Journal 6

Ben Franklin's The Autobiography

1. In Franklin’s plan for self-perfection, he listed thirteen virtues that should be practiced.  Similar to an experiment, Franklin attempted to practice every virtue without fault, and when an error was made, he would take note of it in his journal.  Franklin finds that it is nearly impossible to live out the virtues without making mistakes.  Franklin eventually comes to a point where he is ready to give up, finding that perfection was not easy to obtain.  Franklin also discovers that some virtues were more difficult to master than others such as, Order, which he claims he never accomplish in old age.  Franklin comes to the conclusion that even with ambition, he could not reach his goal of perfection.  However, Franklin states that he is happy that he attempted perfection.

2. I think that a plan such as Franklin’s would improve me as a person; however, I do not believe it would make me perfect.  Franklin addressed his experiment for perfection as more difficult than he thought because he was more full of faults that he had ever imagined.  I know that I would fall very short of perfection due to my many faults.  Though, I do think that people should practice these virtues, all while understanding and accepting mistakes.  My top virtues are as follows: temperance, chastity, humility, order, and silence.

Journal 5

Paragraph 1

            The harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.

            Emotional and logical appeal

            How can you be sure the colonist will win?

            Faulty analogy and begging the question

Paragraph 2

            God is on the American side

Ethical Appeal

We do not really know if God is on either side or any side at all.

Begging the question – knowing what God wants

Paragraph 3

Thomas Pain is trying to get people to fight for freedom as soon as possible so they do not leave it up to their children

            Emotional, ethical, and logical appeal

            We should not fight because problems will work themselves out.

                        Things could possibly get worse

            Bandwagon – not a man lives on the continent…

                        False Dichotomy – gives two extreme options

Paragraph 4

            Argument by analogy – the kings is like a thief, so we should fight him

            Emotional Appeal

            The English are too powerful; the Americans would be overwhelmed by the Crown’s force.

Thomas Paine – Paine uses mostly emotional appeal in order to be persuasive in a passionate way.  Because he uses emotional appeal, his arguments lack logic, and it becomes easy to make counter arguments using logic.

Journal 4

Have you ever smelled homemade bread baking in the oven?  That warm, loving smell wrapped around me like my mother’s arms.  As I sat at the dining room table, a massive ceramic pot was placed at the center of the table, as if it were piece of artwork.  My sister removed  the lid and out came steam that danced around like a ribbon.  I rose out of my chair and grabbed the serving utensils before anyone had a chance to even think about serving themselves.  I leaned over the table and saw a surprising medley of grey clams, tiny shrimp, and colorful chopped vegetable all submerged in a red, broth-like liquid.  I went at the food like I have never eaten before, scooping deeply to serendipitously find that al dente angel hair pasta was hiding at the bottom like earth worms in soil.  I plated myself and asked for the Romano cheese.  I sprinkled carefully and plentifully, making sure the whole surfaced was covered in white.  I forked around before I took my first bite, trying to find the perfect place to start.  The clams clinked and clunked, egging me on to eat them.  I stabbed into the mound of pasta and twirled until my fork was heavy.  As I raised my fork to my mouth, the smell of tomato and pasta warmed my soul.  I opened my mouth wide so I could get as much of the food in my mouth as possible.  I chewed and chewed with my cheeks protruding; all the meanwhile, I paid attention to the soft crunching sound of the shrimp.  I picked up the grey clam and felt its warmth conduct from the shell to my hand.  I stabbed at the muddy brown flesh nested in the center of the clam, and then yanked my fork to pull the meat away from its stem.  I realized as I attempted to swallow the meat of the clam that is was very chewy; it felt as if I swallowed a wad of gum, sea flavored.  I finished my plate and thanked my mother for such a tasty dinner.

Journal 3

1.  Cite three specific examples of Hodgman’s descriptive imagery that you find to be particularly effective. 

Hodgman uses descriptive imagery to communicate to the reader how gross and nearly inedible the dog food was.  Hodgman admits that when she was younger she thought Gaines-burgers were a luxury for her dog to eat when she says, “Gaines-burgers are neither mush nor nuggets.  They are rather, a miracle of beauty and packaging...”  Then, she continues with describing how terrible the dog food looked and tasted.  Hodgman often uses humor as a tool to describe the dog food as well; specifically, she says, “You could make one at home if you had a Play-Doh Fun Factory.”  Hodgman also bluntly describes the horrorible and misleading food that she saw after she opened the packaging.  In a honest and comical way, she describes the chicken saying, “Chunky chicken? There were chunks in the can, certainly—big, purplish-brown chunks.

2.  What do you think Hodgman’s purpose was in writing this essay?  What overall message/meaning do you take from the essay?

           

I think Hodgman’s purpose for writing the essay was to deliver the truth about dog food, in case someone similar to her ever wondered what it was really like.  For example, in the beginning of the essay, she admits that she has “always wondered about dog food.”  Also, Hodgman uses the essay to uncover dishonesty of advertising.  The message I take from the essay is as a consumer, you should beware of advertisement dishonesty.