Ch 8.; Cohen Active Reading

1.) According to Cohen, his properties of men's relationships are that men would lie either about something or about someone to not look or feel embarrassed.  They would act as they have done something but they really have not.  An example would be, men acting like they have sex all the time with their wife's, even though they don't even have a sex life at all.  They act like it or they don't say anything so it makes it out like they do. He doesn't think that these properties are a real definition of friendship because that's not how your supposed to act around your friends.  Your supposed to tell the truth and not have to act a certain way so that you are not known as "that person" per-say.  

2.) The fundamental distinctions that cohen makes between men and women are, men act a totally different way then women.  Men act like there big muscular guys who can't show weakness at all and who talk to there friends about sex like they do it all the time, when in fact they probably do not.  For women they usually talk about fulfillment and they admit to things unlike men.  He classifies men and women different.  He classifies men as guys who act different when there around there friends.  And women just like they are honest and will admit things..  Yes I do agree with this classification because men do act like that all the time.  They make it out like they are better then everyone meanwhile they have no idea what they are talking about half the time.

3.) I do  feel that his argument would be stronger if he would have used specific men, because then we the reader would know exactly who he was relating to, even though I can see the argument being a good one even though he doesn't name any specific men.  The risks about generalizing human behavior is that its bad in many ways because for the most part people are just taking stereotypes or actions that happen and talk about them, even though they don't know if it's true.  

Journal #6

-Talking about people, whether they believe everyone should go to college or not and why they believe as they do.  

The findings that I have found when asking people randomly whether you need to go to college to be successful in life or just what they think of it.  From what I found people say that going to college is a big step in life and that college Isn't for everyone.  Everyone has there own thing in life to do and if' it's not going to college then it's something else.  In my Opinion I think going to college is a big deal and that going to college is what will help you get the job and the right job you want for the future.  College is very important because it's an essential part of life.  Even though college is very expensive, that is why people take out loans to pay for school, either the school they want to go to or because they got into a really good program but can't necessarily pay for it.  I was heard from people that going to college is what makes you in life as a person.  I agree with that.  Going to college these days is crucial.  Other findings that I found were, people argued about people going to college because they say if you look at many people that they have such prestige jobs and they didn't go to college.  Saying that is sometimes true, but if you want to actually do something in your life as a goal you probably need to get some type of degree from college.  Many people in this life do not believe in going to college.  They think they can do what they want to do in life without going to college, yes some people have but you can't become a doctor without going to college.  I think that going to college will set you on the way that you want to go in life and in the future if continued in college, will be successful later on in life.

In the News #5

1.) My views on pitbulls versus humans is that I think that some pitbulls are a little to afressive sometimes but I do think that pitbulls shouldn't always be put to sleep because of there action. For humans, it is true they do only get a slap on the rist or some community service but I do want to see in the future less pitbulls being put to sleep.

2.) I do not think that dogs and humans should have the same punishments for equal aggression because humans are smarter than dogs and definitely know right from wrong. Having the same puinishment for a dog and a human wouldn't go so well and it kind of isn't right. A dog does some of it's actions because of the company it has in front of it's face.

3.)I do think that pitbulls are somewhat dangerous but I do not think that they should be banned. They really are such good nice dogs, just for some reason you find some of those bad pitbulls.

4.) I mean seeing some recent pitbull attacks definitely doesn't help my point of view on it but I also think that it happens so I don't really see it changing my ideas on them.

Questions For Active Reading Pg.233

1.) Yes, I can clearly visualize what Sanders is doing at each step because he uses vivid details about building the wall that would divide the room. He also clearly explains what it took to build the wall between the room. Yes, each concept is clearly defined because in the text he describes many moments while building the wall. Sanders feels this need because without this clear description the reader may not clearly comprehend exactly what happened in the process of building the wall.

2. Sanders uses chronological order in his essay by explaining step by step his process of carpentry and how he built the wall. The objects and images that connect the different periods of time are the hammer that connects him to his father because it was passed down from generation to generation. The image of him hitting his thumb instead of the nail reminds him of his father and building things in general.

3. A "dawn stone" is what Anthropologists called an unworked rock that served as the earliest hammers. Sanders describes this because he is fascinated with all types of hammers, this hammer represents his ancestors and family.

Journal #5 " I want a wife"

1.) The types of duties that syfer describes as being performed by wives is for them to be therewhen he wants her to be there.  To be there to make the dinner, to make the kids appointments to the doctor's and to make sure that she is on top of it.  She also describes the wife having to give sexual pleasure when wanted and not to complain about her problems.  To listen when the husband has a problem.  To make sure the kids are in bed when the husband's friends are over and to make sure that there glasses get filled up when needed.  There are many things that syfer describes that the wife does, it's actually like the wife does everything. I definitely do no think that today's day in age that this is done by women.  Yes, of course the wife is there for the kids and for the husband, but no way does the wife do all of those things that syfer has described.  I think that yes in the past 37 years it has changed, I mean you will always meet someone like that but for the most part no not in today's society.

2.) The way that I would describe Syfer's writing style is intense, because the feeling of the writing is able to be felt in many ways. I would say yes, she does do some things in her essay that I particularly would not do in mine.  For example, she repeatedly keeps on saying line after line "I want a wife"over and over again I personally do not think that is a good sense of writing.

3.) What seems to me to be a little unfair is that, women always think of guys should be paying for everything, especially when they are going out to dinner.  Maybe the guy should be paying when they are on a date but I don't think every single time they go out the guy should be paying.  I just think that it's a little bit of a steriotype that guys have to be paying for girls all the time.

In the News 9/23

These both social networking Myspace and Facebook has really changed people's life. The reason why I say this is because everyone is always on facebook, you look around at someone on their blackberry and of course they are on facebook. This has definitely has changed people and how they functione everyday. Facebook just came out with the new and redesigned facebook, I personally do not like it. I'm not used to it and many other people guarenteed do not like it either. I think that these sites (social networking sites) will definitely be around for a very long time because it's such a demand to people all around the world. The way they made our lives more difficult is by people being addicted to facebook or myspace. It has definitely chagned peoples relationship and there friendship. What causes these addictions to these sites is people love socializing on the internet, it's fun to some people and they just love to be on the computer and enjoying it.

Pg.108 Questions for Active Reading

1.) The 6 Myths of Creativity was written by Bill Breen, a creative person. In my opinion of the 6 Myths of Creativity I think that everyone has some creative sides to them.  When people are put under pressure or a time limit to have something done, there creativity gets lowered because they do not have the time that they "thought" they would have.  Collaboration is better then competition.  This is because when people are working together either at a job or doing a group project they usually put each others ideas together and work all together, but here they didn't.  Some people don't do that.  They don't help each other and they compete with each other do have the best ideas or the best whatever they are doing.  In my opinion I think that if someone likes there job compared to someone who doesn't that the person who likes there job more will be more creative on there projects or whatever they have to be creative for, they will have creativity inside them. 

2.) She collected about 12,000 daily journals from 238 individuals to do her study of creativity..  She was looking for information on what types of situations increases people's daily creativity or if the creativity level went down.

3.)I would say that the audience for Bill Breen's article is anyone in a work place, that owns a business and also employers.  You see how he talks about competition in he work places.  But I do think that most people are creative in there own little way.

Journal #4

What does Bartholomae mean when he says that students must “invent the university” when they write in college? 

What Bartholomae means when he says that students must "invent the university" when the write in college is that, he wants that person to speak that language I guess of a college student.  He also wants that person to be able to evaluate, select, report and conclude of what goes on in the community in college.  There are things like a specialized discourse and they have to do it as though they were easily and comfortably in with the audience on it.  Bartholomae basically wants you to understand how to write and how to get the gist of what goes on and how to do it.  It's not easy to write in college.  In the beginning students must and should try to set up habits of mind, rituals and also phrases that will help them.

What does Bartholomae suggest is a way for students to become “insiders” within academic discourse?

Bartholomae wants students to become "insiders" within academic discourse by, being able to imagine themselves the privilege of being the "insiders" and that is possible he's saying by being established and granted a special right to speak.  The right to speak that Bartholomae is saying is, seldom conferred upon people of anyone, even teachers and students.  He wants students to believe that they are responsible for something new or old, it is about inventing a new language that is new so that everyone else can learn it.  

 Summarize some of the differences between the two examples of student writing that Bartholomae examines, and Bartholomae’s opinion of these examples.

The differences between the examples of the writing from the students and Bartholomae's opinion are, the first one talks about how one teammate changes the trend of what the team is wearing all the time to what he thinks is better.  The second paper is about a kid who loved music so much that the kid ended playing the guitar and the clarinet.  The kid felt that writing his own songs from creativity was better then copying others which don't do any good.  The kid also talked about how he felt about being more creative.  He would use the word composers would call it "inspiration" which to this kid definitely helped for this kid in the long run.  Bartholomae's opinion on the first paper was, he did not think that this was an elegant paper at all.  He also said that here the discourse was natural.  He also said that the text should be watched because it continually refers to its own language and to the language of others.  Bartholomae's other opinion on the second paper was, that the writer is consistently and dramatically conscious of herself forming something to say.  He also thinks that when she said what she thought was "creativity" however she now calls "imitation" that she was not creative at all.  He says that the writer of this essay goes against the language that keeps going on to another name.

In the News (Z's Technology Info)

In my opinion I think that technology has definitely harmed us in many ways. People always text now while they are driving and most people don't even realize how much harm there doing to someone if something were to happen. I also think that the other technological devices that are out are, the new ipod Touch, just like the iPhone but without the phone part. Its dangerous because many people just walk around on the streets, while crossing the streets and day by day people are getting injured.
I mean the technology that we have in this world today is awesome and it has defiantly helped us out big time, but at the same time people just don't know how to be mature and understand how to use a device the right way without harming anyone. I also think that when people are texting and driving they don't understand how much danger they are putting themselves at including the other people on the road.

"I Believe" Draft 1

“I Believe” In Karma

            I carry my conscience around everywhere I go.  My belief is in karma.  Ever since I was able to understand what karma was and how it was thought about among people, I think it’s something serious to have a belief in karma.   What is Karma?  Karma is a belief, when someone does something that they are not supposed to do; they think that bad luck will occur or something unwanted will occur as well.   I would always be around my friends doing our own thing when they do something wrong and I say to myself, that they shouldn’t be doing that its just going to come back at them.

            When I was a lifeguard at home for the summer my co-workers would sometimes mock save me in the water, (which is a practice save that another lifeguard makes upon you) which I personally do not like.  After I was mocked in the water that day my friends comes up to me and says, “you should so mock him back”.  I replied saying “why would I do that, that’s just stupid because I didn’t want it done to me so I’m not going to stoop down to the kids level.  In that situation I believed in karma at the time.  I take Karma very seriously.  Sometimes when I think about doing something even though it could be bad, I don’t do it because it might just come back to me one day to bite me in the butt.  I would not want to be doing something bad to someone else if I do not want it done to myself.  Believing in Karma takes a lot because it’s all about thinking of it and knowing what it does and what it really is. 

            An incident that occurred to me at home that involved my brother and I.  About 2 years ago I was sitting in my room watching T.V, this was about ten thirty at night.  The next moment I hear my mom calling my name.  I said what mom, she responded telling me to come into the Dining room.  I then got up from my seat and walked into the Dining room and started to talk to my mom on whatever she wanted to tell me.  My brother started to then come into the living room and started to bother me.  I honestly get very frustrated very easily and annoyed easily as well.  So then my brother makes a comment about the topic that my mom and I were talking about.  The comment that my brother had said was very disrespectful and it didn’t appease me at all.  Now if I didn’t believe in Karma I would have definitely come back at him, with something else or with like a comment, but I do believe in Karma.  Now there are certain degrees where karma sometimes doesn’t have any effect on me because if someone does something where it’s over the line I’m obviously not just going to sit there and not do anything. 

            After my brother made that comment I ignored him and continued on with the conversation that I had with my mom.  I did this because I believe in Karma.  If I would have responded back to him or did any bad action I would be stooping to his level and then I would have felt like I would get it back for doing that, even though I didn’t start it in the beginning.  After that occurred my brother then left the room.  He did this because he knew I was not going to respond to his immature comment, and the fact that I didn’t got him very pissed off.  He then had nothing else to say because he knew I was saying nothing, he left the room.  I do believe in Karma so much because I feel that we should not be doing anything that we know is not supposed to done or anything disrespectful, that is why I back down from people’s bad comments and I don’t let them get to me.

In the News (Politics)

Today on In the News we are talking about how michelle obama made a comment about not being very enthustiasic about her country. Many of politicans and people are saying that Michelle Obama didn't really care about her country until now. In my opinion I think that It's pretty obnoxious for someone to say that about her, and I'm sure when she made that comment it had nothing to do of what the media is talking about. I also think that barack Obama is doing a good job campaigning. I think that when politicans try to talk about others on Tv or in the paper, that they should just do there own thing and have to worry about someone else.

Chapter 3 Questions Pg.73

1.) The experience that changed Smiley's belief about chores was, when she started to work at the stable.  She really loved it a lot because she had a passion for her horse riding and enjoyed every minute of it.  Also, no one was forcing her to do it at all she was doing it at her own will.  She describes this experience after she explains why she doesn't believe in chores, which is towards the middle.  The impact that would effect me as a reader would be described as more understanding to me because it makes sense where she positioned the explaining of it in her essay.  

2.) The reasons and evidence shown here would be, her personal experience and how her explinations are worded towards me, the reader.  I didn't think that she wrote them in a way that was demanding.  In my opinion she was writing in way that was understanding.

3.) I think her rhetorical questions definitely backed up her reasons and supported them very well.  

Reading Chapter 1

PG:13 Questions for Active Reading:
1.) Powell's purpose in writing was to know what you the writer are writing about. but also to make sure that you are giving the audience a clear sense of what the subject is. He tries to achieve his purpose is about his journey about coming over to the united states and how he goes to school in New York and then positioned to the army in Georgia after school. Then he figures out that he has a form of racism in the south because he is not used to leaving in the south where in New York its not a problem. He didn't know how to cope with the racism psychologically because he was very focused on succeeding at his army career. Twp specific examples front the reading are, "I had to learn to compromise, to accept a world I had not made and that was beyond my changing". "Racism was still relatively new to me, and I had to find a way to cope psychologically".
2.)While reading Powell had an audience of people who were very interested in racism and wanted to learn more about it from his point of view. Pro-right activist for African Americans as well as anyone interested in this subject.
3.)Colin Powell was born in New York City to immigrant parents from Jamaica. He graduated college at City college of New York with a degree in Geology. He participated in the ROTC. He has been awarded two Presidential Medal of Freedom in a Congressional Gold Medal. My attitude towards him is one of respect and gratitude for his commitment and serve to the United States of America. No this does not represent any change in my feeling toward Powell.

PG.19
1.) Goldberg's purpose in writing is he wanted to make people understand that when it comes to writing, it takes time and its something we all need to think about. The specific idea that was he wanted to write for years and people told him he should be a writer. And then he has to know that his expression needs to be born in him and on the paper.
2.)The audience that she had in her mind while writing was of students who blow off writing assignments and wait till the last minute instead of going through the whole writing process, and writing the paper correctly. Other audiences that would benefit would be, people coming back from school who haven't been in school for a long time. Also incoming high school students as well as incoming college students. The audience that will not benefit from this are people who don't care about the writing process and just want to get the writing done with.
3.)The writers subject is for people to understand her writing as well as to let people know about the writing and to show how to use the right writing process and not just to write to finish an assignment. Her attitude towards her subject is having a very strong belief in it and will stick by her opinion in writing.

Journal #2

What makes the essays you chose compelling?
-I chose the essay "The Guts to keep going". This essay is compelling to me because my grandma had a husband who was always there for her. She did not drive, so instead her husband was the one who drove for her. This really touched me in many ways because it's sad to hear about that and sad to have to watch someone go through that heartbreak. The other essay that i choose that was compelling to me as well was, "The Strange Blessing That Brought Me Home" because it is related to Hurricane Katrina and it has effected so many people it had touched my heart in many ways.
What kinds of stories do they use to showcase their belief?
-The essays that I have read have been expressing the way that they have felt about their heartbreak or there situation that they were in.
What is the tone of each essay and how is it achieved? (funny, serious, reflective, sarcastic, etc.)
-The tone of both essays were very reflective on there parts and very serious because they were dealing with a big matter which was a big deal.
How are the essays similar? How do they differ?
-The way the essays were similar just in the respect that the both have to deal with how someone reacts to a difficult situation in their life. The was they differ is, one is about a reaction to a storm that caused many problems in the future and the other one talked about a close person that passed away and made it difficult for the other person to adjust to their new lifestyle.
Do they follow the writing guidelines provided by the This I Believe organization on their website at http://www.thisibelieve.org/essaywritingtips.html?
-Yes, both readings follow the guidelines. If not totally then very close to.
What beliefs might you want to write about for project 1? (looking at the categorized list of beliefs at http://www.thisibelieve.org/dsp_Browse.php may help you)
-I would pick addiction because I have written about addiction in the past.

Journal Entry #1

• Describe the situation that made you feel a need to respond in writing.
• I was reading an article one day and I saw that it was talking about how this man was repetitively saying how the holocaust never occurred.  
• Why did you decide to respond in writing instead of taking some other action or not responding at all?
• The reason why i decided to respond was because I myself am Jewish and I felt very offended when i read the article and I had to write something because saying that in my opinion is definitely disrespectful.
• What type or genre of writing did you use to communicate your purpose, and why did you choose this genre?
• The type of writing that i chose for this letter that i wrote was, a cause and effect type.  The reason why i chose that was because I felt discriminated as a believer in Judaism, and the fact that if did happen and someone went out to say it didn't really got to me. 
• Who was your audience and what kind of relationship did you want to establish with your readers?
• The audience was my classmates.  The relationship that I wanted to establish with them was, for them to understand how i felt and to realize that saying something like that is very offensive to people.
• What was your purpose in writing? Did you feel you accomplished this purpose?
• My purpose in writing this was to inform people of the truth and not false rumors that people like to make up.  Yes, I do feel like I accomplished my goal in informing my friends.
• What knowledge of the context and culture did you draw on to guide your writing?
• The knowledge that I had on this topic was that I myself is Jewish and i have visited the Holocaust Museum and i have witnessed many things in person.
• How is thinking about your writing as responding to a “rhetorical situation” different from other ways to think about the writing you do?
• The way it was different in my opinion was that, i wrote about it differently.

In the News #1

In my opinion, reguarding the olympics, about how all the spectators and many people are commenting on Michael Phelp's swimming uniform. They were all saying how this swim suit is having a huge effect on his swimming. I think that it's fine for Phelps to be wearing those new swim suites from NASA, it doesnt matter if it makes him go faster, besides thats thw e whole point in my opinion. On the topic of the gymnastics about how they lied about the chinese girl was being 16 when she was actually 14. They rigged her passport and changed the information on it so that she would be able to participate. I think that is ridiculous because that girl is now taking someone else's chance of going to the Olypmpics, its just not right and especially not fair. I also think that some action should be taken on this reguard about the liein of the age. Stay tuned to my next post. Thanks for Reading.