Inquiry Project

Topic: Different types of language exist, and we should understand how to interpret and communicate them.

Question: Why should we master the art of correct language?

Research : Blog post 1

Dictionary. Com defines

art:

1.the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance.

2.the class of objects subject to aesthetic criteria; works of art collectively, as paintings, sculptures, or drawings: a museum of art; an art collection.  See fine art, commercial art.

3.a field, genre, or category of art: Dance is an art.

4.the fine arts collectively, often excluding architecture: art and architecture.

5. any field using the skills or techniques of art: advertising art; industrial art.

Language:

1. a body of words and the systems for their use common to a people who are of the same community or nation, the same geographical area, or the same cultural tradition: the two languages of Belgium; a Bantu language; the French language; the Yiddish language.

2.communication by voice in the distinctively human manner, using arbitrary sounds in conventional ways with conventional meanings; speech.

3.the system of linguistic signs or symbols considered in the abstract ( opposed to speech ).

4.any set or system of such symbols as used in a more or less uniform fashion by a number of people, who are thus enabled to communicate intelligibly with one another.

5.any system of formalized symbols, signs, sounds, gestures, or the like used or conceived as a means of communicating thought, emotion, etc.: the language of mathematics; sign language.

-The first thing I have to do with my paper is set my definitions. What is art and what is language so I can show how language is an art. I bolded the most important part of the definition. I will take “means of communicating thought.” To talk about why it’s important to know grammar, and body language—you can’t communicate if you don’t know what you’re saying.

2)http://www.writingwhitepapers.com/blog/2007/12/19/is-writing-an-art-or-a-craft/

“However, some of those same qualities also contribute to the artistic nature of writing. Going back to Wordnet, we see that art involves ‘the creation of beautiful or significant things’. Painting a picture or creating an atmosphere is as much artistic as it is skilful.”

“When we think about the things that move us, that stir us emotionally, many of these are pieces of writing. Even if these are hundreds of years old, they still have the power to elicit a powerful, even visceral response.” ----one of the qualities of art---

3)http://thegrammarvandal.wordpress.com/category/street-signs/

--- Love these images and this whole article!! Makes the point of grammar perfectly- Grammar can change an entire meaning. I would use these as humorous examples in my essay to talk about why grammar is important.

 4)http://www.naturalgame.com/showthread.php?t=6120

Here's the thing guys, I'll put this in jungle mode for you. If you are walking through the jungle, slouching not really looking forward, someone else will pick up on this and whether you'd like it or not they will treat you worse because you are subconsciously giving them undeserved power. You are bowing to them and giving them the OK to attack without realizing it.—relates to why we bow to kings and queens.

. You will be more ready to defend if there are. Slouching implies lowering your guard and submitting. You do not want to do this. Standing up straight makes you feel more confident, and people are more likely to respect you. You'll have learned a leadership trait.

This isn't to demonstrate fake high value to impress people, this is to demonstrate high Inner value to yourself. You will have earned your own respect, and it's not fake. It will emanate outside to people and inspire them to do the same for themselves.---I would connect this back to idea of it being an art—it must be practiced etc. it affects your opinion of yourself and the opinion of those around you

1     5)      http://www.charlestonschoolofprotocol.com/N5_News_Detail.asp?pid=68&ID=179

This article talks about the different types of body language- the eyes, mouth, head and hands

“Your body language helps form the first impression that people have of you. It is comprised of your posture, facial expressions and hand gestures; and as with everything else, it has etiquette dos and don’ts, as it relates to its positive appearance.” –this thought sums up pretty well the idea that I want to get across.

      6)      http://www.military.com/opinion/0,15202,148139,00.html

This is awesome! This guy talks about the importance of body language to show confidence.  He talks about men who led others into battle.

“Subordinates need to look up to somebody who is still standing strong, like an oak, regardless of events around them. You need to convey a feeling that you will always be in control despite the circumstances, even if you don’t have an immediate solution. The air of confidence must come out,” –this is great to show how body language 1) says something, 2)but also gives a feeling to others.  This article also touches on why it is an art. There are so many small details that are bodies wether we know it or not. This article touches on the importance of controlling these meticulous details.

3    7)      http://www.pet-health-advisor.com/howtocommunicatewithanimals.html

          this website has tons of stuff on animals and different forms of body language.It talks about therapy, training and control with body language. Great for showing the craft  and important details 

8) http://psychology.about.com/od/nonverbalcommunication/a/nonverbaltypes.htm-   types of communication

This article breaks nonverbal communication up into different types: facial, gesture,  paralinguistics, body language and posture, proxemics, eye gaze, hactics, appearance, All of these connect to the way politicians speak, students communicate, and children communicate with their parents. Knowing these can be very difficult and take practice!

9) http://realtruth.org/articles/090806-002-science.html    difference between animals

This article discusses the differences between man and animals. Although were all very similar, humans are different.  He uses a lot but the ones most appropriate to humans are appreciation of beauty(body language, rhythm, sound of good writing) , connections between words(obviously writing and talking), character(body language) capacity for wisdom..what we say and what we wear should demonstrate this capacity..and need

He also talks about how we have a soul. I think that’s important. C.S. Lewis said, “We are not a body, have a body. We are a soul.” That reminds me that we should act and present out bodies to represent our souls.



10) http://www.vistawide.com/languages/why_languages8-10.htm
This webite gives 10 reasons why we should study other languages. The ones I like the most are   "To make travel more feasable and enjoyable" "To sharpen cognitive and life skills." "To increase global understanding" "To appreciate international arts." The ones I picked relate back to language as an art

I want to focus on why it's important to know different spoken languages. I tough on body language and communication and this is another aspect of the art that is also important to master.Its equally important to know other languages as it is to know english.

This quote comes from the website :"The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden. If you don't want paradise, you are not human; and if you are not human, you don't have a soul." -here he is talking about knowing literature in other languages. It connects to my #9 source.

11) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzgzim5m7oU
This is a really interesting video. Its cheesy,but I think it shows perfectly how just saying something differently makes a huge difference. We all need to learn how to play with words and make our point stronger.



12 http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/power-of-words

This website has some great quotes that I want to incorporate :

“My task, which I am trying to achieve is, by the power of the written word, to make you hear, to make you feel--it is, before all, to make you see.” ---this definitely connects to language as an art. art awakens our senses, it makes us see and thinks things

The limits of my language means the limits of my world.” - this connects to the idea of knowing different languages. It also says that our world can only go so far as the language we know


“I know nothing in the world that has as much power as a word. Sometimes I write one, and I look at it, until it begins to shine.” -- I really like this quote. Words can shine, just like a painting or a dance. it shines because it affects our emotions in some way

― Emily Dickinson

“Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know more.”

― Confucius

“If I read a book and it makes my whole body so cold no fire can warm me, I know that is poetry. If I feel physically as if the top of my head were taken off, I know that is poetry. These are the only ways I know it. Is there any other way?”

― Emily Dickinson, Selected Letters- this is what art does.



Inquiry: Blog post 2

I want to research why it is important to master different types of language, and  show how language is a form of art.

I think it is really interesting to see how politicians manipulate language, and how Hitler started an entire holocaust based on manipulation- shows the artistic side of language.

On the other side, it’s interesting how simple body language says so much. Why is it important to stand up straight to show respect? Why do soldiers compose themselves the way they do? Why is it important not to roll your eyes at a parent? Why is it important to be clear in your texts and e-mails? What sort of things can you miscommunicate by forgetting to do all these things? What do these things say?

I have personal experience with this as a dancer. We are taught to stand when the teacher enters the room, stand up straight even when not in a dance class, not to yawn during class, and always show in our bodies a desire to be there. This is because it respectful to the teacher, but it’s also good for the body. It shows the interesting connection between how we communicate with our bodies affecting the attention in our brains.

As a dancer, I have always been fascinated with body language, and how it can contradict or further what we want to say.  As someone who likes to write, I think there is so much humor in bad writing, and danger when people don’t understand how to identify bad logic.

I know communicating well is important and communicating with your body language is as important as with your words. Even animals understand body language, and even when we don’t have the same language or words as another we still have body language.

 I know if we don’t pay attention to the language of others it could hurt us. We have to see through the  rhetoric to the argument and ask, what are they really saying?

I know also we can say the completely wrong things if we don’t understand our grammar and word meaning. I think it’s funny to look at all the different road signs that could mean other things because they lack punctuation.

I need to find more specific information. I want to find examples of how bad grammar can change a meaning or politicians that have affected history by their good rhetoric but lack of truth. I want to look more into body language and find examples or stories that show how body language can change the way something is communicate or help something be communicated.

How can I tie together all these ideas? What’s the most important idea? What do I really want to tell the reader?  

My Main ideas:

            Body and written language are forms of art.

            Body language affects the brain-

            Body language also important with animals-

           

            We must know how to interpret language to know what people are really saying--- go into negative affects if we don’t know

Questions: Should we and how do we master the art of language?

Research Proposal: Blog post 3

Topic: Different types of languages exist as different art forms.

IQ: How do we master the art of correct language

Communicating is an art.

Language, means of communicating, is an art form.

Language: any system of formalized symbols, signs, sounds, gestures, or the like used or conceived as a means of communicating thought, emotion, etc.: the language of mathematics; sign language.

Art: .the quality, production, expression, or realm, according to aesthetic principles, of what is beautiful, appealing, or of more than ordinary significance.

Why Language is an art form:

Grammar---- “means of communicating thought and emotion”

http://thegrammarvandal.wordpress.com/category/street-signs/

Art is the “creation of beautiful things.” Grammar helps create rhythm --- quality, beautiful appealing

 “Painting a picture or creating an atmosphere is as much artistic as it is skilful.”

Grammar takes skill, practice, technique to create something rythmic

Body Language: The art of presenting  yourself in purposeful manner

“Subordinates need to look up to somebody who is still standing strong, like an oak, regardless of events around them. You need to convey a feeling that you will always be in control despite the circumstances, even if you don’t have an immediate solution. The air of confidence must come out,” –

this is great to show how body language 1) says something,  2)but also gives a feeling to others.  This article also touches on why it is an art. There are so many small details of our bodies whether we know it or not. This article touches on the importance of controlling these meticulous details.

This article breaks nonverbal communication up into different types: facial, gesture,  paralinguistics, body language and posture, proxemics, eye gaze, hactics, appearance, All of these connect to the way politicians speak, students communicate, and children communicate with their parents. Knowing these can be very difficult and take practice!

This is taken from a blog but its interesting to see her points of view on how we can be viewed if we don’t have correct body language:” Here's the thing guys, I'll put this in jungle mode for you. If you are walking through the jungle, slouching not really looking forward, someone else will pick up on this and whether you'd like it or not they will treat you worse because you are subconsciously giving them undeserved power. You are bowing to them and giving them the OK to attack without realizing it”.—

 Slouching implies lowering your guard and submitting. You do not want to do this. Standing up straight makes you feel more confident, and people are more likely to respect you. You'll have learned a leadership trait.

This isn't to demonstrate fake high value to impress people, this is to demonstrate high Inner value to yourself. You will have earned your own respect, and it's not fake. It will emanate outside to people and inspire them to do the same for themselves.

Art makes words powerful: “My task, which I am trying to achieve is, by the power of the written word, to make you hear, to make you feel--it is, before all, to make you see.” ---this definitely connects to language as an art. art awakens our senses, it makes us see and thinks things

I will also explore word manipulation such as wit, puns and sarcasm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzgzim5m7oU

I also believe we are different from animals. I will incorporate this into my paper- maybe the conclusion

"The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden. If you don't want paradise, you are not human; and if you are not human, you don't have a soul."

We are more than animals: humans have appreciation of beauty (body language, rhythm, sound of good writing) , connections between words(obviously writing and talking), character(body language) capacity for wisdom...what we say and what we wear should demonstrate this capacity.

We have a capacity to make art


11-12 update: Blog post four

I have an argument, but based on my feed back, I will probably need to pick a more specific aspect- focus on grammar in every aspect of writing(rhythm, poetry, sounds, feelings, messages…etc).  Focus on both grammar and body language being art. Focus on just body language as an art(what it says and what feelings it relays to other people). I am leaning towards the middle one, but I also want to include the power of words and what makes words powerful and artistic. I don’t know if this would fall under the grammar section or under a whole new topic.  Throughout my paper I will talk about why this is important.

I think I will conclude by talking about how the ability to reason, read and write is what separates us from animals. Animals can’t create art but humans can and should.
I will feel a lot better about my project when I have more and better research.

Annotated Bibliography: Blog post 5

Hall, Sharon Hurley. " Is Writing an Art or a Craft?." Writing White Papers: How to Capture Readers and Keep Them Engaged. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2012. <http://www.writingwhitepapers.com/blog/2007/12/19/is-writing-an-art-or-a-craft/>.

Micheal A. Stelzner wrote a book called writing white papers, and his blog addresses whether or not writing is an art or a craft. He begins by saying that writing is a craft because it takes skills that can be taught and perfected. He says there are certain rules one can follow to make themselves a better writer …this makes it a craft---this also relates to the idea of grammar. He says writing is an art because painting a picture of a beautiful sunrise it still artistic—it is creating a beautiful thing—which is art.  He uses Shakespeare’s sonnets, The declaration of Independence and Martin Luther Kings, “I have a dream speech” as examples of moving and artistic literature. He says we think of writing when we think of things that are beautiful and artistic. In the end he decides writing is both a craft and an art. Though  not every thing he writes is a work of art, he often writes thing that “strike a chord with people.”I thought about dance a lot when I read this article. Teachers say that anybody can master the skill, technique and craft of dancing, but it takes an artist to be a good dancer. I think the same can be said of writing. This article is thorough. He addresses both sides of the issue and explains why he believes what he does. He does not attempt to force his readers to think anything, more offer an explanation and hope they understand.

Payne, Lucile Vaughan. The lively art of writing. New York: New American Library, 19691965. Print.

 This book breaks down different techniques of writing that make it rhythmic, poetic, and artistic. Lucile Payne writes a whole chapter on the rhythm of speech and the sound of sentences. She says one of the first ways  to create rhythm in writing is to vary sentence length. She calls it a “talking rhythm.” She says “Generally, the short sharp sentences give emphasis and the long, involved sentences provide depth and color.” This is just like any song, instrument, or dance. The depth and color provide the biggest artistic aspect. She also talks about expanding the verb and the sentence to create detail variety and storytelling. This changes the simple boring sentence of “the dog barked” to something more interesting and more artistic—essentially more appealing. The main point she wants to make in this section is that anything written should flow naturally and have the same natural “cadence of the human voice.” She especially likes patterns and parallel structure.  She also likes to mix things up. She says to use variety in your writing  such as metaphors and similes, big words and small, solemn vapors(things like “happiness is a warm puppy”),and allusion. She sums these ideas up by telling the writer to make things that are abstract real by invoking the senses. This makes writing come to life—it makes writing artistic. I will talk about art as rhythmic—parallel and varied. I will also talk about how art affects the viewer/reader/listener because it invokes the senses-makes us see and hear and therefore makes us remember, makes us feel, makes us cry, makes us laugh. This is an excellent source. She really helped me find connection to art with writing. Even though she never says, “this makes writing an art,” she pointed me in the right direction and gave me concrete details about how to make writing come alive!

Schleifer, Bradford G.. "Human Mind vs. Animal Brain – Why So Different?." The Real Truth - A Magazine Restoring Plain Understanding. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Nov. 2012. <http://realtruth.org/articles/090806-002-science.html>.

This article discusses the differences between man and animals. Although we’re all very similar, humans are different. In the opening of his article, Schleifer explains the mind- body problem—that our brains do not seem to have the capacity for creativity and expression that humans actually have so where does it come from? He says it is either physical or spiritual and explains arguments for both. In doing so he gives a lot of reasons about how humans differ from animals. The ones most appropriate to my topic are appreciation of beauty(body language, rhythm, sound of good writing) , connections between words(obviously writing, communicating, talking), character(body language) capacity for wisdom..what we say and write should demonstrate this ability. He also talks about how we have a soul. I think that’s important. C.S. Lewis said, “We are not a body, have a body. We are a soul.” This connects back to the quote about the garden.  This article does a very good job at giving all potential ways that humans and animals differ- he gives the biblical and the evolutionary view along with just the basic reasons for those who don’t believe in either. I will be using this to introduce how humans are artistic and writing is one way that we express art.

Stafford, Kim Robert. The muses among us: eloquent listening and other pleasures of the writer's craft. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2003. Print.

            Kim Stafford wrote “The Muses Among Us,” to show the artistic aspects of writing. He never comes right out and explains how writing is art; he mostly just uses stories of his past to show this, but the mere title of his book shows the connection. The muses are in writing—the muses bring rhythm, song and life to writing. He says that writing reveals secrets. He says, “It seems to me we should write secrets we are ready to tell.” Others could paint, others could make a film…writing is an escape from talking---so is art. He coins the term “happy problems.” They are originality, secrecy, form, confusion and error. All these seem like problems but they are all opportunities to create. All artists and creators struggle with these “problems.” About confusion, he says it’s a good thing when you struggle—it means you’re seeing new connections. Error can be a great thing. When you mishear something and believe you’re right, only to find out you’re wrong, that’s good. Now the wrong idea can be yours. He said to listen to country music with the volume too low; you’ll think you heard something but you really didn’t. Then you can take what you think you heard.  I love this last sentence, “embrace your happy problems. Mystery and difficulty are you’re greatest fortunes.” I really enjoyed his book. I thought his examples were thorough, specific, and appropriate. He really helped me find even more connections between art and writing. Though his writing was one-sided, it was still appropriate, it wasn’t so much an argumentative writing as it was commentary mixed with opinion.

"Street Signs | The Grammar Vandal." The Grammar Vandal | Taking it to the streets and correcting America, one comma at a time.. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2012. <http://thegrammarvandal.wordpress.com/category/street-signs/>.

This is a blog in which the author(name unknown) compiles photos, videos etc of people around the world who see bad grammar on road signs.  Her tagline is “taking it the streets and correcting America, one comma at a time.” She has many humorous signs that say things like, “Authorized Personal only” rather than “personnel.” Another said “3th floor” as opposed to “3rd” floor.  Another said “Caution Trails merge.” What happened to punctuation? It should be “Caution: trails merge.” Or did he want to say that two caution trails are actually merging? And the winner? “All alcoholic beverages must be consumed on the premise”   IT should say, “No alcohol beverages can be taken off this premise” or “Your alcoholic beverage must be consumed before you leave the premise.” Something like that. Neither of those fix it really, but they’re better. I think this website is great. It gives lots of good examples and I like her sarcastic remarks. It gives me lots of great things to add to my paper if I decide to take the grammar route. After looking her website, I am reminded there is no other argument for the other side…which I guess would have to be..grammar is stupid?

Webster, Inc. Merriam-Webster's learnersDictionary.com. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 2006. Print.

I used the dictionary for my two definitions- art and language. They define art as the quality or feeling of what is beautiful and appealing. Language they define as formalized symbols gestures sounds...etc. These definitions are exactly what I need. They are clear, short, concise and direct.

"Why learn languages? 10 good reasons to learn a foreign language!." World Languages & Cultures - Learn Languages - Know Cultures - Visit Vistawide. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2012. <http://www.vistawide.com/languages/why_languages8-10.htm>.  

            I am using this source for one reason: I really really like this quote. Other than that I have no use for it I don’t think. I agree with most of his reasons, but I have no reason to explain them in my paper. The best one was so “we can appreciate international arts.” That doesn’t really show how writing/language is an art. This is the quote: "The many great gardens of the world, of literature and poetry, of painting and music, of religion and architecture, all make the point as clear as possible: The soul cannot thrive in the absence of a garden. If you don't want paradise, you are not human; and if you are not human, you don't have a soul." -here he is talking about knowing literature in other languages, but I like it just because it connects to the idea of us having a soul that looks for beautiful things-art. Again not proof for my essay, but might be a good intro or conclusion. 

Reflection: Blog Post seven

I am not a very big fan of blogging; however this blog did help. All my information was in one spot, and if I needed to go back and look at research I knew exactly where to go.  But once I started writing my paper, I very rarely looked at this blog, maybe once or twice. If I were to do this assignment again, I would rather not have a blog. I would just keep everything in a file on my computer. That is what I already do, and works perfectly for me. Sometimes I keep it in a notebook to. I hate needing a computer for everything so anything off the computer is nice.

It is interesting to see where my paper started and where it is now. I had so many ideas in the beginning, i wanted to talk about grammar, body language, the soul and animals. I had so many ideas swarming around in my head and I ended up with a final draft that I didn't see coming. I am happy with it though. If I had more time I would expand the introduction, use more examples, and clean it up again. I might even try to defend a little bit more why we have a soul and create a tighter connection between the soul and emotions. I think it's ok without that because it's not the focus of my paper. I don't want the reader to become distracted.
Reading over it again, I think I would go through each example and say how it directly affects the soul. That idea might get a little lost in my paper at certain points, but at the same time I don't want to overwhelm and the reader and become all they focus on, so maybe that's a good thing.
I would also put more emphasis on my paragraph about Edgar Allen Poe. I wish I saw those things sooner, but I'm glad I caught them now.
Time to stop saying bad things about my paper now!

youtube linkhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hzgzim5m7oU
I know I never used this video, but I still really like it. Even though it never found its way into my paper, the ideas helped guide my paper and research.