Theory of Fernanda

First Order Knowledge Claims -"More than 70% of the convictions that have been overturned through DNA testing nationwide involved eyewitnesses who got it wrong" -"Scores of scientific studies over the decades have shown that eyewitnesses are often inaccurate" -"To its credit, the Philadelphia Department has incorporated many of the reforms" -"That would ease pressure on eyewitnesses to make an identification even if they are not confident in their selection" -"Some basic police department reforms could help reduce eyewitness misidentification" Second Order Knowledge Claims -The statistics that 70% of conviction that have been overturned due to faulty eyewitnesses is trusted because it is believed that statistical data is quantifiable and accurate. -The fact that trials have been accurately overturned thanks to DNA testing relies on trusting that the testing and the application of the scientific method to achieve those results ...

“Learn from your mistakes,” is probably one of the most overstated sentences, four words that are meant to mold us into rational human beings. But if there is a group of people that have not absorbed this lesson, it is those who under the protective wing of Trump’s xenophobia and racism are trying to expel any living organism that natively speaks Spanish, looks Hispanic and can not perfectly pronounce every word of the Declaration of Independence. You think they would have learned from their mistakes from the Gold Rush when in the late 1800’s Mexicans were segregated, lynched and accused of murder and killed without a fair trial. What rather seems to have happened is that stereotypical labels have evolved– instead of being called ‘lazy’ and ‘dumb’ Mexicans are now ‘drug dealers’, ‘job-stealers’ and ‘rapists’ who can't even properly speak English.   Before throwing these words around recklessly, those who employ those words need to consider why Mexicans even are in their ...

In  'How to Pay for a Baby’, Kool A.D uses a colloquial sociolect that through its use of pop-culture slang, creates a cynical tone and establishes a particularly strong connection with millennial audiences who are inexperienced parents. This is apparent in the beginning of the article when A.D truthfully declares "I'mma kept it 100 with y'all". Straight away, the use of colloquialism and low diction establishes an informal relationship with the reader, warning him that the author will be straight forward when presenting his arguments. The jarring use of A.D's sociolect right at the start draws in the audience because it is unlikely for an author to open his piece with such blunt language. The cynical tone continues to be established when A.D rhetorically challenges the idea of money by devaluating it as "tiny pieces of paper”. This throws the reader off balance because their plausible views on money are being directly challenged. Later, when A.D declare...

What does the metaphor of the map mean to you? How might this be helpful for us in this course? The metaphor of the map holds meaning to me in the form of the need to be a critical thinker. Often times, it is much easier to just settle for accepting a truth presented by something that is already accepted by the wider community– in this case the world map. By not questioning this 'truth', and accepting that what is suggested by it is correct, we start to make further unconscious assumptions. For instance, many of our unconscious assumptions are related to size and how our brain instantly considers that something bigger is more important or more powerful. This way of thinking has long existed and I will rely on an ancient Egypt art example to justify my point. In art that would be used to decorated buildings and monuments, a pharaoh would often be depicted bigger than the people shown around him and that is because in Ancient Egyptian society, the pharaoh was a deified ruler ...

Goal Setting What "something new" will you try this year? In comparison to previous years, this time around I will try to delve deeper into the subject we are studying and if time allows, do more extra readings. I am aware that Language and Literature leans quite a lot on contextual understanding to analyze the content, and to meet that understanding I will do what I mentioned previously. I would also like to push myself outside of my comfort zone and explore opinions and perspectives I would usually and easily discard. I think this will help me be more open-minded and really understanding how people different to myself interpret language. Lastly, by understanding language, I would like to be more analytical and careful when it comes to my writing. I want to make sure that my language choices are in accordance with the reaction I want to get with my reader. Look at your goals. How will the material that we cover in class help you achieve them? Becaus...

Biography What are your interests? What do you care about? My interests range from literature, history and keeping up with current events to beach and indoor volleyball and jogging. I also am quite interested in social activism, specifically with feminist topics. I care about social justice in the world, understanding history and its impact on the modern world and trying to be a well-rounded person. What role does language have in your life? I believe language has a deep impact on my life. I am a native Spanish speaker, and it being a Latin language, it is gendered, meaning nouns and adjectives both have a feminine and masculine form. Although this is a more unconscious impact, it definitely has shaped my perception of gender and which attributes are traditionally established for males and females. On a more superficial note, language also impacts my everyday life because depending on the person I am talking to, I make different choices of language. This impacts how I behave ar...