Writing for different audiences

PB3A

The article that I have chosen for WP3 is titled Ecology, Sexual Selection, and the Evolution of Mating Systems, by Stephen T. Emlen and Lewis W. Oring. The main point of the article is to discuss how evolution has changed sexual selection and the mating systems, specifically of Humans and other primates. I chose this article because I believe that it is fascinating to find out how interactions amongst individuals has changed throughout history. It is also a topic that is not specific to one certain age group and many people can benefit from learning about it.

            For a younger audience, it would make the most sense to focus on the ecology and evolutionary aspects of the paper rather than the sexual content. Though it is all scientific and not crude, the audience I am targeting (4^th-7^th graders) might not be aware of how sexual relationships work. I believe that there is a way to get across the majority of the information in this paper without having to make them uncomfortable. Because it is a science-based article, pictures can help with the audience’s learning of this information. I want to create an adventure comic in which a main character analyzes the evolution of these social systems. That way I can also incorporate goofy fonts, younger jargon, and cool animations.

            For the older people genre, I had a harder time deciding which method would be the best to get across the information of the article. Obviously it would over-view all of the information without having to censor any, but would have less scientific jargon than the original paper. I finally decided on doing a news piece, similar to those found in magazines such at Time, or The New Yorker. These magazines are known for being very factual and therefor readers trust the institutions. The news article will contain all of the information, just a bit more simplified.

            I’m excited to work on the different parts of this word project because I feel that it allows us to be more creative than the last two projects. Writing for younger audiences seems like there is more freedom to be silly and yourself. Writing for an older audience will rely more on making the right moves and keeping the right style. I do think it will be a lot of work to create these pieces and wonder if I have to create the whole entirety of those pieces or just the beginnings? I will find out eventually I suppose.

Class responses: Painting Trees

I happened to be able to answer a few of the beginning class questions before the technical problems set in so I will continue from where I left off!

Painting Trees
When watching all the different clips about painting, styles and moves made a lot more sense to me. It was really easy to see the approaches the painters made and how they differed. In the clip of "Happy Trees" and "Painting Mountains" the artist seemed really relaxed and focused on the journey of the piece, rather than the main object. His brushstrokes were leisurely and he was not worried about messing up.
The artist who worked on the disney film had very different styles. Through research, they were able to collaborate to produce a medieval-looking background. This gives the audience a feeling of being drawn back in time to the story of romance and adventure.
The most interesting clip was when the three different artists all painted a tree. Their first move is in setting up their work. They all take different approaches and even use different mediums. They also all sit in different areas which means their perspective of the tree will be different. Walt's approach was to reproduce the tree graphically. This meant dark lines creating a solid picture. He compares the tree to a skyscraper. Josh takes more of a spiritual perspective and sees the tree as full of life. He says he sees the tree as "a living personality." Therefor he uses large strokes to convey motion. Ivan, the third artist, says he sees "all the richness and variety of nature." He makes his painting a detailed study of the trunk.
While all of the artist are painting the same subject, their styles and moves turn out completely original pieces that say a lot about their personalities. Not one is better than the other, as there is beauty in each of their styles.