Welcome to Rhetoric and Civilization (2) - First Post Prompt

A new semester at BYU brings the second half of Rhetoric and Civilization, a course that is focused on the themes of communication, innovation, and media from the Renaissance to the present.  We will be examining major historical periods and intellectual movements in Western history, using rhetoric as a lens to understand how societies have used the powers of speech, the written and printed word, the broadcast media, and the social media to form and reform society.

Students will be using this blog to document their learning, to teach one another, discuss issues, and test ideas and drafts for their final formal academic paper. Click on the image to view our syllabus.

Find the syllabus at http://bit.ly/Eng-212-Winter-2015

Prompt for First Post: "History and My History"

In about 200-300 words, create a post whose purpose is to introduce yourself by telling a story that connects your past with the broader past.

So, don't do the typical "Hi, I'm Tiffany and I'm majoring in _____ and I'm from __________ and I like ______." Nope. Tell one brief story that includes you and that ties into the broader past. You may need to do a brief search to remind yourself of the historical components. This is not report, and I don't want to see paraphrases of Wikipedia articles! I just want to hear a personal connection to the broader past.

Include an image if possible, and be sure to make a meaningful title (Something that provokes interest and hints at what's to come). Your title should not be "History and My History" or "Post #1."

Remember to use the labels feature when drafting your post. Use whatever labels you wish for the content, but be sure to include a label identifying the assignment ("post assignment 1") and another label identifying you as the author. Use this formula: posted by [first name follow by initial of last name]. On my posts, for example, I use the label "posted by Gideon B" (Do not use any punctuation with the labels, but separate multiple labels with commas

Here are some approaches that will work with examples only slightly briefer than the 200-300 words I'm asking for:


Idea #1 - Family History or Genealogy
Consider showing how you and your lineage fit into world events or historical periods. Here's a real example from my own past:

 The Band of My Dead Brothers

The battle of Agincourt was a big deal in British history. Shakespeare dramatized it in his play, Henry V, when the king speaks of "we few, we happy few, we band of brothers." It's very stirring stuff, and the British are still very proud of that great conquest against the French in 1415. I hear that the British use of the long bow (as shown in this image) was very instrumental -- perhaps alongside King Henry's stirring call to arms.

One of the soldiers that lay dead on the field on that glorious day was one of my ancestors. Whenever I hear that St. Crispin's day speech about that band of brothers, I'm reminded that my own blood was spilled. It makes me wonder how many other wars my ancestors have fought (and perhaps died) in.

Labels: posted by Gideon B, post assignment 1, Battle of Agincourt, British history

Idea #2 - Personal Travel and History
Consider telling a short account of how you understood the past after traveling to a specific location where something memorable happened or was built. Here's an example from my life:

So Many Miles to the Galleon...

When visiting London with my family a few years ago, we stumbled across a full-scale reconstruction of The Golden Hind parked just off the Thames river. This was a replica of the small galleon ship which Sir Francis Drake used to circumnavigate the globe in 1577-1580. Walking about its small decks, I was amazed than any watercraft so small could actually make it around the world. But this was the very first ship that ever did so.

For me it was an act of bravery just to get on the airplane to cross the ocean. It's hard to imagine the bravery of people who didn't have a map, any electronic navigation tools, or serious food and water supplies to travel that distance. Drake was the second one, after Magellan, to circle the globe. 

I've gotten braver with time. Probably my most life-changing experience both with travel and with connecting to the past has been my visits to India.  I could still see so much evidence of the British Raj (the long period during which Britain ruled India). From the many trains I rode to the very British accents of the Indians I spoke with, the mark of the British remains many years after Indian independence.

Labels: posted by Gideon B, post assignment 1, Sir Francis Drake, explorers