All Writers Have More To Learn

Kevin Roozen states in Writing is a Social and Rhetorical Activity that writing is always an attempt to address the needs of the audience, even if the audience is oneself. A writer being isolated doesn’t matter as you are always drawing upon the ideas and experiences of others. Mr. Roozen responded and was influenced by many of people involved in this project, those who he shared earlier drafts and scholarships he has read over the past thirteen years. He goes on to say that quite a few technologies have shaped the way we write today by people across time and place. Technologies including computer hardware and software; the QWERTY keyboard; ballpoint pens and pencils; journals; and many other items. Closing his writing with stating that writing can never be anything but a Social and Rhetorical act, connecting people across our existence in an attempt to respond to the needs of the audience.

Yesterday I wrote a grocery list, seems insignificant but is very important for my shopping experience to go smoothly. Kevin Roozen had written “Writers are always doing the rhetorical work of addressing needs and interests of a particular audience, even if unconsciously.” Writing a simple grocery list was for me. I was the audience, intended for no one else to see. This list interacted with myself and what I needed for my house after having to throw all the groceries away after this last storm. This helped me stay organized with what I have and don’t have. Without this simple writing I could of have missed important items like eggs and bread, or all the condiments I had to throw away. It is important to understand the nature of social and rhetorical writing because it is the base to all writing, small and big. Without it, you wouldn’t connect to the audience you are writing for.

In the article Writing Is a Social and Rhetorical Activity by Kevin Roozen he explains that we write to meet the needs of the readers. He uses examples of people writing in their everyday lives and gives examples of this. One example he gives is a young man writing in his diary to sort out how he feels about certain life events.

I myself have to write out handwritten labels at my current job. We write these labels to let the forklift drivers as well as other shifts know what parts are contained in each rack as well as the color and date they were packed. This keeps everyone informed on what stock we have on hand. I do also have the ability to type out these labels when time allows it. Without these labels we could have an overstock of unnecessary parts as well as not be able to meet our clients needs not knowing what parts we have on hand to ship.

Writing is a Social and Rhetorical Activity by Kevin Roozen

In the reading the author explains rhetorical activities by relating them to real life occurrences. For instance, the author uses the example of a father writing a birthday card to his daughter. He explains that the love, compassion, and motivation that he puts into the card is a way of letting his daughter know that they have the feelings that are expressed in the card. He does this even though his daughter knows his feelings. By the author using that example it gives us a better understanding of what rhetorical writing really is and where it occurs in our daily lives.

I can relate this to my high school open house. After my open house was over, I opened the many cards that I had received from friends and family congratulating me for graduating high school. After I opened the many cards, I wrote thank you cards to each family regarding how thankful I was for the gifts that they gave me and what I was going to use the gifts for. Its rhetorical because all the families that attended my open house knew that I was thankful for all of the gifts that I received. For instance in the article the author says, “The father writing a few comments on a birthday card to his daughter crafts statements+ intended to communicate his love for her (Writing is a Social and Rhetorical Activity Roozen PG 17).” In this sense I am using the thank you cards to thank all of the people for the gifts that they got me. It is again rhetorical because they know I am thankful because I expressed that to them when they attended my open house.

In Writing Is a Social and Rhetorical Activity, by Kevin Roozen, he talked about the ways that the simplicity of writing down a note or email is for yourself and also others around you. There is a connection between writers and readers. Reminders to yourself are also a way of rhetorical activity. Some people don’t realize it, but everything they do is a connection with something other than just themselves. Also with this type of writing, understanding the different parts would help you write better to an audience so others can comprehend the written information. Rhetorical writing can be used in different ways and in different forms, text, email, or essay writing.

In the last week, I wrote down my class to-do list. This can be considered social activity and rhetorical writing because not only is it for me, but also it makes it so I can turn my assignments in for others. If it was just for me, I am using it to better myself and keep hold of my tasks, as I go through them. It is important to understand these types of writing because you are able to comprehend the benefits of it and the way to write things out. Since I am able to write out a list, I am writing for myself and others in a way that is best suitable for me to accomplish my goals and assignments on other’s time schedules. These are just very important skills to know, especially to help the audience and readers of an actual piece of writing for later in the future.

Writing Is a Social and Rhetorical Activity by Kevin Roozen

We use social activity in writing when we write emails, notes, and reports. Us writing though types of things connect us to people. Also note that we Rhetorical activity in writing. We usually do not know that we are writing rhetorical. For example, Kevin, puts in an example of writing a birthday card to your daughter, showing you love her. Rhetorical means that you write something with important meaning or lift someone up. Writing is meant to help with people’s needs.

I wrote an email to my band director. I was letting him know that I will not be attending some of the events in the future due to a wedding in Texas. Writing is a social activity because when I write this email, I write it because it’s important. He needs to know both of the dates I will not be attending. Are band is not that big, so I play an important role for the band. Roozen said that “in fact, writing can never be anything but a social and rhetorical act, connecting us to other people across time and space in an attempt to respond adequately to the needs of an audience.” So, me just responding to my Band director will be a social and rhetorical act. Sense its important dates and will help him in the future knowing I won’t be there.  It’s important to know social and rhetorical writing because we use it in are day to day life. Like Kevin said, we do it unconsciously sometimes.

The main idea in Kevin Roozen’s article “Writing Is a Social and Rhetorical Activity” is to explain how rhetorical writing is used daily to communicate to and with at least one other person knowingly or unknowingly. He acknowledges that all writing is rhetorical writing. The article includes examples such as someone noting on their hand what needs to be completed when they arrive home from work or school as a reminder. Or how a man adds an entry to his diary to keep track of events that happened to look back on. He provided these examples to show all writing has a purpose and audience. Kevin also uses points of how writing is influenced by others. Kevin Roozen wrote this article to inform people that they use rhetorical writing in different ways everyday.

This week I wrote a grocery list mostly for myself but also for my little sister who was going to the store with me. The list was rhetorical and simple for my sister so she could easily read it and find the aisles we needed to go to for the items. The writing was a social activity because my sister and I both added items we needed to the grocery list. It is important to understand social and rhetorical writing because being able to read text and understand who the author wrote it for and why they wrote it the way they did. Being able to understand a topic from multiple viewpoints helps not only in writing but in verbal communication as well.

In Kevin Roozen’s article Writing Is a Social and Rhetorical Activity,” his main idea is to get people to understand that rhetoric is used every day in writing to communicate with and to an audience. In the article, Kevin mentions that countless people write different things every day, and each one has their own goal or purpose they want to get across to their audience. He states that writing can only be social and uses multiple examples to back up his opinion. For instance, when he talks about how a pharmacy company provides details to patients on their medications, like how many dosages they need to take and if there are any side effects they need to worry about or not, The author points this out to help support the fact that all writing has a purpose and an audience. Kevin also relays that writers always stem from the ideas and experiences of others.

Once, I wrote to my girlfriend, telling her that I was having a bad day and just wanted to be left alone. Looking back at it, it now makes me agree that writing is a social activity because I had to clarify that she wasn’t the problem. Making sure she understood where I was coming from and explaining to her that she was nowhere near the reason for my irritation was me using rhetorical language in my writing. Using social and rhetorical activity in your writing will help you understand and communicate better with your audience, as I did with my girlfriend.

In Kevin Roozen’s article “Writing Is a Social and Rhetorical Activity” he implied how rhetorical is an everyday writing thing by giving examples of simple tasks of writing everyone does on a daily basis. He soon acknowledges that all writing is rhetorical writing. The article soon uses examples such as a father writing a heartfelt card to his daughter to indicate his love for her, and a child writing a note on their hand to remind them of something they need to do. He pointed it out to explain that all writing has a purpose and an audience. This article also hits points about how writing is always influenced by another.  One of the main examples he uses is the father giving a card to his daughter restating his memory of his childhood cards from his parents. He includes this to show how one may consciously or unconsciously use another writing to help their own. Kevin Roozen wrote this article to show in his mind what social and rhetorical writing does in the world of writing.

Everyone writes many things each day and all of them have a reason and audience. One of the main thigs I wrote this week is a grocery list it was for not only myself but for my boyfriend. The grocery list was rhetorical written simple and concise to keep all the needs easy to read and find. The grocery list was also socially affected due to sharing ideas on what to purchase and what was needed. The social and rhetorical wiring is important to know to make sure you can read something and understand why the person wrote it like they did and where they are coming from. All of these thoughts will bring more meaning to writing and give other writing the light it deserves. You may read an article form the Great Depression that may sound like they are just giving up when in reality they were going through desperate times with no food and poor living conditions. A person will definitely understand things more if they know the social and rhetorical meaning behind stuff.

The statement “writing is a social and rhetorical activity” that Kevin Roozen wrote underscores the idea that writing is not merely a solitary act but a dynamic and interactive process embedded in social and communicative contexts. It emphasizes two key aspects, social nature writing and rhetorical dimension. Writing is inherently social because it serves as a mean of communication between individuals and groups. Writers create their messages with specific audiences in mind, considering the social, cultural, and contextual factors that shape their readers’ understanding and response. The social dimension of writing also extends to collaboration, as writing often involves feedback, revision, and engagement with others to refine and enhance the written work. Writing is a rhetorical activity, meaning that it involves persuasion and the strategic use of language to achieve specific goals. Writers make choices regarding their tone, style, structure, and content to influence their readers, whether it’s to inform, persuade, entertain, or provoke thought. Rhetorical awareness is crucial in messaging effectively to different audiences and purposes. In essence, recognizing that “writing is a social and rhetorical activity” underscores the importance of context, audience, and purpose in the writing process. It highlights writing with the broader social and communicative landscape, emphasizing the role of language as a powerful tool for conveying meaning and influencing others.

This week I wrote an email to one of my other instructors requesting to set up a meeting in hopes to review my academic pathway. Writing an email is a clear demonstration of how writing is both a social and a rhetorical activity. When composing an email, you consider the recipient or recipients. This decision is inherently social as it involves thinking about who will be reading your message. You may write differently when addressing a friend, a boss, or a customer, adapting your tone and content to suit the social relationship and expectations associated with that audience. The context in which you’re writing the email is another social aspect. It might be a response to a previous email, part of an ongoing conversation, or an introduction to a new contact. Understanding this context is vital to ensuring that your message is relevant and meaningful within the social interaction. The way you begin and end your email is a social convention that reflects politeness and respect in written communication. These formalities are part of the social norms forming email etiquette. Email often adopts a conversational style, which is more relaxed and informal compared to some other forms of written communication. This style is influenced by social norms and expectations for email communication. Every email has a purpose, whether it’s to inform, request, persuade, or simply engage in conversation. Identifying this purpose is a rhetorical decision, as it shapes the content, tone, and structure of your message. Effective email writers are rhetorically aware. They consider how their message will be received. They anticipate questions, concerns, or reactions from the audience and adjust their message accordingly to achieve their goals. Rhetorical decisions are made concerning language choice. You might use persuasive language to convince a colleague, technical jargon when communicating with experts, or simple language when writing to a diverse audience. These choices are strategic and influenced by the rhetorical context. The way you structure your email, including the use of headings, bullet points, or numbered lists, is a rhetorical choice. It affects how well your message is understood and how your reader engages with the content. In conclusion, writing an email is a prime example of how writing is a social and rhetorical activity. It involves thoughtful consideration of the social dynamics surrounding the communication and the strategic use of language to achieve specific goals within that context.

In the article “Writing is Social and Rhetorical Activity” by Kevin Roozen the main idea is to make sure writers are using the right genera while writing.  Kevin points out many people from around the world are reading your writing so you have to make sure your writing can be understood. One of the main points is that if you’re writing to a family member it’s different from writing to your boss. You’re more formal for your boss than family, understanding that will help you write to different audiences.

I wrote a paragraph to my mom this week explaining that I’m getting older and I will need to move out soon. This really showed me that writing is a social activity because I had to explain to her my reasoning’s. The rhetorical act I had to make sure I said the right words so she did not take it the wrong way or worry. It’s important to understand the value of social and rhetorical writing because I needed to inform my mom about the decisions I’m making, it’s a form/act of communication.