Formal Reflection
For the final revision process I decided to modify writing project one to develop the lacking ideas and writing techniques throughout the assignment. In addition to the film review, I attempted to improve the functionality and readability of my site. I organized the paper by first giving a thorough introduction to the documentary's subject and filmmaker, solidifying the connection between the two. I went on to summarize the plot while analyzing the cinematic and human impact of the film. In revising my film review, I found areas lacking after absorbing W131 material. Additions were made in this project to give the material more clarity and develop incomplete ideas (major areas of revision are highlighted in my review). This paragraph originally summarized a section of the film. I used a quote from Ebert to reflect the feeling of watching a documentary and characterize realism and "life itself" through his now meta-review of Hoop Dreams.
The process of the immersion experience used peer-integrated learning that helped me better shape my second writing project. From early in the project, when students were still choosing their immersion experience, I noticed many were either exploring a new contact zone or they were conducting introspections on their own communities or prospective careers. Because the subject of each project varied in scope and context, being exposed to many perspectives focused my decision. Communication among classmates was encouraged and inevitable because class time was regularly devoted to peer interactions. This helped realize my pace and style in comparison to other students. Peer communication was especially helpful with designing my online portfolio. Being able to see a variety of templates was influential in the design process and eventually in revising the physical portfolio.
After choosing my subject, the context of film in Indiana, I had already gathered some information that would be useful in tactile research. I had originally planned to interview the founder of the Indiana Film Critics Journal, but his schedule never opened up. However, he referenced me to Indiana University’s film libraries and the annual Heartland Film Festival. I was already aware of both of these, but in actually visiting Indiana University’s library I encountered the Black Film Center/Archive which was a great surprise in that it is a treasure of artifacts. In relating these two vast resources, I combined them with my observation of a high school film class and contextual information regarding film in Indiana. Meeting with the instructor forced me to clarify my purpose, concentrating the focus in later drafts.
Executing writing project two was a lesson in research retrieval and exploration. Searching for scholarly articles within a database was difficult when trying to find references with specificity. The actual problem I faced was whittling down the number of articles I found after a preliminary binge of research. This same issue occurred and was resolved during my third writing project.
I write an amount far greater than the word count, then cut and synthesize the existing information to establish ideas with more clarity and brevity. This is evident in my essay focused on argument strategies. Specifically, the content of my argument evoked ethos and logos that stem from ethical ramifications of a business’s decisions. In this rebuttal paragraph I both refuted a counterargument and attempted appealing to the reader’s pathos by emphasizing the negative human impact of the merger:
“I wish I could tell you that the hardest part is behind us,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in what could be described as a harsh, falsely prophetic statement to incoming Fox employees. “What lies ahead is the challenging work of uniting our businesses to create a dynamic, global entertainment company with the content, the platforms, and the reach to deliver industry-defining experiences … for generations to come.” The harshness is evident when the representative for Disney, “which has never done mass integration” attempts to describe an all pervasive, immortal media corporation (Villasanta, 2019). Disney has yet to disclose their own estimate of projected job loss despite telling investors that “through workforce reductions” they should expect “at least $2 billion in cost synergies by 2021 from operating efficiencies realized
From this student’s perspective, the course has been centered on understanding pedagogy and periodic metacognitive evaluations of the class’s work. The simple action of reflecting on my work made the prolonged writing projects much easier to construct. While intermittent reflection helped me with my writing, it created a better understanding of my preferred learning process. To be satisfied with my work, I write to an almost exhaustive extent, exploring areas that sometimes drift away from the topic of focus. However, I found useful information to be kept before cutting and revising. This process has evolved over the course of this semester and a more ideal writing style emerged during the third writing project.
The pace of the course’s work aligned with my learning style because the projects had a deliberate, exploratory writing process. Dissecting different styles of published works allowed for the comprehension and implementation of various writing techniques. Simple techniques such as ICE-ICE or “hamburger” paragraphs which provide a great template for solid uses of evidence. Examples of incorporating quotes as well as defining writer’s perspective and voice provided more complex insights into my own writing process.
I engage these techniques in this paragraph from my argumentative essay. I take license to characterize a quote as “cartoonishly oblivious”, which is not necessarily valid argumentative writing. I believed my reader would understand my characterization in itself is the point of the paragraph. Prefacing the damning quote with a supporting one completed the ideas I aimed to illustrate. Many aspects of this section could be contributed to lessons in W131, a notable one being the call to action concluding the paragraph.
The goals of the course, which I believe were saliently grasped, include effectively utilizing sources, participation, and meeting "the concerns of purpose and audience". One course objective I found overtly and personally applicable was to synthesize course teachings "in order to write with a strong sense of ownership". Beginning the semester by writing a film review, then studying local film culture ushered a natural focus to the pieces I wrote this semester. This focus culminated in another film-adjacent subject, wherein I felt ownership exactly because of the combination of the chosen subject matter and specifically argumentative techniques. In writing about a subject I genuinely care for, I believe the evolution of quality in my work is evident reading the three essays.
Testifying at a House Judiciary subcommittee hearing, FTC Chair Joseph Simons and Assistant Attorney General for the Antitrust Division Makan Delrahim give unsatisfactory answers to lawmaker's questions regarding the enforcement of antitrust laws. Judiciary chairman, Congressman Nadler, focused on the trend within recent years of relaxed enforcement from the Department of Justice. He posed questions directed at the Federal Trade Commission's lack of auditing vigor, to the point of putting swaths of American jobs at risk. To this effect, Nadler points out "agencies may not have adequate data to effectively police anti-competitive conduct or block mergers with anti-competitive effects in labor markets." In a cartoonishly oblivious response, FTC Chair Simons said, "I've never thought about it that way, I'm looking into that." Laborers and consumers who find this economic issue lacking authoritative zeal regarding labor security are urged to call their representatives to make their positions recognized.
I wish I could tell you that the hardest part is behind us,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said in what could be described as a harsh, falsely prophetic statement to incoming Fox employees. “What lies ahead is the challenging work of uniting our businesses to create a dynamic, global entertainment company with the content, the platforms, and the reach to deliver industry-defining experiences … for generations to come.” The harshness is evident when the representative for Disney, “which has never done mass integration” attempts to describe an all pervasive, immortal media corporation (Villasanta, 2019). Disney has yet to disclose their own estimate of projected job loss despite telling investors that “through workforce reductions” they should expect “at least $2 billion in cost synergies by 2021 from operating efficiencies realized through the combination of businesses” (James, 2019). To reach this $2 billion goal, Rich Greenfield, economic analyst with Bandwidth Technologies International Group, believes “Disney will need to cut well-over 5,000 jobs and the number could easily swell toward 10,000 given the high degree of overlap between the two companies around the world.” While the lives of upwards of 10,000 people will be upended in the coming months, Iger issued their on-boarding statement without humanizing a single entity other than his business.
Chaz is introduced while speaking to a nurse about Ebert’s transportation, worried about having to pass through the morgue a second time on their way out. This introduction both sets a tone of morbid levity and foreshadows as the idea of Ebert’s death becomes more absolute. Chaz recounts Roger’s final moments, wherein she learned he secretly signed a “do not resuscitate” order. Moments of great emotion, such as this, create intense empathy through exhibiting reality. Not only did Chaz loose her husband in this moment, but learned the secret, immediate reason for his passing. This viewer is conflicted in how to react in real life moments of high drama. In Ebert's review of Hoop Dreams, he clarified this feeling through his existential love of film, "A film like "Hoop Dreams" is what the movies are for. It takes us, shakes us, and make us think in new ways about the world around us. It gives us the impression of having touched life itself." As a devout Chicagoan, Ebert's love for Steve James' Hoop Dreams is a meaningful connection in a film portraying his last months. In fact, the titular phrase of both his memoir and this film are found in the review for James' 1995 documentary.