kids from WVU liked it and then there were about 5 others who were defending Pitt. All they did to discredit the status was by claiming that 'the future doesn't lie with WVU students, unless the future lies with truck drivers'. To make matters worse, students from other schools who claimed to be going to much better universities had terrible grammar and were consistently missing words in their sentences. They weren't making a good argument for themselves let alone their opinions. In the end, it became a match about who could come up with the most hateful and insulting comment coupled by a gross YouTube video. It is safe to say that nobody 'won' that fight.
People have to understand that if you have a problem with someone, it may be better just to talk to them in person rather than getting an entire group of students, who all want the spotlight on them, to weigh in on it. Once it is written on the internet, it's tough to get back. Sure, you can delete it but how do you know how many of your 'friends' or 'followers' have already seen it. The art of having a valid and strong discussion or disagreement is slowly being lost with the accessibility to technology and social sites.
Even on Twitter people like to rile others up. A few days ago, I saw a retweet by someone who goes to my high school. He was claiming that everyone who follows him should retweet this tweet if you think (insert name here) is the most annoying freshman. Okay. I could not understand why he thought this was necessary to do in such a public domain. Everyone is titled to their opinions, but that does not mean that everyone wants to listen to them or agree. A lot of people ended up tweeting back at him stating that it was an incredibly stupid idea and that if he doesn't like the kid then he should just unfollow him and get on with his life. People feel the need to express everything they are feeling or doing and share it with the rest of the world. We have that ability now. With Facebook, Twitter, and other social sites we are able to tell mass amounts of people up to the minute details about our lives. Most of the time, people don't think twice about the implications that may arise from posting certain quips about their musings of the day.
One kid that I went to high school today decided that it would be a good idea to post that he enjoyed the fact that Pitt was getting so many bomb threats and that it was yet another reason why Pitt sucked (he is a WVU student). Not the classiest status I have come across but believe it or not definitely not one of the worst. I scrolled by it without making a comment because it didn't need one. I knew that most of the people that would see it would understand that it was in poor taste and that the best course of action would be to ignore it and not give the kid any attention. Lo and behold three hours later there were about 50 comments and a Pitt student wrote a status about how heartless people are which in turn received 83 likes and 22 comments.
I read through the comments and it was pitiful. The first few were pretty civilized, talking about how he shouldn't write statuses like that and that many people were frightened. Then it started. The insults started flying. What should have been between the original poster and a few Pitt students turned into a a group of kids ganging up on WVU students in general and making huge judgments about everyone there. Four kids from WVU liked it and then there were about 5 others who were defending Pitt. All they did to discredit the status was by claiming that 'the future doesn't lie with WVU students, unless the future lies with truck drivers'. To make matters worse, students from other schools who claimed to be going to much better universities had terrible grammar and were consistently missing words in their sentences. They weren't making a good argument for themselves let alone their opinions. In the end, it became a match about who could come up with the most hateful and insulting comment coupled by a gross YouTube video. It is safe to say that nobody 'won' that fight.
People have to understand that if you have a problem with someone, it may be better just to talk to them in person rather than getting an entire group of students, who all want the spotlight on them, to weigh in on it. Once it is written on the internet, it's tough to get back. Sure, you can delete it but how do you know how many of your 'friends' or 'followers' have already seen it. The art of having a valid and strong discussion or disagreement is slowly being lost with the accessibility to technology and social sites.
Thursday, March 29, 2012
Persuasion
Today in class, we discussed the difference between being convinced and being motivated. I have never thought about their being a difference among the two even though the divide is quite substantial. I have always known they weren't the same word and when it was the right time to use each word but never have I truly thought about it. I have been convinced of plenty of things or ideas in my life and I would like to say that once I have learned all of the facts I am motivated to do something about a big issue. But I can't. I tend to become motivated over ideas that are not exactly great ideas (like feeling the motivation to make posters because the reward would be a prettier room) and I'm convinced about things
I would say I'm a pretty easy to convince. All it takes for me to have an opinion on an issue would be a news article with about one easy to remember statistic. I will take this opinion and run with it for a bit and finally will do extensive research on it before I figure out my exact stance. To get me motivated is a different story. The only motivation I have is for my own gain. I have been convinced about the atrocities of certain things but have never felt motivated to help unless it is relevant and if I can related it back to my own life in some way. If someone wants me to do something, they have to make sure I can apply it to my life otherwise I don't think I will be that helpful or useful.
I find that I am my biggest motivator. I am not a fan of people telling me what to do. In fact, I remember jump roping outside last summer and my mom poked her head through the window and said "You should probably continue moving in between jumping sets to keep your heart going. Don't just stand there." I don't think I have ever stood stiller than that moment after she gave me that advice... In fact, I think I even tried to stop breathing heavily so my chest wouldn't be moving as much. Even over little things like that I have to be the one who makes my own decisions. My mom convinced me that I probably should keep moving in between sets when she told me that but I need self-motivation to put it into action. Looking at that example, it seems incredibly childish but I enjoy being self-motivated. I give myself an incentive to get things done. I tell myself that I will be able to watch my favorite show only if I get my paper done in time.
Motivation and being convinced of doing something are two completely different things. Being convinced is understanding what the issue is and being motivated is taking action on that issue. One deals with your head and logic whereas the other, I believe, deals more with your heart and emotions.
I would say I'm a pretty easy to convince. All it takes for me to have an opinion on an issue would be a news article with about one easy to remember statistic. I will take this opinion and run with it for a bit and finally will do extensive research on it before I figure out my exact stance. To get me motivated is a different story. The only motivation I have is for my own gain. I have been convinced about the atrocities of certain things but have never felt motivated to help unless it is relevant and if I can related it back to my own life in some way. If someone wants me to do something, they have to make sure I can apply it to my life otherwise I don't think I will be that helpful or useful.
I find that I am my biggest motivator. I am not a fan of people telling me what to do. In fact, I remember jump roping outside last summer and my mom poked her head through the window and said "You should probably continue moving in between jumping sets to keep your heart going. Don't just stand there." I don't think I have ever stood stiller than that moment after she gave me that advice... In fact, I think I even tried to stop breathing heavily so my chest wouldn't be moving as much. Even over little things like that I have to be the one who makes my own decisions. My mom convinced me that I probably should keep moving in between sets when she told me that but I need self-motivation to put it into action. Looking at that example, it seems incredibly childish but I enjoy being self-motivated. I give myself an incentive to get things done. I tell myself that I will be able to watch my favorite show only if I get my paper done in time.
Motivation and being convinced of doing something are two completely different things. Being convinced is understanding what the issue is and being motivated is taking action on that issue. One deals with your head and logic whereas the other, I believe, deals more with your heart and emotions.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Fonts
While reading this week's chapter, I was struck by just how much typography affects a piece of writing's message. When I was younger, I always used to mess about with the different fonts that were available on Word and wait until I found the "prettiest" font. I was a big fan of Comic Sans... Looking back I realize that using Comic Sans was a mistake for most pieces I was creating. It is not exactly the most professional font and quite frankly with its over usage it isn't even slightly funny. It has recently been getting a lot of flack from internet communities and people in general because it was used for everything and people thought it was "quirky". Quite frankly, I feel quite annoyed when I see it for those very reasons.
Helvetica (the font I'm now using) is now one of the most widely used fonts ranging from the print on ads for Target to U.S. government documents. It was created by Mix Miedinger and Eduard Hoffmann, both from Switzerland, in 1957. There was even a documentary about this font that was released in 2007, which was the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of this style of writing. I did not have the time to spar to watch the entire film, which is on YouTube, so I settled for watching the trailer.
Nothing was spoken in this trailer but it still left me with a lasting impression: What has Helvetica told me today? Quite a lot I'm supposing. I'm not an expert on distinguishing fonts and I don't pretend to be. But after doing a little bit more research on this font, I found an interesting quote from Wim Crouwel said, "Helvetica was a real step from the 19th century typeface... We were impressed by that because it was more neutral, and neutralism was a word that we loved. It should be neutral. It shouldn't have a meaning in itself. The meaning is in the content of the text and not in the typeface." I never once thought about font in that way. It should not be dictating what the meaning is but rather allow the words to do that itself.
Instead of letting the font do the talking, you should let your words create meaning. Looking back on some projects that I did during younger years, I think I took advantage of crazy fonts and let them cover up some of my bad writing. Or just let the fonts take over the entirety of the project. It's easy to use a font like Chiller to make a section seem creepy or scary but it takes time and a mastery of words to create a scene like that without using font as a crutch.
With that being said, I definitely think that fonts are incredibly useful and fun. They can set a tone for a piece or an advertisement, direct our attention to important parts, and make it appealing for people read. It's just important that people don't use fonts, such as Comic Sans, to make others think you are quirky but use them to further enforce their statements.
Helvetica (the font I'm now using) is now one of the most widely used fonts ranging from the print on ads for Target to U.S. government documents. It was created by Mix Miedinger and Eduard Hoffmann, both from Switzerland, in 1957. There was even a documentary about this font that was released in 2007, which was the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of this style of writing. I did not have the time to spar to watch the entire film, which is on YouTube, so I settled for watching the trailer.
Nothing was spoken in this trailer but it still left me with a lasting impression: What has Helvetica told me today? Quite a lot I'm supposing. I'm not an expert on distinguishing fonts and I don't pretend to be. But after doing a little bit more research on this font, I found an interesting quote from Wim Crouwel said, "Helvetica was a real step from the 19th century typeface... We were impressed by that because it was more neutral, and neutralism was a word that we loved. It should be neutral. It shouldn't have a meaning in itself. The meaning is in the content of the text and not in the typeface." I never once thought about font in that way. It should not be dictating what the meaning is but rather allow the words to do that itself.
Instead of letting the font do the talking, you should let your words create meaning. Looking back on some projects that I did during younger years, I think I took advantage of crazy fonts and let them cover up some of my bad writing. Or just let the fonts take over the entirety of the project. It's easy to use a font like Chiller to make a section seem creepy or scary but it takes time and a mastery of words to create a scene like that without using font as a crutch.
With that being said, I definitely think that fonts are incredibly useful and fun. They can set a tone for a piece or an advertisement, direct our attention to important parts, and make it appealing for people read. It's just important that people don't use fonts, such as Comic Sans, to make others think you are quirky but use them to further enforce their statements.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Save Your Conversations for the Right People
In my group of friends, my roommate, Caitlin, and I seem to be the odd ones out. Every time we go to lunch or out to any meal for that matter, the topic of math and/or physics is bound to come up. Those topics always seem to crop up under the strangest circumstances. It doesn't matter what was being talked about earlier because the topic of discussion will somehow change to a more logical and scientific conversation. This would be an example of a "normal" conversation:
Me: Wow this soup sure is good.
Them: Well, if you figure that the soup is the same density as a cubic meter of sand particles, you can determine that the chemicals in space are of the same velocity so the equation would be E = (-6U^%)+(8Tx#!).
Me: Sweet.
Other Them: Ah I don't know about that because of Bedpostcupboarddoor's theory of space refrigeration.
And I just proceed to drink my soup and offer absolutely no opinions or say for the next 15 minutes while they debate that and then talk about computer programming and C++. Fun times. Caitlin and I have been putting up with this since September. We sometimes ask to change the conversation so we can all participate. But we never complain about it because we know that they are genuinely interested and excited to talk about science-y things. We just enjoy our tasty meal and have discussions that we care about with different friends later on in the day.
About a month ago, I found out about One Direction and Caitlin and I have been in love since. Ah, I can't resist boybands. Adorable. There is just something about them that makes them fun to follow and listen to their pop music. So since this little discovery, Caitlin and I have been talking quite a bit about One Direction and their interviews and lives, etc. And when I say quite a bit, I mean literally every second of every conversation. In fact, even as I'm writing this Caitlin is on page 189 of One Direction facts (I have already finished reading all 924 facts). Ah the lengths, us college students will go to to not do homework. We have noticed that our friends have been becoming a bit annoyed with this constant bantering about our favorite boyband (we have converted one guy however).
Caitlin and I began to feel kind of bad for constantly talking about them but when we were at lunch with them today we realized that they have been doing the same thing to us for months. They know we have no interest in science and yet it is always talked about. We don't want to hear about their religious views or lack there of. But we did for six months. We have told them that it is not something we wish to discuss because it leaves people out. And we had been doing the same thing with One Direction. I realized that sometimes you have to put aside what you might be interested in for the sake of others involved in the conversation. I wouldn't want to exclude people from having a good time at a meal or just in general. Caitlin and I have decided to be less polarizing with our conversation topics and we hope our friends will do the same.
But honestly would you rather talk about this:
 |
| Math and Physics Things |
Or them:
 |
| One Direction |
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Everyday Language
After watching the example of the controversy video today in class about how much Americans know about the government, it made me wonder just how much I knew. While they were conducting the interview the only question I was unsure of was "Who is the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court?". I decided to take a different quiz online to see just how much I knew. Unfortunately the site I ended up taking this quiz on was not as "legit" as I would have hoped. Fortunately, I only got five wrong. Not as bad as I had expected but considering I only took Government and Politics last year I was hoping that more information would have been retained.
I don't find it surprising that many citizens aren't fully aware of how their government works. Anytime I see news about the government or politics in general it the articles seem to be filled with hate and harmful words. Heck, look at the current political stage we have right now. Rick Santorum is everywhere. Santorum is on the rise for being one of the most despicable people to consider themselves a Christian in my book. His rhetoric is full of bigotry and at times it seems he is spewing pure stupidity. His latest gem being, "President Obama once said he wants everybody in America to go to college. What a snob." Since when was going or wanting to go to college considered a snobby affair? He did elaborate, however, and say that there are many Americans who work hard everyday. But then he followed it up with, "that aren't taught by some liberal college professors trying to indoctrinate them." Whelp, that's a great stance. It should be noted that Santorum has many degrees and his kids are going to college. I don't think his stance on higher education is going to reel in the votes.
Actually after writing this blog, I truly don't find it surprising how Americans may not pay attention to the news. I began looking through articles that I have only read the headlines to and began reading about new laws they are trying to pass and quite frankly it is disgusting. Ignorance truly is bliss. My roommate was not pleased because I began ranting to her about it and she was unable to complete her Econ homework in a timely manner. But this just gives to a stronger argument that citizens must be aware of what's going on in their country so they can fight for their rights and make sure they aren't taken away. We can't be complacent. Must make use of rhetoric and get our wants and ideas out there! Wooooo America
Site I got the questions from: http://cltr.co.douglas.nv.us/Elections/100QuestionTest.htm
Article about Rick Santorum: http://www.recordnet.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120301/A_OPINION0608/203010303/-1/NEWSMAP
Thursday, February 23, 2012
Legends of the Hidden Temple
I stumbled upon a gem of a video today during my daily YouTube video searches (and by daily I mean hourly). The nineties were full of bad fashion but they did have fantastic TV shows on Nickelodeon. Legends of the Hidden Temple, for example, is a classic 90s kids' game show. Legends of the Hidden Temple, hosted by Kirk Foggs, aired from 1993-1995. The contestants had to answer questions based off subjects such as geography, history and myths. There are six teams at the start of the game but only one is able to go through the Temple to try to retrieve the artifact. Nineties TV shows always seem to have wonderful clips and I was not disappointed with this one. When I watched this clip, I couldn't stop laughing. I truly couldn't.
First thing that stuck with me in this clip is the Peter Pan ad that just stays on the screen a little too long. Because I had seen the title of the clip, I was only waiting for the kid to say that he enjoys collecting bags. Then I took the time to re-watch it and discovered even more quirks about this interview Kirk was holding. He was doing a pretty poor job... During the first watch of this I didn't even notice because he had such a confident voice and no real outer motions of being nervous or being unprepared. He did stumble over a few words but for doing it live in front of a studio audience he was doing great in my opinion. Although, why would a girl who collected cow stuff collect milk? Milk spoils. Evidently he did not plan that comment out at all. And poor Mary. Kirk says, "Mary obviously wants to be...is a cheerleader" that slight moment of hesitation is all it takes to make this interview that much more cringe worthy. If only he had actually read over the participants' bios instead of just going with it.
One of the best parts of this interview is actually in the YouTube comments. The top rated comment poster claims to be the Brent in this very video. He states that on his form he wrote that he collected BUGS not BAGS. Brent is clearly upset at Kirk's apparent illiteracy. I think I would be to if I was stuck with the name Bagboy all through high school.
If this video taught me anything it would be to continue speaking confidently to the end and hope people don't realize the mistakes you have made. A speech is all about the delivery. If you believe in your material so will others. Kirk did a pretty good job with that. Also you should probably do some studying before you talk about teenagers on a game show because they could end up with unfortunate nicknames.
First thing that stuck with me in this clip is the Peter Pan ad that just stays on the screen a little too long. Because I had seen the title of the clip, I was only waiting for the kid to say that he enjoys collecting bags. Then I took the time to re-watch it and discovered even more quirks about this interview Kirk was holding. He was doing a pretty poor job... During the first watch of this I didn't even notice because he had such a confident voice and no real outer motions of being nervous or being unprepared. He did stumble over a few words but for doing it live in front of a studio audience he was doing great in my opinion. Although, why would a girl who collected cow stuff collect milk? Milk spoils. Evidently he did not plan that comment out at all. And poor Mary. Kirk says, "Mary obviously wants to be...is a cheerleader" that slight moment of hesitation is all it takes to make this interview that much more cringe worthy. If only he had actually read over the participants' bios instead of just going with it.
One of the best parts of this interview is actually in the YouTube comments. The top rated comment poster claims to be the Brent in this very video. He states that on his form he wrote that he collected BUGS not BAGS. Brent is clearly upset at Kirk's apparent illiteracy. I think I would be to if I was stuck with the name Bagboy all through high school.
If this video taught me anything it would be to continue speaking confidently to the end and hope people don't realize the mistakes you have made. A speech is all about the delivery. If you believe in your material so will others. Kirk did a pretty good job with that. Also you should probably do some studying before you talk about teenagers on a game show because they could end up with unfortunate nicknames.
Friday, February 17, 2012
In preparation for the speeches we are going to be presenting next week, I have been looking back on my rather short history of giving speeches and the strong and weak points of each. The first speech I remember giving was in fourth grade for student council. I was running against one of the teacher's pets in the class and I felt a bit distressed. She went up there and gave a nice five minute long talk about making school lunches healthier and that we could have longer silent reading times. I began to panic due to her seemingly perfect points that would win any fourth grade teacher over. Feeling my defeat as I walked to the front of the class, I completely blanked on every point I had and ended up uttering a single sentence before scuttling back to my desk. That single sentence won me the votes of my peers and gave me the position of our class's representative in student council.
What was the aww inspiring sentence that made twenty fourth graders deem me worthy enough of leading their class you ask. "If you want to be jolly, vote for Molly!" Although it was more of a mumble so the exclamation point may be out of place. Once I discovered I won, I figured out that it wasn't my teacher who was voting for my but my friends. Quite frankly, no fourth grade kid is going to be jumping for joy at the idea of healthy lunches and that teacher's pet was not appealing to her audience. I did not realize this until years later of course but the lesson was learned.
During my senior year, we had to create a senior project and then present it to our English class and then a panel of judges. By far, one of the most nerve-wracking moments in my life. While listening to my classmates give their speeches I was always struck by their vocabulary or style of speaking. Many kids went for the I'm-a-super-genius-so-I'm-going-to-use-huge-words approach while others went for the good ole talk to us like we are about seven years old. Anytime someone spoke with in those ways, I was unable to really pay attention to anything they were saying. Some kids speeches were so scientifically worded that I was lost within the first minute. Their intro sentence was riddled with words they had difficulty pronouncing. Those who dumbed it down were using a vocabulary with about five words and seemed as though they were reading from a See Spot Run book.
Seeing these examples, I now take into account my audience better and what they would like to hear. Most elementary school students don't want more quite time, they want funny little sayings they can remember for the rest of the day. Most high school seniors don't want to sit through hours of incomprehensible speeches or ones that insult their intelligence, they want speeches that are easy to follow and that catch your interest.
What was the aww inspiring sentence that made twenty fourth graders deem me worthy enough of leading their class you ask. "If you want to be jolly, vote for Molly!" Although it was more of a mumble so the exclamation point may be out of place. Once I discovered I won, I figured out that it wasn't my teacher who was voting for my but my friends. Quite frankly, no fourth grade kid is going to be jumping for joy at the idea of healthy lunches and that teacher's pet was not appealing to her audience. I did not realize this until years later of course but the lesson was learned.
During my senior year, we had to create a senior project and then present it to our English class and then a panel of judges. By far, one of the most nerve-wracking moments in my life. While listening to my classmates give their speeches I was always struck by their vocabulary or style of speaking. Many kids went for the I'm-a-super-genius-so-I'm-going-to-use-huge-words approach while others went for the good ole talk to us like we are about seven years old. Anytime someone spoke with in those ways, I was unable to really pay attention to anything they were saying. Some kids speeches were so scientifically worded that I was lost within the first minute. Their intro sentence was riddled with words they had difficulty pronouncing. Those who dumbed it down were using a vocabulary with about five words and seemed as though they were reading from a See Spot Run book.
Seeing these examples, I now take into account my audience better and what they would like to hear. Most elementary school students don't want more quite time, they want funny little sayings they can remember for the rest of the day. Most high school seniors don't want to sit through hours of incomprehensible speeches or ones that insult their intelligence, they want speeches that are easy to follow and that catch your interest.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
L'esprit de l'escalier
Kairos. This word can be defined in just four words: the right rhetorical moment. Despite being only six letters long and having a definition of four words, this word packs quite a punch in everyday life whether you are aware of it or not. Kairos is having the opportunity to speak your mind on a certain topic at the precise and opportune moment. Kairos gives you the chance to tell the someone when they are wrong and correct them with your own little rant. Many people don't understand when the proper time is to make a statement, such as this kid:
Clearly, this child does not have a grasp on kairos and when the proper time is to express his love for turtles. But it did make for a fantastic viral video that never fails to make me laugh. People who don't have an understanding of kairos are those who bring up points that have absolutely nothing to do with the conversation. A friend of mine up here is great at adding points that add nothing to the conversation at hand but rather gives points from previous conversations. Example:
Me: Wow! One Direction is the best band ever and they are soooooo good looking.
Friend 1: I know! They are amazing!
Friend 2: I like to sleep on my stomach.
Me: Oh, ok. Well...Harry is my favorite.
It should be noted that about ten minutes and three conversations earlier we were, in fact, discussing sleeping habits but he clearly missed his opportunity to discuss his sleeping style. I would call his little moment of realization l'esprit de l'escalier, which means spirit of the staircase in French. This means that you figure out what you are supposed to say right after you miss your chance. It more commonly relates to a comeback that you have thought of. This is sometimes referred to as elevator wit in America although I think the French version sounds a bit more refined. I am all too often a victim of l'esprit de l'escalier and to help lessen my downfalls with this I often come up with situations in my head so I have clever rebuttals at my ready. Never quite works out as I hope though. Either I completely fumble in my deliverly or the other person's way of pointing the statement is slightly altered and I can't use my comeback. I believe that it takes a very special person to take advantage of kairos is a witty situation. Journalists and comedians are pros in the way of kairos and they are always the first to respond. I only hope I can be half as good as they are one day.
Clearly, this child does not have a grasp on kairos and when the proper time is to express his love for turtles. But it did make for a fantastic viral video that never fails to make me laugh. People who don't have an understanding of kairos are those who bring up points that have absolutely nothing to do with the conversation. A friend of mine up here is great at adding points that add nothing to the conversation at hand but rather gives points from previous conversations. Example:
Me: Wow! One Direction is the best band ever and they are soooooo good looking.
Friend 1: I know! They are amazing!
Friend 2: I like to sleep on my stomach.
Me: Oh, ok. Well...Harry is my favorite.
It should be noted that about ten minutes and three conversations earlier we were, in fact, discussing sleeping habits but he clearly missed his opportunity to discuss his sleeping style. I would call his little moment of realization l'esprit de l'escalier, which means spirit of the staircase in French. This means that you figure out what you are supposed to say right after you miss your chance. It more commonly relates to a comeback that you have thought of. This is sometimes referred to as elevator wit in America although I think the French version sounds a bit more refined. I am all too often a victim of l'esprit de l'escalier and to help lessen my downfalls with this I often come up with situations in my head so I have clever rebuttals at my ready. Never quite works out as I hope though. Either I completely fumble in my deliverly or the other person's way of pointing the statement is slightly altered and I can't use my comeback. I believe that it takes a very special person to take advantage of kairos is a witty situation. Journalists and comedians are pros in the way of kairos and they are always the first to respond. I only hope I can be half as good as they are one day.
Thursday, February 2, 2012
The Language in Nazi Germany
I am a huge fan of Stephen Fry. In my mind, he is one of the smartest men to walk the planet and his grasp on the English language is enviable. I could listen to him speak all day long and generally when I begin watching videos of him, I can't stop. Fortunately, it actually worked out for me last night while I was deciding what to write about. The title of the video was quite misleading in a sense because I believed he was going to be talking about the German language specifically, at first. But it was much more than that.
Fry was
discussing how we haphazardly throw around derogatory terms about others
without realizing that we may eventually believe in our harsh words. The Jewish persecution began with
language. By calling Jewish people rats
or vermin on the radio everyday for weeks on end, listeners began to believe
that they were sub-human. I wonder just
how often this occurs within our media today without people even realizing it. Rhetoric can be used in a multitude of ways
but it is just about impossible to think that a terrible act, such as the
Holocaust, could have been started simply by language.
It is so easy to
look back at World War II and blame it entirely on the Nazis but as I learned
in the video, it was not the Nazis who did it but rather humankind. We can’t make brash judgments on groups of people
because we are them as well. Hearing
about the book that was built out of a Nazi’s letters home reinforced the fact
that they were humans no matter how inhumane and disgusting their actions were.
We are, as Fry said, the only species
that does this.
Stephen Fry
states, “It is important to remember that it is language that guarantees our
freedom,” but in this case it also took away so many lives and freedoms.
We have to be careful and be aware of
how we state our opinions and the word choices that we make. The last thing he
says is, “We have to be alert to it and think about it,” so nothing as grotesque
as the Holocaust or the Rwandan genocide.
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Thursday, January 26, 2012
The Human Voice
While browsing YouTube one night, I stumbled upon a variety of videos by StoryCorps. Their ‘mission’, if you will, is to give people from all different backgrounds the opportunity to share their stories. There were only fourteen videos on the channel but each one of them was surprisingly compelling. There was a simple story told by a brother and sister of their old Sunday school teacher and then there were heart-wrenching stories those who lost their loved ones on September 11th. The one I was able to identify the most with was entitled “The Human Voice”.
“The Human Voice” was narrated by Studs Terkel. Terkel was known for his oral histories and
was also a radio broadcaster. In this
recording, he speaks about being on a train in the airport and nobody is
speaking. There is a crowded car and yet
the only thing that is heard is the mechanical voice of the overhead speaker. Thinking
back to all the times I was on a train in the airport, I can’t remember a
single person talking to another. The doors began to close in the car and a
young couple rushed in. All of the
others on the train were upset at them when the computer said “Because of late
entry, we are delayed thirty seconds”.
Terkel spoke up with a reference to George Orwell’s 1984 to
which he got absolutely no response. He
then began to ask the people on the train what had happened to the human voice.
His first and only response was from a baby with a giggle.
After watching this video, I realized just how little people
talked to each other in public places or in private because of technology. When I am walking to class, I see countless amounts
of people listening to their iPods, talking on their phones, or texting. Even
when I am in class, I notice kids on their electronics choosing to talk to
people through a machine rather than turn to the student next to them and
strike up a conversation. I will admit
that I have done this plenty of time and I guess I have been pretty
hypocritical for scolding others in my head.
When my brother traveled to Fiji
Is that really awkward? No. It isn’t. I could just go over
to the person and strike up a friendly conversation about the weather and if
they don’t reciprocate, at least I tried. But in today’s day and age we have
fallen out of the habit of having a conversation with a person right in front
of us and settle for communicating through a little gadget that offers no true
interaction.
A few days ago, I was in my dorm with three of my other
friends. All four of us have either smart phones or another piece of technology
that allows us to get on the internet. We were all on Reddit. We were not
speaking to each other unless someone asked, “Did you see the post about cats?”
and the other three would simply reply, “Yup” and then scroll down the
page. About ten minutes into this cycle,
I pointed out the ludicrousness of the situation. The weather was nice, none of us had work, we
live on a fantastic campus, and we were all together and this was how we were
spending our time?
We have to use our voices more as humans and use our
voice. If we spend all our time
conversing through whatever new doohickey that comes out next month, we will
lose our human voice. We miss half of the exchange because we are not able to
see the other person’s body language or hear their tone of voice. We have to
continue voicing our opinions and views and stories about our life. I believe that Story Corps has a great
idea. They offer everyone a chance to
tell a story because the human voice is an important one. It’s the only one that
will never fail us.
Friday, January 20, 2012
In a group of strangers
In my group of friends, I have never been one to back down and let my opinion go unheard. In a group of strangers, I have never been one to speak up or let my opinion be heard. Since coming to Penn State, I have realized just how quiet I become with new people compared to my high school self surrounded by friends. One could say that it was the immaturity of a high school student that allowed me to speak my mind at all times.
I would argue that it was my confidence that made me outspoken. When I am with people I am familiar with, I know that they will not judge me for what I say or think but for who I am. I am sad to say that when I am around people I am unfamiliar with, I tend to judge people for what they say. It is so much easier to evaluate someone on what they say rather than taking the time to get to know their true self. I think too many people these days take advantage of that. How many people have you decided that you knew everything about them based on a single opinion they gave? Looking back, I realize that I have denied many people a chance simply because it took less time to judge them one opinion. After watching the video describing the difference between what we think and who we are, I have tried to put that idea into action and not be so judgmental.
I have never meant to be so critical towards people and since the beginning of this course I find myself being more aware of my rhetoric and others. Opinions are held in high respect to their owners and it is hard to debate them with others. While reading the first chapter, I found myself agreeing with the ancients’ ideas of rhetoric more than today’s idea of it. I believe that we have become much too factual and tend to look down on opinions. Opinions make us who we are and it is not fair to not take them into consideration. When we read that, I started to become more confident in my opinions.
I hope others will realize that one opinion does not define who a person is. With this course, I hope I can find my voice once again in a group of strangers.
I would argue that it was my confidence that made me outspoken. When I am with people I am familiar with, I know that they will not judge me for what I say or think but for who I am. I am sad to say that when I am around people I am unfamiliar with, I tend to judge people for what they say. It is so much easier to evaluate someone on what they say rather than taking the time to get to know their true self. I think too many people these days take advantage of that. How many people have you decided that you knew everything about them based on a single opinion they gave? Looking back, I realize that I have denied many people a chance simply because it took less time to judge them one opinion. After watching the video describing the difference between what we think and who we are, I have tried to put that idea into action and not be so judgmental.
I have never meant to be so critical towards people and since the beginning of this course I find myself being more aware of my rhetoric and others. Opinions are held in high respect to their owners and it is hard to debate them with others. While reading the first chapter, I found myself agreeing with the ancients’ ideas of rhetoric more than today’s idea of it. I believe that we have become much too factual and tend to look down on opinions. Opinions make us who we are and it is not fair to not take them into consideration. When we read that, I started to become more confident in my opinions.
I hope others will realize that one opinion does not define who a person is. With this course, I hope I can find my voice once again in a group of strangers.
Friday, January 13, 2012
Welcome to LA 101H
Welcome to my blog for my Rhetoric and Civic Life class. I will be writing in this blog during the spring semester. I hope you enjoy it!
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