SUPA WRT 105 Portfolio

During your senior year taking SUPA Writing 105, things can get a bit challenging. Here, I've listed 5 ways you can make this experience easier and help your senior year fly by. 1. Do your research. One of the major skills you'll want to perfect is to always see different sides to a situation before coming to any major conclusions. Fully understanding a piece of literature is something that's vital to a full interpretation and analysis. This skill will help you in and out of the classroom. While it can help you learn about a piece and be able to develop a full analysis for your next essay, you'll also be able to draw better conclusions to situations you may encounter even after taking this course as you venture onto your next path. As we learn throughout the year, do not become a victim to a single story. 2. Use your voice.  If you're not at all interested in what you're writing, it's going to be a whole lot harder to write it. Being able to insert yourself ...

 Arguing with people is something we all do: whether it be siblings' debate over who gets the last ice cream bar, or a tense conversation about politics with your family at the Christmas dinner table. Doing it respectfully and responsibly, though, is something some people struggle with. Analyzing an argument is something that's extremely important to having a good conversation, according to Arguing in Communities by Gary Hatch. Understanding what exactly you're arguing about is something that's crucial in order to develop a well thought-out argument. Knowing what exactly you stand for, why you stand for it, and assumptions that can be or are made about what you're standing for are all necessary to have an informed argument.  It's also important to be able to justify your argument. Being able to back up your claims made in an argument lays all of the credibility. According to Hatch, being able to back your argument up with facts and justification or reasons for y...

 On April 10th, 2010, "After Escher: Gulf Sky and Water" by Bob Staake (pictured below) was released as the cover for The New Yorker.  Some of the most notable features are a single pelican in the air at the top. It’s brown and discolored and has oil dripping down from it. Below it are many different birds. The 2 closest ones below it look like seagulls and they’re also discolored. There’s multiple other types of birds below that are all discolored and brown. The animals soon morph into fish that seem to be in a brown, murky water. All the fish seem to have upset and unpleasant expressions on their faces. They’re also discolored and brown. There’s also a brown turtle below the fish that’s brown and discolored swimming in the murky water. The water is also darker as it gets deeper. A few months before the release of the magazine, a severe oil spill began called the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Millions of barrels of oil were released into the Gulf of Mexico.    It sh...

 Op-Docs, though short, are incredibly informative. They can give you a new perspective on some things.  One I watched, called Bike Thief , showed a social experiment in which 2 men went into broad daylight in New York City and stole a bike. It observes people's reactions to different people committing this crime and in different situations. Studying the culture of people from New York City is what interested me the most - nobody seemed to pay any mind. I recommend everyone watch this Op-Doc and compare it to what you think might happen if you see someone stealing a bike on the side of the street. I found A Conversation With Native Americans on Race to be incredibly interesting. Considering in media you do not hear the voices of Native Americans' often, I suggest everyone view this video. The way the people in this video explain their experiences is very impacting. Having to do things like verify their Native background are things I never knew existed in the daily lives of pe...

Tough Guise 2 and " The Boys are Not All Right” both share one common theme: they address toxic masculinity and the way boys have progressed in terms of masculinity. One thing Tough Guise 2 focused on was how toxic masculinity has influenced the way that boys behave in hopes of being seen as masculine by society. "Jokes" at women's expense, which can sometimes be vulgar and incredibly offensive. These and other toxic behaviors are sadly normalized because of society's view on how men should act. Basic human qualities such as empathy are pushed down by most men because they're told they're supposed to be "tough." Men submitting to social conformity is what causes men to try to assume their dominance over women. In " The Boys are Not All Right." This article describes how men have nothing to guide them through being confident in themselves and not conforming to society's standards. While women have the feminist movement, men do not...

 10 Ways To Have A Conversation  by Celeste Headlee was a very interesting speech. Two things I found interesting were the idea of asking questions when you don't understand: many people are too afraid to do this and end up not understanding the conversation they're having and the content they should be absorbing. Another was being in the moment. It's discouraging when you're talking to someone and they aren't paying attention. And when you're the one not paying attention, are you really having a conversation, or is someone just talking to you as background noise?