Blog Post #10 - The Water Project

Across the world, third world nations lack the access to clean and sanitary drinking water, which is essential for survival and imperative in order to carry out daily life functions and activities. Specifically, in sub-Saharan Africa, citizens struggle to live healthy lives due to the lack of clean water available to them. Sub-Saharan Africa citizens are currently developing water-related illnesses, causing hospitalization and death. The child population (around age 5) of these communities have been affected to the largest degree, causing limitations in developing an education, and hazardous puberty development.

My rhetorical goal throughout the course of my presentation is to transform perceptions of reality of American citizens in effort for them to realize the serious water sanitation issue currently existing in sub-Saharan Africa. Specifically, I transform perceptions of reality specifically through "The Water Project," which is an organization that provides clean drinking water to sub-Saharan Africa communities, by showing American citizens and people across the world how severe the living conditions are in these communities. The Water Project presents to society how lack of clean drinking water leads to deaths and illnesses, which transforms perceptions of reality to those who do have easy access to sanitary drinking water.

In order to transform perceptions of reality, I used the rhetorical writing tactics of identification and polarization. Identification can be defined as a rhetorical writing strategy used to find a common ground amongst a group of individuals in society.  This “common ground” can be established by using words such as “we,” which is used in attempt to bring people in society together in realization that they need to aid in the cause presented to them. Throughout the course of the presentation of The Water Project, I use the word "WE" in attempt to unite the American people as a single unit, in realization that WE must come together to help the communities of sub-Saharan Africa who lack clean drinking water. 

Polarization can be defined as a rhetorical writing strategy that creates clear distinction or contrast between people, ideas, belief etc. In this case, polarization is used in contrast between The United States of America and sub-Saharan Africa. The polarization that I created between the two locations is an attempt to show how the people of America are fortunate enough to have easier access to clean tap water, and or bottled water, where as communities of sub-Saharan Africa can't even find a place with any clean water for survival. Throughout the presentation, both identification and polarization are used to unite the American people to come together and donate to The Water Project, to save lives of those dying from lack of clean water in sub-Saharan Africa. 

The genre I chose to use in order to present my argument is a slideshow. Specifically, I used a Prezi, which brings more animation and life than a typical slideshow on PowerPoint. The reason why I felt using a Prezi was more beneficial to transform perceptions of reality over other genres is because I was able to organize the information in a way that if I were to go as a guest speaker to other schools and or facilities, this presentation would be more interesting than just a video people will sit through. I chose to use an animated globe of the world, further aiding in the polarization between the two locations, which I found more captivating and organized that just showing one video of The Water Project in general. 

The conventions of the genre I chose, a slide show on Prezi, would typically be recognized as the "path" the creator chooses to use in order to present the information. Another convention of this genre is animations, such as zooming in or out, speeding into the slide fast or slow. Working with these conventions on Prezi were more difficult than I thought. Instead of using the typical preset path provided on the slideshow website, I stepped away from this typical convention and created my own path by using a Globe and countries on the globe. I utilized the water on the globe, representing The Water Project overall, and furthermore, I used the zooming in and out convention in order to show the polarization between The United States and sub-Saharan Africa, going back and forth between the two locations. 

Overall, this genre aided in carrying out my overall goal of transforming perceptions of reality of those who have access to clean drinking water, and how they should help support those who don't. Using a Prezi is an animated way of presenting the world issue at stake in sub-Saharan Africa, presenting it on a map rather than just showing a three minute video to an auditorium full of students.