REHUGO+4th+Six+Weeks

Category: Education Citation: Alexie, Sherman. "Superman and Me." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawrence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St. Martin's, 2008. 110-112. Print. Precis: In this inspiring essay, Sherman Alexie reiterates the fact that educating oneself is essential to one's success by portraying life in different forms of paragraphs, specifically his own paragraph of how he overcome tribulations, in order to fully understand the relevance of knowledge that comes with being an educated reader. Personal Commentary: Surprisingly, I found this excerpt very interesting because I had never thought of viewing everything in life as a paragraph as Alexie did. It was very impressive that a Native American could become educated, especially self-taught, in order to become a writer and share his story with other young students.
 * In this [tone adjective] [noun to define type of writing] [insert author’s name] [rhetorically accurate verb] that [fill in the blank with a statement which details the entire argument and how that argument is created] **

Category: Work Citation: Washington, Booker T. "The Atlanta Exposition Address." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawrence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St. Martin's, 2008. 191-194. Print . Precis: In this eloquent speech, Booker T. Washington asserts that partnership between the whites and the blacks is necessary for the success of the economic ascendancy of the New South by reminding the whites of the blacks loyalty and efficient work ethic in order to emphasize the fact that blacks are essential keys to the overall economic prosperity of the New South. Personal Commentary: I was interested in reading this speech because I recently learned about Booker T. Washington in U.S. History. I agree with his speech, and I admired his ability to speak to the directors of the Exposition about this topic regarding social and economic equality between whites and blacks. His approach to attempting to accommodate the whites rather than fighting them is quite impressive.

Category: Community Citation: Howard, Jane. "In Search of the Good Family." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawrence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St. Martin's, 2008. 283-288. Print. Precis: In this knowledgeable excerpt, Jane Howard expresses what constitutes as an acceptable family by listing out everything one needs to have and by comparing its existence to other common examples, such as tribes, in order to state the importance of wisely choosing what one's own family should consist of. Personal Commentary: Families are a key aspect in one's personal existence. I thought that all of her points about what a family should consist of where spot on, but unfortunately, this ideal family is one that is difficult to come by in my opinion.

Category: Sports and Fitness <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Willard, Frances. "From How I Learned to Ride a Bicycle." __<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">The Language of Composition __<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawrence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St. Martin's, 2008. 459. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Precis: In this heart-felt reflection, Frances Willard stresses that women should take the initiative in controlling their lives through her personal anecdote and personifying the bicycle as a defeated barrier in her life in order to demonstrate the value of one's independence and how persevering can produce desirable results. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Personal Commentary: In hope of being an inspiration to others, I admire Willard's account regarding the ability to break down barriers one may face during a lifetime. Anything can be accomplished through diligent practice and patience.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Category: Gender <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Cofer, Judith Ortiz. "The Myth of the Latin Woman: I Just Met a Girl Named Maria." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawrence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St. Martin's, 2008. 370-375. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Precis: In this edifying essay, Judith Cofer implies that mixed cultural signals perpetuate specific, often misjudged, stereotypes through her own personal anecdote of certain examples that depict her experiences with others making incorrect suppositions about who she is or what she wants in order to emphasize the common misconceptions people have about others based on prior judgement. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Personal Commentary: Honestly, what Cofer was saying is so true in today's society. People constantly stereotype others based on what they've previously known without actually nothing anything about that person. This story is extremely applicable to high school and has made me think about my perspective on others and that I certainly have room for improvement.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Category: Language <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Berkowitz, Peter. McFaul, Michael. "Studying Islam, Strengthening the Nation." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawerence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St. Martin's, 2008. 559-561. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Precis: In this urgent essay, Peter Berkowitz and Michael McFaul demand that abdication of not focusing more on the Middle Eastern countries is not only an educational problem, but also poses a threat to America's national security by utilizing research from previous events regarding the United States and other countries and how America's national security has been and could be threatened in order to emphasize the crucial role of educating Americans about how to spread liberty to those countries who need it urgently, specifically in middle eastern region. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Personal Commentary: Personally, I wouldn't want to learn about the Middle East. I'm never going there or fighting in a war over there, so why would I need to learn about them? However, that is only because I'm a 16 year old girl who is to naive to realize the importance of being knowledgeable about different cultures and countries. I think that these authors are correct in saying that if Americans know more about the enemy, the more advantage they will have in defeating it.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Category: Science and Technology <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. "The Future of Happiness." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawerence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St Martin's, 2008. 623-629. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Precis: In this extensive book excerpt, Mihaly Csikszentimihalyi explores the possible effects of future genetic engineering by logically progressing from background information, other's opinions, and then his opinion, and also by comparing present genetic engineering to methods in the past in order to caution the reader of the potential dangers this type of engineering can cause. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Personal Commentary: I feel as if genetic engineering is simply not right. It's basically saying "Hey God! We don't like the way people are turning out these days, so we are going to "engineer" people ourselves in order to make them the way we think is beautiful and acceptable to our standards." That's like slapping God in the face. I feel like besides the religion aspect, genetic engineering would upset the normal role in society and would cause more tension. Don't forget about the expenses this would have as well.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Category: Popular Culture <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Denby, David. "High-School Confidential: Notes on Teen Movies." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawerence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St Martin's, 2008. 709-715. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive;"> Precis: In this critical essay, David Denby explores the different stereotypes present in high-school movies by summarizing the story line of an average teenage movie in order to analyze its double meaning of reality- the drama, arrogance, and exclusion present in high school- and the sheer fact that this type of movie portrays what the producer's life consisted of. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Personal Commentary: Teenage movies are filled with drama that actually depict what happens in every day life at high school. However, I never realized the fact that these movies could easily be a reflection of the filmmaker's past.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Category: Nature <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Maathai, Wangari. "2004 Nobel Peace Prize Speech." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawerence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St Martin's, 2008. 834-839. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Precis: In this thought-provoking speech, Wangari Maathai believes that the government should recognize important social movements and that young people, particularly women, should commit themselves to achieving their aspirations by explaining how her environment achievements coincide with a democratic government in order to inspire others to make a difference. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Personal Commentary: Maathai was very respectful to the audience in her speech, and I admired the fact she used her achievements not for her own glory, but for the explanation that others can be motivate to do great things.

<span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Category: Politics <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Citation: Hedges, Chris. "The Destruction of Culture." __The Language of Composition__. Ed. Renee Shea, Lawerence Scanlon, Robin Aufses. Boston: Bedford St Martin's, 2008. 922-928. Print. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Precis: In this melancholy essay, Chris Hedges asserts that war causes the destruction of a culture by giving examples of the harmful effects of war on culture within society in order to demonstrate the true control war has on a society's success. <span style="background-color: #ffffff; color: #0000ff; font-family: 'Comic Sans MS',cursive; font-size: 14px;">Personal Commentary: Hedges has the authority to speak about this topic because of his background as a foreign correspondent, which helps his argument seem more credible. I think that this essay was very straight-forward and accurate about the potential consequences war can have on culture.