P1 Draft 2 due AND Persuasive Genres

Brandi Bradley
Feb 11, 2019
5 min read

Draft 2 of Project 1 is due before 11:59 pm TONIGHT (February 11). I expect to see major changes to these drafts. You should have taken the feedback you received in our meeting and make changes accordingly.

YOU WILL UPLOAD YOUR REVISED DRAFT IN TWO DIFFERENT PLACES!!! I want one draft as a Google doc uploaded to your assigned Group's Shared Folder. I also want your to upload the draft to your Wix page as a Pdf and submit the correct link to Canvas, just like all your other submissions.

You must do it this way, because your classmate needs a draft they can edit, and they won't be able to do that with a Pdf from your site. You must place a draft of your Wix page because it is required for your Wix portfolio for the end of the semester.

How do you make sure you receive full participation points for this draft:

Make the changes discussed via conference

Upload both copies of the draft before the deadline.

Next, you are required to edit your classmate's drafts and evaluate the feedback you receive from your classmates. Review last Wednesday's Lecture for the specific guidelines for editing Edits and forms are due before 11:59 pm on FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 15.

When evaluating a classmate for this project, consider what you want from a teammate? Are they giving as much as you are for this project? Does their edit of your work seem rushed or careless? Are they being respectful of your time?

Here are some frequent questions regarding group work:

How many drafts should I be reading?

You should read the drafts for EVERY person in your group.

What do you do when a classmate does not upload their draft to the folder before the deadline?

My advice is to send them a Twitter DM or email explaining that you can't find their draft. It is possible your classmate forgot to upload their draft in the correct place.

What if your classmates give conflicting advice about what to change?

You must go with your gut here. This is why you are reviewed by more than one person. One person may give bad advice; two people may be pointing at a pattern.

What if your classmate submits a draft which looks like a first draft?

If your teammate is writing in 1st person, writing paragraphs which are a page long, or is not using MLA citations, make sure you kindly remind them that these are things which I have specifically warned against. You are not being nice by ignoring things which you know are going to lead them to a low grade.

What if a classmate doesn't turn in a draft and then contacts me explaining an emergency which has kept them from turning in their draft?

Everyone knows that life happens when you are on a deadline. If you had an emergency and couldn't turn in a draft, how would you want your teammates to treat you? You are not held responsible for another person missing a deadline. However, when your teammates miss a deadline, you are missing out on feedback which could lead you to a higher grade. You also have a right to be frustrated, but know the emergency is not that person's fault.

If you hit any road blocks, don't forget that I hold Office Hours on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons from 2-4pm. I am not a mind-reader and some questions cannot be covered on Twitter, so if you need help, set an appointment.

This week's Twitter Assignment: Create a thread where you write a testimonial about a product in your room or a place you recently visited, convincing others that it is great. BUT, you must tell it as a narrative.

Now, let's talk about persuasive texts.

For Project #2, which is heading your way next week, you will be assembling a persuasive visual text for your Curation. Before you can do that, you must learn the rules and conventions of Persuasive Genres.

Persuasive genres are genres which are crafted for the specific purpose to convince people to buy their product, change their behavior, or support their cause.

Persuasive genres include but are not limited to:

Advertisements
Public Service announcements
Documentaries
Manifestos
Tweets
Facebook Posts
Sermons
Political rallies
Recruitment booths
Radio spots

Some of these are Audio, visual or face-to-face modes.

The above commercial ran in the 2017 NCAA Tournament, one of the major television viewing events of the year where companies throw a lot of money into composing television advertisements that are memorable.

After viewing this commercial, think about why this mode (television)? Why Casey Neistat as spokesperson? Who is the audience they are attempting to reach considering that it aired on television during the NCAA Tournament? And is it effective?

Generally persuasive genres have two genre conventions:

Make an explicit argument or position statement
Taps into an audiences' values or emotions

All other genre conventions would be determined by the Mode. A TV spot has a specific time limit. A documentary would need to rely on evocative images. A speech would rely on repetitive statements.

Soon, you will be asked to compose a persuasive genre in this class. Often persuasive genres are used as supporting composition: "Buy my album", "The can't miss movie of the summer", etc.

So remember, when composing a persuasive genre, be sure to use the rhetorical appeals.

Ethos: Make sure the viewer/reader/listener knows you are a person of authority. Introduce yourself. Tell them why they should listen to you.
Logos: Be clear. Make sure your arguments make sense. Make sure your ideas connect.
Pathos: Believe in what you are saying. It is very difficult to fake enthusiasm, interest, belief or passion in a concept.

BEWARE of these techniques which are often used in persuasive genres but are usually ineffective:

Barking orders - telling people how to live their life is not connecting to people. Don't play the morality card.
"Isn't this sad" - passive pathos, throwing together a bunch of pitiful images, like the ASPCA ads. You might remember the ads, but how many people do you know have actually sent money?
Auctioneer statistics - blinding the audience with numbers. This is usually an attempt to confuse the viewer/listener/reader.

Now, watch this Ted Talk.

This is a persuasive genre. Pay attention to what techniques she uses in this audio mode and face-to-face media (she’s addressing the audience, not those who happen to see this video online) in order to persuade her audience. Take in the whole picture:

Audience: Who is she speaking to and how does she appeal to them?
Style/Design: What does she use to make her speech visual stimulating? What impression does her choice of clothing give?
Is this a hybrid genre?

Note how she makes a bid -- a promise to the crowd -- at the beginning of the video. When her speech is over, she fulfills that promise. This is a strategy that persuasive genres often use: offering the viewer an intriguing gift which keeps the viewer/listener/reader a reason to continue to the end. The gift is usually something the viewer/listener/reader had all along.

Also, pay attention to how she is using narrative to persuade.

Don't forget: