Planning Page:

 

Identifying the purpose→ In both texts, the purpose is to portray the power of language, literature, writing craftsmanship, etc…, and how it can be a safe haven for an individual. The purpose to convince the reader of the power language has, and establish pathos by supplying a back story to how unfortunate their lives were before they discovered the house of language and all of its entities. Here, there is a lot of pathos being used to get the purpose/message across seeing that the history of these two men is very emotional and distressing.

 

Identify your Audience→ engulfs mostly anyone, but particularly those who have opposing viewpoints to the power of language and perhaps come from similar backgrounds as the men in the story, like little to no education backgrounds. The poorer or oppressed socio-political factor may play a role as well. Those who may be oppressed or have a love of reading, it can be to convince practically anyone of how important and life-changing to some aspect, language is. The narratives seemingly hope to convince the reader to start taking the art of language more seriously from their previous beliefs and understand the significance of it. The response is most likely that people will begin to read and write more often in order to gain greater appreciation of what it is.

 

Identify your Genre→ A self-profile. Both men talk about their own lives and struggles necessary to become successful as they are now. This is necessary to inform and hook the readers onto the purpose/message the authors are trying to get out. Because of this, the authors use their personal experiences and opinions, through narration, to get their points across. This in turn affects the tone as a more informal scholarly, opinionated, and narrative way of describing their journeys.

 

Identify your Stance→ These narratives are shown to be opinionated and passionate as the authors are discussing personal details of their own lives. In this case, both authors feel very passionately about their purposes/topics, placing their stances and purposes hand in hand. The language is serious but not too formal.

 

Identify your media and design needs→ Both are written in the form of a written article/essay. Design wise, it’s rather serious and personal seeing the content of the stories being told. The fonts are appropriate and add to the seriousness of the situation. One visual is displayed of the jail to show the horrors encountered during the realization process of how important language is.

 

Quotes being used→ “Coming Into Language”

• “And, for the first time, the child in me who had witnessed and endured unspeakable terrors cried out not just in impotent despair, but with the power of language…..Through language I was free.” (Paragraphs 12-13 lines 2,1).

“Superman and Me”

• “I loved those books, but I also knew that love had only one purpose. I was trying to save my life.” (Paragraph 7 lines 11-12).

 

Discussion Board Post:

 

“Superman and Me” by Sherman Alexie and “Coming Into Language” by Jimmy Santiago Baca both portray similar purposes and styles for one uniformed thesis- how language and the use of language came to save their lives. The purpose, audience, genre, stance, media, and design all work together to enhance the critical viewpoints they share in these essays. With the use of pathos, the reader can deeply empathize with their stories and become convinced of their main idea through the rhetoric of the language.

In both texts, the purpose is to portray the power of language, literature, and writing craftsmanship and how it can be a safe haven for an individual. The purpose is established through pathos, by supplying a backstory of how unfortunate and distressing their lives were before they discovered the house of language and all of its entities. The intended audience engulfs mostly anyone- particularly those who have opposing viewpoints and come from similar backgrounds. For example, it may appeal to those who have little to no education. The poor or oppressed socio-political factor may also play a role. The narratives seemingly hope to convince the reader to start taking the art of language more seriously from their previous beliefs, contributing to a positive response from the readers.

The use of pathos is crucial in displaying these ideas as the choice of genre is what tugs at  the heart-strings of the audience. Both stories are told through self-profiles. The authors narrate their own lives and struggles that were necessary in order to become successful and knowledgeable. This informs and “hooks” the audience to continue reading. The tone is an informal, opinionated, and narrative way of describing their journeys. Because they are discussing the intimate details of their lives, both authors feel very passionately about their stance on language. Lastly, the structure is what pieces it all together. Both are written in the form of an article/essay. Design-wise, it is serious and personal, considering the content of the stories. The fonts are appropriate and add to the seriousness of the situation. One visual is displayed of the jail to show the horrors encountered during the realization process of how important language is.

These essays resonated with me to a high emotional level. Reading about the terrors endured in both stories truly gave me a new perspective on how apathetic the justice system and society may be. Their safe haven of language, writing, and literature is extremely refreshing, seeing that they found their refuge through intellect and education. This is very difficult to find in today’s social, political, and economic climates. One quote from “Superman and Me” was, “I loved those books, but I also knew that love had only one purpose. I was trying to save my life.” (Paragraph 7 lines 11-12). This is exactly what demonstrates how critical it was for Alexie to find his escape into language from the oppression and stereotypes that engulfed Indian Americans during his childhood. A significant quote from “Coming Into Language” was, “And, for the first time, the child in me who had witnessed and endured unspeakable terrors cried out not just in impotent despair, but with the power of language…..Through language I was free.” (Paragraphs 12-13 lines 2,1). Not only is the diction of this particular text beautiful, but it speaks towards the horrors endured during Baca’s lifetime and how far he, as a human being, has come. These stories give me hope for a brighter future. Through education and reform, great change can come, especially through the intricate use of language.