What is happening to Writing?

It’s no secret that technology has changed every aspect of our lives. Many art forms and activities that we’ve admired throughout history for their simplicity have become very complex in recent years.  In this case I am referring to writing itself. Notably the oldest form of communication besides verbally, this change has taken place over many years. It has now come to the point where simply putting pen to paper is not satisfactory anymore for the majority of people. This form of expression has become ancient in a sense because it is not heavily relied on as it was with our ancestors. Instant gratification and time management has practically wiped written data off the planet. Figuratively of course, however to write something by hand is becoming less and less relevant in our society. With the discovery of new technology, writing as a whole has changed completely.  One reason I feel this is the case is due to convenience. As we discovered early in the semester with our crayon assignment, writing can be a tedious task physically. It is difficult to transcribe large amounts of data by hand without experiencing some level of discomfort.  Another reason I feel writing is changing is the time constraint it requires. It is very time consuming to simply write down large amounts of data. With the demand for documents and information in today’s society, physical hand writing is simply no longer practical.

Leaving handwritten information in the past was a print book which has begun to be revolutionized in itself. Books are the foundation of text and so is everything about them. Mostly, the codex and how the information is displayed has been ingrained in us since we were born.  This being said this revolution is understandably a big deal. However, information was being successfully transferred before this revolution, contrary to popular belief, so why the change? Bolter stated that “a book symbolizes authority and stability, while digital media symbolizes flexibility, interactivity, and speedy distribution. (p.22)”  This claim is very valid due to the way both mediums are used. Books prove to be a more legit and qualified source of information and although still used for leisure, they are depended upon as an authentic research tool. Both mediums play significant roles in our society. This being said, what about those who consider themselves old fashion reader? Will they be left behind? As with any change there are some costs. In this case, many people simply have to adapt themselves to the newer technology in order to function in society. Growing up with this technology, I know firsthand that it aids the learning process tremendously. This being one of the most important pay offs in my opinion, due to the fact that students will one day be the ones furthering this revolution. The reason this change in writing  has been so successful is because the payoff is substantially more than the cost.  One of the sacrifices I feel was definitely  made in this revolution of writing is the quality of the written work itself.

The Bayeux Tapestry is a great example of the extent that authors went to relay information. Arguably the influence for webpage today, papyrus allowed readers to view pictures as they read, in a scrolling fashion such as is performed today with a computer. Not easy to make, and with the scarcity of the resources, usually sheep hide, the quality of writing increased because of the hassle is was to document it in the first place. Fast forward to today’s day and age, when all you simply have to so is type, the quality of work drastically decreases. In Writing Space, Bolter mentions that the medium of books is still heavily respected by writers seeing how no one really prefers to publish their books online. However, many authors so make their work available online as well as in hardcopy. This allows their books to be downloaded onto handheld devices. With products like the Kindle (electronic book) and audio book on the market, exploring other ways to publish literature can only benefit the author. In this way the revolution in writing has forced writers to adapt in order to reach more people and see more profit.

In the chapter my group was assigned for our prezi, chapter 3 to be exact,  Bolter focused heavily on hypertext which is the text displayed on a computer or any other electronic device that includes hyperlinks. With these hyperlinks one is able to quickly move from one idea to another by clicking the link on the page. Hypertext is probably the most influential factor in the writing revolution. By allowing one to explore several different ideas simultaneously, it changed the speed of information completely. This new “associative writing” style has opened up a new way of thinking that wasn’t possible with print books. Obviously, clinking a link to a new site is much easier and more convenient than looking for another book in all. Also, reading about something and being able to watch a video link about it at the same time is much easier and convenient then doing the two tasks separately.

In literal terms I feel Jay David Bolter’s “Writing Space’ can be directly connected to the enormous growth of an author’s writing space today. It is virtually endless with the resources we have today. Mainly the internet itself, with blogs and forums, as well as the ability to exchange ideas and teach as well as learn, I feel that writing will never be the same, which is a good thing, for the most part.

               

Chapter 3 Prezi: Hypertext and the Remediation of Print

http://prezi.com/ltd96tjbiajm/hypertext/

freewrite 3/30/11

The ealiest  encounter I have with language is my grandmother talling stories to my sister and I about vampires that live in her homeland of Guyanan. HeBeing that yound, her descriptibvve words came alinve in my head as she spoke. We would always beg her to  always beg her to tell us more and more stories. The scariest part is that they were true. Her words scared me to the core and we would all cuddle up and go to sleep . These stories were better tha any book or movie i have seen because they were reaal and her narrating vioce was comfoting to the terrifying details she was conveying. I never forget these stories even though they were told to me at such a young age. sorytelling is such an important part of growing up and i learned alot from the ones she would tell us.

taylor mali

In the video of Taylor Mali performing his piece, I found it very entertaining due to his body language and the way he went about it. While watching it I remember thinking wow, he so right. His delivery matched perfectly with his body language and I felt as though he were talking directly to me.


In the piece where hsi words are heard but he is not seen, I felt a different sensation. It was more like listening to a song and trying to find the rhythm. Since I could not see him saying the words I found myself trying to picture it in my head as I heard it. The arrangement of words on the screen made it so that I focused on the actual words and letters rather than what he was saying and meaning.


I feel that a call to duty message such as his was more affective for me when I saw him perform it in person.

Hubris at Zunzal by Rodney Jones

The moment that I feel the author rejects his own proposition is when he says he "dumped it white into the waves" referring to the coconut milk and 150 proof rum that was in the coconut shell. In ths poem he talks about how sweet it was and how he wished he hadnt lost it leaving me wondering why he dumped it in the first place.

3 images

- Man sleeping under a living room rug

I respond positively to that because I many times take naps during my writing process because I always have very good ideas in my dreams. Many times I wont actually sleep but rather lay with my eyes closed and ponder different ways of looking at the issue. This image reminded me of that.

- Man looking into mirror claiming hes a hack

I have felt this way while trying to write pondering why I cant just know what to say and why it is so difficult to find the right words its like trying to put together a puzzle.

-Driving car off ledge
I tend to feel situations are the end of the world, this image spoke to me in that sense that there is no escape and the stakes are always very high

Questions for Billy Collins

1. In the last three stanzas, what motivated you to turn the speakers attention to him/herself? (BreenBrain)
I feel this was done to show how ridiculous it can sound sometimes to compare oneself to inanimate objects and how the original author failed to truly show their admiration to the one the poems' about because they put themselves in the poem along side them. Maybe the poem should have just been about the one they admire and not about them.

2. Do you truly believe you were doing the original author a favor in this rewrite? (Raise Your Voice)
I think he felt by showing how ridiculously he could make the poem just by going off the first two lines, he could perhaps enlighten the poet in someway. However, I feel it was most done for comic effect.

3. Why do you believe the original poem failed?
 Perhaps they failed due to their poor usage of words. This can be seen in the video as Billy Collins pokes fun at their word choice used by the original author.

Analysis of "Sample G : It Gives You Wings"

In this piece about the energy drink Red Bull, I found great insight into the company as well as its consumers. I actually just did my paper on a similar topic and I humbly say this paper is great competition. Many great points were made such as:

1. The large range of consumers such as "the overworked taxi driver, the stressed manager, the exam-anxious student, and the pressured journalist" I feel these description were genuis because they were very realistic and everyone can relate to these stressful positions.

2. The makers of Red Bull specifically making an effort to market in the United States: " The producers of Red Bull are informed about the demanding lifstely of the average American and anticipate the consumers need for drive and focus." I feel this statement was very powerful because it gave the reader insight to the companies point of view and justified their success in America.

3. Study done analyzing stress levels if the average American. " One-third of Americans live with extreme stress and 48% believe this stress has been increased in the last five years." I feel by adding these statistics from the American Psychological Association gave this paper a great deal of credibility.

4. Discussing various examples of the impatience of our society. A very intriguing statistic was the overuse of the "Door Close" button in elevators. Although it is not about the product, it perfectly gets the point across of how every part of an American life is driven off our addiction to instataneous results.

5. At the conclusion of the paper the author notes their observations of others endulging in the product but does not talk about their experience. I feel they should have tried the product and written about their personal experience to justify if it had the same effect on them as it apparently had on the rest of society.

Jim Carrier "All You Can Eat"

Compounding- putting different words together to get your point across.
"saltwater feedlot"

Playful combinations- unrealistic features put on subjects to illustrate a interesting point.
" gulf shrimpers are the last cowboys of the sea"
"pink tsunami"
"chemical cocktail"
"dancing shrimp"
"circus of boats"

Neologisms- made up words
" marifarm"
"aquafarm"
"seafarm"

Verbs, Verbs, Verbs- action words

"boats gallop"
"plundering"

Jim Carrier used these tactics to make his article about the shrimp farming industry more interesting and clear to his reader. I found that they made it a lot easier to understand and more antertaining to read. His wordplay allowed me to picture exactly what he meant in a different way.

About specific writing practice

As a film major, I am automatically drawn to a visual representation of what I believe the product Red Bull portrays. I feel it can be shown from many different angles from the college student pulling an allnighter with cans of Red Bull scattered on the floor to a pro skater looking for an edge in competition. In any case, the visual must be extreme as the product claims to be. My argument that the claims made by the company are indeed falsified and many times more psychological would come to play in a shot portraying an alternative liquid given to people in a Red Bull can to ultimately capture this facade. Somewhat of a social experiement to see how people would behave if they thought they were drinking Red Bull but actually weren't. Guilty of it myself, I have endulged a few times and to my surprise, I did feel energetic, but it was very shortlasting.

the secret of self control analysis

Mark each time Lehrer offers a definition. How elaborate is each definition?

He defines the term metacognition as the scientific name for the action of thinking of your own thoughts. It seems as though his reasoning for this was to inform the reader of a term they might not be familiar with.

He defines marshmellow as an air puffed ball of corn syrup and  gelatin, which is a very literal way to look at this common snack. He looks at it from this angle to most likely simplify it to less than what we think of it to be.

He defines the term frontal cortex when talking about the overhang of the brain behind the eyes, i feel he does this because many readers may not know where that is on the body.

List metaphors used in article.

When discussing interactionism, he compares it to a car that has a screeching noise, saying that to find out where the noise is coming from, the mechanic must use trial and erro\r, as a psychologist should do with their patients.

Inkshedding excercise

"Metacognition, thinking about thinking, allows people to outsmart their shortcomings."

The kids who waited to eat the marshmallows tended to use a strategy we call metacognition. They would distract themselves by playing games by themselves, pulling thei hair or talking to themselves. Essentially knowing what was going on would make it easier for them to fight the desire. Desire can be explained as a strign will that allows someone to give in or fight something that the person wants.
What the author seems to be saying is that if we can recognize this abililty (metacognition) within our selves, it will help us in life. With that being said, this is not an easy task even for adults let alone small children. It takes lots of focus and honesty with one self to accept your thoughts and kind of manipulate them in a way to get what you want.

small objects LARGE Subject

The product known as Red Bull is essentially used to supply the average person with extra energy throughout their everyday lives. It is supposed to give you that extra edge you need to make it through once your body has given out. The popular slogan is "red bull gives you wings" to symbolize how it suppose to make you feel once you've consumed it.
As human being were easily influenced, I know from personal experience, I have given Red Bull more credit than is really due. The heavy promotion makes one believe that they have more energy than they actually do. I feel it actually takes a lot of energy to consume the product because it is extremely carbonated. Also, by sponsoring many extreme sporting events such as motocross and skateboarding, they can further promote their product by indicating their product will make you extreme and give you these extraordinary capabilities.
 With the high levels of sugar and caffeine in the product, it raises your heartbeat substantially and this is what give you energy. However, the manufacturer knows that the average consumer isn't going to think of the metabolic consequences when consuming this product. As a society of instant gratification, we simply care about re instilling the energy our body has lost as quickly as possible.

Pantene Commercial

In the section my group was designated to focus on, we focused on how the cacooon and butterfly cliche played a part in the advertisement. At first look, it seeems as though it was being used to simply symbolized how anyone can come out of their shell and shine. However, through further observation we noticed other attributes. First off, this commercial was obviously very expensive, therefore to make a point to include the butterfly must have meant it was very important to Pantene as a company.
As the young girl is reminiscing about her struggle with bullies and other obstacles, they show the caccoon shaking to symbolize that struggle. As the butterfly finally breaks free, they show her performing this amazing violin piece and beating the odds. We found one of their old slogans stating Pantene can "transfer the hair you have into the hair you want." This being said we also discovered that the butterfly itself was once a symbol of their product. This would be why they chose to use that metaphor of overcoming rather than any other.

Materialities of Writing

As I was writing in crayon, I paid more attention to the clarity of my penmenship. My thought process was a little more direct and to the point so that I wouldnt have to write as much. The writing itself although tedious, was very refreshing for me.

In a culture that only writes in crayons, I think the color would have a lot to do with what emotion they want the reader to feel. The visual aspect of the writing would play a larger role. Also I feel penmenship would be valued much more due to the difficulty of writing in crayons. I feel tht culture would value a logn piece of wrtitng also due to the difficulty of doing so.