What is discourse? This is the first question the students of W350 Sustainable Public Discourse, were asked to think about on the first day of class. As the question was asked the room became silent as we all pondered this seeminly simple term. It turned out not to be so simple however. I find myslef, still today wondering, what is discourse?
Through class discussions and various readings we have been given examples of different types of discourse with many different aims and goals. These genre samples have proven the term "discourse" to be anything by simple. It is a term which holds a slightly different meaning for each person. For some it may be argumentation while for others it may be propaganda. These definitions have both proven to be true throughout the semester.
It is very interesting the many forms that discourse can take, as well as, the many things that it can mean. After reading from authors like Selzer, Killingsworth, Kinneavy, and many others, we have learned what it is to create persuasive and informative discourse for an audience, but it seems nearly impossible to place a solid definition to the word. This makes me realize that discourse, like the informational world in which it is utilized, is an ever changing thing which is shaped and molded to fit where it is needed. There is not concrete answer for what discourse is, because it is not a concrete thing.
Tuesday, November 30, 2010
The 11th Hour
On Monday, October 18th students and instructors gathered for a film screening of the film "The 11th Hour". This film takes it's audience around the world discussing and bringing environmental worries to the larger public. When we first viewed the film, I thought it was simply because our course is based around the theme of sustainabilty, but now after we have spent time reading and studying different forms of discourse I am aware of a different way to look at the film.
After viewing the film, students were able to ask a group of experts questions and discuss the topics of the film with them. One thing that stuck out to me was a question posed by Matt Auer, Dean of Huttons Honors College. He asked "Imagine someone who isn't sympathetic to the issues in the film. What is the most influential thing in the film for them?" I was drawn to this question, because it was not simply about the content, but how discourse was modified to fit all audience members no matter their environmental cares. It is safe to say that most students were drawn to this question, most likely because it brought up the issue of form as well as content.
This reminds me that no matter the content of any discourse, it is important to make it worth while to everyone reading. "The 11th Hour" was made interesting for those who have no emotional connection to the environment because of the fact that it was focused on not just informing it's audience, but also entertaining them. One major thing disucssed was the fact that it was narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio and that it was made into a feature length film instead of a short TV documentary only viewed by History Channel buffs.
While "The 11th Hour" is mainly focused on environmental issues, writers and directors were careful to make it enjoyable for every audience member. This is an important thing to learn in order to make any piece of discourse accessable to a large audience.
After viewing the film, students were able to ask a group of experts questions and discuss the topics of the film with them. One thing that stuck out to me was a question posed by Matt Auer, Dean of Huttons Honors College. He asked "Imagine someone who isn't sympathetic to the issues in the film. What is the most influential thing in the film for them?" I was drawn to this question, because it was not simply about the content, but how discourse was modified to fit all audience members no matter their environmental cares. It is safe to say that most students were drawn to this question, most likely because it brought up the issue of form as well as content.
This reminds me that no matter the content of any discourse, it is important to make it worth while to everyone reading. "The 11th Hour" was made interesting for those who have no emotional connection to the environment because of the fact that it was focused on not just informing it's audience, but also entertaining them. One major thing disucssed was the fact that it was narrated by Leonardo DiCaprio and that it was made into a feature length film instead of a short TV documentary only viewed by History Channel buffs.
While "The 11th Hour" is mainly focused on environmental issues, writers and directors were careful to make it enjoyable for every audience member. This is an important thing to learn in order to make any piece of discourse accessable to a large audience.
Saturday, November 6, 2010
Form Matters
In Studs Turkel's article, "Community in Action", he takes his audience through four of the five classical oration steps discussed by Ross Winterowd. Winterowd states that classical oration is divided into "exordium to gain the audience's attention, narratio to state the speaker's case, confirmatio to prove that case, reprehensio to refute the opponent's case, and peroratio to sum up" (40).
Turkel gains the attention (exordium) of his audience in his very first sentence by describing the many horrible things that he witnessed because of the Great Depression. This brings readers in and causes them to become emotionally invested in Turkel's story. He then moves on to state his case by saying "And this is my belief too: that it's the community in action that accomplishes more than any individual does, not matter how strong he may be" (Turkel). This statement makes his purpose for writing very clear and also leaves no doubt in the readers mind as to what he believes. Turkel goes on to "confirmatio" to prove that the society as a collective whole is more influential than one citizen could ever be by describing his own life during the time. He talks about how groups were "fighting for rights of laborers and the rights of women, and the rights of all people different from the majority" (Turkel). Because of the fact that Turkel's article is not written as a response to anyone else, he does not seem to refute the ideas of another group or person. He moves on to the last step, peroratio, and sums up his very simple claim by saying "And that happens to be my belief, and I'll put it into three words: community in action. Here he very simply and quickly wraps up his argument and leaves readers knowing exactly what they were intended to have gained from his article.
For my historical analysis I would like to look into the idea of body image in American culture. This would include the many different ways in which beauty has been defined throughout history and how people are influenced by public discourse on the issue. I am interested in thinking about why the ideal beauty has changed and how this ideal might be yet again changed in order to allow those who do not share the "perfect" body to be accepted and feel comfertable within our society today. My general genre for this issue would be body image in the 21st century.
Turkel gains the attention (exordium) of his audience in his very first sentence by describing the many horrible things that he witnessed because of the Great Depression. This brings readers in and causes them to become emotionally invested in Turkel's story. He then moves on to state his case by saying "And this is my belief too: that it's the community in action that accomplishes more than any individual does, not matter how strong he may be" (Turkel). This statement makes his purpose for writing very clear and also leaves no doubt in the readers mind as to what he believes. Turkel goes on to "confirmatio" to prove that the society as a collective whole is more influential than one citizen could ever be by describing his own life during the time. He talks about how groups were "fighting for rights of laborers and the rights of women, and the rights of all people different from the majority" (Turkel). Because of the fact that Turkel's article is not written as a response to anyone else, he does not seem to refute the ideas of another group or person. He moves on to the last step, peroratio, and sums up his very simple claim by saying "And that happens to be my belief, and I'll put it into three words: community in action. Here he very simply and quickly wraps up his argument and leaves readers knowing exactly what they were intended to have gained from his article.
For my historical analysis I would like to look into the idea of body image in American culture. This would include the many different ways in which beauty has been defined throughout history and how people are influenced by public discourse on the issue. I am interested in thinking about why the ideal beauty has changed and how this ideal might be yet again changed in order to allow those who do not share the "perfect" body to be accepted and feel comfertable within our society today. My general genre for this issue would be body image in the 21st century.
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