Annotated Bibliography

Woods, Geraldine. Animal Experimentation and Testing: A Pron/Con Issue. Berkely

Heights, NJ: Enlsow Publishers, 1999.

This book was very helpful in writing my argument paper because it provided me with view from both the pro and the con side concerning the issue of animal testing. The author explained the circumstances of animal testing and the concerns of people from both sides. She also used quotes and facts from reputable sources and people who are directly involved in animal testing. My source is from 1999, even though it is from 9 years ago the topics in which it talks about are still very present. The fact that the books a little bit older also shows how long this debate has been going on.

CRAAP

I chose to evaluate the "DHMO in the Dairy Industry" website. This website was last modified on March 11, 2008, being that it is today's date it is up to date. All of the links on the page work. The message of this website is to all those who drink or eat dairy. The article talks about the lack of regulation of DHMO in dairy. The website explains what DHMO is and what it does and why it is posing a problem. The author of this article is Tom Way and there is an e-mail adress on the home page to contact him. The website is ended with .org, which is usually more credible than .com websites. The article on the page is very easy to read making it easy for the audience to understand. The author provides exact e-mails as he tries to make his point, making it seem reliable as we read exactly what was said in the e-mails. The author seems to feel strongly about the use of DHMO in dairy and that it is bad, which hints to a possible bias in the article which could affect the readers view on the dairy industry. The purpose of this article is to inform people on the use DHMO in dairy. The website appears to be a good website if you were researching the use of DHMO and that its fact are reliable but it may have a bias towards the dairy industry.

The Right to Fail

This article relates to my own experience in that I feel the everyday pressures of today’s world that tell me that inorder to be successful and socially acceptable I must “attain certain goals by a certain age.” It was not even a thought in my mind to ever take a year off after college, I always knew I was going straight to college as it was encouraged by my family and friends and that is what majority of students from my school were to do. I plan to graduate from college in four years. I have to get into nursing school on time in order to graduate in four years. This time limit that I feel I have puts a lot of pressure on me. The author brings up the question of, “what if we fail?” What if I do not get into nursing school on time and I am not able to graduate college in the usual four years? I have a fear of failing because not only will I feel as if I have let my family down and that I will not be socially accepted because I would not be graduating college in four years. The author also brings up the point of ,” boys and girls to find their proper road is often to take a hundred side trips, poking out in different directions, faltering, drawing back, and starting again.” At such a young age making important decisions such as a major for a career that I will have for the rest of my life took some time, and I still might just change my major and choose to take a different path. You learn through trial and error. Failing is not always a bad thing. Everyone has their own perception on what success is, and who are we to tell others what success is?

Logical Fallacy

I found an article from the NAU newspaper called, ”Gun Control Won't Fix School Shootings". In this article I found that the author used the fallacy appeal to force. In his article he tried to say that if the shooter in the Virginia Tech shooting had been screened for the prescription drugs he was taking for his psychological issues before he bought his guns then the incident may not have happened. The author also says, “We can stop inflicting mass trauma and pain on one another, but we first have to decide whether it makes more sense to cultivate compassion or hostility to reach a state of harmony.” The author uses an indirect sign of force when he says, “our world drives people to snap fairly regularly so we need to change something about the way we live and relate to each other.”

I found an article on the New York Time’s written by a woman of the name of Maureen Dowd. In her article she discusses Hillary and Obama in the upcoming election. In her article I found the logical fallacy of personal attack. Dowd attacks Hillary and her campaign when she says, “women have moved past that men-are-pigs, woe-is-me, sisters-must-stick-together, pantsuits-are-powerful era that Hillary’s campaign has lately revived with a vengeance.” The author seems to be mocking the message that Hillary is portraying in her campaign and her image. She makes it apparent that she does not agree with the way Hillary is going about her campaign and how she emphasizes the fact that she is a woman to try and get more votes. The logical fallacy of genetics is also present in this article. Dowd interviewed a man who is voting for Obama, the man said he is voting for Obama because, “My ancestors came to this country in chains; I’m voting for Barack.” This quote makes it apparent that the only reason this man is voting for Obama is because he is black, and because he is black he must be a good candidate for presidency . A woman was interviewed on why she is choosing to vote for Hillary and she said, “My sisters came here in chains and on their periods; I’m voting for Hillary.” This quote makes it apparent that this woman is choosing to vote for Hillary just because she is a woman and because she is a woman she must be well qualified for presidency.

Middle Schoolers Get the Pill

In reading “Middle-Schoolers Get the Pill”, two points of view would be, those who agree that children in middle school should be give birth control, and those who believe that they should not. A counter argument in this article could be those who believe that eleven year-olds should not be given birth control pills. One could use the point that children at that age should not be having sex because they are too young. Children are not even close to being done developing at the age of eleven, and many have not even began puberty. Children that age are not mature enough to handle the consequences that could come from having sex. If and eleven year old child were to get pregnant there is no way they would be able to support the baby themselves. They would have to put the baby up for adoption or have their parents take care of it. Having a baby at such a young age could cause some serious health risks for both the mother and the baby. The article states that the blame for young girls having sex is the Culture Wars, and the opposing views of teen sex between conservatives and liberals. One perspective I feel was overlooked is what influences young girls to have sex. Many girls are influenced by the media, friends, older siblings and their parents. What messages are being portrayed to young girls by the media and our society that makes them feel as though they have to have sex or that it is ok to have sex at such young ages?

Rhetorical Analysis

I wrote my rhetorical analysis on Conan O’Brien’s Stuyvesant commencement speech. In my essay I addressed how he used pathos and ethos but had a lack of logos. My thesis stated that Conan connected with his audience through his humor by using pathos and ethos but failed to use logos so it would not appear that he was preaching to his audience. The strongest point in my essay was my incorporation of the rhetorical appeal and the rhetorical triangle. My weakest point in my essay was my language use and syntax.

In my essay I struggled with using the same tense agreement. I had several instances when I talked in present tense while I talked in past tense in others. For example, “Conan knew that he had to give an entertainment speech.” I used the present tense when I used the word knew and I used the past tense when I used the word had.

Another topic that I struggled with was syntax. I had difficulty getting my ideas out and making sense of them. My wording in some sentences made it a little confusing. Some of the ways I phrase my sentences can make it puzzling for the reader. To fix this I believe for next time I need to say the sentences aloud to make sure that the do in fact make sense. Another thing that could help me with my syntax is making sure my sentences flow and they are well organized. I also need work on my word usage. Making sure I use appropriate verbs and adjectives will help fix this problem. Another thing I need to work on my use of comma’s, this also goes along with sentence flow. If I put my comma’s in the right places it will help my sentences flow better, making my point and my ideas stronger.

In writing my paper I wrote an outline first to help organize my thoughts. I went through the speech and highlighted each pathos, ethos and logos in their own colors, making it easier to write my outline. When it came to writing my actual paper having the outline help me develop the organization of the paper. I discussed each element on their own and provided supporting quotes of examples. I used multiple quotes for each point I made to really emphasize it. I also watched his speech on youtube to really get the effect of the way he said things and how it came across to the audience. Despite my attempt to use good organizational skills, they were not the best and could still use some improvement. For next time I may want to have two or three other people proof read my paper and ask them to watch especially for organization. I need to make sure that all my ideas flow and that I use good transitional sentences in between each paragraph.

In writing my next essay I am going to focus most of my attention on organizing my thoughts better. Then I will make sure that I use the right words, good grammar and good sentence structure. Doing both of these will help me to make my point of the paper stronger and it will help me develop better skills as a writer.

Freire and Plato

In Paulo Freire’s, The Banking Concept of Education, ideas of student-teacher relationships are presented. Issues of being oppressed as students are brought up. In some educational settings the teachers oppress their students in a narrative character. The teachers teach their students in a manner that the teacher is the supreme authority and knows everything. The student is inferior and knows nothing. The students are to receive the information, repeat it, memorize it and repeat the process, this is known as the banking concept of education. This method is argued to limit the students creativity, individuality and their ability to think critically. The humanist theory of teaching contradicts the theories of the banking concept of learning. Humanist encourages their students to think critically, preparing them to be able to handle real life situations. In the end it obvious that with the humanist theory a student will be an independent thinker and will be more prepared for the real world. The students who were oppressed through the banking concept of learning will not be well prepared for real life situations and will be unable to think on their own.

Plato’s, The Allegory of the Cave form the Repulic, Book VII, talks about ignorance and learning. Plato stresses the idea that one needs to open their eyes to the world and be aware of their surroundings. You can not go through life looking at things in the same light or one-sidedly. Plato’s message to the audience is that you cannot be successful going through life with your eyes closed, or being ignorant. Plato proposes an alternate role of the teacher than in Frefire’s essay. Plato says teachers are to be facilitators in learning. Students are already full of knowledge. The teachers help the students realize their full potential by facilitating them and asking them questions. Plato believes that we learn through reasoning.

Both authors propose that the best way to learn is through individual critical thinking. Students and teachers are a team, not opponents with one being better than the other. Students learn just as much from their teachers as teachers learn from their students. One is not properly educated if they are oppressed or go through life ignorantly. A student most learn to be open minded and think for themselves.