Project IV

Revisiting, Rethinking, and Presenting: Revisioning Subjects of Concern

Introduction:

Throughout the semester we have been discussing identities, communities, and how both ideas are challenged by issues of public concern or representation. In the final essay, you will apply the skills and insight you have gained throughout the semester, in order to speak knowledgeably to a group of your peers about an issue and its effects on a community. Unlike your previous endeavors, this Project will be aimed at eliciting a specific reaction from your audience, on in which they will be spurred to act or engage, so you will use your writing skills to build a greater awareness of audience, create a powerful voice, select an appropriate tone, and use effective rhetorical strategies.

Objective:

Create a presentation (about 5-7 minutes) that combines visuals, writing, and the spoken word, in order to present an issue of public concern to an audience of your peers. This can be something that you explored in an earlier essay (Projects I-III), or it can be something new. Your visuals and words should seek to present information to an audience and invoke advocacy, challenge popular opinions, or give a call to action. While the requirements if visuals and spoken word may seem to stray from our emphasis on writing, you will still be responsible for producing 3 full pages of text, representative of your ideas. The written component will provide critical analysis and focused, informed observations. This can be incorporated into your presentation in any way you see fit. You may choose to read your essay aloud, as part of your presentation, or you may incorporate portions of it as captions to photos during a presentation.

The visual component of your presentation is to be made up of a single visual, or a series of visuals that supplement your spoken words. In other words, the visuals may help you convey ideas, emotions, or reactions that you feel cannot be adequately expressed through words alone, or they may add emphasis and rhetorical weight to your ideas. There are many possibilities for combining the visual and written components of this project, so be creative.

Group Option:

Should you find that a community or issue one of your classmates is exploring is similar to or speaks to your focus, you may choose to work in pairs. If you work with a partner, you must still meet all the requirements; however, because there are two people doing the work, the number of written pages is increased to 5 full pages of text.

Developmental Tasks:

• Using visuals to represent ideas or create emphasis
• Using the spoken word with rhetorical effect
• Engages with an issue of public concern
• Revising and distilling information into a new form
• Presents source information effectively and correctly

Research Requirements:

Since both components of this essay require you to speak knowledgeably about an issue of public concern, there will be a research requirement. You will need to use a variety of components and strategies for finding and presenting your information. You will need to decide, based on the skills you have acquired this semester, how many and what kinds of source materials you need.

Evaluation:

This essay will make up 15% of your final grade. I will evaluate essays according to the “Grading Criteria in UK Writing Courses” outlined in The St. Martin’s Handbook and the ENG 104 University and Writing Program Guidelines, Fall 2009, available on the course website. I will also consider the quality and delivery of your presentation.

Submission:

The final draft should be at least 3 full pages in length (and a Works Cited page); partners will need to compose 5 full pages of text (and a Works Cited page). Essays that do not meet this length expectation will be assigned an “E.” All formal writing should be in MLA style, which means that the essay will be double-spaced, have 1-inch margins on all sides, and be in Times New Roman 12pt. font (or equivalent). Surname and page number should appear in the right header of your essay.

Final project drafts will be submitted with the final Writing Portfolio on Tuesday, December 15^th, by 3 pm. Late final drafts will and portfolios will not be accepted.

Tentative Due Dates for Project IV:

Meet with me on Tuesday, 24 Nov.

or Email Proposal Issue for Project IV by Sunday, 29 Nov.

Full Draft for Peer Review (2-3 pages): Thursday, 3 Nov.

Presentations (5-7 minutes): Monday, 7 Dec., Tuesday, 8 Dec., & Thursday, 10 Dec.

Final Project IV Essay with Writing Portfolio: Tuesday, 15 Dec., by 3pm

Readings and Films for Project IV:

Erik Reece's “Death of a Mountain” (online): 30 Nov.

Scenes from Harlan Country, USA (film): 1 Dec.

Radio Interview (sound file): 3 Dec.