Reflection on Open Letter Draft

I didn't receive feedback on my draft, since I was behind on the blog posts, but after reading it myself over a few times I just feel like its a little emotionless.

Now I don't think that this is the type of letter that needs to be oozing emotions, but my letter draft is kind of stereotypical, like it was written by a computer or something. When I first wrote my draft I didn't have any quotes or evidence yet, but I do know where I am going to put it and those quotes and examples will definitely help me elaborate.

Regarding my time management, I can utilize my blogs from project 1 to show how I used A LOT of time researching things that were useless to me in the end because I wasn't really sure what I was doing, and I lost interest after about an hour. But to show my evolution, I can reflect on project 3 and how my time management during research was on point because I cared so much, and I was able to realize what would aid me in my process, not to mention I already knew a good bit about my topic.

I will elaborate on the future of my writing as well, because even though I'm not exactly sure what my post-graduation plans are, I'm fully aware that any job or profession I get into will require exceptional writing and communication skills.

Draft of Open Letter

I'm a little wary of the letter genre, that's really my main concern... I am not exactly sure how formal my draft will be, it might end up like one of those horrible Odyssey "open letter" articles, but I guess we'll see. I know I will need to make it longer and elaborate more, but as of now its kind of a skeleton of my letter.

https://docs.google.com/a/email.arizona.edu/document/d/1QH0sa6Sbpd1HXVjGVYnluya-Fp2w8AdIaNuQA6N0kZ8/edit?usp=sharing

Reflecting More on My Writing Process

1. I definitely faced a lot of challenges this semester, not only in this class but in multiple. These challenges, as they apply to my writing process, made it difficult for me to give 100%. In my self-assessment for Project 1, I mentioned how it is hard for me to revise and edit my own work. I used to feel like something I created, be it writing, videos, art, etc. was as good as it would get right after I finished. I felt like I would say what I mean and that never needed to change, I would just read through for grammatical errors and that was it. But

2. Project 1 felt really long for me, but I definitely did the most thorough planning for it, but a lot of the planning I did seemed useless when creating my final project. Project 2, however, taught me how to make my planning more efficient and useful, and it allowed me to create the detailed outline that I needed to write my essay. By the time I got to Project 3 I could really see how my editing skills had evolved. My video for Project 3 was cut down by 4 minutes from my initial film, and that equates to a healthy amount of writing. It made me realize the importance of purging things and ordering things in a way that would make my work as effective and influential as possible.

3. Before this class I hadn't really considered anything besides physical writing to be a "genre" of writing. Learning the conventions of all the different genres helped me realize how the smallest things could subtly add so much to a statement or argument, and it also showed me how choosing a certain genre can be very important depending on what your topic is.

4. My editing skills that I have acquired from this course will definitely play a major roll in my future writing. In the past, with scientific writing, I would seriously just try to put as much information as possible into a lab report to make it look like I worked really hard, but I've realized that putting unnecessary information into it is pointless. Sure it might make my report a page longer, but a page of BS isn't going to help much.

5. My most effective moment was definitely writing my script for Project 3. In all honesty, the first two projects kind of felt like all the other writing assignments I've had in the past, only because I went into the processes with that expectation. I wasn't excited about it, I cared about my topics at first but that wore off in a week or so, and I wasn't even writing for myself I was writing because I had to. But Project 3 was so fun for me, and even though I hadn't realized the skills I was acquiring during 1 and 2, I really got to see how I could put them to use in Project 3 and I am so proud of my final product.

6. I wouldn't really say that any moment was ineffective, because even when I felt like something was pointless it just taught me what I didn't need to do, or I would realize later that it wasn't pointless after all. Maybe peer review was the least effective, because I didn't participate in all of them. Every time I have peer reviewed, or been peer reviewed, in the past I never felt like I got any useful information, and I never really felt like I was helping anyone all that much. The best critiques I got were from my friends and roommates, people that I know would actually care about my writing and be honest. Every time I get peer reviewed by a stranger I can't help but think "what if they're an idiot and I'm just going to listen to them" and I'm afraid that they're going to convince me to change something and that will make my writing worse. Maybe it is because I'm a junior and I know most of the people peer reviewing me are freshmen, or maybe it stems from a deeper issue haha, but really just never expect peer review to benefit me at all.

Revising My Writing Process

Oh man, my calendar and writing process posts from the beginning of the semester made me laugh a little bit. In that post I expressed how I was a "Heavy Planner/ Procrastinator" mix. If I were completely honest I'm more on the procrastination side.

Over the course of this semester I've realized that writing is only enjoyable for me when I truly care about my content. And my interest can definitely fluctuate throughout the process. Sometimes I find myself making an incredibly detailed outline, or planning my writing to the very last detail because I'm so interested in it, but then I feel like that's it. I don't want to actually create the final product because I've learned what I needed to learn and said what I've needed to say in outline form, and it is out of my system and I want to just move on to the next thing.

If anything I think my time management was worse than usual this semester, but the fact that I realize that will help me to manage it better in the future. Before this course, I could write a standard essay easily and make it technically perfect, meet requirements of a rubric, etc. But it would all be bullshit and I wouldn't really care about the content at all.

Moving forward, I think this class has shown me how I can mold any writing situation to fit my interests. That is when I do my best work and manage my time efficiently because I'll enjoy the process instead of speeding through it just wishing it were over.

In the future I definitely think that my personality and values will show in my writing much more than they have in the past. As I move towards graduation and enter into the professional world I can use the skills that I learned in this class to show potential employers the type of person and worker that I am, and it will be easier for me to express the value that I will bring to the workplace.

Project 3 Final

Project 3- Draft

Analyzing Purpose

1. The purpose of my public argument is to educate individuals on the animal agriculture industry and illustrate how detrimental it is to the earth and ultimately to our bodies. I hope that my video essay makes people feel uncomfortable. I mean, I guess I know it will, but I hope that people realize that IF something makes them uncomfortable, or uneasy, that there is probably something wrong with it and it shouldn't be happening.

2.

3. One possible reaction to my video essay is that a person might decide to cut certain animal products from their diet. For a lot of people, going vegan is a HUGE lifestyle change, but some change is better than no change at all. If a person decided to cut back on their animal product intake, it could have a lot of environmental and health benefits. For example, if someone were to give up red meat, they would be saving 2,500 gallons of water for every pound they previously ate. 

4. It is really hard to tell who is most likely swayed by a vegan argument. One might say that vegetarians are the most likely to switch, but its really up in the air. I wasn't a vegetarian before I became a vegan, if anything I was someone that no one expected to ever be vegan. I think that compassionate and emotional people are likely to be heavily influenced by my argument, as well as environmentalists and people that are concerned with their personal health. 

My Rhetorical Action Plan

1. Audience:

My audience most likely has a general knowledge of livestock farming, they know that the animals are treated poorly and that the conditions are unsanitary and horrible. Most have seen or heard of documentaries such as Food Inc. that outline the horrors of the industry, but they have only seen what they CHOOSE to see, and who wants to look up pictures of tortured animals in their spare time? Not many. They don't want to because it makes them sad or uncomfortable, but what my audience needs to realize is that this reality doesn't stop being reality just because they aren't looking at it. I'm not going to put TOO many graphic images or footage in my video essay, but there will be some. There will be enough to make people uncomfortable and hopefully uncomfortable enough to realize that it shouldn't be happening.

2. Genre:

The video essay is the best option for my argument because it will really aid the emotional impact that I hope to have on my audience. My video will most likely have a "vlog" style to it, as I do plan on talking in front of the camera for part of it. Not only can I use footage of real animal farms, but I can also insert images and graphics to help explain the factual aspect of my argument. It will help explain the direct and indirect effects of animal agriculture.

3. Responses:

I think people will respond in a number of ways. Hopefully responses will be respectful, I aim to make my video as unthreatening as possible, because people will tend to get angry and defensive if I make them feel like their lifestyle is wrong. Some people might have more  questions, since I can't fit EVERYTHING about veganism into one video, I can recommend other informative videos, websites, documentaries for the curious responses. Some people might think I'm crazy, if they have the typical human mindset that we are the most powerful beings in the universe and animals were put here solely for  our use, enjoyment, and palette pleasures. Honestly there are so many ways someone can react, but I think all of the reactions will come from discomfort or fear.

Analyzing Context

Topic: Veganism

1. What are the key perspectives or schools of thought on the debate that you are studying?

When it comes to veganism, the two perspectives are pretty cut-and-dry: you're vegan or you're not. People are either for or against being vegan, and there are a select few that say that they "wish they could" or that they support veganism and what it stands for, but won't do it themselves (because that makes sense).

2. What are the major points of contention or major disagreements among the perspectives?

Mainly, non vegans who are against veganism use a few arguments such as getting proper nutrients (protein), saying that animals will overpopulate if we don't kill them, saying vegans drink too much water, and other contentions that are refutable. Vegans can have manny different reasons for their lifestyle, some use animal rights as their reason, others do it for environmental sustainability, others for personal health and vanity.

3. What are the possible points of agreement between these perspectives?

Well most people don't want to kill animals, so they remove themselves from the process by buying the meat at stores. But generally people are against animal cruelty when they aren't ignorant to it. Most people are respectful of different lifestyles, and even if they don't agree in practice they'll agree in principle.

4. What are the ideological differences between the perspectives?

I don't want it to seem like a person is horrible if they aren't vegan, someone could be the most wonderful person in the world but still be ignorant to the horrible side effects of the animal agriculture industry, but the main differences lie in compassion and empathy for other earthlings, humans, and the earth itself. Then actually educating ones self and doing something to change it.

5. What specific actions do these perspectives ask their audience to take?

People who are vegan don't necessarily have the same goal. Some people want everyone else to be vegan and are aggressive about it, just like some non-vegans are aggressively against it and try to change people who are vegan. I think one common goal is that each side wants the other to be 100% educated on their lifestyle. Meat-eaters want vegans to understand why they think they're right and vegans want meat-eaters to understand why they're right. It isn't always about changing someone's lifestyle but more about making sure they know what they're doing.

6. What perspectives are useful in supporting your own arguments? Why?

Pretty much every pro-vegan website or article or book will support my argument, but also the anti-vegan ones because they will allow me to develop a bulletproof response to their arguments. The only thing I can't argue with is that someone doesn't care about the consequences.

7. What perspective will be the greatest threat to your argument?

If someone genuinely does not care at all about respecting the autonomy of another life, saving our ecosystem, trying to end world hunger, and having their body function as efficiently as possible then I really can't argue with them.

Production Schedule

Getting everything done for Project 2 will hopefully be easier for me than Project 1.

I have already conducted interviews, and gotten most of my genre examples, but it wouldn't hurt to get a few more just so I can pick and choose when the time comes.

Finding more genre examples is number 1 on my list, and it would be best for me to do it in the library so I have the internet and physical texts at my disposal. I can summarize, analyse, and distinguish the differences in the examples from the same genre. This will be done on Wednesday evening, March 9th.

Once I have that research done, it's honestly just a matter of putting it all into an essay. I'm pretty good at writing organized and well thought out essays once I have all my information. I'm hoping to have this first rough draft done before I leave on Spring Break...even though I'm not going out of the country (or state even), I just know I won't get anything substantial done.

Once I come back from break, I can edit this first rough draft, and go from there. I think it will be really good to have that week off to take a step back from the project, but not forget about it completely. I'll be able to read my draft with fresh eyes and catch any mistakes, or get a feel of whether or not it flows well.

Here is a simplified version of my plan:

Project 2: Rhetorical Investigation Content Outline

Opening:

The Veterinary Science profession requires many essential skills and abilities; writing is one of the most crucial. When most people think of veterinarians, veterinary technicians, or any others in the animal medical care industry; they think that all that goes into it is science and numbers. In actuality, the writing process can be one of the most time consuming components of veterinary medicine.

First Genre: Medical Journal

a.     Just like professionals in any medical field, veterinarians frequently author articles and case reports for medical journals to inform others about (and gain recognition for) an arduous research process or experiment into which they pour copious amounts of time and effort.

b.     (summarize typical conventions of this genre, how it is important to the progression of medicines and treatments, etc)

c.      Possible Examples:

1.     Avian Diseases: Intranasal Caseous Fibrinous Plug Causing Upper Respiratory Distress in Two African Grey Parrots (Psittacus Erithacus) (Dr. Elisha W. Burr) An informative recap of an investigation of two medical cases of African grey parrots experiencing respiratory distress.

a.     Medical terms translated to clinical practice

b.     Benefits medical patients and community and environment

2.      Relationship of Veterinary Science to Animal Breeding and Public Health (John R Mohler)

Second Genre: Patient Care Instruction

1. This genre is important because it is one of the most common, and functional methods of writing in the veterinary profession. The purpose of the treatment, rehabilitation, etc needs to be communicated simply to the client, and very simple yet specific instructions need to be provided as well.
2. (examples to come, contacting vets for actual documents)

Third Genre: Scientific Non-Fiction or Autobiography

1. While it can be informative, this genre is usually for entertainment purposes. It could provide a change of pace, or an outlet for a veterinarian in an otherwise repetitive practice.
2. Examples
1. While You’re Here, Doc: Farmyard Adventures of a Maine Veterinarian (Bradford D Brown)
2. All My Patients Have Tales: Favorite Stories from a Vet’s Practice (Jeff Wells, DVM)
3. Never Turn Your Back on an Angus Cow: My Life as a Country Vet (Dr. Jan Pol)

Closing:

While a lot of the work that comes with the veterinary profession is hands-on, manual labor, what goes on behind the scenes ensures that the grunt-work goes smoothly. Writing in this profession is not often thought about by those who are not involved in it, but without the ability to write, and communicate clearly and efficiently, veterinary science would be decades behind where it is today.

Self-Assessment

How are you feeling about the project you just submitted for assessment? Give me your raw, unvarnished opinion of your own project overall. 

Thankful that it is over.  I blame myself for choosing a topic that I sort of got bored with. I am pretty bad with editing and revising my own work, it is really hard for me to change something I've created. That being said I am still proud of the finished product.

What are the major weaknesses of the project you submitted? Explain carefully how and why you consider these elements to be weak or underdeveloped.

One of the major weaknesses is the entertainment value. I'm not sure how entertaining a QRG can really be, but I feel like no one would really want to read mine unless they are just SUPER outraged at the fact that this lady killed a cat.

What are the major strengths of the project you submitted? Explain carefully how and why you consider these elements to be strong or well-developed.

I definitely think I did a good job relaying facts to the audience. This was one thing that I was worried about, because I tend to go off on tangents when I write about something I really care about. I'll go off on a rant that is just pure opinion but I think I did a really good job of avoiding that. 

What do you think of how you practiced time management for Project 1? Did you put enough time and effort into the project? Did you procrastinate and wait till the last minute to work on things? Share any major time management triumphs or fails.... 

My time management was horrible. I have to be honest, I should have put so much more time into this, especially the blog posts. I think I did a great job with it at the beginning, but it is really hard for me to continue that level of effort when my interest dwindles. I get to this stage where I think "what is the point" and that is the WORST thing in the world that I can do! Like what is wrong with me, I really don't know. But hopefully I'll maintain a decent level of interest in future projects and that won't happen so drastically.

My Pronouns

she
her
she
she
she
herself
her
her
they
her
they
her
she
her
her
her
her
she
him
they
their
they
her
she
they

My Verbs

shot
killed
grew
attended
received
grew
hunting
fishing
participating
claims
shaped
earning
moved
working
posted
holding
marking
exhibited
saying
took
practicing
live
visiting
fired
opened
committed
kill
stated
acted
protect
claim
believe
voted
practice
issued
expire
practicing
appeal
revoke
expired
served
say
stated
love
attended
worked
reflected
stating
condeones
issued
stating
killed
loved

shot: 2
killed: 3
claim: 2
stating: 4

Local Revision: Active and Passive Voice

Active:

shot
killed

grew

attended

received

grew

hunting

fishing

participating

claims

earning

moved

working

posted

holding

marking

exhibited

saying

took

practicing

live

visiting

opened

committed

kill

stated

acted

protect

claim

believe

voted

practice

expire

practicing

appeal

revoke

expired

served

say

stated

love

attended

worked

reflected

stating

condones

issued

stating

killed

loved

Passive:

shaped

fired

issued

Local Revision: Wordiness

Taken from Draft:

Take It To Court

The Austin County Police and District Attorney opened investigations in April of 2015, but failed to indict Lindsey because there was insufficient proof that she committed a crime. While it is illegal to kill feral cats in the state of Texas, District Attorney Travis Koehn stated in a press release that Lindsey might have acted to protect her pets from a potentially rabid stray cat. According to Texas law, this is a reasonable defense to an animal cruelty charge. Many members of the Brenham community claim that the cat in the photograph was Tiger, beloved pet of Amy Hemsell, who went missing on April 15, 2015. A YouTube video on Amy’s channel of Tiger can be found here. No positive identification could be made based on the photograph. This means that there is no reason to believe that the claim of protecting animals from a rabid cat is false.

Edited:

The Case is Taken To Court

The Austin County Police and District Attorney opened investigations in April of 2015, but failed to indict Lindsey because there was insufficient proof that she committed a crime. While it is illegal to kill feral cats in the state of Texas, District Attorney Travis Koehn stated in a press release that Lindsey might have acted to protect her pets from a rabid stray cat. According to Texas law, this is a viable defense to an animal cruelty charge. 

Many members of the Brenham community claim that the cat in the photograph was Tiger, beloved pet of Amy Hemsell, who went missing on April 15, 2015. A YouTube video on Amy’s channel of Tiger can be found here. No positive identification could be made based on the photograph. This means that there is no reason to believe that the claim of protecting animals from a rabid cat is false.

I honestly didn't change much. This is my wordiest paragraph, but it also contains conscice and important information. I changed a few words to synonyms to make the passage easier to read, but overall I think I did a great job the first time around. 

Draft of Project #1

Everything You Need to Know about the Case of Kristen Lindsey: The Veterinarian Who Shot a Cat With a Bow and Arrow

On Wednesday April 15, 2015 in Brenham, TX a young veterinarian, Kristen Lindsey, shot and killed a cat with a bow and arrow.

Who Is Kristen Lindsey?

Kristen, daughter of Becky and Jack Lindsey, grew up in Greybull, Wyoming and attended Colorado State University, where she received her doctorate in veterinary medicine. After earning her doctorate she moved to Brenham, Texas in 2012 and began working as a veterinarian at the Washington Animal Clinic.

The Basics

Kristen Lindsey, 31, posted a photograph of herself on Facebook holding an arrow with an impaled cat on the end. She exhibited a sense of pride in her description of the picture, saying that, “…The only good feral tomcat is one with an arrow through its head! Vet of the year award…gladly accepted.” Kristen’s parents do not live in Brenham with her, and were visiting her from Big Horn, WY.  It is not known how long after this post they stayed in town, but Kristen was fired from her job at Washington Animal Clinic shortly after the post went viral.

Take It To Court

The Austin County Police and District Attorney opened investigations in April of 2015, but failed to indict Lindsey because there was insufficient proof that she committed a crime. While it is illegal to kill feral cats in the state of Texas, District Attorney Travis Koehn stated in a press release that Lindsey might have acted to protect her pets from a potentially rabid stray cat. According to Texas law, this is a reasonable defense to an animal cruelty charge. Many members of the Brenham community claim that the cat in the photograph was Tiger, beloved pet of Amy Hemsell, who went missing on April 15, 2015. A YouTube video on Amy’s channel of Tiger can be found here. No positive identification could be made based on the photograph. This means that there is no reason to believe that the claim of protecting animals from a rabid cat is false.

The Lindsey Family

Becky and Jack Lindsey have been valued members of the Big Horn community for the majority of their lives. She served as Deputy County Treasurer 14 years, and while Jack’s employment is not made public, members of the Big Horn community had positive things to say about him. Barbara Anne Greene, founder of Felines and Friends of Wyoming, stated, “Jack Lindsey has brought many a stray kitten into Felines and Friends. They love their animals. That is what makes it harder to believe. A bad decision can change a lot of lives in just an instant.”

Animal Rights Supporters and Activists: Justice For Tiger

While the death of this animal is clearly a horrible occurrence, it brought together a new community of animal lovers who call themselves “Justice For Tiger”. The death of this cat, though the outcome was not ideal, helped gain attention for animal cruelty cases in general. This organization has grown to include members from all over the country, all seeking to help animals in need.