TOW #13 - IRB: The Glass Castle

The Glass Caste, by Jeannette Walls, has a very unique introduction and start to the novel. In a needy family, Walls often travels around the country just to find herself moving away again. There is really no point in which she officially settles somewhere. Walls’ parents, people very seemingly unfit for the parental job, locate to the desert for the beginning of Jeannette’s childhood. She becomes fascinated by nature. After relocating to West Virginia, attempting to leave growing debt and alcoholism, the children realize their need to leave.

            In an attempt to share her unique story, Jeannette Walls illustrates the complications of families in America. Her story, although far outside the norm, is only one of many similar unwritten stories of people whom could not leave their hard lives. Walls expresses a want to free herself from her past, giving the novel an occasion. She wants to run away from the lies and hiding.

            Although the situation Jeannette is in is very troublesome and difficult, she constantly uses humor and diction to appeal to her purpose. Humor is used throughout the book to create an inspirational tone. Even when the worst parts of her childhood were being explained, the humor put a hopeful tone in the book and foreshadowed the fact that Walls was able to escape the constraints of her past. Diction is also used to appeal to the purpose. Diction is used to describe the uniqueness of her childhood. Each time the family relocated, the diction allowed the reader to understand the emotions and the thoughts of the author.

            Jeannette Walls wants to inform her audience about her past in an attempt to teach them that no matter what, it is never too late to liberate yourself from your past. She teaches the audience that keeping struggles and lies inside make for inevitable disaster. I believe she does this in an effective way and allows the audience to learn a lesson from a unique perspective.

TOW #12 - article: "You Have No Idea What Really Happened"

When something significant happens in your life, it is usually embedded in your mind for a long period of time. The memory of this event makes the certain day clearer than any other average day. Although, when put to the test, your memory of that day is not as sharp as you would confidently think. In the article “You Have No Idea What Happened” by Maria Konnikova, the way memory works is questioned and explained.

            There are many unsolved conclusions to how memory works. Ulric Neisser, a cognitive psychologist, put his students to the test. A few days after the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger, Neisser asked his students to take a short quiz recalling where they were and what they were doing when they heard about the news of the explosion. Two years later, the same student were asked the same questions in hopes of drawing the same conclusions. Although their confidence of the accuracy of their answers were at an all-time-high, their answers were almost all incorrect. In an effort to inform and prove that our memories are not as sharp as we perceive them to be, Konnikova draws in the psychologically interested public to show them their wrong thinking.

            As a majorly informative piece, Konnikova presents her evidence through different research projects and data, such as neuroscientist Lila Davachi’s study using pictures of animals and tools being paired with a series of shocks. This information found that once an emotional event occurred as you saw an image, such as being shocked as you saw an animal, your memory of animals you have previously seen would be enhanced. This informed Konnikovas audience that memory is strengthened at periods of more emotion.

            Although people tend to feel confident when recalling their memories of an important event, our thoughts get jumbled and after time goes by, our recollection displays an incorrect view of what happened. So, Konnikova asks her audience, what really did happen?

TOW #11 - article: Second Inaugural Address of Abraham Lincoln

           Compared to first, Lincoln’s Second Inaugural Address was shorter and simpler to the first. Since Lincoln had already completed his first term in office during the complete duration of the Civil War, his Second Inaugural Address was about reuniting the United States. Lincoln viewed the war as a something the North and the South should get past and create union and peace.

            This address has a very large and general audience, being that he is targeting both the North and South regions of the United States. As an attempt to open the eyes of the general public of America, Lincoln aimed to teach the United States to “strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.”. This address, being during the time of the pending conclusion of the Civil War, was aimed towards reparations rather than mistakes of the past.

            A strong strive for unity can be taken out of this speech. The purpose, being to inform the opposing sides of the North and South about the importance of unity and peace, is supported through repetition and diction. Lincoln mentions God many different times throughout the address. By bringing in a spiritual aspect, Lincoln connects the two sides and provides something both the North and the South can claim. Finding things in common with the opposing forces help bring them together. Lincoln’s diction also plays a role in achieving his purpose. He uses words with positive connotations such as “bind up”, “achieve”, “strengthen” and more. These words make the address seem hopeful.

            As the president, it is one’s duty to unify a nation and but the citizens of America before all else. Lincoln’s purpose in addressing his people was to provide means to unify and to bring two sides together to make peace. I think that his purpose was achieved because Lincoln went straight to the point of his address and kept his thoughts concise and upfront. 

TOW #10 - visual: Mural in Philadelphia

           There are many different ways to express opinions. Whether that be art or writing, each unique way gets a message across to an audience. A common way to express these messages in the city of Philadelphia is through the art of murals. Pieces of influential art are found on walls of buildings everywhere. Some artist use these murals to try and make a change, yet some artists only paint for their own satisfaction. This particular painting illustrates the image of a young African American boy standing in the middle of a city with his arms reaching up to create a fully grown tree. The roots of the tree run down his arms, resembling his veins.

            Being that this mural was painted on the side of a large building within the city of Philadelphia, the audience is the general public of the city. The message that this mural promotes is one that the artist wants to get across to a wide range of people. The occasion of the art can be assumed, that for a while African Americans have been oppressed. This painting shows that everyone is equal and everyone has potential to create opportunities for themselves.

            The artist uses various rhetorical devices such as personification and contrast. The roots of the tree are being personified as the veins of the child holding the tree in his hands. This personification promotes the message that anyone can open doors for themselves and that their life has worth. The contrast being utilized is found in the colors of the mural. Surrounding the boy in the center, there is a yellow outlining. This makes a contrast between the boy and the background of the mural. The yellow outline makes the boy stand out and leads your eyes to follow the mural up to the tree, or the message within the mural.

            The purpose, that every child has worth and potential, is very clearly and artistically conveyed. I was immediately able to see what the author wanted to show and take away a very important message.

IRB Intro Post #2

For the second marking period, I am choosing to read the book The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls. This non-fiction memoir is about Jeannette's unique childhood. Growing up with parents who had very different ideals, Jeannette and her three siblings were raised as nomads who moved from town to town. Sometimes, the family would camp in deserts and mountains. Rex, the father of the family, was an intelligent man but was not usually sober. Rose, the mother, was a creative artist whose priorities were a little unorganized. This book is about Jeannette's journey through her interesting childhood and how she managed to escape her roots. I chose to read this book because I think that there will be many surprised involved in reading it. I think that I will be shocked at the nature of Jeannette's parents. I hope to gain a new perspective on how some people live and what it is like to grow up in such a unique way.

TOW #9 - article: "In these classrooms, fidgeting, moving around and bouncing are encouraged"

The article “In these classrooms, fidgeting, moving around and bouncing are encouraged”, by The Dallas Morning News, talks about the new generation of elementary age kids and their unique energy levels. The article describes how the switch from regular chairs to bouncy balls, wobble chairs, pillows and mats has effected the performance of the children. The author is able to present evidence that is very credible because most of the information provided is from the teachers of the experimental classrooms themselves.

            Within the article, the kid’s behavior is analyzed. Although the article does admit that studies have not yet shown that this specific technique of teaching effects elementary school kid’s behavior, the teachers still offer their perspective on how they think the classroom has changed. Many teachers described seeing a lot of difference in the classroom. Kids began to take out their energy by simply wobbling back and forth on their chair. This was a non-disruptive way to allow the child to get their energy out. This information prompted other teachers to transform their classrooms as well, for the better of their students and each of their performances. The occasion of the text would be the energy of kids of this generation. Because of the amount of growing technology, more and more students are being diagnosed with ADHD. These chairs give disabled students a better chance of learning in a more comfortable setting.

            The author uses rhetorical devices such as exemplification and diction to make her purpose, that this specific transformation of the classroom is more fit for elementary school children, clear. Exemplification is utilized through the use of quotations from teacher whom have transformed their own classrooms. These quotes directly add fuel to the authors purpose. The diction the author uses, such as the words and phrases “helpful”, “successful”, “progressive” and “how students work best”, make the purpose stand out as well.

            I believe the author of this article was very successful in giving their purpose. Personally, I did not know much about this topic. The author thoroughly convinced me that the new transformations of the classroom benefitted students.

TOW #8 - IRB: "Tuesdays with Morrie"

            Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom is a novel about the importance of relationships in life. Mitch Albom was a student at Brandeis University that created a blossoming connection with his professor, Morrie Shwartz. After graduation, years passed by and the relationship eventually fell apart and each person’s lives continued to go in their individual directions. During the flipping of channels, Albom had a spontaneous reconnection with his long lost professor and committed to visiting him each Tuesday to discuss how to make Mitch’s life flourish to carve a new, happier path.

            Albom reaches out to an audience of the general public with life challenges in the field of relationships. Albom focuses on the details in the lessons he learned from Shwartz, making the book very oriented around the lessons he learned each Tuesday. This draws in a particular audience who is looking to learn about fixing relationships and mending their path in life. By specifically detailing the lesson portion of the novel, Albom is able to guide the audience through an informational lesson on life while characterizing not only himself but Morrie Shwartz.

            Mitch Albom keeps a constant purpose throughout his book. He writes to express Morrie’s outlook on life and what should be considered important in an individual’s journey. This purpose is achieved by using rhetorical devices such as metaphors and anecdotes. By referring to flashbacks often in the book, Albom helps the audience understand why each life lesson is relevant in each Mitch’s and Morrie’s life. Metaphors are also heavily used to show how even when at the end of the book, when Morrie passed away, his lessons still greatly impacted his life and where it would go. The metaphors helped show the audience what impact Morrie’s wisdom had on his life.

            The purpose is communicated very successfully. By the end of the book, the audience had a really clear understanding on the impact Morrie’s lessons had on Mitch’s life, even after he had passed away.