The articles by Baron, Wysocki, and Johnson brought up a number of crucial points in our continued discussion on what writing is and how it can be appropriately defined. While these articles are obviously connected, they create a foundation for a perhaps unintended discourse within the field of rhetoric. The main comparison I took issue with was pitting writing against literacy in an effort to define the two individually. Baron does a nice job summarizing how writing has developed from a need to communicate without speech to a viral spreading of ideas through digital means. From the beginning of this course, I've taken issue with the fact there are those who deny writing by means of typewriter, computer or other electronic device as actual writing. Rarely do I sit down and put pen to paper if what I am composing is anything substantial. Baron's article pointed out how there was a time when writing was carving on stone tablets. It seems silly to think there was a debate whether transferring these symbols to papyrus and eventually paper deprived communication and/or writing as it were. I understand how fraudulent writing is of growing concern with growing availability of access due to the digital revolution, but I can't say writing is any less valuable than it was thousands of years ago. I think the digital age has allowed us to continue the tradition of development in writing capability and any other subject requiring study and application.
Wysocki did not center his article on the debate of what writing is and what it is not. I found his ideas regarding literacy to be particularly interesting, mainly because I liked his use of the working knowledge and how he linked it back to our earlier discussions of intertextualiy. The computer has given writers the ability to compile their often endless sources of information into the tiniest form of portable storage. A writer can access their personal library from arguably anywhere in the world at any time of the day. The digital era has given us the opportunity to access more information than ever before, compose faster, and publish more frequently through a multitude of channels. On the other hand, writers can be lazy about it--relying on editing programs and failing to check sources properly. I cannot say I've always made sure those other writer's I've referenced in the past were genuine, checking their sources in the process. If authentic writers go about their processes the right way, these digital sources should offer us assistance in getting the word out. I guess now we just need to find out exactly what the right way is.
I like Johnson's article because it discusses more specific examples of how work is published digitally. The blog is in fact writing in my mind, just an informal one--most of the time. It is not always right, does not always matter for anyone other than the writer, and is certainly not always perfect. Blog writing allows its users to write in a stream of consciousness sort of way, opening us up to ideas we may have otherwise never had. Would blogging be a course requirement (in this and many others) if it were not engaging and effective? I think not.
With graduation coming up and grad school on the horizon, I have thought to myself how much I want to get out of working in the service industry. I thought, oh great another two years of this, maybe more considering my degree? Hell, maybe forever. I realized that I'll have a degree under my belt come summer. After speaking with quite a few people, I was enlightened to the fact there are many positions available for someone with an English degree. All throughout college, I've had this idea that an English degree means teacher or novelist. Not so. A few friends who work for Microsoft recommended I look into technical writing positions to work my way through the rest of my schooling. Though I haven't delved into this search as of yet, I have began to research. This is one of the articles that got me started.
http://www.writingassist.com/resources/articles/technical-writers-as-subject-matter-experts/
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