Public Rhetoric and Practical Communication Your Rhetorical Position: College Seniors in the Spotlight Lecture 1: CAT 125 Elizabeth Losh

The CAT 125 Syllabus

A Crash Course in Advanced Writing 8 lectures in our two-hour Tuesday timeslot A standard 75 minute lecture Followed by a 20 minute forum with Q&A 1 oral presentation showcase in the last lecture slot 4 bonus optional workshops on using technology in the Digital Playroom Assignments are due in lecture every week, but most of the discussion about drafting and revision will take place in the discussion sections that will take place twice a week.

Lecture One Your Rhetorical Position How can you clarify your own rhetorical position? How can you take advantage of the possibilities of that position and even be creative about its limitations? How does an institution shape your identity?

Lecture Two Getting Feedback Where are unwritten rules written? How do you learn to take criticism from others? How do you develop writing habits that will work for years to come?

Lecture Three Your Public Reputation What are the assets and liabilities of your current online presence? How can you change how others perceive you? How do you balance finding community with being professional?

Lecture Four Appealing to Audiences What has been your attitude about seeking attention in the past? Should you make changes? Who are your current audiences? Who will be your audiences in the future? How can you do “narrowcasting” effectively? How can you become a better audience member?

Lecture Five Composing with a Purpose How can you do things with writing? Where would you want to effect change? Who can you enlist to help you? Who else might have common goals? How do you match medium and purpose?

Lecture Six Public Speaking What personal characteristics help or hinder you in a public speaking situation? Are you a good listener? How can you change your style of oral delivery to sound more organized but less rehearsed? How can experience being an undergraduate researcher help?

Lecture Seven Graphic Design What are the strengths and weaknesses of your individual “eye” for design? How can you choose the right aesthetic to match your style? How can you educate yourself to become more visually literate?

Lecture Eight Claiming Expertise How do you become an author? Why might your expertise be of interest to others? How do you balance testimony and evidence?

Practical Communication Written Personal Statement Ignite-Style Public Speaking Presentation Online Portfolio or Website

The CAT 125 TAs Ivana Guarrasi James Perez Barbara Ann BushVabianna Santos Patrick HenniganKelli MooreAshley SmithGibran Guido

The Sixth College Writing Studio

Who Will You Be in Two Years? A graduate student? A corporate intern? A school teacher? A medical school student? A fledgling engineer? A nursing school student? A media producer? An artist or musician? A human rights activist?

You Might Already Have Had Multiple Careers “As a graduate student, I've had to compile, compose, and organize content for a web design project (one of which was focused on web typography, but we were expected to write and present our content for our intended audiences as well as part of the assignment), class or project blogs, project wikis, and other collaborative platforms (usually writing with other students). I'm also expected to be able to communicate with students and professors through e- mail and instant messaging. When I was interning at a game company, though, I communicated both within the office and with the home office in Europe through and instant messaging on official (and less official) matters. There were other internal web-based resources, but since I was an intern, I only read them.”

Organizing Authorship

You Might Already Need Multiple Literacies by Then “Multi-modal literacy is increasingly valued in the workplace, and as a teacher, my students are encouraged to create meaning away from the traditional paper-and-pen methods. Technical instruction in the shooting and editing of video would be helpful”

“I think some basic training about professionalism in s would be useful. Many people I've worked with, especially much older people, treat s like a game, with tons of colored fonts, fancy signatures, colloquial writing in formal situations, etc.” Sometimes Less is More: Learning about Editing and Restraint

Grabbing the Spotlight What to Do and What Not to Do

Capitalizing on Attention Once You Have It “I've seen enough atrocious Powerpoint presentations in my life to consider this, and the ability to present effectively with slides, to be an extremely useful skill; if people can't or don't pay attention to what you're saying, you might as well not being saying it at all for all of the repeating you'll have to do after when people ask for clarification.”

Decorum Matters: Learning about Rhetoric “Nowadays it is common practice for employers to check social network pages. I'd advise students to keep their craziness to a minimum if they want to keep their job. One of my coworkers checked her Myspace page all the time, and once she forgot to close the browser and left it open. Her supervisor walked by and saw her personal photo gallery of all her tattoos. It was not a happy experience for her.”

Rhetoric, That’s Bad, Right? “political games and ‘who’s up’, ‘who’s down’ rhetoric” “the rhetoric emanating from Tehran” “underscored the need for actions that match the rhetoric”

Aristotle’s Means of Persuasion Ethos – a speaker’s authority, credibility, and perceived expertise Logos – a speaker’s logic, organization, and mastery of language Pathos – a speaker’s ability to move an audience emotionally

Kenneth Burke’s Pentad Act – What Agent – Who Agency – How Purpose – Why Scene – Where and When

Audience Expectations for a Personal Statement Writing ability Major areas of interest Research and/or work experience Educational background Immediate and long-term goals Reasons for deciding to pursue a particular field Maturity Motivation and commitment Realism of expectations Personal uniqueness – what you would add to the diversity of the company workforce or to the entering class

Alexsay Vayner (Yale Senior) Impossible is Nothing

Michael Cera Impossible is the Opposite of Possible

Vayner’s Digital Rhetoric Presents the wrong genre Addresses his audience inappropriately Invites challenges to his credibility from Internet spoilers because of his video editing techniques Demonstrates obliviousness to the fact that his social networks have been compromised

How Do Vayner’s Claims Relate to His Evidence?

James Kotecki (Georgetown Senior) Emergency Cheese

Kotecki’s Digital Rhetoric Demonstrates an awareness of the conventions of specific genres in computer- mediated communication Addresses multiple audiences expertly and simultaneously Enhances his credibility by using the rhetorical scene to his advantage Capitalizes on social network sites and on online video response structures

Which One Do You Want to Be? James Kotecki or Alexsay Vayner? How does your identity depend upon your institution? Upon Sixth College?