Invention Exercise: Comparative Analysis

1) a. Dobbs’ article “Beautiful Brains” deals with the adolescent mind and the mechanisms that are responsible for a teen’s train of thought. The author uses research from various University studies to reinforce his claims and explain the technical aspect behind the teenage thought process.

b. Smuts’ article “Apes of Wrath” focuses on male aggression towards females in both different primate species and human beings. Smuts uses her own research and observations to back up all of her claims as well as point out relevant events in human history that correlates to her ideas.

2) a. Dobbs page 161 paragraph 3: Seeking sensation can be more than just a last minute, reckless thing to do. It is also a way of living in the moment and being able to feel a level of excitement in doing something you normally wouldn’t do. Thrill seeking is more than just a way to feel excitement, it is also a way to socialize and broaden one’s horizons.

b. Smuts page 80 paragraph 3: There are several factors that play a key role in explaining why females are victims of sexual coercion. By comparing and contrasting the relationships females form in different species, explanations can arise as to why such a phenomena occurs. Looking at the female chimpanzees in the Tai Forest, they seem to form close bonds with each other as a form of protection against male abuse.

3) a. Quote: Dobbs “The answer is that those troublesome traits don’t really characterize adolescence; they’re just what we notice most because they annoy us or put our children in danger.” (160)

This is persuasive because: Dobbs proposes an argument with his reader with this statement because somewhere in the back of our minds teens are just problem children. Dobbs puts things into perspective by stating that the older generation tends to recognize and label teens by the “stupid” things they do instead of looking at the bigger picture.

b. Quote: Smuts “My observations over the years have convinced me that a deeper understanding of male aggression against females in other species can help us understand its counterpart in our own.”

This is persuasive because: Smuts wants the reader to understand all aspects as to why males are violent towards to females. She proposes that the comparison to primates will help the reader develop a different mindset as to why such violence is present.

4) The two readings both use research whether from outside sources or own experiences in order to develop their persuasive article in a scientific way. Both readings talk about the behaviors of humans, trying to explain the way they behave with scientific evidence.

5)Dobbs: Persuasive appeals, examples, diction

Smuts: Persuasive appeals, diction, compare and contrast

5. Imagine the two authors of these texts are sitting in a room together. Write the conversation they are having. What do they agree on? Where do they disagree?

Invention Exercise for Assignment #2

1. In 2-3 sentences, summarize in your own words each essay. Remember, a summary is a condensed version of the source text. It does not include any opinion. It does include the title of the piece and the author’s full name. Don’t worry about getting the wording perfect right now—just try to capture the essence of the readings.

a. “Beautiful Brains” was written by David Dobbs, which explores an evolutionary explanation for the relationship between teens’ behaviors and teens’ brains. This essay is a sort of scientific paper that is supported by numerous scientific experiments.

b.Barbara Smuts’s “Apes of Wrath” firstly focuses on factors that causes the aggression of male no-human primates against female no-human primate.  In addition, Smuts makes connections between animal studies and “human social relation”. She tries to use factors gain from the animal observations to explain human social relation. 

2. In 2-3 sentences, paraphrase in your own words a particular passage from each essay of not more than a paragraph. A paraphrase is different from a summary in that it is used with short passages—usually a few sentences—and doesn’t necessary shorten/condense the original. Choose a passage that you feel is important in each essay. After each paraphrase explain why it is significant.

a.In Dobbs’s “Beautiful Brains”, he emphasizes a way how parents raise or educate their children. Parents are a light of their children, which can guide their children to explore their own world. On the way to recognize the world, parents should give their children appropriate suggestions and allow their children to make decisions independently, not just simply control their children’s life entirely.

b. In Smuts’s “Apes of Wrath”, Smuts ends her essay by giving people a caution. People do gain inspiration from other primates’ experiences and actions. Nevertheless, people still need to make plans in detail and deliberate concrete steps in order to challenge the traditional model of human social relation in the future.

3. Choose a direct quote from each essay. After each quote explain why it is significant. What textual tools does the writer use to persuade the reader?

a. Quote: “The adaptive-adolescent story…sits better with biology’s most fundamental principle, that of natural selection. Selection is hell on dysfunctional traits. If adolescence is essentially a collection of them-angst, idiocy, and haste, impulsiveness, selfishness, and reckless bumbling-than how did those traits survive selection? They couldn’t” (Dobbs 160).

This is persuasive because: Dobbs uses biological principle as a evidence to support his assertion. He also translate abstract principle to concrete example via posing a question. This way makes people deeply understand what he says. Dobbs answers the question in the next sentence in order to resonate with readers.

b. Quote: “In such “female-bonded” species, females also form alliance against aggressive males. Vervet monkeys are one such species, and among these small and exceptionally feisty African monkey, related females gang up against male. High-ranking females use their dense network of female alliances to rule the troop; although smaller than males, they slap persistent suitors away like annoying flies” (Smuts 79).

This is persuasive because: Smuts uses concrete example to support his assertion and convince readers. Vivid description can attract readers and makes his article interesting.

4. What are some common themes of these two readings?

Both of these two readings are discussing scientific topics and using plenty of scientific materials and experimental conclusions as a basic to support their assertions. 

5. What are some common textual strategies of these two readings? (Think about rhetorical modes, persuasive appeals, organization, diction, etc. Identify at least 3).

Narrative beginning; examples; definitions; comparison

 

Invention exercises for Assignment 2

1.
a. “Beautiful Brains” by David Dobbs explores a frequently asked question that what explain the teenagers’ behavior? And he describes in details about how the human brain function and grow during adolescence.

b. “Apes of Wrath” includes many science experiment author Barbara Smuts did on primates’ behavior. She specifically talks about the male aggression against female both in primate species and human society and try to find some relationship or connection between them.
2.

a.“Beautiful Brains”: fifth paragraph on page 157. After brain-imaging technology has been developed, people are presented with a new way to look at the problem of teenagers’ behavior which indicates that human’s brain take much longer to develop than we thought.

This passage is important because it introduces reader a complete new way, also the main argument of author in the essay, to looking at the teenager bevior.

b. “Apes of Wrath”: second paragraph on page 79. Although size matters how males treat females in case of sexual behavior, so do other factors. In particular, the social relationships females form with other females and with male appear to be as important.

This passage is important because It lists the past research result on primates’ sexual behavior, on top of that, introduce readers author’s new discovery or idea which is the main argument of her essay.

3.

a. Quote: “Excitement, novelty, risk, the company of peers. These traits may seem to add up to nothing more than doing foolish new stuff with friends. Look deeper, however, and you see that these traits that define adolescence make us more adaptive, both as individual and as a species.

This is persuasive because: this quote serve as both conclusion to the previous paragraphs and introduction to author’s new argument. Those four words at the beginning of the sentence give reader a strong impression of what author had just stated.

b. Quote:“marriage involves not only the exclusion of other men from sexual access to a men’s wife—which protected the woman against rape by other men—but also entail the husband’ right to complete control over his wife’s sexual life.

This is persuasive because: it defines the meaning of marriage in the way corresponding to primates’ sexual behavior as author described earlier. It not only guides reader to view the kernel of marriage in a different way but also build the connection between the behavior of nonhuman primates and human-beings.

Invention Exercise

1. a. Dobb’s essay talks about the development of the human brain during adolescence. Dobb’s uses researches and studies to illustrate a teens’ thinking is affected process during this time of development.

b. Smut’s essay talks about violence on females in nonhuman primate species and humans. She conducted her own research to make a connection about the injustices that females face in both respective societies.

2. a. On page 157-158, there is a paragraph where Dobbs discusses a research that was conducted and it proved that an average teen’s brain is not nearly as matured as scientists have thought. Although the brain does not grow during the age of 12 to 25, it undergoes multiple changes that improve its effectiveness. This paragraph has significance because it gives evidence that teens are not as rational as we all thought they were. There is an explanation to the irrational decisions that teens make in life, and this just might be one of them.

b. In a particular paragraph on page 77, Smuts explains the abuse that various nonhuman primate species receive and makes a connection to the same exact abuse that women face. The interesting analogy makes a comparison and shows the readers how male aggression towards females is prevalent in both communities. This paragraph conveys the message that the similarity in the behavior of males towards females in both species might be universal.

3. a. Quote: “This revelation suggested both a simplistic, unflattering explanation for teens’ madden behavior-and a more complex, affirmative explanation as well.”(157)

This is persuasive because Dobbs illustrates an insightful idea that explains the behavior of teens during their maturity process.

b. Quote: “Some of the factors that influence female vulnerability to male sexual coercion in different species may also help explain such variation among different groups in the same species.” (80)

This is persuasive because Smuts uses comparison to show the readers the connection between the various species and how they are closely related.

Invention Exercise: Smuts and Dobbs

1. a. Barbara Smuts “ Apes of Wrath” is about her observations to primate behavior and how it is comparable to humans behavior.
b. Dobbs essay called “ Beautiful Minds” examines how teenagers minds work and why they are notorious for acting reckless.
2. .

a.
b.
3.
a. Quote: “These imaging tools offered a new way to ask the same question-whats wrong with these kids? –and revealed and answer that surprised almost everyone.” -Dobbs
This is persuasive because: It is persuasive because it is very intriguing, he makes it so you can’t wait to read the next part.

b. Quote: “In these societies, todays as in the past, the husband’s female kin usually view the wife as a competitor for resources.”
This is persuasive because: It is persuasive because it is interesting what shes saying about the bonds between people.

Beautiful, Yet Dangerous Brains

David Dobbs’  article ‘Beautiful Brains’, is written to inform the public of new scientific discoveries about the brain, how it develops and why adolescence is such a difficult time period for most parents to handle. What Dobbs writes is that through experiments and images of brain activity, many scientists realized that the brain takes much longer to develop than most people thought. He goes into details describing the way stronger links develop between the hippocampus and that this causes humans to become better at decision making. Throughout his article, Dobbs gives examples of how his son was in his adolescent years and how this research helped Dobbs realize more about why his son was put into jail for driving at 113 mph for instance.

Dobbs mixed in anecdotes with science discovery very well and made it flow. I enjoyed being able to relate to science on an easier level than if Dobbs were to just write a science journal will all its technicalities and scientific lexicon. Dobbs was able to clearly state the people who worked on these experiments and what they did. The experiments that were run on teens were explained thoroughly and given a reason for why this kind of experiment was given and what it uncovered. Not only was science a main part of this article but so was the way in which this science relates to every day life and socialization, for example when Dobbs talks about how teens usually search for approval from their peers and how this is seen through brain activity and development. Dobbs allowed avergae people to be able to understand complex scientific discovery and be updated on the current flow of what is going on in science.

Invention Exercise for Assignment 2

a. Dobbs’ essay cites scientific studies in order to explain why teenagers act impulsively. Dobbs believes this is due to a major restructuring of a teenager’s brain once it has reached adulthood. As a result this impulsiveness has helped humans survive evolution.

b. Smuts’ essay demonstrates why male primates act aggressively towards females, especially during ovulation. Smuts believes the difference in societal norms of each group reflects how the females are treated. Smuts relates these finding on chimpanzees and bonobos to the surge in sexual violence against women.

2. In 2-3 sentences, paraphrase in your own words a particular passage from each essay of not more than a paragraph. A paraphrase is different from a summary in that it is used with short passages—usually a few sentences—and doesn’t necessary shorten/condense the original. Choose a passage that you feel is important in each essay. After each paraphrase explain why it is significant.

1. In paragraph 1 of Beautiful Brains Dobbs uses an anecdote about his son to illustrate the recklessness of teens through his son’s speeding incident. This is significant because it lures the reader in, humanizes Dobbs as a parent, and opens the audience scope from parents to science enthusiasts.

b. In paragraph 3 of Apes of Wrath Smuts uses imagery and narrative to depict male aggressiveness towards estrous females in baboons. This passage is important because it draws the reader in through an anecdote that would interest an audience who does not have to be scientifically savvy to appreciate the essay.

3. Choose a direct quote from each essay. After each quote explain why it is significant. What textual tools does the writer use to persuade the reader?

a. Quote: “The brain doesn’t actually grow very much during this period. It has already reached 90 percent of its full size by the time a person is six, and a thickening skull accounts for most head growth afterward. But as we move through adolescence, the brain undergoes extensive remodeling, resembling a network and wiring upgrade.”

This is persuasive because:

This challenges the current misconception that teens are still “developing”, when in fact they are just remodeling their entire brain rather than growing.

b. Quote:  “. My long-term research on olive baboons in Kenya showed that, on average, each pregnant or lactating female was attacked by an adult male about once a week and seriously injured about once a year. Estrous females were the target of even more aggression.”

This is persuasive because: Smuts uses her firsthand account on her own scientific studies which make her a credible source.

4. What are some common themes of these two readings?

They are both scientific articles, they both use science to explain common social themes in the world, and they both utilize narration to make the article relatable and digestible to the audience.

5. What are some common textual strategies of these two readings? (Think about rhetorical modes, persuasive appeals, organization, diction, etc. Identify at least 3).

Narration: Used to humanize the articles and captivate the audience’s attention

Diction: Rhetorical questions are used to simplify the articles and directly focus on the problems presented

Ethos: Both articles use ethics as a common theme to teach a lesson

5. Imagine the two authors of these texts are sitting in a room together. Write the conversation they are having. What do they agree on? Where do they disagree?

Smuts and Dobbs would agree that both articles aim to explain current phenomena through the use of science. However, Dobbs’ article focuses on explain themes of evolution in the past, while Smuts’ work intends to change the current practice of abuse and look forward to the future.

Invention Exercises for Assignment #2

1a. In Barbara Smuts’ essay, “Apes of Wrath”, she writes about her research of violence and abuse toward females in primate populations and juxtaposes this to similar violence in human populations. She provides detailed analysis of her research, outlining the behavior she witnessed, and she ends the essay with a paragraph supporting movements to decrease “women’s vulnerability to sexual coercion” (Smuts 82), and adds that this research could help humans understand how to mitigate this problem.

1b. In David Dobb’s “Beautiful Brains” essay, he attempts to explain the peculiarities of teenage behavior. He includes an anecdote about his own son’s risky behavior and many discoveries obtained from scientific research to get the reader to understand what is happening inside the teenage brain as it develops, why it could promote risky behavior, and why the brain develops in that manner.

Invention Exercise for Assignment 2

1. (a) David Dobb’s “Beautiful Brain” focuses on the comparison of adolescent behavior and adult behavior. Dobb’s explains why teens take more risks than adults do, even though both their brains have matured about the same amount. Dobb’s writes this article trying to convey the point that teens should not be looked down upon because of age, but that their actions are due to the way the human body works instead.
(b) Smuts essay “Apes of Wrath” compares primates to humans. Being a scientist, most of her essay had to do with her own research and what she learned while following and watching the behavior of primates. She goes into depth about sexual aggression and violence seen in the primate world. Most of this aggression is from males towards females and Smuts relates this to humans. She concludes the article by saying that without wanting change, there will be no change. She refers to human ancestors and states that because humans wanted change, and females wanted to be treated differently, it is happening, but without this will, there would still be the violence seen in the primate world.

2. (a) In Dobb’s “Beautiful Brains” he begins with an anecdote about his son. The anecdote describes how his son had ended up in jail due to a speeding violation. He had been speeding at 113 miles per hour which is way over the speed limit of most roads, including highways and freeways. When Dobb’s confronts his son about what had just happened and his consequences  his son does not argue, but agrees to everything Dobb’s had just said. Dobb’s is a tad bit irritated at the fact that his son is fully aware of what he just did, but still proceeded to do it. This is the main reason behind why Dobb’s begins to talk about the brain processes and thoughts in teens versus adults. This first part of the article, the anecdote, is important to the essay because it captures the readers attention and also introduces the topic that will be discussed in a way that will want the readers to continue reading.
(b) Similarly, Smuts introduces her topic in the same way. She begins with a narration of her activities 20 years ago in Gombe National Park. Smuts explains the process of following a young chimpanzee through the forests of Africa until she was attacked by a male chimpanzee. The dramatic writing style that Smuts uses captures her readers in this anecdotes and allows her readers to remain engaged in what she is writing about. This interesting narration is placed here in order to capture the readers attention and want them to continue reading her article.

3. (a)
(b) “My observations over the years have convinced me that a deeper understanding of male aggression against females in other species can help us understand its counterpart in our own.” This sentence in “Apes of Wrath” is important because it explains what Smuts will be doing in her article. Although she will mostly continue to describe her research, this sentence shows that Smuts is trying to do a lot more–she is trying to link the two together based on behavior and social actions.

Invention Excersize

1. In 2-3 sentences, summarize in your own words each essay. Remember, a summary is a condensed version of the source text. It does not include any opinion. It does include the title of the piece and the author’s full name. Don’t worry about getting the wording perfect right now—just try to capture the essence of the readings.
a.Much like primates, human males and females behave in unacceptable ways. Women must work together in order to not be overtaken by male control.
b.Teenagers may not be so much different than adults, rather they are connected. Teenagers act the way they do, due to their brain developing. This is an important part of every humans’ lifetime.
2. In 2-3 sentences, paraphrase in your own words a particular passage from each essay of not more than a paragraph. A paraphrase is different from a summary in that it is used with short passages—usually a few sentences—and doesn’t necessary shorten/condense the original. Choose a passage that you feel is important in each essay. After each paraphrase explain why it is significant.

a.Women must work together, friends or not, in order to be free of male control.
This is significant, because it states her final point in clear way for readers to understand.

b.If teenagers were to mature faster, they may end up only depriving the potential of their future as adults.
This is important, because it wraps up all points made. Teenagers aren’t acting a certain way because they are stupid, rather they need to act this way to mature into being an adult.

3. Choose a direct quote from each essay. After each quote explain why it is significant. What textual tools does the writer use to persuade the reader?

a. Quote: “Estrous females were the target of even more aggression. The obvious question was, why?”(77)

This is persuasive because: The author uses this quote to get the readers attention and to think for themselves, while at the same time feel concerned, angry, and upset at the situation the primates were in.

b. Quote: “The teen brain is similarly attuned to oxytocin, another neural hormone, which (among other things) makes social connections in particular more rewarding”(163)

This is persuasive because: This statement not only adds to his point that teens act a certain because their brain is developing, but uses logic and knowledge to show the reader that the author knows what he is talking about.

4. What are some common themes of these two readings?
Common themes are, one side of an argument being explained.

5. What are some common textual strategies of these two readings? (Think about rhetorical modes, persuasive appeals, organization, diction, etc. Identify at least 3).
Ethos, logos are used.

5. Imagine the two authors of these texts are sitting in a room together. Write the conversation they are having. What do they agree on? Where do they disagree?