Reflection
The course journals, embedded into the curriculum throughout English 400, achieved the course learning outcomes found on the home page of this site. The first goal achieved through the course journals is the second outcome, which states “[the student will be able to] understand the nature of public discourse/debate as determined by purpose, audience, and context” For example, through the analyzation of Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, we were able to better understand the public debate on slavery. Although we realized that Thoreau broke the law by not paying taxes, after determining his purpose and context for doing so, I feel as though his actions were for a moral cause. As I mentioned in The Journal Entry on Thoreau’s Civil Disobedience, “I think that this action does fit into a view of active citizenship because the reason he stopped paying taxes was for a cause he felt was necessary.” This statement leads to the second goal which was achieved through the Course Journals. This was the first outcome, which stated that the student will be able to “engage in the process of citizen leadership by investigating multiple perspectives on important public issues”. While reading how Thoreau was a citizen leader in his time, I was inspired to think about how I would react during the same time period. Through reading Civil Disobedience, I was also inspired to become a citizen leader in current times and to research and take a stand on current public issues in American society.
Journal Entry on ‘Terministic Screen’
Journal Entry on Thoreau’s “Civil Disobedience”
Journal Entry on “Rhetoric of Hitler’s Battle”