Major Inquiry Project ...in the works

For my Major Inquiry Project I have decided to attempt to resolve homelessness in Charlotte, NC ....or at least do some research and talk about it.  I chose homelessness as my subject because I am asked for money by a complete stranger at least once a day.  Since this is such a frequent occurrence, I can assume that the homeless rate in Charlotte is pretty high so I should be able to generate plenty of sources for my project.  Every time I come off of I-85 there is someone at the top of the ramp holding a sign claiming to be homeless and wanting some money.  Every time I go to a gas station there is someone outside asking me for change.  I haven't been able to decipher the connection between the "asking for money" homeless and the "will work for money" homeless.  As cynical as it may sound, I believe the ones looking for me to hand them money are generally involved with drugs or some type of addiction.  I haven't thought about the others offering work for money, but I think I have a plan-of-action to implement for that.  For the next couple of weeks, every time I see a person on the side of the road claiming to be homeless, I am going to stop and offer them five dollars or so to answer a few questions for me.  I am not sure what exactly to ask yet, but I think the best place to start will be the homeless shelters to generate ideas for questions to ask the people on the streets.  I'll keep you updated.

Week 3

In English 1102 this week we discussed rhetorical appeals.  They are classified into three different categories, which are: logos, pathos, and ethos.  Not to be confused with Athos, Porthos and Aramis....which are the Three Musketeers.  Rhetorical appeals are found in advertising and are used in marketing strategies to persuade the audience in a certain way.  Logos is the rational argument and appeals to reason usually using statistics.  Pathos appeals to your emotions and uses those emotions to persuade you in some way.  Ethos is when a spokesperson, that is a subject matter expert, is used to persuade you.  We looked at some ads in class and broke them down to see where each one of the classifications were used.  Now every magazine ad, billboard and commercial I see, I can spot how they are trying to persuade me to buy their product.....which will make me an even less impulsive shopper. 

Week 2

This week in English 1102 we discussed rhetoric. The rhetor is the speaker and rhetoric is persuasion, so in rhetorical analysis we are trying to see how the speaker is trying to persuade us in one way or another. Using what Dr. Minslow has taught, I now look at things in a more analytical way.  I feel a little suspicious of everyone and everything because I am trying to understand how what I am seeing is trying to persuade me. In short, I am learning and I enjoy the class.....money well spent.

Political Cartoon

The comic is addressing the presidential election in 2012.  The elephant represents the GOP (Grand Old Party), also known as the Republican Party.  He is going to see this movie titled "2012" and is wondering if Barrack Obama is going to run for re-election.  Since he is representing the RNC and Obama is of the Democratic Party, his posture shows his discontent that Obama could be running for presidency again.  Under the title 2012, it says, "Apocalyptic Disaster Movie."  This is referring to Obama's term as president, and the RNC would believe it to be an apocalyptic disaster.  The cartoon is from an American artist, which is why it is referring to the American Government.  I found the comic on about.com and it did not tell who the artist was or any side information about the comic.  It is a single frame cartoon, which shows it is direct and to the point.  It relies heavily on words in the comic.  I don't think that a picture alone could really describe the exact affect the artist is attempting to draw from the audience.  The cartoon is in a serious tone but some of the imagery is unrealistic.  Overall it is directly describing the RNC's opinion over Obama's re-election as president of the US.

Me as a writer/reader

As a writer, I try to be aggressive in my approach to a subject.  In respect to the technological advancements of our culture, I see myself typing texts and emails more often than writing letters and notes.  With the help of spell check it is more efficient.  The internet makes information travel faster from one node to another.  The use of smart phones has grown tremendously over the last few years; therefore, internet, email, text and other forms of communication are easily accessible.  Using emails, I communicate with clients for work. These emails are always professional and formal.  I am pleasant in what I write and I try to get to the point of what I want to say with the least amount of words used.

As a reader, I am more passive or receptive.  I want to read and understand what someone has written to me.  I would like the same respect in return.  Just as a conversation is carried: one person talks the other listens.  It is the basics of communication.  I try to be a good listener or reader so I can understand the information being sent out and I can respond with a good answer.