However as time passed and began to pay more attention to the conversations during class and reread the readings, the answer to these question were slowly piecing together. The importance of our reading was exactly trying to question our conceptualization of nature in society. Just the fact that these readings were making me question them, they were already doing there jobs. I began to understand that in the beginning I used to not understand and sometimes reject the ideas because they foreign to me.
The theme of nature can be so difficult because our society does not put much importance in the theory of nature-it is what it is ..now lets move on to more important topics-. We are caught up with those more important things that we don't have time to question this unwritten rule of nature. This class highlights this unwritten rule and questions it and brings up a wide range of perspectives of what nature is. I am thankful for this wide range of topics because we had the opportunity to view all the ideas and come up with my own theory of nature.
I had a specific opportunity to do this when I wrote my first research paper because in order to do so i had to have a good grasp of my sources. Therefore it forced me to look more in depth in the readings and be able to apply it to "more important things" and even find flaws in laws implemented throughout the United States history (Wilderness Act of 1968) .
A other thing that helped me these different concepts of nature were all the presentations for my colleagues research topic. It was interesting to see the different interpretations of nature in relation to their topic. For example two of my colleagues presented on
Overall I found the class interesting and has left me with a new
I still haven’t figured out how to leave an actual post, so once again, my post is a comment.
ReplyDeleteIt is weird to think that this class, and our entire freshman year is basically over. It seems like just yesterday I was walking into this class for the first time, just a regular student, with an embarrassingly small amount of knowledge about rhetorical analysis and nature. But not any more...
Through the sheer ability and teaching brilliance exhibited by Alenda and Chiara I have taken large steps in both of these areas. For me, this was one of the most important aspects of the class, and one of the reasons I enjoyed the class so much. Naturally one would assume that in a rhetoric class, one would be taught skills in rhetoric, which we were. However, we were also given the chance to put those skills into action, through a semester long discussion of nature. Whether through Cronon, or a video game about McDonalds, class always served as a time when we could examine our human relationship with nature. How we viewed it, how we interacted with, what our duty as humans was in relationship to it, and much, much more.
For most of the questions we encountered, there was never really one specific answer, or argument as to what opinion was correct. Such is the nature of the discussion, and I think in that sense we were never really supposed to come up with a specific universal answer to any of the main questions we were posed. For example, “What is the human role in nature?” This is not a question with a defined answer, never-mind one that could be discovered in a rhetoric class. Yet through our discussions, awareness was brought to the issue. I know, at least personally, that I have left this class with a greater awareness for the world around me, and what consequences my actions will have on it.
And of course, I became a better writer. I think... Which is something I expected to come away with from a writing class anyways. Nonetheless, it is a skill that I know will benefit me in the future. Learning how to effectively input the arguments and opinions of others into my paper without losing my own opinion is a priceless tool in rhetorical analysis, and writing overall.
When I was choosing my classes last semester everyone told me not to choose a rhetoric R1B. “It’s boring, horrible, and difficult.” They said. I’m glad I didn’t listen to them.
Maribel and Marc: Thanks for giving the class a chance and slowly coming around to the idea of "rhetoric" less as a kind of content than as a set of attitudes or a critical toolkit you can use to approach these grand concepts that permeate our education--capital-N Nature, Culture, Society, Gender, Race, Sexuality, Class, Life, Human, etc. No one person can have the monopoly on what any of these terms means. My hope is that you all will now be better prepared to impact how these terms play out in our culture at large.
ReplyDeleteI need some material on eco-criticism ,plz if u have any.
ReplyDelete