Did we like it? In
the simplest terms, was it fun to read? There’s no wrong answer…
[WHY?—write on board
PROS & CONS, start lists
Some of these we will
be discussing, and some of these it will be great to discuss if we get the
time.
I’m going to
use___[pick from lists]__ as a jumping off point to start my Rhetorical
Triangle.
DRAW TRIANGLE ON
BOARD, etc.
Now, where do you
think _______ would go?
Right, of
course—anything else?
Great!
We’ll return to
AUTHOR;
Let’s move to
AUDIENCE— [get examples]
SUBJECT—— [get
examples]
PURPOSE—— [get
examples]
CONTEXT—— [get
examples]
What did this essay
do to you? What was it trying to do?
Why do you think it
was trying to do that?
Was it effective? –-I
think it was, but I also might be its prime audience…
(Was there evidence
to back it up?)
[What about this
essay makes it seem as if Washburn has done extensive research to back up her
opinions?]
I’m wondering,
though, does anyone feel that what we have here is more than just a dry
recitation of facts?
Can I get a couple of
examples?
RIGHT, and it starts
at the very beginning—that “falling short” seems a tad ominous, but referring
to 1980 (the year Reagan came to power) as a “foul wind”? That’s throwing down
the gauntlet.
But there are all
these facts to back up her arguments!
No such thing as
truth, as we’ll find out—next week we’ll looking at how knowledge can be quite
subjective
Especially when you
cherrypick your facts to suit your needs—
University Inc. is a
very direct example of The Politics of
Research [WRITE ON BOARD]
We know it’s
left-wing, with an anti-corporate-control message—but it is very honest. University
Inc. lets you know where it stands from the beginning.
But from this can you
imagine other examples?
Where research is
used to back up a claim—a claim that isn’t non-partisan—
[How can anyone
protest against “Pfizer funds CCNY’s new cancer research center”?]
EXAMPLES
Right Wing?
Left Wing?
Environmental? “Facts
show the Keystone pipeline helps the moose population” or not.
And oil companies are
paying top dollar setting up front organizations that say global climate change
is hoo-hah, and everyone should get one-hundred chest X-rays a year.
But you’ve also got
“according to the American Center for Economic Growth”—sounds harmless, right?
Or “a new study by
the Rust Corporation indicates…”
The National Nation Institute—and
so on…
Some food for
thought—
Since we are looking
at the language of persuasion, I’d like to take a moment to consider the names
of some of these think-tanks and institutes filled with experts—
There’s the Heritage
Institute (right)
There’s the RAND Corporation
(middle; corporate; libertarian)
Center for American
Progress (left-wing)
All bland, seemingly
innocuous—but also serious, perhaps even malevolent. There’s a science to
naming your organization—you can’t be too obvious, but there are hints…But
sounding professional is essential!
Too bad it’s not
SHIELD and HYDRA…
That said, why is it
good to be able to recognize where an article is coming from?
[to keep an eye out
for liars]
Now help me out
here—this is something I’ve always wondered: we all know they’re lying when we
hear the baloney on the news, but we still buy it anyway—or do we?
The politics of
research does not help get to some form of objective truth
Next week, we will be
going more in-depth into the Politics of Research—and we’ll see that often it’s
used to help someone see what they want to see.
January 2015 Movies
Too busy to do more than simply supply a list, maybe a
few words here and there…
BTW, this is the LAST
batch of “fun” I’m having until—at least—the Summer. Sigh…
I Am Santa Claus
(2014; Tommy Avallone) Doc on dudes who want to be Santa Claus—and are at
malls, etc.
Guardians of the
Galaxy (2014; James Gunn) Fun stuff.
La Piel Que Habito
(The Skin I Live In) (2011; Pedro Almodovar) Great weird, transgressive horror/sex—Almodovar does Cronenberg, and creates something akin to Under the Skin.
The Devil Queen
(1974; Antonio Carlos da Fontoura) Nifty crime melodrama, as the very gay crime
boss in Brazil deals with traitors in his reefer business.
The Killing of
America (1982; Sheldon Renan, with Leonard Schrader) Superb mondo-flick, a
left-wing shockumentary about the insanity of violence in the U.S.
Bad Teacher (2011;
Jake Kasdan) Funny stuff that gets being a teacher much better than those more
“well meaning” flicks.
The Devil &
Daniel Webster (1941; William Dieterle) Classic!
Underworld (1927;
Josef von Sternberg) Interesting; von S’s first flick—hardly perfect, but innnnnteresting.
Hiroshima Mon Amour
(1959; Alain Resnais; wriiten by Maguerite Duras) WOW!
Kaidan Yuki Jorou
(Ghost Story of the Snow Woman) (1969; Tokuzo Tanaka) About 10 minutes of
awesome supernatural weirdness trapped in a medieval feudal-Japan soap opera.
Operation Crossbow
(1965; Michael Anderson) Damn good, quite bleak, WWII spy mission stuff. I’m a
big George Peppard fan, too.
Filth (2013; written
& directed by Jon S. Baird, based on the novel by Irvine Welsh) Good
adaptation, that loses a lot of Welsh’s excessive over-characterization.
The Cannibals (I
cannibali) (1969; Liliana Cavani) Superb, neo-sci-fi adaptation of Antigone,
where the fascist police state refuses to let the dead rebels in the streets be
buried.
School Daze (1988;
Spike Lee) Much better than I rememembered; very entertaining.
As Above, So Below
(2014; John Erick Dowdle) Wow, this SCARED me! Alchemist in Paris catacombs
finds HELL!
Patton Oswalt: Tragedy
Plus Comedy Equals Time (2014; Bobcat Goldthwaite) Patton’s always funny.
Tinker Tailor Soldier
Spy (2011; Tomas Alfredson) Seen before, kind of recently, but Netflix had
it—and I really enjoyed this movie.
.jpg)
The Lost One (1951;
Peter Lorre) Lorre’s sole directorial effort is considered a “lost” film—but
perhaps deservedly so. To call his direction stiff is too nice, but you get the
idea.
The Dance of Reality
(2013; Alejandro Jodorowsky) Very autobiographical, very weird—often moving,
often too damn slow. Jodorowsky always delivers something unique.
.jpg)
The Day the Earth
Caught Fire (1961; Val Guest) Fascinating sci-fi/disaster film told from the
perspective of some London reporters.
Full Metal Jacket
(1987; Stanley Kubrick) The classic.
Tristana (1970; Luis
Bunuel) Old lecher’s plans for hot niece backfire.
The Conspiracy (2012;
Christopher MacBride) Okay melodrama, doesn’t go far enough…but does stick with you...
Fear and Loathing in
Las Vegas (1998; Terry Gilliam) Much better the second time around. Love the
visuals.
Tender Prey (2014;
H.A. Campbell & Jon Dieringer; short) deconstruction of horror film as
secret text of child molestation in Hollywood
The Shoes of the
Fisherman (1968; Michael Anderson) Interesting quasi-sci-fi—what if a Russian
became Pope? And then had to intervene to prevent atomic war?
The Comedians (1967;
Peter Glenville; script by Graham Greene, based on his novel) The nightmare
that was Haiti under Papa Doc. Often flat, but when it works it’s utterly
fascinating.
Super (2010; James
Gunn) Hilarious, sick humor look at superheroes. Probably one of the best
superhero movies ever made.
Get the Gringo (2012;
Adrian Grunberg) The mutant love child of Don Siegel and Donald Westlake.
BOOKS READ IN JANUARY
Fiendish Schemes by K.W. Jeter (2013) Very fun
sequel to Jeter’s Infernal Devices.
Elric of Melniboné by Michael Moorcock (1972)
Gettin’ my fantasy on!
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton (1969) A
great pageturner, but like all of Crichton’s books, basically mediocre—however,
the source for a great film.
“The Boy Who Followed
Lovecraft” by Marc Laidlaw (2011) (story)
Silver Screen Fiend: Learning
About Life From an Addiction to Film by Patton Oswalt (2015)
The Bedford Guide for Writing
Tutors: Fifth Edition by Leigh Ryan & Lisa Zimmerelli (2002; 2006; 2010)
The Wrenchies by Farel Dalrymple (2014)
Turing & Burroughs: A Beatnik
SF Novel by Rudy Rucker
(2012)
“The Whisperer in
Darkness” by H.P. Lovecraft (1931) (story)
No comments:
Post a Comment