Throughout this course I have had to do a lot writing than I ever have and with that I have had to learn how to properly analyze documents. I had never heard the terms ethos, pathos or logos before this course and now it\u2019s something I have looked for in everything I read analytically. I think my rhetorical analysis was the paper I most enjoyed in this course because I got to put everything together using a source that was questionable at best. Using what I learned in this course I think I learned the most about developing rhetorical knowledge and developing critical thinking, reading and information literacy skills. Prior to this course, I would take a few seconds to think about what objective this paper was trying to get across and then just go on reading.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The learning objective I think I learned the most about was developing rhetorical knowledge. In my rhetorical analysis paper, did instantly key off of the website\u2019s historical leanings and then the author\u2019s personal belief\u2019s which I believed were influencing how he wrote. \u201cHe is writing from the Daily Caller which has historically been a more right leaning website and he is likely coming writing to that angle\u201d (Fischler, 1) In papers before this course, I would have just pulled a source and if it backed up what point I was trying to make it would work. Furthermore, when looking for sources I learned from this course about understanding how different biases came through depending on the media. In addition to looking at writing through a different lens, I paid much more attention to media on T.V. I found that on television the message was much more amplified compared to in print. I don\u2019t know if it was for ratings purposes or because we seem to be caught in this endless news cycle, but everyone had a take that was more outlandish than the last. I found some articles on COVID which I wrote my rhetorical analysis paper on would have a softer take on the same topic compared to television.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Another part of this course that I think I improved on was using the school library to find primary and secondary sources. Prior to this class, I would grab whatever source I could find that supported my point (that seems to be a common theme!). However, after this course I pay much more attention to the peer-reviewed articles \/ journals and primary sources. The article I used my rhetorical analysis was not a primary source. \u201cIn this analysis I recognize the author is summarizing a larger article and does not need to establish his COVID bona fides since he is not making any time of analytical statements\u201d (Fischler,). I recognized that the author never established his credibility and was just summarizing an article from a national level press piece and leaving out key information. In analyzing his writing, I also took strategies learned in this course about trying to assess the authors ethos, pathos and logos when it comes to a larger analysis but really focused on the authors logos. \u201cLogos in this article is a little difficult to dissect. The author does mention the fact that Denmark has a vaccination rate of over 80% for everyone 12 and over and that is the reason behind the relaxation. I believe the author could have made a stronger case for vaccinations being the driving force behind the easing of restrictions\u201d (Fischler, 2)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This course has taught me a lot about taking my time and dissecting written pieces analytically. I never took the time to think about sources prior to this course but it something that I will carry with me going forward in just about every class I will take in the future. I think being able to think critically about articles or pieces you are using for anything in life is a huge skill to have and this class has laid the groundwork for me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wilmerding, Harry (2021, September 10) Denmark Lifts All COVID-19 Restrictions, Doesn\u2019t Consider Virus \u2018A Socially Critical Disease\u2019. <\/em>The Daily Caller. https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/09\/10\/denmark-lifts-covid-19-restrictions\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Throughout this course I have had to do a lot writing than I ever have and with that I have had to learn how to properly analyze documents. I had never heard the terms ethos, pathos or logos before this course and now it\u2019s something I have looked for in everything I read analytically. I… <\/p>\n