(I have provided the link to the video of my speech. The video cannot be directly embedded into this site due to the file size.)
Description:
My first artifact that I want to introduce is the Civic Artifact Speech from RCL1. For this assignment, students were asked to select an artifact that “frames the civic”, hence analyzing how members of a community use the artifact to practice civic engagement. For my choice, I had to explain how student driver stickers encourage belonging to a community and performing certain responsibilities to it in the form of a speech.
This speech is special because it marks the beginning of my development in RCL. This assignment was my first attempt at completing a rhetorical analysis, nevertheless presenting it. It allowed me to identify my strengths in rhetorical analysis and my shortcomings in comprehending civic life, which I improved by thoroughly exploring the meaning of civic life and engagement through this assignment. Since then, I’ve come to realize the significance of civic life and grown to be more civically engaged myself.
Additionally, in civic life, simply constructing and having ideas is not enough. As in the case with civic artifacts and the speech itself, ideas must be presented in ways that can be understood by others and, therefore, be used to build community. I never favored public speaking and presenting my ideas, but this assignment allowed me to realize the importance of effective presentation in civic life. Following this speech, I prioritized the organization and presentation of my ideas in all class assignments and discussions to properly utilize my preexisting strength of rhetorical analysis, which allowed me to produce my highest level of work.
Looking back, I believe I could have produced deeper, higher-quality analyses on my artifact if I redid the assignment now, but I’m still very proud of the speech that I put together and grateful for how it set the stage for my future success in RCL.