Analysis of our oral presentations

Dividing the topics into groups for oral presentations was a good idea. It allowed us to focus on the details of the part assigned to us without worrying about the text as a whole. Therefore, when the time came for us to deal with each topic on its own, we were able to pay attention to the details, whether because we had the time to work on them or because someone else had already done that for us.

Our presentation in particular was not very good. We had prepared a powerpoint presentation on google docs that would aid us and serve as a guide, apart from providing examples and pictures. Unluckily the internet connection was not working that day and we could not show it. This made the presentation awkward. We had to resort to the blackboard sometimes, and tried to explain things in the air some others. This increased our stress, which sometimes made us make intonation and pronunciation mistakes which led to further misunderstandings. Still, our classmates asked questions to clarify what was not clear, which allowed the topic to be developed properly.

Our classmates presentations, especially those in which there was a visual aid, were very helpful. They provided a different point of view on the same topics we had already read about. Class notes based on their presentations are an important aid for studying later on. Their examples, also, allowed us to see another way of applying the new information to the classroom, different from that presented by the material and different from that of our own.

Sacrificing Human Rights For the Sake of an Idea - 2nd Term Paper - Corrected

The Spanish Civil War started in July 1936, when a group of rebel military officers lead by Francisco Franco raised against the government of what was the second Spanish Republic. The country had been in a complicated situation for a while, and it became critical when certain groups within the Spanish society felt they were not represented by the government. This situation, and the government incapability to control their military forces and officers, helped the uprising, which led to a violent civil war as the divided military forces and the citizens fought for their supremacy. The conflict lasted until the year 1939, in which General Franco became ruler of Spain. It is not possible to say which side was more brutal, but throughout this process, many human lives were lost; people were murdered and executed, and human rights were left aside for the sake of an idea.[1]

The term ‘White Terror’ refers to acts of politically motivated violence perpetrated by the Nationalists, which was the name given to the rebels. They included the execution of members of the opposition without any kind of trial; the execution of schoolteachers for supporting the Republican laicism in schools (Nationalism was also supported by the Spanish members of the Roman Catholic Church); massacres of civilians; persecution of Protestants and Basques. It is estimated that the White Terror’s actions resulted in the deaths of 200,000 people.

‘Red Terror’ is the name given to politically motivated acts of violence perpetrated by members or followers of the government, also known as Republicans (because they supported the Republic). It is hard to know exactly how much damage the Red Terror really produced, as they were the losing group. Still, some things are clear: they were responsible for the killing of many members of the Catholic Church, as they were openly anticlerical; many civilians were executed. It is said that they killed about 38,000 people.

What is much worse, this ordeal continued after the civil war was over and the forces of General Franco took control of the country. Members of the opposition were still murdered and executed without trial, and many people had to be exiled in order to survive. It is estimated that more than 200,000 people died only in the first years of the regime, as a result of repression, famine and war-related illnesses. Also, women’s rights were left aside. They were not allowed to hold jobs if they were married, and those involved in political actions or related to members of the opposition were publicly tortured and even executed.

The belief each opposing group held, that their point of view and their position was the best for Spain, led them to fight viciously and with no considerations for the lives of those who held a different opinion or even those without a clear political position. This led to a brutal fight in which thousands of lives were lost, most of them only for having a different political allegiance. The numbers reach hundreds of thousands of victims, many civilians with no possibility of defending themselves. Human rights were violated in every possible way.

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[1] Thesis statement. Expository.

Outline:

Introduction

·         Thesis Statement: “It is not possible to say which side was more brutal, but throughout this process, many human lives were lost; people were murdered and executed, and human rights were left aside for the sake of an idea.”

Suplementary material:

·         The “White Terror’s” victims

·         The “Red Terror’s” victims

·         Victims during the dictatorship

Conclusion:

·         The conflict caused the loss of all Spanish citizens’ human rights and the deaths of many innocent victims.

Paragraphs:

Paragraph 1: Introduction.

Paragraph 2: Listing paragraph. Structure: Topic Sentence + Supporting information + Conclusion sentence.

Paragraph 3: Listing paragraph. Structure: Topic Sentence + Supporting information + Conclusion sentence.

Paragraph 4: Listing paragraph. Structure: Topic Sentence + Supporting information + Conclusion sentence.

Paragraph 5: Conclusion.

Bibliography:

Spanish Civil War. Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Civil_War

White Terror (Spain). Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Terror_(Spain)

Red Terror (Spain). Retrieved from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Terror_(Spain)

Puche Maciá, Ramón (2008). La Guerra Civil Española. Retrieved from: http://www.guerracivil1936.galeon.com/

Dictadura de Francisco Franco. Retrieved from:  http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dictadura_de_Francisco_Franco

War Is Not The Way, Violence Is Not The Solution - 2nd Term Paper

The Spanish Civil War started on July 1936, when a group of rebel military officers lead by Francisco Franco raised against the government of what was the second Spanish Republic. The country had been in a complicated situation for a while, and it became critical when certain groups within the society felt they were not represented by the government. This situation, and the government incapability to control their military forces and officers, helped the uprising, which led to a violent civil war as the divided military forces and the citizens fought for their supremacy. The conflict lasted until the year 1939, in which General Franco became ruler of Spain. Throughout this process, many people were murdered and executed, and human rights were many times left aside in the name of an idea or belief. It is not possible to say which side was more brutal, but it is clear that many human lives were lost in ways that could and should have been avoided.[1]

The members of the rebel group were known as Nationalists. The term ‘White Terror’ refers to acts of politically motivated violence perpetrated by the members of this group. They included the execution of members of the opposition without any kind of trial; the execution of schoolteachers for supporting the Republican laicism in schools (Nationalism was also supported by the Spanish members of the Roman Catholic Church); massacres of civilians; persecution of Protestants and Basques. It is estimated that the White Terror’s actions resulted in the deaths of 200,000 people.

The members of the government and opposition to the Nationalists were known as Republicans (because they supported the Republic). ‘Red Terror’ is the name given to politically motivated acts of violence perpetrated by members or followers of this group. It is hard to know exactly how much damage the Red Terror really produced, as they were the losing group. Still, some things are clear: they were responsible for the killing of many members of the Catholic Church, as they were openly anticlerical; many civilians were executed. It is said that they killed about 38,000 people.

What is much worse, this ordeal continued after the civil war was over and the forces of General Franco took control of the country. Members of the opposition were still murdered and executed without trial, and many personalities had to be exiled in order to survive.

The belief each opposing group held, that their point of view and their position was the best for Spain, led them to fight viciously and with no considerations for the lives of those who felt different. This led to a brutal fight in which thousands of lives were lost, most of them only for having a different point of view. No matter which position was better, neither of them justifies the actions with which they were defended. No belief should be more important than a human life.

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[1] Thesis statement. Expository.

Bibliography:

·         Spanish Civil War available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spanish_Civil_War

·         White Terror (Spain) available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_Terror_(Spain)

·         Red Terror (Spain) available at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_Terror_(Spain)

La Guerra Civil Española available at: http://www.guerracivil1936.galeon.com/

How am I writing?

As the end of the year approaches, a propper time for reflection as regards what has been learnt arrives. Throughout this course we have been dealing with different models for writing, which consist on processes and steps that should be followed in order to write a correct text taking everything needed into account. Also, we dealt with information on how paragraphs and texts should be structured. All this information has been very valuable to improve our writing.

It is possible to see, thanks to this, that my writing process has changed since the beginning of the year. Before attending this course, my writings used to have very little or no planning. My process consisted on writing the words as they came and then re-reading and making corrections, sometimes rewriting whole paragraphs and ideas. Now, I plan most of the text in advance: what the ideas will be and how they will be presented. Thanks to this, drafts are much more organized and corrections are much simpler. Therefore, it can be said that my writing has not only changed, but they have improved.

Paragraph Organizer:

Vocabulary:

Useful - Valuable

Useful: helping you to do or get what you want.

Valuable: valuable help, advice, information etc is very useful because it helps you to do something.

Beforehand - In advance

Beforehand: before something else happens or is done.

In advance: before a particular time, or before doing a particular thing.

For the better - Improved

For the better: if something changes for the better, it improves.

Improved: better than before.

Bibliography:

Longman Online Dictionary, at http://www.ldoceonline.com/

Cambridge Online Dictionary, at http://dictionary.cambridge.org
(1992) Dictionary of Synonyms & Antonyms. England; Penguin Reference.

Types of papers.

Crossing Borders, Bringing Down Barriers - 1st Term Paper

In a world in which globalization takes for granted that every place of the world is just like our home, art expressions, like literature, are a tool to bring down those myths. International publishers and technology are a great heilp for making these things spread around the world and, with the aid of international organizations, certain programmes arose that made this even more possible. Thanks to all these, in the world of globalization and internet, transcultural integration is made easier for those who look for it.

One of such programmes was Crossing Borders. It was an initiative in collaboration between the British Council and Lancaster University. It took place between 2001 and 2006, and was a mentoring project for young writers in Africa. Through the use of information technologies and a series of live workshops and readings, the young African writers were put in contact with experienced writers. They created an online database to access and, most important of all, a series of online magazines in which not only professional writing advise was given to prospect writers but also many of the participant’s pieces of writing were published.

The Crossing Borders magazines, published in the British Council Website, are the projects most important source of transcultural integration. Most writers, as it would be expected, tell stories related to everyday life in their homes. They write of what they know. This is a great source, for the international reader, of information about their rich and ancient cultures and how only some aspects of western culture have become as normal to them as they are to us.

Even though this programme is no longer taking place, the initiative has been enough to inspire many. Thanks to the internet, the product is available to anyone willing to read and learn in any place in the world. This way, people from as far as Argentina, The UK or the USA can read about the lives of young African students and writers like themselves and their everyday life. Thanks to technology, literature, even coming from unknown authors, is a source for integration and learning.

Bibliography:

The Crossing Borders Archive. Available at:

http://www.transculturalwriting.com/radiophonics/index.html

Conclusion Paragraph

In spite of the lack of proper regulations for the use of cell phones while driving, it is important that people grow aware of the dangers of doing this and start changing their habits. Both experience and reserach show this is a fact, and it is just a matter of time until the laws are passed. But, in the meantime, it is necessary for consciousness to grow, as this is really the only way of preventing accidents and saving lives.