I've been doing some thinking about what newspaper I would like to write my editorial for, and I think I've narrowed it down to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Not only is it a popular publication that is read by a wide range of people, it also publishes a variety of articles. In addition, I am familiar with the layout since I read it often, which is a plus.
I was originally thinking about writing my editorial for an animal rights publication, but I now realize that wouldn't make much sense because my audience isn't necessarily aimed towards staunch animal rights supporters.
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
research for my genre
For my initiating action project on animal rights, my genre is going to be an editorial. I did a bit of research and found out some interesting information that I never knew about editorials.
Basically, editorials are a person's views on current events. They aren't news, but rather opinions based on facts. The main reason why an editorial writer writes one in the first place is to express his or her opinions on a fact or hotly debated issue. Generally, editorial writers have a lot of freedom in what they say in their writing, but their finished pieces have to be based on facts, not solely opinions. Also, editorial page editors under each newspaper have the final say before the editorials are published. This is to maintain the newspaper's credibility. Some issues most frequently chosen by editorial writers are concerning politics and elected officials in towns, the environment, and the economy. The editorials I found on the NY Times website weren't any longer or shorter than the average newspaper article.
I think the great thing about editorials is that their writers have freedom to express their opinions. They are not just spitting out facts like regular newspaper articles. Editorial writers are able to interject their ideas in with the facts, making for interesting and thought-provoking reading. Editorials enable their readers to consider both sides of an issue and either disagree or agree with the author.
I think editorials are a refreshing break from the very cut-and-dry world of regular newspaper reporting. They are a great thing to read if you are on the fence about a certain issue.
http://people.howstuffworks.com/newspaper3.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/opinion/
Basically, editorials are a person's views on current events. They aren't news, but rather opinions based on facts. The main reason why an editorial writer writes one in the first place is to express his or her opinions on a fact or hotly debated issue. Generally, editorial writers have a lot of freedom in what they say in their writing, but their finished pieces have to be based on facts, not solely opinions. Also, editorial page editors under each newspaper have the final say before the editorials are published. This is to maintain the newspaper's credibility. Some issues most frequently chosen by editorial writers are concerning politics and elected officials in towns, the environment, and the economy. The editorials I found on the NY Times website weren't any longer or shorter than the average newspaper article.
I think the great thing about editorials is that their writers have freedom to express their opinions. They are not just spitting out facts like regular newspaper articles. Editorial writers are able to interject their ideas in with the facts, making for interesting and thought-provoking reading. Editorials enable their readers to consider both sides of an issue and either disagree or agree with the author.
I think editorials are a refreshing break from the very cut-and-dry world of regular newspaper reporting. They are a great thing to read if you are on the fence about a certain issue.
http://people.howstuffworks.com/newspaper3.htm
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/opinion/
Thursday, November 6, 2008
initiating action
In the animal rights community, I feel that a major problem is how animal activists are viewed by the public. A lot of times the public hears the words "animal rights," they think about the extreme fringe of the animal welfare movement. They think of the PETA extremists and the Animal Liberation Front, people that blow up animal research labs, threaten animal researchers, and ask Ben and Jerry's to use human breast milk instead of cow's milk in their ice cream (see one of my old posts!). I believe that this turns the public away from believing in and learning about animal rights.
What I want to prove is that a lot of animal rights organizations are not the fringe extremists that people believe them to be. I feel that writing an editorial is the best way to accomplish this. I plan on using my past research with the an animal rights group here at VT (For the Sake of Animals) to strengthen my argument with their comments on how extreme they think PETA and the Animal Liberation Front really are. My audience will be primarily geared toward people who think that animal activists are extreme, crazy, unjustified, ridiculous, etc. I think writing an editorial will be the most effective way to prove my point by, in a sense, "exposing" the less extreme side of the animal welfare movement.
What many people don't realize is that the majority if animal rights supporters are not crazy and do not condone such violent behavior. It is my hope that people will be able to see this truth through my editorial.
What I want to prove is that a lot of animal rights organizations are not the fringe extremists that people believe them to be. I feel that writing an editorial is the best way to accomplish this. I plan on using my past research with the an animal rights group here at VT (For the Sake of Animals) to strengthen my argument with their comments on how extreme they think PETA and the Animal Liberation Front really are. My audience will be primarily geared toward people who think that animal activists are extreme, crazy, unjustified, ridiculous, etc. I think writing an editorial will be the most effective way to prove my point by, in a sense, "exposing" the less extreme side of the animal welfare movement.
What many people don't realize is that the majority if animal rights supporters are not crazy and do not condone such violent behavior. It is my hope that people will be able to see this truth through my editorial.
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Professor Scott's Feedback
I just got Professor Scott's feedback concerning my essay.
I really liked how the feedback started out positive and then transitioned into what I need to work on during the revision process. She positively commented on my introduction, which I really tried to make personal but also informative in this essay. Her positive feedback encouraged me to try that strategy again in future essays.
I thought the criticism was fair and constructive. In high school, my English teachers would write all over my essays, telling me that this and that was written poorly and needed to be changed. Their comments would leave me confused as to why those problem areas needed to be changed and how I could go about doing it. I thought it was very helpful that Professor Scott included suggestions to help me revise areas that could use some improvement. She also noted how those problem areas left her feeling as a reader, whether it be confused, deceived, etc. I'm glad I have her feedback and after re-reading those problem sections, I can now see why she feels that way. I'll definitely be using her revision suggestions.
In future writing, I'll be sure to try and avoid doing what I did wrong in this essay. I'll try to keep each body paragraph balanced and make an effort to keep including transitions that aren't too blunt but keep the writing organized. ( I was really conscious of that in this essay).
I really liked how the feedback started out positive and then transitioned into what I need to work on during the revision process. She positively commented on my introduction, which I really tried to make personal but also informative in this essay. Her positive feedback encouraged me to try that strategy again in future essays.
I thought the criticism was fair and constructive. In high school, my English teachers would write all over my essays, telling me that this and that was written poorly and needed to be changed. Their comments would leave me confused as to why those problem areas needed to be changed and how I could go about doing it. I thought it was very helpful that Professor Scott included suggestions to help me revise areas that could use some improvement. She also noted how those problem areas left her feeling as a reader, whether it be confused, deceived, etc. I'm glad I have her feedback and after re-reading those problem sections, I can now see why she feels that way. I'll definitely be using her revision suggestions.
In future writing, I'll be sure to try and avoid doing what I did wrong in this essay. I'll try to keep each body paragraph balanced and make an effort to keep including transitions that aren't too blunt but keep the writing organized. ( I was really conscious of that in this essay).
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Essay Feedback
This is just in response to the essay classmate feedback assignment (the letter). I'd just like to say how helpful I thought it was! (Thanks for your feedback Angie!)
Normally the only person that revises my essays is myself, and sometimes that isn't the most effective revision process. Sometimes I miss things, don't realize I'm making a confusing point, etc etc. Having another classmate review what I had written was a huge help, it gave me another perspective and new ideas to consider. It was also a confidence boost to see that another person thought I did a few things well. I also liked the letter format. The letter made everything seem more personal. I also think revising other student's work was a helpful exercise. It taught me what to look for in strong essays, and how important a clear purpose is throughout the essay. It also was great practice in giving constructive criticism.
I think my final essay is a lot better now after receiving the feedback than it would have been without doing this assignment.
Normally the only person that revises my essays is myself, and sometimes that isn't the most effective revision process. Sometimes I miss things, don't realize I'm making a confusing point, etc etc. Having another classmate review what I had written was a huge help, it gave me another perspective and new ideas to consider. It was also a confidence boost to see that another person thought I did a few things well. I also liked the letter format. The letter made everything seem more personal. I also think revising other student's work was a helpful exercise. It taught me what to look for in strong essays, and how important a clear purpose is throughout the essay. It also was great practice in giving constructive criticism.
I think my final essay is a lot better now after receiving the feedback than it would have been without doing this assignment.
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
What is a good essay?
Since there is no clear cut definition of what an essay truly is, I think strong essays can be many things. Depending on the subject, they can be personal or formal, long or short, detailed or concise, funny or serious, informative or persuasive.
I feel that a good essay isn't so much about how it's written, it's more about how much the author cares about the topic. I think that if the essayist is deeply interested in or cares about his/her topic, a good essay will be the end product of the writing process. An author that is not interested in writing about a certain subject will produce an essay that isn't thought provoking or interesting. I really feel that the author has to be invested in the essay topic. Essays written by interested authors will usually either make the reader think, paint a vivid picture, persuade the reader, or just keep the audience interested.
I think my essay needs a more personal feel. I feel like there are a lot of opportunities for creativity with the certain subject I'm writing this essay about (animal rights, more specifically, vegetarianism). Since I am a vegetarian myself, I can add personal experiences, or things I have observed since taking up this lifestyle. I want to keep my audience (meat-eaters) interested and compelled to read more. I think this can be accomplished by adding facts and certain figures from my research. I'm not necessarily trying to persuade all the meat-eaters of the world to never eat meat again (although that would be awesome), I'm just trying to inform them of a topic that I care about and am interested in.
I feel that a good essay isn't so much about how it's written, it's more about how much the author cares about the topic. I think that if the essayist is deeply interested in or cares about his/her topic, a good essay will be the end product of the writing process. An author that is not interested in writing about a certain subject will produce an essay that isn't thought provoking or interesting. I really feel that the author has to be invested in the essay topic. Essays written by interested authors will usually either make the reader think, paint a vivid picture, persuade the reader, or just keep the audience interested.
I think my essay needs a more personal feel. I feel like there are a lot of opportunities for creativity with the certain subject I'm writing this essay about (animal rights, more specifically, vegetarianism). Since I am a vegetarian myself, I can add personal experiences, or things I have observed since taking up this lifestyle. I want to keep my audience (meat-eaters) interested and compelled to read more. I think this can be accomplished by adding facts and certain figures from my research. I'm not necessarily trying to persuade all the meat-eaters of the world to never eat meat again (although that would be awesome), I'm just trying to inform them of a topic that I care about and am interested in.
Thursday, October 16, 2008
Feedback
I just finished reading Professor Scott's feedback to my research proposal. First off, I think the layout of the feedback was really helpful. Instead of just a big long paragraph explaining my strengths and weaknesses, the comments on the side of what I wrote in the proposal pinpointed specific problem areas and strengths. I think that will be a great and helpful tool when it comes time to revise.
I also thought Professor Scott gave a nice balance of comments concerning what I did well and what could use some improvement. When I finished reading her comments, I was satisfied with the job I did and confident that I could sufficiently revise some problem areas. If the comments were too positive, I wouldn't know what to revise for the final portfolio. However, if the comments were all negative, I would feel like I didn't do a good enough job and be tempted to just try and write the whole thing over.
I also thought her comments were accurate. She agreed with me as to what area I thought could use some more work (project methodology). I will be sure to give that section extra revising for the final portfolio.
I also thought Professor Scott gave a nice balance of comments concerning what I did well and what could use some improvement. When I finished reading her comments, I was satisfied with the job I did and confident that I could sufficiently revise some problem areas. If the comments were too positive, I wouldn't know what to revise for the final portfolio. However, if the comments were all negative, I would feel like I didn't do a good enough job and be tempted to just try and write the whole thing over.
I also thought her comments were accurate. She agreed with me as to what area I thought could use some more work (project methodology). I will be sure to give that section extra revising for the final portfolio.
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