Mark Fitch

English 2089

Neely McLaughlin

4/30/20

Final Reflection

So far this semester I have acclimated myself with WordPress and learned to create and post blog posts as well as learning to post on pages. Posting these and reading certain articles that dive into what makes people read certain articles and posts. One of the first things we read in class was the “color blue” article and what was interesting about the color blue article was how in some way and some places this reason to not seeing the color would consist of either no known knowledge of the color spectrum and never thought about that color. This coincides with future assignments that we have with the idea of using words and new ways of saying things, that by doing this we can intrigue or catch someone’s eye and in turn they will read the article based on what its about or how it may look.

During this semester we have also looked at different and more effective ways of journalism. We have learned what a discourse community is(a group or people working towards the same goal or objective). Learning about the discourse community was very interesting in that in a discourse community, everyone can be working towards the same goals, but each person has or could have different area of expertise in the subject or goal that the community is working towards with an example being at UCBA. Another topic we examined was a series of VSCO post and the way that they were written. For example, on pertained more to how it related to the author of the article and the other being more focused on what the article was about and the title topic at hand. The next assignment is our observation assignment, and this includes writing about a certain topic and well observing it and writing about what it has to offer. My observation assignment consists of “why people play video games”, I chose this because video games have always been in my life and the ability that video games have to teach you or change the way you feel is what intrigues me most about my observation topic.

In this class we also talked about the activist which is where article get posted for viewing on the UC website and us finding an appropriate Article ro post on there. As I talked about earlier of the color blue article and how it reveals that language can shape our perception of reality, well soon we read an article being titled just that and this helps in when we are writing an article, blog, or pages is that we need to remember that the language we use in the beginning of each of these will shape the reader perception of how the article will continue to go, always be sure to be intriguing in the beginning so the reader will continue on. We then went on to choose our profile article that we want to focus on and mine being why people play video games.

The next assignment consisted of getting into groups to work on a photo caption list which is a topic that is discussed with information that would be interesting to the reader or readers with pictures. Our groups photo caption list is about business and the essentials of making or having one which includes saving, investing, spending, and just overall business tips and ideas. While still working on the observation paper and the photo caption list we started focusing on genre and discerning different types of genres to easier identify what it is that is being generalized. Also, we talked more about the Activist and what would be considered ready to be posted on there and with that needing the observation paper to be ready. We recently read the articles genre in the wild which covers different genres and discovering them, also the article about the concept of discourse communities.

In the new week of class so far, we have reviewed the drafts for our midterm reflective essay as well as reviewing and giving feedback to the people in our group for their reflective essays. After reading “your recent email to your professor” I took into consideration to try and make my reflective essay to be more welcoming and to humanize it a bit. Though with the article being mainly about emails, I felt making too much of a drastic change throughout would take away from what I am trying to say, and I feel that certain parts would be out of place. Although I could be entirely wrong and have interpreted this assignment incorrectly. From “How to Email: An etiquette update: Brevity is the highest virtue” I tried to incorporate different things from it into the essay but the amin takeaway I had along with the previous article was improving my etiquette. So with the last article about not trying to annoy your professor with emails, I took away the suggestion of only incorporate what was necessary and so I took a few minor details out. Also, the idea of trying to make this essay clearer. So in conclusion, I just hope that this has covered the general idea of this assignment and essay, along with making it grammatically correct and in proper fashion.

So far with the rest of the class the work and class structure became confusing and off track due to the Coronavirus Epidemic. Bur before that some assignment included the group project of interest in slang and to read over and reflect articles. We returned to previous and new readings and reflected over them in similarity to the course work and goals, articles I chose to reflect over were the discourse community and “how language shapes out reality”. It is tough to fully write on a final reflection as with everything changing in the world making it difficult to adjust to certain changes.

Mark Fitch

English 2089

4/24/20

Returning to our readings

How Language Shapes Our Perception of Reality

To summarize the article, it goes in depth of how languages on every single level has similarities and differences and how these shape our mind. Like for example, languages identify with culture and in different culture the language and linguistics are reacted and said upon differently.

I personally liked this article. It makes me think and see how language has such a big effect on everything, all the way down to our perception of reality. Not just reality but also the culture and the way the mind process and thinks. This also brings about the though of people and using the power of language to gain supporters and change other people perception of reality through words.

The Concept of Discourse Community

This article talks about how certain communities can be formed from groups of people that have the same goals, plans, and interests to form a Discourse Community.

I liked the Concept of Discourse Community article because it recognizes the forming or unintentional forming of communities with people of similar goals. The example the article used that I liked was that a discourse community could be a “hobby group” and in this case they were a Hong Kong Study Circle with a goal of finding printings from Hong Kong, Great Britain, and the USA. Another thing I liked is how in a Discourse Community you can always come out better. This being because in the Discourse Community you have a plethora or members suitable with content you can work with. Another thing I really like is how this can relate to the “How Language Shapes Our Perception of Reality” article in how the use of language and socializing can shape our reality and our Discourse Communities.

What does interest of slang mean? Well it could pertain to you trying to accumulate new slang to fit into a new group or it is something that has come naturally to you in your upbringing and experiences, like my partners said, your slang can really pertain to your age, location, and motivation for it.

Using the right terminology or slang to fit into a group is the most common source of people picking up new slang, this new group maybe a job, team, or discourse community. so knowing the slang that goes on would better integrate you and familiarize you into the group. Some example have been brought up by my partners and those examples being if you are around 20 and trying to fit into a specific group more than you already are or with the possibility if you have a job of being a doctor, you may need to learn their slang in order to communicate more connectively and effectively.

Now I’m going to talk about interest in the sense of age and origin. Interest in slang is bound to change throughout the years and the different age groups will have their own set slang and this is developed from your origin, age and your current interest involving those two factor. As you grow the interest you have for things will change and depending on your decisions and groups that you join, your slang will change as well, though like other people this will be formed from your interest and upbringings.

My part of the group photo caption list.

Mark Fitch

Investments

Investing can help you accomplish your financial goals in the future and could keep you financially stable. Not only will it be a good safeguard for the future, but it will also increase your wealth in time. Investing can come with a load of other benefits being saving on taxes, meeting financial goals, and reaching an early retirement.

A first step to begin investing would be to make sire that you are debt free and financially ready to start investing. This would make sure that if the investment for some reason would go awry, you would be able to pull yourself out no problem.

A next step would be to see how much you can invest to start and will help you determine which investments to do as well as have a back up plan with saved money. During this you would need to find potential investment planner or investment firm depending on how you go about this.

The third step would be to find the type of investment you want to do and to wager the risk to the potential reward. Find something you feel would be a good investment that is trusted and has potential to succeed.   

Mark R. Fitch

English 2089

Professor Mclaughlin

January 31, 2020

My first profile article deals with the burning question, “why do people play video games?” As discussed herein, there is no one simple answer.

In reality, there are many reasons why some people may decide to play video games. It may be because they have grown up with it and had friends or family members who played. It could be they play because they are simply bored and are looking for stimulation or form of escape, similar to watching movies or reading a good book. Or, it could be just a new hobby that they came across. Videogames are unique in that they allow the player control over the game environment while at the same time encapsulating some of the features of both movies and books. Considering the many reasons why someone may choose to play video games it is clear that the reasons range from very general to very specific. Therefore, I decided to ask my friend what his motivation was. By way of background, my friend happens to be someone who had frequently played video games all the way through high school but had recently stepped away from it for a bit. It wasn’t the case that he necessarily lost interest in playing videogames per se, but rather that there was no current game that he felt would satisfy him.

There were several new releases during my friend’s hiatus from gaming, but he suddenly started playing a specific video game entitled “The Witcher”. So I asked what motivated or interested him to start gaming again, and why he was interested in this particular title. He said, “I play it mainly because of the actor Henry Cavil and his role in the recently released Netflix series entitled Witcher, which is a drama/fantasy series based closely on the video game itself.”  My friend had watched the series and had enjoyed it. Therefore, in this instance it was the fact that “The Witcher” was a highly rated Netflix title with one of Hollywood’s leading stars which peaked his interest in going further and immersing himself in playing the video game. I felt compelled to ask him about his motivation because frankly it surprised me to see him so dedicated to this game and putting so many hours into it, when he had pretty much gotten away from gaming altogether for a period of time.

Now in thinking about it, the reasons he started playing a videogame such as Witcher are easy to point out. First, the making of the new TV show was accompanied by a substantial marketing campaign which generally piqued the public’s interest in in this medieval fantasy. Second, the show itself is derived from several successful books. Therefore, both the video game and the subsequent Netflix show have roots in material which is rich in content (as opposed to a video game title which is self-contained work developed solely for gaming). Video games across many different genres are released each year, the reason he plays video games now is because of the successful TV show. After delving further and asking him about this, he said, “it is one of the main reasons, because it was a way to extend the experience of the show and not letting the story end.”

Having previous experience with videogames probably makes him more inclined to play a video game again. I asked him if he grew up playing them or was introduced to them later in life and he confirmed that “videogames have always been part of our household.” A factor of growing up playing video games suggests that you may be more likely to continue playing them. However, in this case, the continued interest appears to be more driven by subject matter and well-developed material that peaked a specific interest.

Profile Article 2

For my second profile article I will talk about a certain group of people that follow the Asatru religion which is also know as neopaganistic. This derives from mainly the Norse/Scandinavian religions that were prominent in the years before Christianity made, or some would say forced their way as the capital religion which would be before about the year 1100. The Asatru religion is gaining more and more members and popularity and is almost being seen as a revival of the old gods and their religion, the groups mainly take prominence in the northern hemisphere being made in Iceland and moving back to Scandinavia and even some parts Scotland. The rise of polytheistic religions isn’t just happening in the north but in the south in Greece there are still hold to the Olympia gods and even gaining more prominence today. But focusing on Asatru, I have chosen this as my focus because I know someone that follows this along with his family, I even have great interest in these things as well.

1. A few profile articles that I have come up with are, one being why people play video games. I feel like that can be a good study to see what intrigues people to play them or what other reasons there are.
2. The Activist to profile an individual, group, or business would mean the activist would have to ask certain questions pertaining to what the group or induvial do and what makes them interesting. Mainly to find out what would interest people that might be reading what the activist would be posting. Posting on the activist can help shape the UCBA community by giving a collection and review of many different things and spreading the knowledge that would interest certain people.
3. A group I would lie to do is the group or people that play video games and why they do it. I feel like this could be interesting because their can be so many factors to why you play video games, or it can be very simple reasons. Observation I will do will be asking questions to people playing video games and see their reasons for playing a certain game or find out their first experience with video games.

A. What interested me about the color blue article was how in some way and some places this reason to not seeing the color would consist of either no known knowledge of the color spectrum and never thought about that color (as it was rare to have that color for clothing and decoration) as something common. This article say that the evolution of language could pertain to how blue came around and with that it is integrated into reality and everyone realizes the color blue as it now has a name, description, and place in everyone’s minds. I also make of this that there are still certain things that we might not realize or not have a word for though I would defiantly say that it is less common nowadays.

B. My experience with journalism today is limited but I have had some experience in the past just with research and asking the right questions.

C. A discourse community is a group that has the same motivation or works towards the same goals. I think I have experienced this concept before having taking classes that have talked about it or have encouraged it in group projects. I think it is interesting that in a discourse community, everyone can be working towards the same goals, but each person has or could have different area of expertise in the subject or goal that the community is working towards. At UCBA the students all have a common goal of graduated, getting a degree, and going to school for what they want to learn in their area of expertise or interest, though most people at UCBA would go about this process alone and not with others in their desired field.

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