e-portfolio introduction

As far back as I can remember I have wanted to be a lawyer, and the skills I gained this semester in LA101H will be invaluable in my pursuit of this dream.

Throughout the course of the semester, I have mastered uses of rhetoric that will be vital to my success in the future. Whether I need to convey my own personal beliefs, contextually analyze an advertisement, or convince or motivate an audience I will be ready. Further than new abilities with rhetoric, my public speaking skills have improved dramatically. I still have a racing heart as I approach the podium, but nerves of steel are definitely coming my way.

More importantly, I have gained the knowledge of how to use my words effectively in situations outside of academia. Through weekly informal blog posts, I have honed the skills of writing a piece that is intended to entertain an audience of my peers, while also being effective rhetoric. This informal writing skill is one that I had not been able to use effectively before taking this class when I was stuck in the world of “LOL”s and “BRB”s. In my oral rhetoric skills, impromptu “Stand and Delivers” were conducted regularly and helped me be able to speak informally while also sounding passionate and knowledgeable. The random and instantaneous speaking allowed me to become more comfortable with speaking in front of my class, but at the same time sound like a good public speaker.

A hefty workload full of readings, essays, and speeches throughout the semester has definitely paid off. I am a more engaged citizen who is able to appreciate rhetoric in my everyday life and speak about it to any audience at any time. I know that the work that I did in LA101H will help me succeed in the future and become the lawyer I want to be. 

 

View My E-Portfolio 

Explaining the Unexplainable

I grew up as the third of four children in a middle class family in State College, Pennsylvania. Sounds pretty normal right? But everything changes when you factor in the fourth child of the Roberts clan: Tanya.

My little sister Tanya was diagnosed with Down Syndrome when she was born (since at the time it was impossible to test fetuses for the mental disorder). I was only two years old when she was born, so of course I cannot remember my life without Tanya so I don't know if it was any different. My family is incredibly close due to Tanya's presence. I hear my friends talk about fights they have with their siblings and it's impossible for me to fathom not getting along with your siblings, because I always had to. Tanya has always been an incredible unifying factor for my family and of course I don't resent her disability in anyway.

But I have gotten questioned by my friends multiple times asking me just that: if I wished that Tanya was typical or if I wish she wasn't there at all. How am I supposed to answer this? She is my sister and I love her for who she is. Do I wish for her that she had the same opportunities? Of course I do. But never have I wished for my own personal sake that she was typical.

I think it is hard for people who don't have a loved one with a mental disability to understand what it's like. Sure every summer of my middle and high school career was spent at home, instead of at camps like my friends went to, because I had to stay home with Tanya. And of course there are many things she cannot do for herself and she needs my help a lot. Do I resent her for this? Of course I don't. I've been doing it my whole life and I've never complained once.

Is it ignorance that causes people to ask me questions like this? I don't know, but I do know questions like that boggle my mind. Would you ever ask a person with typical siblings if they wished one of them was gone? I don't think so. And Tanya is no different. She is my sister, not some burden I want to get rid of.

Spreading Fat Stigma Around the Globe

The New York Times recently published an article chronicling the reactions that people around the world have to obesity. In America, there has been a stigma on being overweight for some time. Just turn on Disney channel and you’ll see all thin stars with overweight goofball friends. Overweight people are always construed as a joke in American media which perpetuates an ongoing discrimination of obese individuals. But now the stigma is going further than just the United States. With the incorporation of American media into countries around the globe, the same perceptions of beauty that are held in the United States, those of being skinny and tanned, are common in other countries.

These outrageous perceptions of beauty have created a stigma on being overweight that is completely over the top. Nisha Somaia, an Indian plus-size designer, said, “I had a highly educated friend confess that she would prefer for her children to be anorexic rather than overweight.” Sergio Miranda, an owner of a shoeshine stand in Mexico City, when questioned about his feelings towards overweight people said, "The fatties take up a lot of space. People are annoyed. It’s uncomfortable.”

Statements like Mr. Miranda’s and Mrs. Somaia’s are not anomalies in their societies. These quotes are just two of many cycling around the globe that reflect a negative attitude toward overweight individuals. Rhetoric used in this way is a prime example of words being used for evil purposes that make others feel small.

.com , .org , .xxx?

You all know about different internet domains. The typical .com that comes after most websites, the .edu that comes after all of Penn States sites, the .org that comes at the end of nonprofit sites (like pbs.kids.org!) and .gov for all those super government websites everyone hangs out on. What would you think if a new domain came out, one that was solely dedicated to porn?

On March 18, Icann (the organization that gives out domains for all internet sites) approved a new domain solely for pornographic websites. Arguments are coming out against the idea from religious groups and pornographers alike. Religious groups believe that giving pornographic sites their own domain legitimizes the use of websites such as those. Pornographers believe that the adding of the specific domain will make pornographic websites seem more "ghetto" and therefore bring down the usage.

It seems almost sad that we have come to the necessity of having a new domain dedicated to pornographic sites. Isn't it enough that these sites can be stumbled upon by anyone on Google? Is it really necessary for a whole new domain to come out?

What do you think?

Tweet Tweet

I've got to admit, I am not riding the Twitter bandwagon, the first time I went on the website was just five minutes ago. Yet even though I don’t use the website, it still follows me around on a daily basis. When Twitter became a viable news source is completely beyond me, but if I want to watch my favorite show (SportsCenter on ESPN) or just television news, Twitter is always there.

On more than one occasion I have been sitting watching my beloved SportsCenter and seen “LeBron James Tweet” in the queue of stories still to come. Personally, I am not a LeBron James fan so I couldn’t care less about what he has to say, but even without my bias towards the player, why should anyone watching SportsCenter care what he has to say. What can be said in a cap of 145 words that can actually make a difference?

Not only that, but more often than not, LeBron (and other athletes and celebrities with millions of people “Following” them) will say scathing things that attack other players, teams or coaches. A paragraph of text can cause a scandal that will last weeks in the media and it was all put out there by a single click of a button. Tweet, tweet, tweet you just lost thousands of fans.

Twitter is a slightly creepy new form of social networking that allows people to know exactly what others are doing right now. In a limited amount of text, celebrities and commoners alike tell of their whereabouts or opinions on anything and everything. Apparently, American media is content with a single block of text and believes that it is news worthy, but I don’t.
What do you think about Twitter?

Crisis in Dairyland

Here's the earlier clip!

The Daily Show - Crisis in Dairyland - Angry Curds
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Apples Don't Grow On Trees

The Daily Show - Crisis in Dairyland - Message for Teachers
Tags: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Earlier in this episode of the Daily Show, Jon Stewart plays a news clip in which a analyst claimed that teachers should be paid minimum wage because they have such an "easy job" where they get out of work at 3 everyday and don't have to work summers. All of this, in case you are unaware, is due to the controversy regarding the teachers' union in Wisconsin.

I'm having a really difficult time trying to form an opinion on this issue. I don't agree in the slightest that teachers don't have a difficult job. I honestly believe that teachers do the most important job on Earth, let's be real where would we be without an education? However, one of the hot-button issues of this controversy is the idea of all teachers being paid the same amount and seniority being the main reason that teachers keep their jobs.

I bet everyone has horror stories about teachers they had in elementary, middle and high school. I know for sure that I do. Take for instance my fifth grade teacher, Mr. Schultz. This man was evil. Not only did he make me cry multiple times during school by calling me dumb, but he also made me cry at my parent-teacher conference. Yeah, right in front of my parents my teacher says how dumb and lazy I am. That man definitely does not deserve to get the same salary as my fourth grade math teacher, Mrs. Allen who connected with everyone on a personal level and was incredibly helpful. You could tell she genuinely loved her job, whereas Mr. Schultz acted like he hated children. Teachers should get pay raises based on merit as opposed to seniority.

But what do you think?