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Joseph McGill
Dr. McLaughlin
WR 13300
29 April 2015
Reflective Writers Statement
This portfolio is a fantastic representation of the understanding that I
have developed in regards to the writing process as a whole. Before taking
this course, my writing assignments were produced with little to no planning
and my primary focus was always to simply finish rather than finish with a
well developed final draft. My experience in Multimedia Writing and Rhetoric
has given me the skills and techniques required to write essays that are
carefully planned out as well as edited in a way that makes the finished
product a masterpiece. The essays in this portfolio reflect the process that
went into writing them because they have paragraphs that transition very
smoothly and ultimately lead up to the final point that I am trying to make.
One such example is in my rhetorical analysis in which I choose to focus on
the individual in the beginning of the paper and then progress into talking
about an individuals role in a bigger community that eventually can lead to
a substantially influential society. The structure and organization of this
paper and the other assignments present in the portfolio clearly demonstrate
my new ability to connect points and use each element of the whole to
persuade a reader of my argument.

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The art of rhetoric and argumentation are other concepts that I
developed a better understanding of through the course. The rhetorical
analysis of Selma was an excellent way for me to learn about rhetorical
elements present in todays media and the strategies that scripters use in
order to impact their audience most effectively. My Selma essay also
demonstrates personal rhetorical techniques that I learned to be very
effective for convincing a reader of a certain point or set of points. The
drafting process helped me very well with transitioning into my research
paper for which I had to analyze dozens of sources and evaluate which ones
would be the most effective for my research argument. I was fairly
unconfident going into my research paper considering the fact that it was the
first one I had ever written. However, after being introduced to the research
process, I was able to work my way into the developing a strong argument
with many sources to support my points as shown in the portfolio.
The time and effort that I put into the planning process was a major asset
for all of the assignments in the portfolio. The reading that I did prior to
writing each of my essays helped to give me insight from experts about the
most effective elements that I needed to incorporate to produce a great
paper. My portfolio reveals many of the strategies I took to enhance my
arguments such as incorporating ethos, logos, and pathos, which I learned is
necessary for any argumentative piece of work. Using these strategies, I was
able to think critically about the best way to address my audience and form
an argument that appeals to them in a variety of ways. My carefully

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developed argument is present in each of the four assignments and
accurately reflects my ability to plan using readings, research, and critical
thinking skills.
Multimedia has played a major role in the reading, writing, rhetoric,
and research skills that I have developed this semester. The process that
went into creating my audio essay helped to give me ideas about the
elements of multimedia that can be the most rhetorically effective. For
example, something as simple as my voice inflection can completely change
the way that the audience takes a certain piece of information. The other
multimedia-based assignment that taught me about effective arguing was
the rhetorical analysis. I was able to analyze the rhetorical strategies that
professional filmmakers use and create my own argument about how
effective they are in this process. Lastly, the sources that I used for my
research paper and TED talk were strongly based off of the media. The
statistical analysis that I looked at showed me exactly which types of
advertisements are the rhetorically the most effective as well as how the
creators of these multimedia ads look to target specific groups of people.
Each assignment throughout the course helped me to develop as a
writer as well as learn more about the process that must go into producing a
well-furnished final product. The audio essay introduced me to the added
effect that the media can play in speaking to your audience. I learned about
some of the ways that I could use sound to my advantage and further
emphasize my story. I found this to be a great way to introduce me to the

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rhetorical analysis of Selma because I was now more aware of certain tactics
that people can use in the media to convince their audience of something. I
believe that my essay reveals how much I learned about multimedia rhetoric
as a whole because I was able to experience the movie as an audience
member and analyze the direct impact that the film hopes to make on its
viewers based on my personal experience. The research paper was a great
way to build off of the rhetorical analysis because it forced me to create my
own argument and support it with any evidence I could find. I thought that
having an increased page limit for the research paper was very beneficial
because it allowed me to present almost all of the information that I found
and put it together in the fashion that I believed had the best rhetorical
appeal to my readers. After performing significant revisions on my research
paper, I feel confident that it accurately reflects my ability to interpret
information well and form an argument. Doing my TED talk on the same
topic as my research paper was a major benefit because I was able to pick
out the exact pieces of my argument that I found to be most influential. As
my portfolio demonstrates, I took a bit of a different approach in my TED
from my research paper because my research paper focuses on the statistics
behind the media that relates to supplement usage, while my TED talk
analyzes the actual advertisements that are affecting people and causing
them to use bodybuilding supplements. My presentation along with all three
essays reveal how effective the developing strategies were for each
assignment. I believe that my finished work clearly demonstrates my ability

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to follow guidelines and master the intended learning outcomes for each task
at hand.
The project in my portfolio that I am most proud of is the rhetorical
analysis. While this essay may have originally earned me the lowest grade
when compared to the other assignments, I felt that I took a major step with
that essay in my ability to write a paper with great focus, organization,
development, design, clarity and conventions. I feel like the way that the
paper unfolds as you read it is very engaging and my introduction and
conclusion help to make my rhetorical argument fit into place perfectly. I
know that a big reason this paper stands out to me is because of the drafting
process that went into creating it. I had never created an outline prior to
drafting an essay before this one and I know that my outline helped shaped
the essay into what it has become. I think that overall, after the revisions
that I have made, this paper is a perfect demonstration of the writer that I
have become today.