Journal 2:

In high school when I was given a writing assignment the first approach I would take was to write out an outline. I like to get my initial thoughts down on paper in an organized way. Outlines help me to compose topic sentences for each paragraph. For each paragraph I would write a topic sentence and then gather three pieces of evidence or quotes that would be included in the paragraph to support the main idea. After constructing an outline, I would start to write my rough draft. I would follow my outline and focus on the main ideas that I was trying to get across to the reader. After writing out my draft, I would reread my essay and look at grammar, punctuation, and spelling. I made sure that all my ideas were comprehensible to others and that my evidence was strong.  Then I would typically go to my friends for peer review on my essays. I would write a draft on google docs, share it with a few of my friends and have them edit it. After my friends would leave comments and suggestions on my essay, I would take them into consideration and make changes accordingly. Lastly, I would reread my essay one final time to make sure I was satisfied with the outcome. Personally, I think that this writing process works well for me. I am able to get all my work done without stressing myself out. If there are too many steps in my revision process I tend to become overwhelmed. Ultimately, I like my writing process but am open to changes and new ideas.

Journal 3:

After reading The Art of Quoting, I was able to take away many helpful tips on how to properly use quotes throughout an essay. I enjoyed the set up of each paragraph and how the author broke down each step clearly. On page 46, paragraph one, I liked the analogy of how one should not be a “hit-and-run quoter.” This phrase emphasizes the importance of introducing your quotes and interpreting them in your own words. You can’t just drop a quote into your essay without any context. Building a frame is important in order for readers to have a sense of what is going on. In order to build this frame, I typically ask myself do I need to introduce a new character?,  or do I need to give more background information?. I try to think of questions the reader may have and answer them to prevent any confusion. Additionally, I found it extremely helpful that the author provided templates for introducing quotations. If I am ever unsure of how I can include a quote within my essay, I will refer back to these templates. Another aspect of the text I found valuable was the first paragraph on page 50, Can you over analyze a quotation?. It was reassuring to know that it is better to be over explicit while describing a quote rather than not being detailed enough. Lastly, I learned that you should try and interpret the quote using your own words while still blending the authors words with your own. Previously I thought the explanation of the quote was strictly your own thoughts, but it is good to know that giving your own spin on the author’s words is acceptable. Overall, I found the text to be informative, organized, and easy to follow. I will definitely refer back to this section if I ever need help with quotations.

Journal 4:

I found the article, “The End of Food” to be very interesting, yet quite strange at the same time. I found it fascinating that Rob Rhinehart has been living off Soylent and hasn’t actually eaten a meal in a year. As depicted in the article, he appears healthy, which greatly surprises me. I can’t comprehend how someone has not eaten an actual meal in a whole year. I get hungry within a few hours and rely on food to give me the energy I need throughout my day. I am not opposed to Soylent, but personally I would not give up food entirely to live strictly off a single drink for the rest of my life. On page nine, paragraph two, there are several points made about how Soylent can not provide the same nutrients found in real food. Soylent does not include phytochemicals found in plants, which provide important health benefits to the body. The chair of nutrition department at Harvard School of Public health states, “that it would be unwise to miss out on them.” It concerns me that people are missing out on nutrients that their body needs in order to carry out a healthy lifestyle. Drinking Soylent is not worth the risk, and people should  chose to make healthy choices instead. Additionally, there are health side effects to drinking Soylent. On page fourteen and sixteen the author and others who were interviewed describe the negative effects they experienced after drinking Soylent. Having extreme gas, stomach bloating, food cravings, and social repercussions are all damaging side effects that can easily be avoided. Personally, eating food is not really a hassle or struggle for me. I make time in my day to eat and work my schedule around it. I do not want to experience any unnecessary pain when I can easily just eat real food. Lastly, I found the two concluding paragraphs of the article to be very creepy. The way that Soylent was described seemed more like a cult rather than a meal replacement: “After a lot of people eat Soylent, Soylent becomes people.” Rhinehart believes Soylent is the future, he thinks it will solve everyone’s problems and replace food entirely. I disagree with Rhinehart and believe food is the central aspect of many people lives and can not be easily replaced. In general, I found the article very unusual and do not see myself drinking Soylent anytime in the future.

Journal 5:

I found reading “Responding to Entering the Conversation” to be helpful and reassuring of the writing techniques I currently use. I liked the pictures and the templates that were used to emphasize the authors points. The writing was also extremely clear and easy to follow. I agree with the text and believe it is important to present your own ideas as a response to others. Without discussing someone else’s views, the reader will not understand the point of your own ideas. I also found it interesting that the text brought up the point that one can over disagree. It is good to state your own opinion in a reasonable manner, however, disregarding what the writer believes completely is too much. On page ten, the point is made that agreeing and disagreeing simultaneously is a nice way to explain both perspectives of an argument. As well as these points, I found the last few paragraphs of the text to be reassuring The author states that one should not worry about plagiarism while using the templates provided. The templates are a good resource to use and will expand on your originality and creativity. Overall, I found the text to be beneficial and many interesting points were made.

Journal 6:

Peer Review

Journal 7: https://cnelson13.uneportfolio.org/podcast-2/

Journal 8:

I found reading “Starting With What Others Say” to be beneficial to my current essay that I am working on. I was reminded that I need my thesis to be responding to some other point. In my essay “What is Food Really?” I have to keep in mind that my readers need to be aware of the fact that I am responding to the opinions of someone else. I feel as if I made the point to discuss what someone else (Rhinehart) believes and then share my beliefs on the topic. Stating in the beginning your thesis will help to clear any confusion that the reader may have. I liked how the book mentioned that you should think of your thesis and what your thesis is responding to as a unit. You want both to flow nicely together and make sure that they correspond with one another. Additionally, I found the templates that were provided to be extremely helpful. In the future, I will definitely look back on them to help me with my essays. Another point that was mentioned that I found beneficial was to make sure that you explore other viewpoints so then as a writer you do not seem one sided. If a reader picks up on the fact that you have some sort of bias they may not want to continue reading and find you an unreliable source. Overall, I found the reading especially applicable to my current essay. It was nice to read and reflect back on my own work to make sure that the points that were made were illustrated through my writing.

Journal 9:

In my essay, I spent the most time revising the order of my paragraphs. Originally in my first and second drafts I had a sequence of paragraphs that did not make a lot of sense. My thesis described how I personally did not see how Soylent was beneficial to others and then immediately in my first body paragraph I began to tell the reader all about how great Soylent was. My paragraphs were too contradicting and I needed to revise them. I was struggling on how I wanted to show some of the advantages of Soylent while still expressing my own opinion about it. I did not want to make it seem like I was completely disregarding Rhinehart, but also wanted to make my points clear. One part of the revision process that I would change would be the fact that we were forced to write at least two comments per page on a peers essay. I found that sometimes the comments were forced because on certain pages there was not a lot to remark about. This revising process was different from my past approaches in the fact that we were assigned groups. In high school I would just go to my same friends and have them edit my papers. The process is also different in the sense that it was guided with the types of comments we were to make. In the past my friends would write whatever would come to mind that they believed was helpful to my paper. I liked having prompts for the types of comments we were to make, but sometimes I felt as if the amount was a little too much. My approach to this project fits with the expectations of the class. I feel as if I put in the effort to revise my essay multiple times. Overall, I tried to put my best work forward and feel as if I was able to improve in my revising skills.

Journal 10:

I found Michael Pollan’s article “Out of the Kitchen Onto the Couch” to be very interesting. He gave several different points as to why he believes Americans have slowly stopped cooking and have found interest in cooking shows instead. On page fourteen paragraph three Pollan discusses how many people now chose to eat out rather than cook at home. He states that as the value of income increases in a family, the likelihood of eating out also increases. I personally agree with the topics he discusses. It makes sense that a family with more money would generally care less about spending it on food. Going to a restaurant requires no work and is a nice way to relax. If someone has money to spare, then they will probably be likely to have someone else cook for them. A lot of Americans are lazy and want the fastest and easiest alternative. The amount of time spent on food preparation can be seen as daunting and most people would choose to eat out instead. For example, many celebrities have personal chefs that cook for them to save time and stress. I know that if I had money to spare I would also hire a chef to cook for me. It would make my life a lot easier and save time.

Although I agree with Pollan and how more Americans are cooking less at home, I disagree with the points he makes regarding weekend cooking. On page eighteen paragraph two, he analyzes how people now make cooking into a form of weekend recreation. I don’t necessarily agree with Pollan because after a long week of work most people don’t want to cook an elaborate meal. He expresses how grilling has now become only a weekend activity and how it can be seen as rare. People don’t grill every night because it is tiresome and requires a lot of work. Additionally, not everyone wants to eat the same meal all the time. More people will go out on weekends to prevent cooking. I work at a restaurant and know for a fact that we are ten times busier on the weekends compared to a random Tuesday night. People see the weekends as a way to get out of the house and socialize with others. Cooking a grand meal at the end of the week would be more like a chore for me. Overall, I know that I would prefer to eat out on the weekends instead of preparing a special meal.

Pollan has several subject matters that I find myself agreeing with or disagreeing, however on page five paragraph two I’m not sure how I feel about the topic explored. Pollan describes an individual by the name of Julia Child and how she has her own cooking show. Julia’s show is unedited and in it she makes several mistakes while cooking. Pollan goes into detail about how raw and real Child is and how most people would love to watch her. It’s a good that Child is not afraid of failure and is confident in her cooking. She tries to show people that there is nothing to be afraid of while cooking and mistakes are okay. I like the fact that she is not afraid to admit that her cooking isn’t perfect and owns her mistakes. On the other hand, cooking shows today are highly edited and there are minimal flaws found in each dish. People like to watch a smooth cooking process. If someone is constantly messing up and not knowing what they are doing, then what is the point behind watching it. The whole purpose of watching the show is to learn how to make the dish. If the person teaching you how to make the meal makes multiple mistakes, then it may be hard to follow. Ultimately, I like Child and her confidence, but don’t know how popular her show would be to the public today.

Journal 11:

After reading chapter 14 in “They Say, I say” I found many points to be beneficial for future reading assignments. One topic I found helpful was to make sure that as a reader to look at a writer’s argument as a response to another argument. This will help to see the purpose behind what the writer is talking about, or why they are making their claim. Another beneficial aspect I found in the text was on page 178, paragraph three. The author describes that a reader should visualize a writer in a coffee shop talking to others and developing their argument. I am a very visual person and I liked how the book was able to provide an example that pertains to the text. If a writer was in a coffee shop with a bunch of other people then you could infer that they were defending their argument in response to others. A third part of the text I enjoyed, was when the author addressed how to find the “they say’ when it is not directly stated. The reader has to use textual clues to figure out what the writer’s argument may be responding to. It is important to use the text and make inferences off of it in order to get a better understanding of the motivation behind the argument. The last discussion topic that was mentioned was how to deal with challenging texts. I personally find it hard to really develop my own opinion after reading a challenging text, and most of the time will accept what the writer believes. After reading chapter 14, I know now that I should translate the text into my own words and fully listen before forming my own opinion. I need to remember to relate the text to my own life because I find this helps me to better understand complicated readings. Ultimately, I found the text useful for future readings and will keep the suggestions in the forefront of my mind. 

Journal 12:

After listening to the podcast, I was initially uncomfortable, because I normally do not like to talk about death. I found it interesting how she describes her job as both beautiful and grotesque. She seems very open about talking about a subject that is mainly pushed under the rug. While at work she describes how she becomes covered in the ashes, which made me extremely uncomfortable. I could never picture myself in this position. Doughty has to remove herself from her job emotionally and only focus on getting work done. I also find it disturbing that she wanted families to become more involved with the death rituals. It is heartbreaking to lose someone, never mind going to watch the burning of the body of a loved one. She wants people to take care of the body themselves, but I could never emotionally handle this. Doughty states, “ You can see almost the life leave them. You can feel the body growing colder.” I found this exceptionally disturbing and do not understand why someone would want to endure more hardship. Doughty also goes into detail about how to keep the body from decomposing and the steps taken while presenting the body, which was uneasy to listen to. Overall, I wish that I could unlisten to the podcast because it made me very uncomfortable and upset. 

Journal 13:

At the start of writing this paper I honestly had no idea where I wanted to go with ideas. I initially struggled because there was not an exact prompt or question for me to answer. Once I chose the sources from my classmates and looked at their favorite meal essays, I had a better sense of where I wanted to go with my writing. I knew that cooking had personal meaning to me, and chose essays that also demonstrated this type of connection. I feel as if I was very engaged with the sources that I chose. I made sure that my values aligned with my peers and chose essays that placed value on homemade cooking. I wanted to compare Pollan’s beliefs to my classmates, but also decided to add an individual quote from a peer to really focus in on her beliefs. I chose to leave this quote without contrasting to Pollan in order for the reader to really get a sense of the powerful statement made about family cooking. I chose quotes carefully and integrated them in an order that leaves an impact on the reader. After highlighting sections from my essay to see where I engaged with the text, there was a lot of highlighting surrounding Pollan, but immediately afterwards was highlighting from peers work. I knew that I needed to add in classmates perspectives following pollan in order to validate my points. It was helpful and reassuring to know that many of my peers hold strong value for cooking like I do. Overall, I feel as if I engaged well with all of my sources and put in my best effort to integrate them into my essay in the best order.\

Journal 14:

After reading, “What the Crows Knows” by Ross Andersen, it opened my eyes to the sensitivity of animals. I personally am an animal lover and wish more people respected animals the same way as humans. I enjoyed learning about Jainism, the religion in which people believe that violence should be forbidden against not only humans but animals too. I agreed with all of the points made about how animals experience consciousness and emotions. I have had two dogs and cats before in my lifetime and they have all been extremely smart. They are well aware of their surroundings and have a great understanding of the people around them. I believe that they had consciousness along with any other animal. Furthermore, it was interesting to hear about the birds and some of the complex behaviors that they are capable of. For example, Anderson described how crows in Japan drop nuts down into traffic and have cars break open their food for them. I found this fascinating, and believe more people should take into regard the intelligence of animals. Another aspect of the text that I found interesting was Anderson’s hike up mount Girnar. Mount Girnar is sacred mountain that holds religious ceremonies at the top of it. I would love to go and hike mount Girnar and experience this ritual. The ceremony was described as empowering and I wish that everyone could go and realize the importance of animals and the love they have for us. Animals are willing to show humans unconditional love and more people need to take the time to appreciate them.

Journal 15:

I found the setup of Hal Herzog’s article convincing for his argument and the points he made all emphasize his reasoning. Specifically on page two, paragraph one, Herzog describes an individual by the name of Judith Black’s relationship with animals. Like many of us, Black has a complicated connection with animals. She would consider herself an animal lover, and used to be vegetarian. In the past, she would avoid meat at all costs and only limit herself to fish. Until one day Black broke down and began eating meat again. Being vegetarian is a hard lifestyle to keep up with. If you have strong values and are willing to make sacrifices, then it is achievable. Most people would consider themselves animal lovers, however many continue to eat meat. It is hard to find an ethical balance between the two and the majority of us are stuck somewhere in the middle.

The points that Herzog makes on page four paragraph three also strengthen his argument. Herzog discusses the issue many people may have with others owning snakes as pets. People typically associate snakes with negative connotations and look down upon others who willingly bring them into their homes. Herzog brings up multiple points about how pet snakes eat less meat than cats, however not many people view a cats intake of meat as a problem. Herzog states, “….the moral burden of enjoying the company of a cat is 10 times higher than that of living with a pet snake.” One may be able to have this perspective but it is of the minority and most do not view snakes as friendly pets, rather as dangerous predators. As a culture we place more value on certain animals rather than others, which leads to ethical debate. If we claim we are animal lovers then we should respect and love all the same.

The last page of Herzog’s article really brings together all of the points he is trying to make. On page seven, paragraph four he summarizes his argument by expressing how most people are stuck in an ethical dilemma surrounding animals. We all like to think that we are looking out for the best for animals and treat them with respect. However, our actions speak louder than words. The value that we place on animals varies culturally and many people chose to eat meat. Herzog goes into details about certain situations he found people to believe are acceptable or unacceptable. One stated that using mice to find cancer treatments was ethical, but using animals to test the toxicity of makeup was not. It is interesting to see how people evaluate these situations and come to the conclusions that they do. I personally would like to consider myself an animal lover, but do chose to eat meat. Ultimately, this is an ethical struggle for most and I find it inevitable for everyone to be completely free of moral conflict surrounding animals.

Journal 16:

After rereading “Consider the Lobster” by David Foster Wallace and referring back to my first initial thoughts on the piece, it was interesting to see how my perspective has changed. After  first reading the article I was more concerned with questioning Wallace’s beliefs, however; now I am more concerned about society’s beliefs as a whole. If the majority of people are choosing to disrespect animals and ignore their consciousness, then we should be concerned about everyone’s behavior. It seems more obvious to me now that singling out an individual should not be my primary worry. After rereading, I also noticed that Wallace views issues and presents them with scientific evidence. It appears that due to the lack of concrete evidence found on the subject matter of animals consciousness, Wallace does not believe animals are morally important. I believe if he was presented with more evidence this would assure him of animal consciousness. The evidence behind this idea is still a little unclear, but if one is an animal lover then it is easier to reason with. If you respect animals and value their importance then it is easier to put yourself in their shoes. We will never fully be able to understand another’s consciousness, however one can imagine what it is like. The concept of diving into someone else’s consciousness and perspective of the world unfortunately is not feasible, but having empathy for animals is.

Journal 17:

Reading “Planting a Naysayer in Your Text” is a concept that I normally would not think about while writing an argument. The author discusses that one should consider their viewpoint, and also what others may say to oppose it. Including an opposing argument in your essay makes it clear to the reader that you are a critical thinker and are aware of other perspectives. I found the templates on page 81 and 82 to be beneficial in how to state objections along with my argument. It is also important to keep in mind that one may keep a nameless, faceless naysayer such as “critics” or one can use a precise name to address people that may be against their argument. I need to keep in mind to be precise with labels when describing a group of people, because I do not want to offend anyone. Furthermore, I found it interesting that the author stated that writers should actually bolster their opposing viewpoints credibility rather than undermine it. I originally would think the exact opposite, however after reading the text it makes sense. Giving credibility to another viewpoint, makes you a more trustworthy writer. It is beneficial to try and place yourself in the other’s perspective to make sure you are taking their argument seriously. Once you state the opposing argument, you do not want to disregard it completely. Only be sure to challenge the parts that are critical to making your perspective standout. Ultimately, I found the text beneficial for writing and will refer back to it in the future.

Journal 18:

Through giving up meat, Foer will actually live out a lifestyle that reflects his values. He will no longer seem like a hypocrite and will be respected when he follows through with his words. Foer will also gain the satisfaction of being consistent with his morals and staying strong to his beliefs. If he is able to not eat meat for an extended period of time, he will gain the will power and strength to continue his vegetarian journey. On the other hand, by giving up meat Foer essentially losses a cultural aspect from his life. A lot of his childhood memories are associated with the foods that his parents or grandmother makes for him. Without the food it would not be the same. The people in his life obviously matter, but the food is what makes the memories. Without his sushi dates with his mom, turkey burgers from dad, or chicken and rice from grandma there are no memories. Foer is going to have to create new meals with his family to bond over to replace the significance of the old ones.

To answer the question that Foer presents to the reader, I would suggest that a horny person raping an animal does not have as strong of a claim as a hungry person killing an animal because it is not socially acceptable. Eating meat is apart of culture and is widely accepted. Not many of us consider the feelings or perspective of the animal as we prepare our meals. We ignore their emotional status and believe that we are superior. However, raping an animal is not culturally acceptable and is looked down upon by most. When rape comes it into play, the animals have feelings and we consider their perspective. We view animals as having rights and take into consideration their viewpoint. It is strange to see what society believes is socially acceptable or not. The ethics behind each situation are uncertain and there are multitudes of different opinions on the matter. It is hard to make a concrete statement about why society has these values. However, it may suggest that humans are selfish and we only disregard the animal while eating it to make us feel better about ourselves.  

Journal 19:

In terms of working on paper #3, I feel like my time management has improved since the last two projects. I have been writing more than the required word count for each assignment and feel as if my paper is coming together nicely. I typically spent a little over an hour to completely write out all my thoughts. For the 300 word due date, I wrote out my introduction and the beginning of my first body paragraph. For the 500 word due date, I continued to work on my first body paragraph. I found it helpful to take a break in my writing and then come back to my paper. I was able to come up with new ideas and finish my first paragraph strong. For this paper, I decided to write my essay in the commons where it is quiet. I am forced to stay focused and get my work done. I like going to the commons rather than my room, otherwise, I know I would easily become distracted. In terms of resources that I have used so far, I have used the “They Say I Say” text to help integrate quotes into my essays. I like the templates found in the book and find them beneficial to my writing. Another resource I have used is my friend from out of class. It was helpful to talk to someone who was not informed of the discussions we were having in class, to make sure my ideas were being fully expressed in a way in which anyone could understand.

This process compares to paper #1 and paper #2, in many ways. For the first paper, I mainly drafted it in my room. I was hard to get work done and stay focused, therefore I know that it is best if I work alone in a quiet space. Another way in which this process has evolved, is in the way that I am using outside resources to help improve my writing. Before, I would consider the ideas talked about in “They Say I Say” but not actually apply them to my writing. A third way in which my writing process has changed, is in the fact that I allowed myself to take breaks in between writing. It was nice to restore my motivation and have a fresh mind while writing. The last way in which my writing process has improved is in my time management. As previously mentioned, I was always prepared for the deadlines and had my work done. For some reason, I found writing this essay easier and was not waiting closer to the due date to complete my assignments. I was able to get all my ideas down on the page in an efficient manner and found the words flowing easily. I think that it helped to write out all of my ideas out on paper, instead of writing an outline on the computer. Having an actual physical copy of my work and the act of writing out my ideas helped make them more concrete. Overall, my writing process has changed for the better and has helped me to get my work done more efficiently in a timely manner.

Journal #20:

Peer Review Links:

https://files.uneportfolio.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/1556/2019/04/Dani-Jewell-Peer-Edits.pdf

https://files.uneportfolio.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/1556/2019/04/Megan-Morrison-Peer-Edits.pdf

Journal 21:

Between peer review and now, I have made a lot of revisions to my essay. The main corrections that I made were adding text-on-text moments throughout my paper. Before, I only had one quote per paragraph and my essay was formatted like a book report. I cited a quote from each author in separate paragraphs, but didn’t connect any of the texts together. Through my revision process, I found quotes from each of the texts and connected them together. Now the reader has a better understanding of what the author’s beliefs are and how they connect to mine. Another major revision that I made to my essay was taking out a lot of the repetitive ideas I had. I was over the word count by almost 1,000 words and through revising I cut back on a lot of the unnecessary ideas I had. Now, I feel as if my paper is more concise and I am able to get my points across in a clear manner. The third main revision that I made to my paper was to my thesis. I changed my thesis to be more specific and for it to better flow with the rest of my paper. I made sure to add the details of the West vs. East throughout my paper so it only made sense to include this in my thesis. At the beginning of revision I was super overwhelmed with the amount of work that I needed to do, but now that I have made the corrections and fixed the suggestions left by my peers, I am much more confident in my work. I am glad we had the time in class to talk to our peers to get more feedback. Overall, I feel the revisions that I have made have greatly improved my paper to where it is now.