Lets Put Together Some Structures

   Gotta love reading for English class.  This time, it was another chapter in out book, focusing today on the topics of outlines, structures, and how to put together an argument for a paper.  Think about it, even the action of thinking about it is outlining something, and so structuring a paper, you have to delineate what you're going to write about.
    When you make an outline, that's the real start of your paper.  In that outline, you make note of every point you make, or want to make anyways.  The outline itself is the very structure of your future paper, because in the way that it is laid out.  In my head, Im able to make an outline as i go along, which makes writing extremely easy to do.  I almost never make a formal outline unless it is required of me, but because of my skill in formulating one as I go, I usually am able to write a fully functioning paper.
    From that outline your argument takes shape.  Researching a point, and your own ideas on a topic are two good ways of producing an argument.  If you tie together your own words with the facts form reading up on something, your argument can be clear, concise, and can have your own flavorful spin to it while remaining true to its idea.
    A major part of writing an argument into a paper is the use of quotes and citations, sources.  Using that actual words form a source provides a first-hand basis for  fact and argument that you're making.  By providing these things, you prove that you're not the first person to have had this idea, or, you're not the first person to explore this topic in some manner.  Quotations are an integral part of forming an argument, and therefore an outline.
    Just use common sense.  We've all written papers before, we've had to make outlines and argue our points.  Keep up the good work, and I'll give you a cookie.

Interviewing, Woo-Hoo

   Reading those interviews was certainly an interesting ride.  They werent exactly what you'd call an easy read.  Reading something thats more dialogue than prose or a creative questioning format makes for droll reading.  The fact that it was on military and technology was the only thing that kept it form being a complete snooze.
   However by the time I made it to the second interview, it finally began to read like an interview, with questions and the like.  Ritzer's view on "Mcdonalised society"?  Genius topic; not 100% genius answers.  However, the questions seemed to have been prepared in advance, which made it feel scripted, because even Ritzer seemed a little too quick and concise on the response.  Being scripted takes away the feeling of authenticity, so it left me with only a slight gain in knowledge.
   Like Ellen's, my computer, too, would not allow me to watch the next interview.  It may just be a Mac thing, because neither of us could make the plugin work, and we're both intelligent enough when it comes to that sort of thing.
   If anyone knows my personality, they know that when I interview someone, its like competing on American Gladiators, Fear Factor, and the Olympics all in one action-packed Steven Segal, Jason Statham, Sylvester Stallone thriller.  Ok, maybe a little less glitzy than that, but I try to make things interesting and keep things lively.  To me, interviewing someone isnt so much about the questions that are asked, so much as it is about the answers and how much they bring to light about the topic.  I try o make the atmosphere enjoyable and keep the interviewee as entertained as I am.   If its in some format other than spoken word, I try and keep it as humorous and lighthearted as possible.
   So even though I may not have a blockbuster documentary on my hands, I try to make my interviews as productive and entertaining as possible, while maintaining a sense of direction and hoping to keep a level of reputability at the same time.  Interviews can be great things, if only done properly.  

How I Creatively Anti-Steal

   I take information in all the time; being in primarily lecture-based clases, its a required skill.  But how do I manage to not take notes word for word and effectively keep from plagiarizing?  Therein lies the secret to success.
   When Im in a lecture class, I take notes in a variety of ways, whether it be electronic or tangible.  I take out my handy-dandy notebook and put pencil (or pixel) to paper, and get to work chronicling my source of information.  I paraphrase what I hear, so that while the information is true, I am able to maintain a sense of my own creativity while also keeping my facts straight.  But what happens if i feel that I need a direct quote?  Well thats exactly what I do: I put quotation marks down and transcribe what needs to be said verbatim.  Writing word for word takes too much time and effectively minimizes any chance of understanding what is heard; instead, you tend to just write the words, not listen to them or understand what you're hearing.  Thats where listening and writing simultaneously is a key factor.  However, notes must be carefully sourced so that plagiarism is avoided.  But how do I do that?
   If Im reading a book or website, and I happen to come across a snippet of information i deem worthy for entrane into my thesis or extended essay, I make note that all steps to avoid stealing work must be done.  If its a website, I take down its URL and cite it through whichever fashion is easier for me; likewise with books or periodicals, I also cite them in the appropriate manner.  If I directly quote something, I mark down in my notes where Im citing something, and then make the proper effort to formalize the citation.  Its not difficult to avoid stealing while taking note or writing a paper, you just need to be creative in how you memorize the information and present direct quotations back.
   Taking notes isnt difficult if you manage yourself and your notes carefully, its what I do every day.  Not stealing is as easy as 1..2..easybib...3....

The Research Process

    In chapter 5 we learn about the research process and how it correlates to a research project as a whole.  But research as a whole is a detailed and complex process, one that extends far beyond just Google'ing all of your sources without any further conquest of knowledge.  Like an iceberg, research is a detailed and complex thing that extends beyond simple answers on a superficial level.  It is because of research that people are able to shy away from their old ideas, or are able to cling to them with renewed vigor.  It used to be that research was slaving over ancient tomes and dusty codices; today research can be completed by simply typing in a query on the Internet.  Likewise the old books still remain a constant, but they have lost their influence and sway now that the Public Domain has rendered them digital as well.  Technology is a wonderful thing, but even in its greatness, we hamper our own creativity and capabilities when it comes to our knowledge on how to decently research a new topic.
    The old adage of how primary sources are always the better source is a questionable stance  While yes, it gives primary details from the time that you're conducting your research, it is worth noting that hindsight is always 20/20.  Say you were a German during World War Two; the propaganda from that time would now be a primary source, but would you believe that it was factual and reliable?  The use of hindsight on old primary sources helps generate a good sense of validity to the source, allowing for you to make an educated use of that source.  However, more knowledge on a topic can be learned in ways other than just reading an old journal or looking at an historical picture.  Field research, actually going out and performing an experiment, is a great way to learn something firsthand, allowing you to make discoveries on the spot.  Read and experimenting are both great ways to ensure a varied and comprehensible set of answers to any research topic.  Finally, don't forget to source what you find.  Sourcing, and annotating are huge plusses for any research done, because it keeps track in an organized manner about what was learned, in what manner, and, in the case of annotations, just why you used that source and how.

    Keep in mind just how everything was done, from the reading to experimenting to the sourcing.  With all of that in tow, you can begin to write a successful research paper, utilizing a wide variety of fields from which you can learn.  It's not easy, but it can be done, and it can be done well.  Remember kids, knowledge is power.

Yeah, I'm 6'2, From LA and Have a Mercedes, So What?

    Obviously thats not me.  But, what if I said that was?  What if I modeled my own little reality into making the image of that be what others perceive as my life?  WIth the way people are able to make avatars on the internet, we can produce an image that we want others to believe is us, who we really are, and what we are.
   Brad Paisley's song Online sums up the topic perfectly.  The video is even better.  If I'm some dweeb living in my parent's basement, I can create an internet profile that says I'm more than that; Im a model, an athlete, a musician, famous, rich, the world's most interesting man.  And if I back that up with information, faux facts and tidbit along with pictures or stories, would people believe me?  Ironically enough, when people make an online avatar, the adage of dress to impress or first impressions count, really do matter.  When you look at someone for the first time, or their avatar, you immediately judge them and make a note to yourself what qualities you think they have, or, if you investigate the person, what you think of their qualities.  And what happens if that person isnt who they say they are, and are in fact the total opposite?  In that case, the avatar has won the challenge; the person's avatar has successfully fooled you into believing that that person was at first something they werent.  The avatar is what we want people to believe when they first see us, truthful or not.
    Me personally, I prefer the honest avatar.  I model it after myself, usually with a backwards cap, some musical instrument or gaming system in the image, likewise jeans and converse are a neccesity.  That sums me up, a laid-back, musical gamer.  However not everyone is so open and honest with what they show as the real "them."  The song Online says exactly that, that people will say and do anything in their avatars to make friends, impress people, among al sorts of other things.  Avatars have allowed us to either hide behind lies after lies, or be simple and truthful about ourselves.
    In short, today's world is dominated by avatars, some honest and others not.  Avatars allow us to mislead or invite others to an image that can be a fallacy or the real us.  The creator of the avatar is the one who should be judged, not the avatar itself; that creator is honest or deceitful, you be the judge of him.

My Best-cyber-Friend

    The internet has unlocked a new potential for how people interact.  Relationships can be maintained from thousands of miles away, and people who have never met before can speak to each other cleanly and clearly as if they were in each other's very living rooms.  But how and why is this mass communication possible?  Social networking, the internet, media, and all other sorts of contact between total strangers or the closest of friends has revolutionized how people build and develop relationships.
    For example, this past summer there was a Facebook group created for the entering Clemson freshman class.  The Clemson University Class of 2015 Facebook page, open to any and all entering freshmen.  It started from a humble beginning; people joined in slowly, trickling in at first.  I joined it at that stage when it was roughly 200 something members.  I've been able to watch this group explode from 200 members to over 2000 members now.  We have been able to make new friends from across the country, different nations even, so much that now we can run into someone randomly on campus and realize that we've already been friends online long before we've met in person.  Some of my best friends here at school, I "met" online before I met there in person.  Even now, this group of people has evolved to meet our changing environment.
   We began as a networking group, getting to know people who were deciding and finalizing Clemson as their school of choice.  Over time, it became a group asking who was from what state or country, what they wanted as their major.  Then it became a discussion on who was going to what orientation and what schedules people had constructed.  Overall, there was always that one guy who had the answer to every question possible (cough, Pierre, cough).  People networked, connected, built bridges in a cyber web that have lasted to even now.  This group has connected us in so many ways, I'm actually very grateful to have it because without it I wouldnt have some of the friends I have today.
    Society is a place that doesnt have to exist in the real world; the electronic one seems to suit many people just fine.  Things like Facebook have allowed us to communicate and get to know total strangers who have so much in common with each other.  After all, our best friends today live in our phones and computers as much as they do in their dorm rooms.

My Latest Verbal Spill

Interesting word choice: spill.  But that's exactly was it was, a spill of words.  This latest essay, our first major grade and giant essay was a spill of words, a stream of consciousness.  Not once in the writing process did I stop for more than a few minutes to regroup and edit my work as I went.  As a whole I enjoyed the paper because it allowed me to really get into my own flow of writing.  After asking a few friends and family to read it, it seems that I've developed my own characteristic style, and this is one of the most clear epitomes of how I work.  And that's a good thing, to me it is anyways.  I think that this was a good assignment because we could take it in any direction we wanted, so long as we stuck with the general idea of rhetoric and worked with the ad.  For my ad, it let me work with my newfound appreciation for the value of a Mac computer, and that the money invested in it is just that, an investment.  I'm more happy with this computer than anything I've ever bought for myself, and that includes all the guitars and saxophones I've used over the years (an fyi, thats a lot).   Overall, I liked this assignment, just as much as I've enjoyed doing these blogs.  I was able to be creative, and maintain my own stylistic touch.

Reclaiming the Idea of Beauty

   For many of us, a long time ago would only be thinking back so far as the early 2000's; if you can remember as far back as that ancient era, then you'd recall the anorexia trend that engulfed Hollywood.  Everyone was obsessed with being skinny, the skinniest, no matter how detrimental to their health it was.  Few dared stand up to those killing themselves in the name of beauty; one brave company however did.  In 2005 Dove created its "Campaign for Real Beauty," an effort to show that real women had real beauty, and didn't have to torture their minds and bodies to reach some unnatural physical state.  

   With a tagline like "Real Women have Real Curves," Dove sought to explore reality and promote the idea that the image of beauty is what the beholder makes it, not some airbrushed, stripped down, malnourished shell of a human.  Dove recruited real, everyday women, and created a slew of ads to promote the image of real beauty as what's really seen in everyday life.  Those working at Dove knew through research and even just looking at women of the world, that the frenzy to continue getting smaller and smaller was nothing short of extremely dangerous.  Susan Orbach's essay further explored the backing for the necessity of some intervention on behalf of women everywhere.  From as young as adolescence, girls to grown women felt imperfect, flawed, and thought they needed to change themselves in order to be beautiful.  Eating disorders became epidemics that seriously harmed women everywhere in their pursuit to make themselves this unnatural "beauty."  Dove's mission then became not only helping save these girls and women from a terrible fate, but also fixe their psyche so that future generations could come and go without having to fear for their health or self esteem.  I personally commend Dove for its actions; women don't need to feel pressured into feeling any less than what they are.  Real beauty, like the old adage, is not just skin deep, but in the eyes of the beholder.  If a woman feels beautiful, then in her eyes she is beautiful, and doesn't need to have that image of herself challenged by others.  

   Remind me to personally send Dove a Thank You card on behalf of all the guys in the world, because they were able to reach women in a way that we've been trying to do for forever now, to tell them that as a woman she doesn't need to go out of their way to be beautiful, just be who she really is.

A Little Piece of Ourselves

   Admit it: at some point in time you've fallen prey to Keyboard Cat.  David after the Dentist, "LEAVE BRITTENY ALONE!" and "Is it a good idea to Microwave this?" are just some of the things we waste countless hours on over the course of our days when we surf the web and inevitably end up on Youtube.  But why, of all things, do we watch these videos over something like a physics demonstration, or a public service announcement by an environmental group?
   To quote Michael Strangelove, "we watch them because we see in them a little bit of ourselves."  We all have an inner-child, and that child is devious and destructive, so why not throw a random object in the microwave oven and see what happens?  Even the amusement of seeing a cat manipulated to play a keyboard, thats something that we as a group relate to for the comedic effect.  People love a good laugh, so we drift towards the exotic, insane, the humorous,and the bizarre. It catches our attention; and in doing so, we see a little of our own humanity in those videos.  We like to play with our animals and make them do silly things, and we've all been loopy on medicine after a visit to the dentist.  It's in reality us that we see in those videos.
   Like Strangelove said, the videos shows our past and present, our triumphs and tragedies; they embody physical aspects of our ethereal selves, something not exactly tangible that we can then see made real.  While Youtube is a treasure trove of humor and knowledge, it can be seen in a more in-depth sense as a mirror of ourselves, seeing who we are and what we are: cats who play the keyboard.

Through the 12 Megapixel, High Definition, 4G Looking-glass

   Though perceived by all of us differently, there is no set definition of reality that everyone can agree to.  There's the dictionary definition, but what is said in print can often be drastically different than what is seen through pictures. In today's networked world, reality from across the globe is as real to us as events happening in our own back yards, and while technology has advanced, the subjects in the pictures have remained unchanged, even if they're not 100% honest.
   Even the older generations of today's society are discovering the new reality of what this digital age of photography, networking, and sharing really is.  Today's reality is as much digital as it is tangible, something seen and unseen.  So how does one explore the world through something as mundane as taking another glance at what's already there?
   Much like the old Lewis Carroll stories of Alice, today's society has to look deeper into what is present, and see a new world in the already existing one.  In this, we travel through the looking-glass, however modified, electrified and modernized it has become.  We reflect on what we see in the world, and experience it new ways, once we let go of old perspectives.  This new slant on the world allows us, like Alice, to make our own world, our own reality.  Taking what is already present, this technological society is able to shape, touch-up, enhance, distort, mod, and otherwise change the very reality once known, and present it as a new idea, a new reality.  In our attempt to recreate a custom world, we sometimes go against what is considered the "norm" of society.  Even such popular television shows like Mythbusters utilize that same mentality, of creating our on worlds;  one of the hosts, Adam Savage, is known for his catchphrase, "I reject your reality, and substitute my own!"

   Aside from nonconformity however, the other side of today's world is that what we see, when we create our own world or look at the reality already present, isn't always the smiling and happy picture being displayed.  Oftentimes we only capture the images of those better moments.  As the reading said, a good example of this blissful ignorance of negativity can be found in children.  We see kids today, at ages as soon as they can talk, already demanding their wants.  They scream, they shout, they argue for what they think is theirs, even though they can hardly form a complete sentence.  But why is it that the older generation looks down upon this, and woefully reminisces about the bygone days when children were nicer and the world a lot less serious place?
   Truth be told, we only make a point to remember the good times.  The old VHS home movies?  Or, (egads!) that old relic, the photo slide projector?  These antiques of a long gone day documented our world long before our reliance on wifi and cell signals rivaled that of our necessity for oxygen.  But look at what's contained in the slides and film, and you see smiling faces, laughs and good times with family and friends.  Even the tools of the days before us, we  made a point to remember the good times.  Every kid has his good days as much as his bad days; we're human, we're good and bad.  Now with our Crackberries, our iEverythngs, and Wifi/3G/4G/Broadband connections, we do just the same as the forerunners of this technology.  And while we may have the physical documentation of the good times, sometimes what the real world truly is just can't escape us.
   On a darker, briefer point, we near the 10th anniversary of the World Trade Center bombings from 2001.  That day lives clean and clear in the memories of scores of millions of Americans.  Memory is a fine storage space, but even then, sometimes the mind fails us and we rely on our cameras to ensure we've kept evidence of the truth.  Unlike the photographed world we see elsewhere, this was one of the few times in American history that pictures weren't just something taken for a hobby; at that time and place, photographs were a necessity.  (DISCLAIMER: Due to the unsettling nature of the photos, only the links will be posted). http://www.theage.com.au/ffximage/2006/08/30/FallingMan_060829015536020_wideweb__300x430.jpg , http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/staticfiles/NGC/StaticFiles/Images/Show/28xx/281x/2810_inside911_zero_hour-1_04700300.jpg
   Our digital society may be user created, edited, and published, the world isn't the beautiful smiling gem that we as a society have polished it out to be.  Look at the Facebook profile of any student, you'll see them with friends, or a fond memory of some nature.  We simply choose to see what we want to see, whether its the "real" reality or not.

PC? What?

   We've all seen them before, the classic paradigm of "who's better?" featuring Apple's Mac and the long established PC, presumably Microsoft.  So who is truly better, Macs or PCs?  

    Rhetorically speaking, the ideas presented are of huge contrasts.  On one end, there's the PC.  PCs are presented as plain, drab, unexciting.  The ad also argues that PCs are prone to viruses, crashing, and lacking any performance near as good as as Apple's Mac computers.  On the opposite side of the spectrum, there's Apple's Mac computer.  Macs are stated to be reliable, creative, and more powerful in computing terms than what PCs can do in capabilities.  

   Both created here in America, Apple hails from Silicon Valley while Microsoft reigns from Washington state.  Both companies started in the mid-1970's to young upstarts who had a passion for programming.  The Get a Mac campaign originated in 2006 and ran through 2010, as Apple's primary marketer for its electronics and services.  The ads are comedic and lighthearted, promoting Apple and Macs as cool, hip, trendy and laid-back while PCs are old-school, boring, and prone to constant failures of multiple ends.  

   If one were to look at college campuses in the early to mid-2000's, anyone who had a laptop or desktop computer more than likely would have been using a PC of some nature.  But now, Apple surrounds us.  Walk into a lecture hall, and well more than half of the students with computers open more then likely have a glowing apple on the back of their screen.  But why is this?

   Just as promised, Apple delivers.  The advertisement addresses how Macs are reliable, sturdy, stylish and powerful, capable of doing far more in better time and efficiency than PCs.  And like with its performance, Apple not only sells a powerful computer, it also sells an image.  Apple and Mac users alike agree on the fact that the Apple brand is as much the image of technological supremacy as it is in real life tests.  The simple Get a Mac ads explore that idea in a lighthearted display.

   Depicted in the shorts are two people, sometimes more depending on which particular clip is being played.  Justin Long plays the Mac, being young and easily recognizable as someone "cool" by today's standards; the PC is portrayed by John Hodgman, dressed in a suit, acting in a manner always trying to one-up the Mac, never succeeding.  Today's youth can identify with Long and his symbolism as a Mac; he's young, he's popular, and he speaks and acts in a way that today's young adults relate to.  The struggle for the PC to out-do the Mac always results in a Mac victory based off the sheer futility of even trying to compare the two.  The ads all follow the same pattern: "Hello I'm a Mac."  "And I'm a PC."  People recognize that phrase, the images associated with it, and the rhetoric of the situation further implicates itself in the viewers mind, falling back on more rhetoric.  Like each advertisement concludes, which side wins?  The old, worn out PCs?  Or the state-of-the-art, trendy, and successful Macs?

   You be the judge.

or

Video courtesy of Youtube at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Afa9C98gZ7w

Images from: http://media.techeblog.com/images/getamac_apple.jpg, http://thepoliticalcarnival.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/question-mark1.jpg, http://www.toxel.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/msticker06.jpg, http://www.myhomesimulator.com/images/pc-logo.jpg, http://www.stockdiscussion.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Apple-Logo1.jpg

Comics and Cartoons

   It's funny how fast attitudes can change.  What exactly is seen here?  The comic shows just how quickly the situation went from something light-hearted and comical to a very serious and grave moment.  The characters go from cheering on a friend funneling a beer to cheering on a doctor to pump the alcohol from him to save him from alcohol poisoning.  Sounds like a pretty drastic change of heart.

   So where exactly did this comic come from, and who created it?  It's from here in the States, ca. 2010’s, and is a webcomic.  The article was published as a comedic take on what the realities of partying can be; the comic itself is neither conservative or liberal, just a deriving take on a situation.  It aims for a laugh at a very real event that can be all too serious.

   This comic was created courtesy of Kris Wilson, a cartoonist for a popular series of comics called Cyanide and Happiness.  Kris, of the webpage Explosm, is known for him outlandish and edgy cartoons.  He is one of four members of Explosm which produce Cyanide and Happiness, that put out daily webcomics.  It is presumed Kris lives in Washington state, although he has not disclosed his location specifically; he publishes online anonymously exclusively though Explosm, using this avatar:

 

   The cartoon itself addresses the issue of overconsumption of alcohol, how partying can be fun at the time but have disastrous outcomes.  Irony is involved greatly, because the characters go from cheering on their friend to drink to cheering on the doctor to save the friend.  All in all, the cartoon doesn’t really take a stand, but it does show the hazards of drinking too much. 

   Design-wise, the cartoon is a two-frame piece.  The conflict evolves from one frame to the next, being only two.  This can be summed up to be similar to a cause-effect sense. While the cartoon is not visually exclusive, it draws heavily on the imagery.  Word and images are both used here.  The words are a commentary on what typically happens during the first picture, while the second is an ironic play on words on the effect of the first frame. 

   So what exactly is Kris showing in the comic?  The artist uses the images of a beer funnel, commonly found at parties, then a stomach pump in the next one, for comedic affect.  The drawings are purposely unrealistically cartoonish.  It is primarily a human stereotype done simply on something like the program Paint.  The artist does not draw on past or present ideas, he simply uses a modern event found at today’s parties.  This mirror's the tone of most Cyanide and Happiness comics, keeping the cartoon is comedic in style.  The word play of “chug chug chug!” turned “pump pump pump!” is rhetorical in the fact that it changes its tone very quickly, and then is left simply at that.  This impacts the readers on how fast attitudes can change when something bad happens. 

   The cartoon itself only shows three simple things: people, objects, and two small scenes, all done at a bare minimal of style and imagery.  The people in the cartoon are only slightly based on human analogues, of middle-class Caucasian male partier-goers and a doctor.  While not real people, the images of the men is symbolic enough to represent what real people can do in those situations.  In short, even though the people shown are not real, what they are doing is something that happens often enough to be easily recognizable.  This happens in a rhetorical way because the image of a beer funnel is commonly associated with alcohol, and for those who have experience in alcohol over-consumption, the stomach pumping is also familiar.  For the party culture, this isn't a totally alien thing.  All in all, Kris' comic is a simple one-two punch of a joke, showing the cause and effect of drinking and how quickly people's attitudes change.

Found at http://www.explosm.net/comics/2507/

Rhetoric in Everyday Life

Walk outside; what do you see?  More than likely, in some manner, there's an example of rhetoric.  A poster, a flyer, a billboard, an advertisement.  Bright images with big fonts.  All of these examples utilize the same strategy: appealing to the senses to convey a message.  On campus, such examples include things like the FCA posters and Greek Life flyers seen everywhere.
But what exactly are they trying to say?  With rhetorical analysis, we can break down these things to their core components and discover just what the true message is.

The Greek Life flyer, for example, depicts a picture of two people smiling and having a good time.  Fraternity and brotherhood, as well as sororities and sisterhood, is emphasized by the ideal of unity from a common bond.  The design of the flyer itself utilizes a modern, flashy yet simple structure that catches the eye.

But just how much rhetoric is seen by the average student as they traipse through their daily life?  Passing through the student Unions, they'd see bulletin boards with messages designed to catch their attention, or even symbols and logos on everything from clothes to computers and school equipment.  The message is nailed into the student's mind, of ideals and ideas trying to be handed to them, ever constantly.  The vending machines try and catch the eye (and appetite).    The movie theater tries to sell tickets for its latest screenings.  Even the very classes that students attend us rhetoric to catch the student's eye as they learn and retain knowledge.

Rhetoric surrounds us, every moment of every day, trying to persuade us, the student body and all others.  It's an effective medium, because it is so heavily used in every medium possible.  Whether it goes realized or not, rhetoric is one of the most base forms of commuting information and ideas.