Poetry Project
Recitation Video
Reflection
Globalization Project
OP-ED |
CarntoonDescription For this project, first we learned about globalization; the spread of american culture, economy, ideals, and products around the world. To do this, we read an article called Jihad vs. McWorld. This gave us Baker's take on globalization and defined globalization.
Once we had a idea as to what globalization stood for, we chose specific aspects of globalization to research. I chose to learn about anti-globalization, a movement that is trying to improve on the modern form of globalization. As we began to delve into the research, first we found a page worths of vague, basic information on our subject. Then we used that page as a guide for finding more specific information. After that, we compiles all of this information into an OP-ED paper that could only be 750-1000 words long. The OP-ED also contained our personal opinions on our topics and attempted to sway readers to that opinion. At this time, we also used our opinions to create political cartoons. Mine portrayed globalization as a lumpy, queerly shaped globe with words on its edges representing the flaws in this system. An eraser of anti-globalization is removing these rough edges and a pencil of anti-globalization is drawing smoother edges where rough ones used to be. To the left and right side of the globe slogans representing my view on the globalization are written. |
Reflections
Learning ReflectionAfter this project, I now understand what globalization is. I know that it is the Americanization and unification of the world through both culture and global economy. I also understand that these are not necessarily good. While this globalization unifies and bring peace, it also can cause the extinction of languages and cultures. While it promotes the free market, it has also allowed for tax havens and has caused the race to the bottom, forcing poorer, less developed nations to deregulate in order to save their economies. While it promotes cooperation between nations, it does not need democracy and may throw it off in the coming years. I learned that globalization is neither good nor bad, but is something to be wary of just the same.
|
Cartoon ReflectionI have grown as a cartoonist throughout this project. My first draft was extremely rough. It was small, the shapes of continents didn’t match those in real life, most of the page was blank, there was no color, there were no slogans, and what little there was on the page was labeled very poorly. By the time I created my final draft my cartoon had improved tenfold. The background is no longer blank, but instead resembles notebook paper. The drawing itself is much larger and full of color. The drawing is labeled clearly. Instead of just removing blank edges, the eraser is also erasing words that represent the negative side of globalization, and the pencil writes new words that replace the old. My newest cartoon is full of symbolism, labels, slogans, and other cartooning tools. This project allowed me to gain cartooning skills and improve my drawing skills in general.
|
OP-ED ReflectionThis type writing differed from what I have written in the past. First, the paragraphs were much shorter than I normally write; most are only one to four sentences long. It was also more opinionated than much of what I have written in the past. In addition, this OP-ED put a minimum and maximum to the amount that we could write. This essay taught me that deletion of aspects such as excessive detail can help to improve a writing assignment. Furthermore, the project was different in that it allowed me to apply an extended metaphor to a topic that is not fictional, and taught me that I can do this in any future writing assignment. This project taught me more than what globalization is, it taught me skills that I can and will used in whatever I write in the future.
|
African Imperialism : Creative Historians
Reflection
For this project, each student chose an African country in which to set his or her short story. Once we had chosen our countries, we completed initial research on gender norms, population size, and a few other topics. When we had finished our initial research, we delved into deeper searches and found primary source documents and discovered more about our countries of choice. After this step, we found contacts from each of the countries we chose and conducted at least one interview. When these were finished, we used all of this information to write our first drafts and create our art works. When the first drafts were done, we did some peer critiques and used this feedback to improve the literary and artistic elements in our stories and art pieces. Finally, we completed our exhibition.
Of the literary elements that I used in my story, such as plot and historical integration, my strongest was my use of round characters. This strength is shown in the following quote: “Bakri Nijam was afraid. He could hear the shooting and yelling above him. He remembered the panic in his father’s eyes as he handed him the hollow reed and pushed him into the pond. “Hide,” he had yelled, “wait until the night when bullets stop flying then run, run far away.” With that his father had run off to defend his mother. Bakri was fifteen, nearly a man, but until his manhood ceremony, he still needed to obey his father, so he hid and waited. Eventually the sounds stopped, but he waited till nightfall like his father said, then he looked, then he saw the carnage.” This quote reveals some of my character’s back-story and shows another side of him; a side that is different from how he is now. It reveals some of his emotions and shows the reader why he is now a kidnapping member of the SSLA.
While I was strong in making my characters round, I struggled in other literary elements. My biggest weakness was my setting. During my research, I had trouble finding images and descriptions of South Sudan. To try and fix some of my weaker descriptions, I tried to add specific questions on this topic to my interview questions. However, my interviewee’s answers were to use Google. Because of this response, my descriptions were fairly vague.
I also revised my story draft. One major revision of my story was an alteration to my story’s ending. At first, one of my characters sacrificed himself for another when both had known each other for only a few days. After my revision, the character helped the other escape, but did not purposely sacrifice himself. Another revision I made, was in the beginning of my story. At first, I had my main character attend a very poor school when he could have easily afforded another, better school. After the revision, he still attended this school, but I provided a reason for his attending this school. Both of these changes make the story more realistic.
Lastly, I created a challenge extension for this project. For the challenge, I incorporated a primary source document, added an antagonist, and used many forms of figurative language. I chose these extensions, because I feel like my writing is at a level where the project would not be a challenge without the extension. I also felt that my story would be stronger if I incorporated these extensions as shown in the following quote: “He went on to read a passage from it, ‘We took up arms because we realized that our nation had groomed a monster that would swallow generation after generation in terms of bad leadership and extreme levels of corruption which poisons our values and tradition, that rejects thefts in our midst.’” This piece of the extension makes my story stronger, because it provides real, physical evidence for my antagonist’s views in the form of a document actually written by him and others in his organization.
Of the literary elements that I used in my story, such as plot and historical integration, my strongest was my use of round characters. This strength is shown in the following quote: “Bakri Nijam was afraid. He could hear the shooting and yelling above him. He remembered the panic in his father’s eyes as he handed him the hollow reed and pushed him into the pond. “Hide,” he had yelled, “wait until the night when bullets stop flying then run, run far away.” With that his father had run off to defend his mother. Bakri was fifteen, nearly a man, but until his manhood ceremony, he still needed to obey his father, so he hid and waited. Eventually the sounds stopped, but he waited till nightfall like his father said, then he looked, then he saw the carnage.” This quote reveals some of my character’s back-story and shows another side of him; a side that is different from how he is now. It reveals some of his emotions and shows the reader why he is now a kidnapping member of the SSLA.
While I was strong in making my characters round, I struggled in other literary elements. My biggest weakness was my setting. During my research, I had trouble finding images and descriptions of South Sudan. To try and fix some of my weaker descriptions, I tried to add specific questions on this topic to my interview questions. However, my interviewee’s answers were to use Google. Because of this response, my descriptions were fairly vague.
I also revised my story draft. One major revision of my story was an alteration to my story’s ending. At first, one of my characters sacrificed himself for another when both had known each other for only a few days. After my revision, the character helped the other escape, but did not purposely sacrifice himself. Another revision I made, was in the beginning of my story. At first, I had my main character attend a very poor school when he could have easily afforded another, better school. After the revision, he still attended this school, but I provided a reason for his attending this school. Both of these changes make the story more realistic.
Lastly, I created a challenge extension for this project. For the challenge, I incorporated a primary source document, added an antagonist, and used many forms of figurative language. I chose these extensions, because I feel like my writing is at a level where the project would not be a challenge without the extension. I also felt that my story would be stronger if I incorporated these extensions as shown in the following quote: “He went on to read a passage from it, ‘We took up arms because we realized that our nation had groomed a monster that would swallow generation after generation in terms of bad leadership and extreme levels of corruption which poisons our values and tradition, that rejects thefts in our midst.’” This piece of the extension makes my story stronger, because it provides real, physical evidence for my antagonist’s views in the form of a document actually written by him and others in his organization.