William Jordan

Dr. Guenzel

ENC 1102

13 April 2020

Self-Assessment

This semester in comp 2 has allowed for me to be able to expand upon my prior learning

in comp 1. Taking the same professor has allowed for me to become more confident in my

writing as I feel as if I have someone more recognizable analyzing my writing as opposed to

other students who may not have felt as comfortable. I think being familiar with the common

authors of pieces we read last semester has allowed for me to create a space where I can get a

greater hold on what we are reading as a part of this course. I believe I have accomplished a lot

in my writing throughout this semester. Being able to expand on my writing with some of the

same concepts I learned I the fall semester previous has helped me exponentially. An example

being consistently being able to use the CARS model of introduction when dealing with

persuasive writing. Getting more familiar with this model has made it easier for me to write an

introduction for my persuasive pieces without having to think of opening sentences or ways to

introduce my research. Using the Rogerian Mode of Argumentation, Discourse Theory, and

learning more about primary research methods has helped me increase my knowledge and skill

in the world of persuasive writing.

Something that helped refine my argumentative and persuasive strategies was the

Rogerian Mode of Argumentation. The Rogerian Mode of Argumentation helped me be able to

create a dynamic between the other side of my argument where each side can understand each
other, thus creating a helpful common ground. I do this many times in my research when I

present the opposing view to my own and instead of immediately countering it, I try to create

helpful hypotheticals where I can find holes in the logic used to create the opposing argument.

Carl Rogers explains the importance of this by stating that “The sense of threat may be so great

that we are unable to consider the alternative views being offered, and therefore remain

unpersuaded. Threatened, we may defend ourselves rather than one argument, and little

communication takes place.”(Rogers 358) This principle has helped make my arguments

stronger by being able to stick to my point while also seeing the validity in other viewpoints.

This mode of argumentation is designed to eliminate individual bias, which I believe it has

mostly done for me in my writing.

Becoming more familiar with primary research strategies has also helped me expand my

range writing wise through this class. This directly contributed to the research that I produced. I

was able to interview some of my closest friends without falling into bias that could’ve

influenced my viewpoints. I was able to use her ethical researching strategies which consisted of

Voluntary participation, Confidentiality and anonymity, and Research. One that specifically

helped me is Confidentiality and anonymity, described by Driscoll as “Your participants may

reveal embarrassing or potentially damaging information such as racist comments or

unconventional behavior. In these cases, you should keep your participants’ identities

anonymous when writing you results. An easy way to do this is to create a ‘pseudonym’ (or false

name) for them so that their identity is protected.” (Driscoll 156) This helped me produce my

own research without jeopardizing the reputation of the individuals that chose to participate in

the interviews I conducted. Conducting field research has been very helpful for me overall, and

has helped me feel more comfortable in an interview space as the one controlling the situation.
 One thing from Comp 2 that has helped me become a better writer more than anything

was James Paul Gee’s Literacy, Discourse, and Linguistics. Although we did this more heavily

in Comp 1, I think that this being a part of Comp 2 is what really helped me find what research I

wanted to pursue for my topic. Being able to identify myself as a part of the fitness Discourse

community helped me dive more into the research space of anabolic steroids and their effects on

professional athletes, something that plague the community that I see myself as part of. It made

me realize that not all people who are apart of a community are familiar with the discourse of the

community they are apart of, especially if it is something that isn’t while talked about, like

steroids usage and market pressure. From a broader view, a view I would’ve seen if it weren’t for

researching discourse and language, I wouldn’t have been able to make the connection between

marketing and the fitness industry. But now I see it differently, I see marketing as a tool that can

be used throughout discourse to persuade communities into a certain way of thinking, which is

often evidenced base in this particular community.

Something I still struggle with after this class is being able to stay on topic. I often will

get too carried away with assignments and stray from the main goal and what is being asked

within the assignment. I struggled with this across comp 2 and still continue to struggle with it. I

think something that will make me better at staying on topic would be to constantly referring

back to the my introduction and building my paper through that , as opposed to writing my

introduction after the paper and trying to connect my ideas in that fashion. I learned this by being

peer reviewed, a strategy that has helped me revise my paper and align my ideas.

As a marketing major, it is crucial that I am able to explain what me or my product can

do for clients in the world of professional selling. Comp 2 has allowed for me to be able to

expand on that skill through the persuasive style we have been using throughout the majority of
the course. Being able to do this without using an abundance “I think” or “I believe” sentences

has helped me better display my point without making the reader disinterested or distracted from

what I am attempting to convey. Exploring multiple viewpoints during this process has given me

the opportunity to become more open to new ideas and see how different people in my same

community view things from a separate perspective. I plan to continue my development as a

writer to become better at my desired profession. I can see the work that I completed in this class

benefitting me by making it easier for me to convey my ideas without getting sidetracked. I’m

happy that I have been able to use the strategies that I learned in comp 2 to help further my

writing in other classes that I may have to write at the same volume for