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Meagan Bens
Doctor McLaughlin
Multimedia Writing & Rhetoric
10 December 2015
Final Portfolio Reflection
Throughout my years of school, I always liked writing and preferred it over other courses
such as math and science. During high school, my attitude towards writing was usually
influenced by my teacher and the assignments I received. A majority of my English papers were
tedious, limited in subject matter, and not particularly interesting. While signing up for classes
for first semester, I was disappointed that I did not receive any AP Language and Composition
credit. I thought my Writing and Rhetoric class would be similar to high school experience and
would just be continual, uneventful work. Wanting to try something new and have more fun
while writing, I chose Multimedia Writing and Rhetoric. With this first semester coming to an
end, I can easily say that this was the best writing class I have taken.
My portfolio within my blog demonstrates the ongoing writing process. Papers can
always be modified and improved. In high school, I took my papers seriously and would always
edit them. Taking this course, I focused more on the planning and editing parts within the writing
process. I put more time into researching and outlining papers before typing my papers. To be
honest, I would usually choose a topic, start typing, and find information along the way. To make
my writing process much more efficient and concise, I put more effort into planning. With a clear
outline beforehand, my papers demonstrated a clear focus from the start. Also, I have always
taken the editing process seriously, but ever since I read Lamotts Shitty First Drafts, I had a
different mindset. Most of the time, I would restrain myself from putting anything on the page if

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it was below my standards. After reading the article, I started to write whatever came to mind
during my first draft. By throwing every thought I had on the page, I was able to go back later
and choose all the good parts within my first ideas and combine them to create a better product. I
also took advantage of office hours and the workshopping done in class. Just by discussing all
my ideas, I was able to talk through my plan and generally have a better focus while writing.
Throughout the semester, I have learned that the writing process is constant planning and editing.
I have also learned that discussing with outside sources also improves ones sense of purpose
while writing.
Throughout the semester, the evolution of my writing process is evident within all my
works. While working on my first assignment, my narrative essay, I followed the previous
process I usually did in high school. I had a general plan while writing the story and I wrote it all
at once. Writing it all at once, I did not have time to reflect on everything while writing. I met
with Dr. McLaughlin to discuss my essay, and I left knowing that I had to work on making my
story more concise. If I broke up the essay into parts beforehand, I would have saved myself time
in the future and would have produced a better product. Moving onto the next project, the
rhetorical analysis, I spent more time planning out the paper and breaking it up into chunks.
Breaking it into chunks and reflecting on my progress each day, I put more time into making sure
all my evidence pointed back to my thesis. By splitting up my time working on it, I also was not
as bored as I usually am while writing rhetorical analysis papers. During the next assignment,
being the video satire, my continual emphasis on the planning process is evident. Being under
pressure with various projects due at the same time, my group and I diligently planned our video.
We went over our storyboard and outline several times, editing it to effectively reflect our
purpose within the short time allowed with the video. Every time we considered adding or

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editing a part of the video, we thought how it would relate back to our purpose. Within the
limited time together, my group effectively planned what we were to accomplish each meeting.
Moving onto the last project, the research paper, my effort to improve my planning process is
most evident. Being a longer paper requiring multiple sources, I put hours into just reading and
researching the topic to start with. While reading, I threw every idea I had onto a document.
After I went through online and print sources, I went through my brainstorming document to find
commonalities. Comparing similarities, I was able to pick a more centralized topic. All my work
done before actually writing the paper greatly helped and I enjoyed the process more.
My portfolio also demonstrates my understanding of rhetoric and argumentation, most
evident in my rhetorical analysis and research paper. Within my paper, I analyzed the rhetoric
within the movie Dear White People to highlight the complexities of black identity on a college
campus, further proving that America is not post-racial. During this assignment, I spent time
analyzing dialogue choices, camera angles, and scene selections to prove my argument. While
watching the movie, I kept in mind that everything is done with a purpose and I paid more
attention to the details within the film. As for my research paper, I pulled from multiple outside
sources to prove my central claim that white peoples appropriation of black culture, specifically
rap music, proves the persistence of white supremacy and the fallacy of post-racial America.
While writing the paper, every piece of evidence I decided to include was related back to my
purpose. I spent a great amount of time pulling from credible sources to enhance my argument
and convince my reader.
My research paper, TED talk, and satire video also demonstrate my use of my critical
research, reading, and thinking skills. Considering my research paper had to pull from outside
sources, I spent time sifting through material, analyzing similarities and statistics, and crafting it

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into an effective paper. With an abundance of information provided on the topic, I took a great
amount of time trying to condense my central argument and ideas I would address in my paper.
My TED talk involved my critical skills because I had to convert my research papers topic into a
presentation. With the time limit and all the evidence I address in my paper, I had to condense
my presentation and revise it several times. As for my satire video, my group and I also
demonstrated our critical thinking skills. Within the few minutes allowed, we had to make use of
every second and efficiently incorporate our purpose, which was to emphasize the consequences
of students priorities on the Notre Dame campus and how Club Fever fits into the ever-evolving
first year experience. Throughout all these assignments, we were challenged to make use of
every word or second to stress our thesis and purpose. The use of critical research and reading
within the projects has helped me develop overall as a student. I learned how to efficiently
research and I explored several resources Notre Dame offers. The researching and reading skills
incorporated into this class are essential in all areas of study and I feel more prepared moving
into my future classes.
By incorporating multimedia into my writing, I have explored new ways to convey my
thoughts and ideas. While recording my audio essay, I learned how voice and word choice can
convey the mood and tone throughout my story. I learned how something so simple as voice can
deeply impact ones message. As for the rhetorical analysis of the film, I was able to explore how
producers effectively convey their purpose via visuals and dialogue. The film analysis gave me
another perspective about rhetoric and how it surrounds us in every area. The satire video also
challenged us to communicate our thoughts through dialogue and visual elements. Through
multimedia, I became more aware of the rhetoric around me and I have become more critical of
my daily encounters. Previously, I only analyzed rhetoric within print elements, but this semester

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I was forced to analyze rhetoric in different forms. My overall experience using multimedia
enhanced my writing and made the class much more engaging and interesting. I believe the
multimedia course exposed us to different outlets of rhetoric and will greatly help us with all
future classes.
I am definitely proud of my research paper that I crafted this semester. I put in a
tremendous amount of time researching my topic. I chose a topic that I was very interested in and
I actually enjoyed just reading through sources for hours. With my passion for the topic and
personal experiences I have had, I enjoyed every step along the way while I wrote my paper. I
believe that my research paper highlights my strength to develop a well organized essay. I was
able to effectively support my argument through my selection of outside sources. I believe my
essay highlights my growth as a writer as well. With the strategies I learned throughout the
course, I was able to analyze a topic prevalent in society today. I believe the course encouraged
me to be more aware of the world around me and investigate something relevant to me
personally. While enjoying the assignment, I used my critical researching and thinking skills to
analyze something relative outside of the classroom. I believe the research paper was a great
project to end with and I feel very prepared moving forward on my academic journey.
Each assignment had a purpose that addressed different aspects of the writing process.
The audio narrative taught us to use the power of our voice and word choice to reflect the storys
atmosphere at the time. Being the first assignment, we immediately jumped into using a different
platform to tell a story. Starting with something different, we realized that technology greatly
affects rhetoric and how audiences perceive information. The next project, the rhetorical analysis
paper, taught us how to critically analyze a different medium besides printed text. We learned
how to incorporate material we read in class into our papers. We learned that specifics such as

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dialogue, lighting, angles, etc. all relate back to the producers purpose of the film. The next
project, the satirical video, taught us how to address a social problem and advocate a corrective
through a different medium. We learned how to convey our purpose through visuals and
dialogue, broadening our skills. The TED talk was an assignment that challenged us to shape our
research papers argument into a presentation. Through storytelling, the incorporation of sources,
statistics, and images, we learned how to develop a valid argument. Through my final portfolio, I
am able to reflect on my writing and what I have accomplished this semester. Reflecting on my
assignments, I realize this course was tremendously successful in preparing me for future classes
and even future careers.