As I reflect on this past semester, I can see all the progress I’ve made and all the things I’ve learnt about the writing process. From class discussions to blog assignments, English 110 encouraged me to really invest myself into the writing process. Books such as They Say I Say, and A Writer’s Reference, were extremely useful, not only for this course but for others as well.
The Visual Analysis Paper required us to make a claim/argument as to what the image was trying to convey. We then had to support the argument from proof in the image. This forced us to use the image as the springboard for the discussion. This exercise was particularly useful for me in building my observational skills. I could no longer just whip something up off the top of my head- I had to find actual proof in the image. This skill was helpful in making observations within texts and finding textual proof for my assertions. At first, this essay of mine was too all over the place. After revision, I was able to better hone in on my specific argument, thereby strengthening my claim. For example, I changed my title to better reflect the essence of my paper.
For the Synthesis Paper, we had a chance to argue our own claim about higher education, while incorporating the ideas of others. This required us to work on our skills of incorporating secondary texts with our own ideas, and we learnt a lot about citing and finding academic sources.
The Research Paper was my favorite assignment because I was able to choose whatever topic I wanted, and it was nice to veer off the subject of higher education. With this paper I had to figure out what question I wanted to answer myself, and incorporate what scholars say on the topic. I had a lot of fun writing this essay, I just wish I had more time to refine it even more and make it an even better essay, because I think it is already my strongest of the three.
Your comments and advice were very helpful in editing all of these essays. I’ve always enjoyed the writing process, and over the course of this class I’ve learnt to use a more systematic approach. I think this will help me in future essays.
I think I was a good citizen throughout the semester. I was almost always in class, tried to participate as best as possible, both in the classroom and on the blog. I put a lot of effort into the peer reviews and I think I gave constructive feedback to my fellow students. Overall, I think I learnt a lot in this course and was a good participant in the class.
Thanks for a great semester!
Greetings and congratulations to the graduating class of 2013. At this moment, you are at the top of the world. You have survived the jungle of high school, persevered through the awkward years of adolescence, and now the world is your oyster.
At the same time that you feel like the king of the world, many of you are probably feeling a sense of fear. Until this point, most of your decisions have been laid out before you. There was very little choice in where you went to school, what you did in the summers, or even who your friends were. And there’s a comfort in that; a security of having all the paths laid neatly before you. And through this roadmap, you have succeeded and made it to this point, but that journey is over.
The new journey you are about to embark on has no mapquest- in fact, you might not even know the destination, only that you are headed somewhere. You have the car, filled it with gas, and now are about to take it for a drive. Only you can determine how far you’ll go, which direction you’ll drive in, and what stops you will make along the way.
Perhaps you will write off this “journey” metaphor as cliché, but clichés are formed for a reason. Consider that you’re experiences thus far have bought you a car- this car can be your diploma, education you’ve received, whatever. Maybe you didn’t put in the most effort, and you bought a used, broken down car. Maybe you’ve earned a Porsche. Either way, the car will run, and in the end that’s all you need.
At this point in you’re lives, you have the most active imaginations, filled with hopes and dreams of your future. Never let anyone, especially so-called “adults” or professionals steer you off the road to your dreams. And your dreams may change, but that will be of your own will, not because someone tells you that you can’t, or that it is too difficult, or worst of all- that your dream is simply a fantasy, painted in your immature mind. Life has embittered some people, taking out the majesty of the world. Maybe someone crushed their dreams, and now they have become grinches, but the cycle ends with you. You can make the decision now to hold on for dear life to anything you deem worthy of a dream.
At this point, some of you may be concerned with all this talk of “dreams” because you realize you don’t have any. No idea of a career path, no particular aspirations, you just want to have a good life. With all my discussion of lofty dreams, you fear you’ve wasted away your high school years, and are now left with no clue where you’re headed. But fear not, because, as I said, the journey you’re embarking on has no destination. Even for those who think they have their path perfectly mapped out, you don’t. As another clichéd quote by John Lennon goes, “life is what happens to you while you’re busy making other plans”. Those of you who don’t know what you want out of life, only that you want to live it, are in a unique position to do just that. Don’t be so concerned with your future, although your parents and teachers will tell you to be. Do what makes you happy, go where your impulsive heart tells you to, do not follow your rational mind. I haven’t done a survey, but I would posit that no one ever looked back on their life and said, “Man, I wish I would’ve taken the practical route.” After all, in your journey of life, the most direct route usually has the least scenery.
And that’s all for my commencement speech, as I’m sure you all have graduation parties to get to and will probably forget everything I have to say by tomorrow, but that’s okay. So long as you take away the message that only you can decide what kind of life you want to lead, nothing is set in stone, and never forget the lessons you learnt from Dr. Seuss: “You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself in any direction you choose. You’re on your own, and you know what you know. And you are the guy who’ll decide where to go.”
Tamar Weinstein
Professor LaPiana
English 110
15 September 2012
World Brilliance
Many people look back towards seemingly simpler days when the common man knew less, wanted less, and was perhaps contented with less. The world today is far more advanced and knowledgeable than it has ever been before, and we find ourselves wondering if things would be better had we remained in intellectual darkness, for where have our advances taken us? Have they truly led us to better lives? The belief that new ideas are dangerous appears to have been a standard view throughout history, as each new idea or discovery was met with vehement opposition; imagination became associated with heresy. Priority in education was placed on maintaining the beliefs of old, instead of seeking out the truth. The surrealist painting by Vladimir Kush, At the End of the Earth, depicts a world dominated by the unknown, where enlightenment and majesty lurks around the corner. It is not better to remain in the dark; the world is full of brilliance that must be explored.
Looking at the visual text as a whole, one notices the surrealism of the artwork. Using a surrealist style of art places further emphasis on imagination and creativity. Creativity is an innovative aspect of education, where the individual takes an active role in his education by applying it to alternate aspects of life. Imagination and creativity are a part of the new spheres a person can discover through a worldly education.
The sailboat brings allusions to the voyages of both Christopher Columbus, who discovered North America, and Ferdinand Magellan, whose expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe. These men represent the notion of seeking out the exciting, enlightening things the world has to offer. There is an abyss in the foreground of the painting with the ocean set further back, creating a foreboding view of the sailboat reaching the earth’s end, with the potential to fall over. I believe the painting is an ironic depiction of what the world may have been like before these expeditions; it portrays a world consumed with debilitating fear. This fear comes from a lack of knowledge. Essentially, I am not arguing that a lack of education creates fear, but that without education, a person would not know basic facts about the world, which could in turn be unnerving. Without education, individuals would not have an understanding of how many things work, whether on a practical, or grand level, and thus be able to believe in the possibility of falling off the earth. Likewise, to believe there is an end point to knowledge, like an end point to the earth, is to limit oneself from the infinite wisdoms of the world. As educator and inventor George Washington Carver put it, “Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”The essence of what Carver is saying is that education will release people from their chains of ignorance, and open the door for them to experience unadulterated freedom. Education is the tool to free ones self from these limitations.
To return to the painting, the abyss itself is reminiscent of Plato’s “Myth of the Cave,” a philosophical parable in which individuals have lived in a dark cave in chains for so long, that finally when one man breaks free he is blinded by the light. He can either wait and adjust, or run back into the darkness. But he stays outside the cave, and after a while the man comes to realize that the light was not blinding him, but rather helping him to see. Being enlightened can at first frighten a person, as with discovering that the earth is indeed round, because it changes everything you thought you knew to be true. At first glance, unlearned individuals might say that their life is easier with their limited scope of knowledge. But on closer inspection they will realize how valuable education can be. It forces you to leave your safe world with all its preconceived notions behind. The cave-like image at the bottom of the painting depicts the darkness an individual lives in with fear of the unknown, before experiencing a full education.
The visual text juxtaposes the dark abyss to the bright sky and wide-open sea to express the implicit message that going out and learning about the world at large could bring an individual to new horizons (pun intended). The two different types of birds, and their two locations in the painting demonstrate how there are two options for an individual. The all white bird is a dove flying high in the sky, and the vultures are swooping down below. That is to say, the dove, symbolizing freedom, is flying out beyond the horizon and discovering new things, becoming one with the clouds. On the other hand, there are the vultures scrimmaging around for scraps of leftovers, flying deeper into the abyss. And note that there are many vultures, yet only one dove, emphasizing that most people are afraid to scope out a new frontier. Many are contented to inherit beliefs, values and thoughts of old. But those people cannot become one with the clouds. Only through a worldly education, an eye-opening experience, can one really soar. As Oscar Wilde, famous writer and poet, argues, “Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” It is likely that Wilde is being sarcastic in saying that education is admirable, but his point is that the key elements of life must be gained through life experiences. This is not to say that formal education has no value, but rather that it in itself is not enough. People need to create their own experiences and learn both from a formal education, and equally as important, an experiential education.
In order to understand the value of learning outside a classroom setting, one must first recognize that education is more than learning facts of information. Education is learning how to learn and that there is never an end to what you can learn. It should be an interactive experience, as the content is always changing. Individuals should embrace an education that will broaden both their knowledge and wisdom. This visual text promotes an education that will foster an ongoing learning process, unique to the individual. People need to free themselves from their bonds of ignorance, but that itself is only a start. Once an individual becomes educated, he should question this education and form ideas of his own. Note that in the painting, there is only one ship in this apparently dangerous sea. The sailboat is out on a voyage of its own, and it is scary but the greater the challenge, the greater the rewards. Ultimately, what is at stake here is the level of depth and comprehension of the world you will achieve in your lifetime. This boat represents an individual, a student of any age, who dares to be different, dares to ask questions, and dares to make a difference. The word “education” means many things to many people. I believe artist Vladimir Kush in his surrealist work, At the End of the Earth, is making the point that education it a tool both to free someone from their intellectual constraints, and to reveal the limitless fountain of wisdom that is the world around them.
There is a common misconception that before Columbus or Magellan went out to sea, it was axiomatic that the earth was flat. In fact, there were many educated people who understood the earth to be a sphere, however, whether or not people actually believed they could fall off the edge, the painting still brings to mind the notion of this debilitating fear. Likewise, to believe there is an end point to knowledge is to limit oneself from the infinite wisdoms of the world. The sailboat brings allusions to both the voyages of Christopher Columbus, who discovered North America, and Ferdinand Magellan, whose expedition was the first to circumnavigate the globe. These men represent the aforementioned notion of seeking out the exciting, enlightening things the world has to offer. There is an abyss in the foreground with the ocean set further back, creating a foreboding view of the sailboat reaching the earth’s end, with the potential to fall over. I believe the painting is an ironic depiction of how being uneducated limits an individual. With out education, a person would not know basic facts about the world and would also not have an understanding of how many things work on a practical, or on a grand level. As educator and inventor George Washington Carver puts it, “Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom.”The essence of what Carver is saying is that ignorance is a false bliss, and education is the tool to free ones self from these limitations.
The abyss itself is reminiscent of Plato’s “Myth of the Cave”, a philosophical parable in which individuals have lived in a dark cave in chains for so long, that finally when one man breaks free he is blinded by the light. He can either wait and adjust, or run back into the darkness. But he stays outside the cave, and after a while the man comes to realize that the light was not blinding him, but rather helping him to see. In short, being enlightened can at first frighten a person, as with discovering that the earth is indeed round, because it changes everything you thought you knew to be true. It forces you to leave your safe world with all its preconceived notions behind. The cave-like image in this painting depicts the darkness an individual lives in with fear of the unknown, before experiencing a full education.
The visual text juxtaposes the dark abyss to the bright sky and wide-open sea to express the implicit message that going out and learning about the world at large could bring an individual to new horizons (pun intended). The two different types of birds, and their two locations in the painting demonstrate how there are two options for an individual. There is the dove flying high in the sky, and the vultures swooping down below. That is to say, the dove symbolizing redemption flying out beyond the horizon, discovering new things, becoming one with the clouds. On the other hand, there are the vultures that scrimmage around for scraps of leftovers, flying deeper into the abyss. And note that there are many vultures, yet only one dove. Most people are afraid to scope out a new frontier. Many are contented to inherit beliefs, values and thoughts of old. But those people cannot become one with the clouds. Only through a worldly education, an eye-opening experience, can one really soar. Yet some readers may argue that all this worldliness is not necessary to leading a successful life, I still maintain that a fulfilling existence requires this type of education. As Oscar Wilde, famous writer and poet, argues, “Education is an admirable thing, but it is well to remember from time to time that nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.” In other words, people need to create their own life experiences and learn both from a formal education, and equally as important, an experiential education.
In his article, “Hidden Intellectualism”, Gerald Graff identifies some “naysayers”, or views that are contrary to his argument. He opens his article by describing a common view towards individuals who are “street smart” but not “book smart”: “What a waste, we think, that one who is so intelligent about so many things in life seems unable to apply that intelligence to academic work” (380). His introducing this view is a subtle placement of a “naysayer”. Later in the article, he includes a more overt naysayer by quoting Ned Laff who believes, “[it] is not simple to exploit students’ nonacademic interests, but to get them to se those interests through academic eyes” (385). Graff disagrees because he feels that this places emphasis on academics alone, that Laff wants to simply convert street smarts into academia, and not take them at face value.
Here many classical educators would probably object that teaching students only what interests them will limit their scope of intelligence. A student unfamiliar with Shakespeare would obviously prefer to learn about something he knows interests him, however it is possible that he could come to love Shakespeare’s literature once exposed to it. Although I grant that introducing students to classical works is important, I still maintain that if we don’t engage students first on a level that is meaningful to them, you will have lost the student completely. And the reality is that most students are more willing to get into a deep, analytical discussion about a topic they feel concerns them, rather than outdated literature.
In their article, “Are Colleges Worth the Price of Admission?”, Andrew Hacker and Claudia Dreifus argue that as tuition increases, the quality does not necessarily increase with it. As the title suggests, they question whether the high costs for colleges is a good investment students. They assert that “colleges are taking on too many roles and doing none of them well” (180). Meaning, colleges have so much going on that they have lost sight of their original goals of challenging the minds of students and creating an engaging atmosphere of learning. The article goes on to list several criticisms of colleges and how they use their resources, and some suggestions on how to reform them. Following, the article lists some exemplary colleges that the authors feel are the exceptions to their claim that “higher education has lost track of its original and enduring purpose” (188). They conclude by saying that other colleges have much to learn from these exceptional ones.
By focussing on techno-teaching as a classroom alternative, Hacker and Dreifus minimize the deeper problem of professors’ inability to connect with the students. No technology can take the place of a human professor, even if the professor is not extraordinary. The greater problem lies in keeping students engaged, and this is what should be worked on.
Dreifus and Hacker’s theory that students are not able to fully exercise their intellect in college is extremely useful because it sheds light on the difficult problem of students having too many requirements. With an overwhelming number of required courses for their majors, students are not able to explore the wide scope of learning available on campus.
I agree that all students should receive attention from their professors and that they should engage their students, although I still insist that not everyone needs to go to college. Not all people are interested in learning and would rather do a hands on task than engage in a deep conversation, and we need to respect those individuals preferences as well.
Hacker and Dreifus conclude their article by stating, “college should be a cultural journey, an intellectual expedition, a voyage confronting new ideas and information” (188). In other words, the authors believe that college should be more than simply getting a degree. Though I agree that college should be a time where students can explore all different types of knowledge, I still insist that not all colleges need to serve the exact same function. Meaning, smaller colleges are able to offer an intimate classroom setting for the students, but larger colleges cannot do the same, and that is okay. They serve different functions and not all colleges need to have the exact same purpose.
In his essay, “The New Liberal Arts”, Sanford J. Ungar promotes a liberal arts education by countering what he sees as its common misperceptions. He observes that during difficult times economically, people tend to question a liberal arts education and its relevance. He sheds light on many misconceptions people have on a liberal arts education, for example he asserts that liberal arts education is just as effective for students to get jobs as a career- oriented education. Unger argues that liberal arts may actually be the best form of carer education, as it prepares students for the many different tasks and careers they are likely to encounter. He denies allegations that liberal arts degrees are only for the wealthy, and he also counters the notion that the “S.T.E.M.” careers are the best. He explains that liberal arts education has no correlation with liberal democrats, and that a liberal arts education is a forward thinking concept, not an archaic one. He admits that the high costs of liberal arts education is an issue, but he maintains that it is not specific to any individual university, rather it is due to a lack in government spending on education. Unger says that he prefers small colleges where communities can form and close bonds can be made, to help maximize a student’s potential.
In Unger’s view, “Through immersion in liberal arts, students learn not just to make a living, but also to live a life rich in values and character” (196). Basically, Unger is saying that a liberal arts education goes above and beyond simply education a student for a career. Not only can a liberal arts education be a means for getting a job, it can also lend to a more profound existence.
Ocean that ends
Large egg
Sailboat
7 birds (including cloud in shape of bird)
Moon in crescent
What is at the bottom of this canyon?
Why is the cloud shaped like a bird?
Who is on the boat? Are they in danger?
Caves/ canyon
Rocks
Dull colors- brown, green, tan
Design on rock wall
In his essay “Blue-Collar Brilliance”, Mike Rose argues that the Western Hemisphere connects intelligence with a higher education. He believes that blue-collar workers are under appreciated and people fail to recognize the difficult demands and cognitive uses involved in their jobs on a daily basis. He repudiates the notion that blue-collar workers are less intelligent than white-collar workers who have received a higher education, and instead asserts that their intelligence is of different, yet equal stature. He feels that this attitude only reinforced cultural divides.
I support Rose’s argument on acknowledging the value of different types of intelligence. All too often, individuals with higher education turn their noses up in the faces of blue-collar workers and are unable to widen their understanding of that it means to be an intelligent individual. Life experience can teach a person a tremendous amount. True, it would be in a different manner than a formal education would, yet still a very lofty education can be learned through hands-on actives, outside a classroom setting. I feel that the best types of learning are ones that combine the two- both involving in class and hands-on activity. In this way, an individual can be taught the concepts of a profession and then see how those concepts work in actuality.
Defining an essay, although it sounds like a straightforward task, is really quite a loaded endeavor. An essay could be any number of things, depending on the framework, motive, and personal preferences.
To me, an essay done right is a means of self expression. Whether the writer is choosing his own topic, or responding to a given task, an essay is the medium he can use to get his thoughts and opinions across. The writer is at liberty to emphasize or deemphasize whichever aspects he sees fit.
An essay can be a factual thing or it can blur the lines between fact and fiction. Personally, my favorite essays have been ones where I can express my personal view of things without needing to adhere the strict guidelines of fact. Essays where I have creative license are always more enjoyable to write.
Over the years I’ve written many formal essays. My favorite type of essays have been those focussing on the analysis of a particular character that I read about. These allow for me as the writer of the essay to relay the aspects of the character that struck me and to decipher the depths of the characters being based on clues in the text. Essays on character analysis allow for the exploration of, and emphasis on, an individual.
tamaralexandra 