February 20 homework.

Swales summary: 

In his article Swales gives a definition of a discourse community by giving it characteristics. He is trying to make it clearer to the readers by arguing with other writers on what a discourse community is. He also uses the characteristics to discuss what is and what is not a discourse community. 

QD:

1) First characteristic is having a group and everyone in that group has set goals that they try to reach. Second is having a way to communicate with individuals in an effective way. Third is having a way to communicate with people in the community in an effective way. Fourth is putting the ways you communicate into genres. Fifth is having a specific lingo within the people of a community that helps people communicate. Sixth is to have change within a community and having support. 

3) I think that as a first year class would be considered the start of a discourse community and that a graduate class would be the end of one because they will be going off on their separate ways. 

5) I would belong to a discourse community of the volleyball team. We all have the same goal of winning and doing the best of our personal ability to win. We communicate as in telling the other players on the court where the ball is and calling out ahead of time where you want the ball to go. The changes we encounter is when we rotate positions. 

MM: This article helped me realize that discourse communities are more common than most people realize and with writing there are a lot of them. This was helpful for people to be able to navigate through discourse communities. 

Swales response: I personally got a better understanding of what a discourse community is from the specific definition and the characteristics that he give them. This article helps me view things in a different way. 

Gee summary: 

In his article he gives his own idea on the meaning of discourse and how it relates and affects a discourse community. He gives many details into the community. In this article he argues the opposite side of what we read from Swales. 

QD: 

3) With a capital D he says it ia a type of identity kit which comes complete with the appropriate costume and instructions on how to act, talk, and often write to take on a particular role that others will recognize. With a lower case d he is talking about the group as a whole. 

4) Primary discourse are initial and only contain themselves. Secondary discourse are both dominant and non-dominant bring you things such as wealth. 

5) It means that identity is that main idea in discourse and it is all about the individual. Based on his definition it shows that it is true. 

6) Its connected with identity because is what you believe not what you learn. It goes with what he states in that its not what you are taught but what you believe. 

7) He talks about how in groups we use language correctly and incorrectly. A situation where this happens would be with my volleyball team and if someone uses the wrong form we would all know because we have been doing the same thing for so long. 

8) The benefits are how people in a community decide whether someone can be part of that discourse community.  It helps the people in charge of the community see how the community is growing and how it would change after they leave. 

11) Meta-knowledge is knowing something but not having to focus on it as you do it. Blinking is an example because you blink based off your in stinks not actually making yourself blink every few seconds.  

12) I know I am part of the volleyball discourse community because i have played it for 7 + years and I intend to be able to teach it in the future. 

Gee response: 

I thought this reading was really difficult and hard for me to fully understand as well as the Swales reading. I didn't realize that so many discourse communities existed.