Semester in Summary

Looking back at all of the concepts that we learned this semester in ENWR, I have learned a lot about how to construct a firm argument. Before taking this class, I believed that I had a good understanding of how to write a good paper. However, this class has helped me to solidify the formula to creating an argument that a reader will follow and, hopefully, agree with.
When I looked at the syllabus at the beginning of the year, I anticipated the easiest concept to be creating claims, However, in reality, I did not fully understand all of the components that are required in creating a good claim. With the examples from my first set of claims, it is clear that they were just statements of fact and they lacked complexity and contestability.
On the other hand, I thought the hardest principles would be creating problem statements and acknowledging and responding to other's arguments. In reality, acknowledgement and response came quite naturally to me. When looking through my drafts, I had included A/R without even realizing it. Macro A/R was a bit more challenging to include, but with a little brainstorming, it did not take me long to come up with a response to major counter-arguments to my claim. In retrospect, I actually think that this was probably the easiest concept for me to grasp because I did so without even realizing it. I was correct at the beginning of the semester when I anticipated that creating problem statements would be difficult for me to grasp. When writing my first paper using this concept, I really struggled to arrange my thoughts in the way that problem statements required. However, I found that if I simply wrote an introduction as I would before learning this concept, I could then organized it in a way that it followed the template of a problem statement. This was definitely the hardest concept for me to fully grasp and implement effectively in a paper.

The Problem Statement

The problem statement deals with how to formulate your introduction to both reveal a problem and propose a way to fix it. It includes an optional prelude, common ground, destabilizing condition, costs or consequences, and a resolution. The prelude can be anything from a quote that supports or exposes an issue that you will talk about in the paper to a quick statement of reflection to get the reader thinking. The common ground is the shared understanding that the problem will interrupt, it is the part of the reader's knowledge that is relevant to the paper. The destabilizing condition is the predicament that causes pain, unhappiness, loss or it is a question that the reader needs to know/understand but does not. 

The costs/consequences are just what the name suggests; they are whatever negative things come from the problem. Finally, the resolution is the solution that alleviates or mitigates the cost for the reader. 

In class, when we first started working on problem statements, it took me a long time to come up with something to write. This was probably the hardest concept for me to grasp. Before, when I wrote my papers, I would expose the problem in the introduction and, throughout the paper, I would include the costs and consequences. Finally, in the conclusion, I would include my proposed resolution. However, after learning this new "formula" for the introduction, it made sense why it was effective, the reader knows exactly what they are going to be reading. 

Here is an example of my Paper 3 completed problem statement. It took a lot of revisions and rewrites to get there, but I think that I finally understand the concept of problem statements!

“Until we all learn to recognize and reject these harmful messages about what it means to look like a woman, we all lose. And we don’t want to lose” (Beauty Redefined).

Advertisements play a key role in life nowadays. It would be nearly impossible to go one hour, let alone one day without seeing one. Many advertisement agencies use beauty and sex appeal to sell their goods. So, how is society’s perception of beauty different due to the content of advertisements? These ads have not just given us an ideal for what to look like, they have fundamentally altered the way people feel about themselves and their looks. While flipping through a magazine or television channels, we are bombarded with constant ads featuring tall, skinny, and beautiful models wearing designer clothes. People believe that these ads are representations of how a beautiful person should look. However, as seen in Appendix A, these ads are relentlessly edited and noticeably alter the model or actress’s appearance. Society has a skewed perspective of beauty because of the unrealistic standards that advertising agencies present.

Here We Go...A/R

Well, this week in ENWR we focused on including acknowledgment and response in our papers. Basically, that means anticipating other arguments and objections to the claims that I am making and defending them. I really thought that I would have a much tougher time with this concept, but it is actually the idea that has been easiest for me. I found, after proof reading my second paper draft, that I had already included a great deal of A/R. There are two different types of A/R: micro and macro. Micro A/R deals with individual ideas that are presented in the paper. It is a specific statement that contradicts or challenges a singular statement that I make. Macro A/R challenges the idea behind my thesis/problem statement.
For me, it was easier to think of contradictions to some specific statements that I made, than it was for me to respond to macro challenges. However, here are some examples of the A/R that I incorporated in my second paper:

Micro A/R

1.     When talking about the generalizing factor of the “I’m a PC” ad campaign: On the other hand, it could be interpreted that no matter who you are, you can be a PC because it has the quality of being available to everyone.

2.     When talking about the success of the ad: Though PCs are able to transcend generations, Apple is about innovation and making technology better.

3.     It is true that PC computers have sold many more computers than Apple, however when it comes to durability, quality, innovation, and peace of mind, there is no comparison to Apple.

Macro A/R

1.     Advertising critics claim that Microsoft’s response to Apple’s ad attack was clever, they ended up spending the money that they should have been using to fix Vista in order to make the advertisements.

2.     Though the three original emotions are fear, love, and rage and experts may argue that the most effective ads use all three; I believe that effective ads are able to connect with audiences after using just love and fear.

3.     In accordance with psychologists, I believe that the associations we make with ads that evoke fear, love, and rage are crucial in our decision-making and response to advertisements.

So Claims Are Harder Than They Seem

The first week of class is complete and it turns out that creating a good claim isn't nearly as easy as I thought it would be. In the last post I gave some examples of claims that I had come up with, but upon reflecting on them, I realized that they lacked complexity and they were not backed up by any evidence. Claims are not just statements of belief, they must have the criteria that I formerly mentioned and that is why my last set of claims were not so great. Therefore, I made some revisions to make them better:

1.     Ads targeting children and the elderly are dangerous because they lack the ability to fully understand what could be harmful.

2.     It is difficult to stay away from advertisements, because company’s advertisements infringe on every aspect of daily life.

3.     Advertisements are dangerous because they can lack critical information that could determine whether or not people buy the product.

4.     Some advertising companies go too far when it comes to infringing on privacy.

5.     Advertisements should be more limited because people do not fully understand the psychological effects on them.

It turns out that creating claims is going to be harder than I originally anticipated. Yikes.

Creating a Claim

It's the first week on ENWR class and it's looking to be pretty straightforward. This week we are focusing on creating claims. A claim is a statement or assertion that the writer makes when formulating their argument. An effective claim is complex, contestable, and backed up by some type of evidence. The claim also portrays the main argument and the point of the paper that the reader is beginning.

Here are some of the claims I came up with as I was brainstorming for my first paper:

1.     Advertising is all around us all of the time.

2.     Advertising dictates a company’s sales and success.

3.     Advertising infringes on almost all aspects of daily life.

4.     People are exposed to more ads than they realize.

5.     Advertising appeals to the targeted consumer.

Syllabus Week

The first day of classes are always great. There is an endless flow of syllabi and teachers' warnings about how difficult their classes are going to be. I just got out of ENWR and luckily this syllabus doesn't look too challenging. Among some of the topics that we are going to cover, I think the easiest one will probably be creating contestable claims. On the other hand, I think that some of the more difficult concepts are going to be creating problem statements and acknowledging and responding to other arguments. I'm just glad that the first two papers are only worth 5% of our grade so we can ease our way into the semester.