Comparison and Contract Paragraph

I recently visited the Toronto zoo. I have many memories of the zoo as a child. As I walked around, I noticed that a lot changes when you grow up. The same place, which has not physically changed much at all, is very different during different stages of your life. Firstly, I can remember as a child looking through the big glass windows that contained the animals, and thinking of how nice their little homes were. I thought that they looked happy entertaining a mass of people. Now, at 18, I found myself feeling very sorry for the animals confined to those small quarters. How would I feel, living in a building built by humans and being watched all day? It suddenly felt very odd to me, to see a rhinoceros banging around a concrete room as snow fell outside of his window. My perspective on these animals in captivity has changed drastically since I was little. Secondly, the walk that my dad said used to take hours, suddenly didn't seem far at all. Well I remember the zoo as a fun experience, I do remember my legs hurting, and feeling like we would never make it back to the entrance. Now, I walked through the zoo at a pace familiar to walking to school or trying to get to an appointment on time. I also found I was looking down on the animals, instead of desperately trying to get a good look on my tip-toes. Thirdly, I can remember as a child wanting more than anything to purchase something from the gift store on the way out. I recall the less than enthusiastic looks on my parents faces when I saw one of the, oh yes, 17 gift stores at the zoo. This time, I had the pleasure of bringing the four little girls I babysit to the zoo. They too wanted to experience the gift store. I found myself thinking the same thoughts that my parents must have though; why are the prices outrageous, and where on earth are we going to store all this junk? My dad laughed at me, feeling that it was good payback. I still love the zoo. I had a great day seeing the looks of curiosity and excitement on the little girls faces. I was also surprised at how much the world can change as you grow older. The zoo hasn't changed, but how I view it has. Your experience of places as a child and as an adult are very different.

Classification and Division Paragraph

There are four paths for those leaving high school. Students have the option of entering university, college, an apprenticeship or the workplace. Students may complete a combination of these in their lifetime, but they all are designed for a specific purpose. University, is for students who wish to continue a particular field of learning even further. You can take several different programs, but usually you recieve a broad education that does not lead to one select job. University is for those with high marks. College is for students looking to pursue jobs that require higher education, for example a practical nurse. Programs at college is often training that leads to one specific job. College requires marks that are fair. Apprenticeships are for students interested in a trade. They include some classes as well as a lot of practical experience. You graduate with certification in one specific area. Apprenticeships are great for students who know what they want to do and who benefit with more hands on experience. The workplace is for students who do not wish to pursue any further education at the time. These students begin to work instead of attending school. All four of these options are available to students leaving high school. Students must decide on the type of life that they want, and determine the apropriate educational route to follow.

Metacognitive Reflection #1

Reflecting on the evaluations that the class made on my presentation skills, I feel that I have a better idea of my strengths and weaknesses. My biggest strength, is that I try and contribute as much as possible to the discussion. I also respect other peoples ideas and contributions. My biggest weakness in oral communication is that I don't articulate my ideas well. When I am in front of a lot of people I become nervous, and lose track of what I am saying. I often have good ideas in my head, but they don't get properly communicated in oral discussion. I am the type of person who likes to contimplate their ideas for a while. This means that I am great at discussing ideas that I have already thought about but not as good with ideas that are brought up in the discussion. It isn't that I can't come up with ideas quickly, but I wonder if they are good enough to share with my group. This is a skill that I really need to improve because it is so important in school and life in general. To improve this skill, I think I need to just say the ideas that come into my head. The worse that could happen, is people will disagree. I also think that I need to make sure that I am really prepared, so that I feel very confident to share my ideas. If I had to chose a word that described my oral communication skills I would pick a leader. However, I think I am only a leader when I have to be. If someone else resumes the role of the leader, I am quite happy to sit back, and to just contribute. If no one is stepping up to the leadership position, then I will gladly step in. I found it really interesting to look at the feedback from the class. I think it was also interesting how people changed their behavior when they knew that the outer circle was evaluating them.

"A Fire Truck" by Richard Wilbur

1. What is the purpose of the poem?

The purpose of this poem is to acknowledge everything that firemen do for people everyday. The poem uses exquisite words and phrases to elevate the simple story it tells. Perhaps this is appropriate, as the story being told is incredibly important, yet very ordinary. A firetruck rushing to the scene of a fire happens daily, and yet it is such an extraordinary thing. The language contributes so much to this poem. This poem is passionately written by an author who has clearly found a beautiful way to express gratitude and thanks to a well deserving firefighter.

2. Is "A Fire Truck" good poetry? Justify your response drawing on your knowledge of good and bad writing.

"A Fire Truck" is a very good piece of poetry. The poem is beautifully written and has been expertly edited to the point where every word is important. The vocabulary used is very descriptive and allows the reader to see vivid images of the scene in their head. When reading this poem, I can truly hear the "squall of traction". This poem is very original in its approach to describe the scene of the fire. Wilbur writes with a clear purpose and meticulously describes every detail of the scene that is important for the reader to understand the atmosphere and opinion of the scene. He does not, however, bore the reader with unnecessary explanations. The author is able to achieve his purpose through a beautifully written poem. "A Fire Truck" is a well written poem.

You Call this Literature?

Looking through the "Literature" section, expecting to find articles on Woolf and Morrison, Pound and Hazlitt, I was disgusted to see the word “best-seller” displayed almost everywhere I looked. I realized that this is in fact what we have come to. People no longer have any idea of what quality literature is. Firstly, society no longer trusts their own opinion, but instead looks for other people to tell them what to and what not to read. Often these individuals are under qualified and wrongly assigned to their literary position. Secondly, it seems that Canadian authors have been given a back seat. Yes, popular literature has hit an all-time low, and fine literature has begun to experience a decline in popularity.
When entering a book store, you will notice that the tables nearest the entrance are filled with shiny, colourful, hard-covered bestsellers; books written by Dan Brown and anything that has Oprah's Book Club's seal of approval sticker. Many people don’t bother to read anything other than these acclaimed bestsellers. In fact, it took William Faulkner almost an entire century to finally be recognized as a valuable writer by most of us when Oprah recommended a three-volume set of his "best" work. It is probable she even gave copies away to an audience of politely clapping women who scream and hoot when given trips to Cancun or gift certificates for Channel. We read what Oprah tells us we should read, find it at the front of Chapters, and, for the select few of us who actually want to read more of an author's work, search desperately to find anything else he wrote in the store. It seems we all want what someone thinks is "best". We don’t want to do our own research or dig through piles of books to find the overarching narrative of an author's career. Rather, we gather bits and pieces, as if all works were separate, only caring to read the author that the New York Times deems "Brilliant" and "Dazzlingly unique".
Incredibly, there are many Canadian’s who have never read a Canadian novel. Canada is one of the only countries in the world, where a child may graduate from high school without having read a single Canadian novel. Some Canadian’s can not even name a Canadian book or author. Many of us have never read anything by Atwood or Munro, and it is concerning that Canadian novels hardly ever make it to be considered a Chapters' “Best Selling Novel”.
It seems everyone wants to "escape." Everyone wants to read for "enjoyment," to dissolve into a world where a beautiful young woman falls head-over-heels for some man who has some dark and foreboding secret. Have we become so passive, so hopeless, that we feel we have to escape our lives and put our brains in the numb cloudy box of predictable plots with happy endings about boring people just like ourselves? It seems we don't want to look around us, don't want to read about things that matter, don’t actually want to think about what we are reading. I recognize the need for enjoyment, but great writers like Brand and Rhys and Joyce and Chesterton inform and inspire us a lot further than a bestselling Dan Brown or Stephen King. If what we're reading is mass-market, bestselling, clichéd, plot-driven books, I'm concerned about what that says about us, and, more specifically, where humanity is headed.

The First Five Methods of Development- Good Old Us

Good Old Us by Walter Stewart is a brilliantly written essay that argues that Canadians may not be as good and as reasonable as they believe. Stewart uses example as his method for developing and supporting his claim.
Paragraph's one through eleven of Stewart's essay are all individual examples of Canadian history that does not shed Canadians in a positive light. The reader, presumably a Canadian with much love and respect for their country, or even someone else who sees Canada as a great and fair nation, begins to feel increasingly uncomfortable and embarrassed when they are faced with so many examples of their countries indecencies. Canada is known around the world for its peace making agenda, and general desire for equality. As Canadians, we are not used to being told of our faults. Good Old Us does a fantastic job of giving the reader enough examples of Canadian disloyalty, that by the beginning of paragraph 12, not even the most patriotic citizen could argue that the author does not have a valid point. Stewart, by setting up his essay this way, allows the reader to come to his conclusion on their own before ever hearing his personal ideas. This is of great benefit to Stewart, as people are generally more likely to agree with an opinion if they believe that they came up with it. By the time the reader begins to read paragraph 12, they are feeling fairly disappointed in themselves and their country. Fortunately, Stewart anticipates this and leads into his own opinion with first defending Canada and admitting that, by and large, it is a great country. Thank goodness, we feel. We do have something to be proud of. As the paragraph continues, Stewart begins to hit a nerve. His statement that Canadians relish in the fact that our neighbour often ruins their reputation far more easily then us. Canada and the U.S. are two countries that are very often compared. We are very similar in nature, but as Stewart points out, Canadians are very smug in their opinion that we are slightly better. Many Canadians, I believe, would feel that they, to some extent, take part in this national smugness. Next, Stewart goes on to write, that "We have, however, had major political corruption involving our highest figures". Some further examples of corruption are then listed. Once again, the reader begins to cringe at facts that they know to be true about their country. The author has done an extraordinary job at presenting his claim so far, because he has given examples that Canadians know to be true and can not deny. He has then accused them of being too smug and not concerned enough about their own faults. Again, Canadians can not argue that Canada has not suffered from corruption. This piece is well written, because the author realizes that he is writing about a topic that, if not done properly could loose the loyalty of a patriotic reader from the beginning. Patriotism is a huge barrier for Stewart. He manages however, to present very good supporting claims that insure that the reader has no choice but to agree. This article stays free from truisms, and has been well edited, so that it keeps the readers attention. Good Old Us has a very clear direction form the beginning, and does not try and claim multiple points. I enjoyed this article, as I felt it made me more aware of my country's history, which I feel is incredibly important. As a proud Canadian I was not upset by this article, because I felt that it only stated the facts, and was an important read for anyone who realizes that if you forget your history, you run the risk of repeating it.
Good Old Us used example as a method of development. This essay clearly, uses examples as the main way to prove the authors thesis. All of the examples in this essay are relevant and well explained. They all help to convince the reader of the authors point of view. In Stewart's essay he explains that many Canadians do not know very much about Canadian corruption. For this reason, it is very important that he share examples with the reader. Without the use of specific examples this essay would not be half as affective as it manages to be. Most essays, use examples, and Good Old Us, does an exceptional job of using them to the author's full advantage.

Good and Bad Writing

Examples of Bad Writing
1. The first example of bad writing, is indeed bad. Firstly, this piece of writing needs to go on a diet. It is full of sentences that repeat what was just said and does not really tell us anything. Secondly, this witting is full of truisms, such as "One might conclude that the world we human beings live in is not without a variety of many different and diverse cultures with different cultural practices and hence different moralities." The writing uses these truisms along with some questions, such as "And who is behind all of the madness of ethical relativism?" to tell the reader what they already know. The author does not put a great deal of their own incite into the writing, now do they offer an original point of view. Thirdly, the writing is laden with spelling and grammatical errors, for example "closet" instead of closest. Fourthly, bad writing is said to have either no direction, or too many directions. This article appears to have too many. Within the few sentences that I have read, I do not get a clear idea of what the author is trying to say. Finally, this piece of writing thinks too much of itself, using over the top wording that only confuse the reader more. An example of this is, "Studying ethics from a philosophical point of view, ethical relativist’s might conclude that your wasting your time just like philosophers have always wasted they’re time." This sentence is much too long and complicated. It does not make the writing sound clever and sophisticated, but primary and unsympathetic of the audience. This is an example of bad writing.

2. The second example of bad writing is very confusing. The entire excerpt is one long, complicated, hard to follow sentence. The reader is unable to follow and retain the information through the entire thing. The author tries to be too clever and to sound too sophisticated. Unfortunately, the opposite effect is created. The reader feels as though the author is trying too hard and the reader therefore begins to distrust the author as someone with a valid opinion. The reader feels that the author is overcompensating and does not actually have anything to say. This piece of writing would be much better if the author would take the time to change the one long sentence into well constructed, coherent sentences.

3. The third piece or bad writing does not make sense. This is evident in the example, "If the theories of science were the laws of origin how is it said that people have such strong emotions from a science experiment?" This sentence is badly structured and difficult to comprehend. The sentence needs to go on a diet. If the sentence was to be edited so that only the necessary information remained, it would sound much better. It could also be broken down into more then one sentence. Secondly, the article does not make logical sense. The writing claims that "He thought religion fulfilled the gap for new adults who had no parents but there seems to be a lot of children with parents that give them love, security, and their needs and they still believe highly in God and the scriptures." This does not prove that ''religion does not fill the gap of a parent which has been lost.'' The first point, does not prove the second, which leaves the reader very confused and convinced that the author has no idea what they are talking about. This is clearly bad writing.

Examples of Good Writing
1. The first example is a piece of quality writing. The answer is easy to read and to understand. Sophisticated language is used, but it still makes sense and flows nicely. The author does not attempt to use words that is above his ability, for which the reader appreciates. All of the sentences make sense in the context, and all of the information is correct, not exaggerated. The piece respects the audience, and uses vocabulary that someone wanting to know about fish would understand. The paragraph has been well edited, so that only the necessary information remains. This is a good piece of writing.

2. The second piece of writing is also well done. The author uses several quotations to support his ideas, and adds to them personally. The author asks the reader a question, and appropriately answers it. This excerpt has a clear direction and remains on topic. The author uses appropriate language which is not overused nor does it seem forced. The article flows very nicely and makes sense. This is an example of a good piece of writing.

3. The last example is very good. The author presents his ideas in a logical order that leaves the reader convinced that he must be right. The language is appropriate and easy to understand. The writing has a very clear direction, and never strays from the topic. The article only includes relevant information and although it is more or less an opinion the author is stating, he does not try to lie or deceive the reader. This piece was well written.

Audience
The idea and concept of audience may well be the most difficult part of determining whether of not writing is good or bad. The author writes to please his audience. What an 82 year old women would find good writing, is most likely very different from her 46 year old son or her seven year old grandson. People like to read things for different reasons. Sometimes they want information, sometimes they are researching, and sometimes they just want to be entertained. How you view a piece of writing also has to do with your education and reading ability. If you are not a strong reader, you want a piece of writing that you can read and feel positive about. If you are a lover of great literature, you may cringe well trying to read the latest In Touch magazine. What is so amazing about writing is how many people it has the ability to touch. Millions of people read a great variety of writing every day and it affects each person differently. People who study languages may well be able to come up with rules to help distinguish what is quality writing, but at the end of the day, if you can find an audience that loves your writing you have succeeded. Just like writers write for a variety of reasons, readers read for a plethora of reasons. There could never be a true set of rules to distinguish quality writing because it is a very personal and different for each person. However, these rules certainly do point out some very poor writing habits. It is very important that the author understand and respect his or her audience. An author will not succeed if they do not know and acknowledge who their audience is. Audience is an incredibly difficult factor when determining good and bad writing.

Appendix B: Paragraphs for Evaluation

1. I do not feel that paragraph one is an example of good writing. I do not believe that the excerpt presents a valid claim. The thesis, "Though to some it has been disappointing, the present day revolution in education has been a long time on its way," is a double claim. It tries to present two different ideas at the same time, and in so doing only manages to confuse the reader. The writer needs to pick one point of view and argue only that. The thesis is also a truism. All revolutions are a long time on its way. The thesis does not invoke interest in the reader, nor is it something that needs to be proved. A thesis is not acceptable if it can not be directly argued. The excerpt also has a hard time going in only one direction. It is all over the place, and ends with two questions that have not been well related to the thesis. This paragraph also uses over the top language. The author over embellishes the piece to try to sound sophisticated, but instead it comes off confusing and unnecessary. This excerpt would benefit from better editing and a clearer focus. The piece also needs a proper thesis. In conclusion I do not feel that this writing is an example of good writing.

2. The second paragraph is an example of bad writing. The writing is full of truisms, for example "If it is a bright sunny day, people tend to be cheery and bright, like the weather." This is a well known idea. The thesis, "If you keep your wits about you, you can see that the weather has its effect on how most people feel," is itself a truism. The inclusion of "most" in her thesis is also misleading. The use of "most" causes the reader to feel she has less confidence in her opinion. I am also confused as to why she says "if you keep your wits about you". I am not sure that the topic of weather is something in which you need to "keep your wits about you". Really, weather imitating how we feel is not a spooky idea. There is tons of scientific evidence to support it, none of which is mentioned here ironically. The whole piece is written on a topic that is widely known and talked about. It is very unoriginal and does not contain a spark or an appeal for the reader. The author does not present real scientific information either, she simply concludes that rain makes people depressed, and that some find snow magical. Her ideas are very one-dimensional. For these reasons, I would have to conclude that this paragraph was not well written.