Reflections on Writing-140

American poet Charles Bukowski once masterfully stated, “These words I write keep me from total madness.” Writing 140, once seen by many as the steep Golgotha of our education at this prestigious university, now becomes a treasured remnant of a semester filled with new beginnings, new obstacles, and new accomplishments. Before stepping into GFS 212 on Monday August 22, 2011, my experience with writing was that of pathetic outlines, generic introductions, Wikipedia searches, and unpersuasive body paragraphs. During the past 15 weeks, my writing has evolved to include such tools as the Topoi, Proquest, blogs, and the Sheridan Baker method. The nine different floors of Doheny Memorial Library, once intimidating and unapproachable in nature, became a new home for my curiosity and research. Beyond sharpening my writing skills, with each paper, Writing-140 disciplined me in the art of rhetoric and persuasion. More than anything, this class has taught me that, with enough persistence and willpower, anything is possible, even a seven page paper on the Chinese Massacre of 1871 (A3).

Writing has become, not a chore or a compilation of assignments, but, as Bukowski states, a mode of reflection and sanity. As a Biological Sciences major, writing and persuasion were not my special talents. However, through Writing-140, papers and essays turned into straightforward assignments. The skills and knowledge I learned in this class will guide me in my future classes and career as I have learned the valuable lessons of careful reading, editing, and organizing. To excel in any career, one must be fully articulate and comprehensible. Through Writing-140, USC has cultivated a new generation of thinkers, writers, and speakers prepared to excel in any field.

I would like to take this opportunity to, once again, thank Professor Caroll-Adler for her support and patience. Whether it was the long line of frustrated students during office hours or the 15 minute conferences for each assignment, you were always there to answer all our questions and see our potential as great writers. Thank You for Everything!

As first semester of our freshmen year comes to end, we will always treasure Writing-140 and look back upon it with pride, joy, and achievement. Writing-140 has been a worthwhile experience.

Write On!

Reflections on Wikipedia

After reading many different articles and discussion boards, I have come to the conclusion that Wikipedia is an unreliable, biased, and grossly inaccurate source of information. In my essay, I argue how Wikipedia disseminates misinformation through the use of faulty sources and the presence of bias within the articles.

Personally, I used to use Wikipedia just to gather background information or to get a general overview of a topic. But, now, having studied the astonishing implications of using Wikipedia, I doubt I will ever go back to using that site. In Writing-140, we were taught different research techniques and different sources of information far more reliable and accurate than Wikipedia. In the future, I see myself using those sources, such as Proquest or Google Scholar, to find academic content.

I do not plan on contributing to the discussion boards simply because I do not consider myself an expert on any topic and do not find it suitable to publish my opinions or ideas on a public forum.

Several Inconsistencies

The most prominent example of a contradiction between authoritative and communal knowledge is the inconsistency between academic research databases and communal research databases, such as Wikipedia. I find academic research databases and articles edited by professionals to be far more important and useful when conducting any form of research or study. Although communal research forums, similar to Wikipedia, could provide a new and different perspective on an issue, such forums are polluted with countless errors and insanities and provide no reliable data to form an accurate and articulate opinion off of. Sites like Wikipedia should only be used to observe the different sides of an argument and see a general overview of an issue.

Follow-up on Sources

As you read in the previous blog entry, I discussed my topic for Assignment four and shared with you a few of the many different sources I used to research the topic. For this entry, I would like to backtrack and share with you two particular sources from our California Dreams and Realities book that were particularly helpful in understanding the dynamic of immigration and cultural assimilation in California.

My first resource was Nayereh Tohidi’s Iranian Woman and Gender Relations in Los Angeles. The article discusses how, despite their small population, immigrants from the Middle East and Asia have had a significant influence on shaping California demographics. Tohidi focuses, primarily, on the immigration of Iranians after the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Tohidi discusses the different issues Iranian woman faced as immigrants and how they challenged the gender roles of American society. Personally, it was interesting how Tohidi discusses the paradox faced by many of the immigrants. She states that, despite the fact that Iranian-American woman have more freedom then their counterparts in Iran, they faced greater conflicts and restrictions in America. This resource is particularly useful for my essay because, similar to the Iranian woman, the Armenian-American population also faced many different obstacles before finally adjusting to the American cultural dynamic.

The second resource I found was Nancy Wride’s Vietnamese Youths No Longer Look Homeward. In this article, Wride briefly discusses the historical context of the Vietnamese immigration, citing the communist regime as a chief reason for driving the migration. Wride then shares with the reader a series of interviews she conducted with Vietnamese-American high school students and their experiences assimilating into American culture. The interviews were particularly helpful in illustrating the effects the immigration had on the younger generation. This article could potentially be useful for my paper because, similar to the Vietnamese immigrants, Armenian immigrants worked tirelessly to fight against assimilation and promote their culture and heritage on foreign land.

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As one may see, the California Dreams and Realities book was particularly useful in illustrating the different effects and consequences of immigration. These new ideas were very useful during the brainstorming stage of my writing process because they helped me develop positions on my topic and write an effective thesis statement.

Armenian-Americans: Strangers in a Strange Land

My ethnic roots have played a significant role in my upbringing. Although immigrating to America, neither of my parents ever let the globalizing or assimilating forces of this country strip them of their heritage and culture. For our fourth assignment, I am choosing to dive in the past of my own ethnic group and research the mass immigration of Armenians to America during the 1940s and 1950s. In my essay, I will discuss how, despite many adversities, the Armenian people were able to stay steadfast to their cultural and religious heritage.

After researching the different sources found in the end of the “California Dreams and Realities” book, I was unable to find a significant amount of data regarding Armenian immigration to California or Los Angeles. As a result, similar to our third assignment, I used Proquest and other similar library databases to investigate the reasons and effects of the mass immigration. I share a few of my sources below:

Dermenjian, Adriana. "L.A. = Little Armenia: The Story of the Armenian Diaspora in Los Angeles Today." Journalism (Online Journalism), 2010. United States -- California: ProQuest. Web. 30 Oct. 2011.

This source is actually a Thesis prepared for the Faculty of the USC Graduate School in partial fulfillment for a Master’s Degree. In her Thesis, Dermenjian discusses the different motives of the immigration, citing the socialization of Asia and the enforcement of Communism in Armenia as the two chief reasons that drove the mass migration. This source fails, however, in discussing the immigration patterns of Armenian-Americans before the 1960s. This source is particularly useful in chronicling different significant events that occurred within the Armenian-American community including the opening of the first school, church, and community center.

Garabed, C. K. "Armenian Culture in America: Dead Or Alive? Part I of III." Armenian Reporter: 6. Ethnic NewsWatch. Apr 28 2001. Web. 30 Oct. 2011 < http://search.proquest.com/docview/371409374?accountid=14749>.

This source is a newspaper article discussing the conservation of culture and heritage within the Armenian-American population in great detail. This author takes the perspective of a former teacher and journalist. The article discusses the number of institutions that were established in an attempt to foster Armenian cultural activity, including language schools, literary societies, religious institutions, dance groups, and community centers. This article is also unique in discussing the different methods on how the immigrants attempted to seek the American dream, including the drive to purchase property and the encouraging of higher education within the younger generation.

"Slide Presentation of First Armenians in Calif. Now Available." Armenian Reporter International (1967-1988): 10. Ethnic NewsWatch. Mar 03 1983. Web. 31 Oct. 2011 <http://search.proquest.com/docview/363101905?accountid=14749>. 

 This source discusses the Armenian-American presence in Central-California, particularly Bakersfield and Fresno. The author sites the 1920s as the “Golden Years” in Fresno as the agricultural and farming industries attracted immigrants from across the world. The author, however, does not discuss the reasons or motives behind the exodus of Armenians from Central-California to Los Angeles. The article concludes with a discussion on prominent Armenian-Americans including Governor George Deukmejian and Chip Pashayan.

An Evening with Tracy Kidder

Tracy Kidder

As always, Visions and Voices did not disappoint in providing an exhilarating evening of discussion, debate, and dialogue. The speaker on October 19, 2011 was Tracy Kidder, a Pulitzer-Prize winning American writer. During his presentation, Kidder discussed his biography of Dr. Paul Farmer, entitled Mountains Beyond Mountains. Dr. Paul Farmer is a medical anthropologist, physician, and founder of Partners in health, an organization that provides medical care in Peru, Siberia, and rural Haiti (A link to Partners in Health can be found here). Kidder presented Dr. Farmer as a humanitarian that has devoted his life to providing needed care to disadvantaged communities in these countries.



Rural Haiti

In terms of writing and rhetoric, Kidder discussed how he organized his book on presenting short stories, or anecdotes, about Dr. Farmer interacting with patients in these countries. Also, Kidder used photos he took himself to effectively display the disparity and turmoil that the countries had fallen into. Kidder also discussed the different projects undertaken by Partners in health in attempting to provide better healthcare in the rural villages, including the building of hospitals and health centers. Kidder finished his presentation by answering a few questions from the audience and providing an address where students could send donations to assist Partners in Health. The evening turned out to be fairly interesting and provided an exciting opportunity for students to communicate with an award winning author. I look forward to finding his book and immersing myself into his creative genius.



The Chinese Massacre of 1871

Los Angeles has seen many different riots and racial conflicts throughout the ages. All of them have ended in death, tragedy, and destruction. The Chinese Massacre of 1871 is one such example that has left unbearable wounds on the Asian-American population of Los Angeles. On October 24, 1871, a mob of over 500 white men entered the Los Angeles Chinatown to attack, rob, and brutally murder the Chinese residents of the city. This racially motivated massacre left more than 80 Chinese residents dead. Of the 500 men who attacked and ransacked the city, only eight were ever convicted of manslaughter.

This event is important to study because it is an event rarely studied in Los Angeles history. I had never even heard of this massacre before doing research for this class. I chose this topic because I found it fascinating how only eight out of the 500 white men were convicted of the massacre. In my research I will be looking for particular events that triggered the great riot. I will also be looking for information on how this event affected the Chinese American and Asian-American population of Los Angeles in the future. My essay will focus on the effects of this massacre and the different lessons it teaches the Los Angeles community.