Torres 1

Belen Torres

Dr. Sharity Nelson

English 1301 – 102

26 October 2023

Reflective Essay 2

In this second essay unit, I have learned to be more descriptive with my words and to go

into further detail when it comes towards visual text analysis and the rhetorical situation. It is

also important to analyze why an author chooses to do one thing instead of another and what it

symbolizes. For example, in my final draft I wrote, "The armor, weapons, and cape tell us the

man is ready to battle at a moment's notice, but what differentiates the character into a hero

instead of a villain is the way he protectively carries a tiny, green creature in a satchel on his side

like a parent would a child.” While weapons and armor can have negative connotations, the

author of the visual text spins these characteristics into a positive light. These concepts of visual

analysis and rhetorical situations will help me in future writings by sharpening my analysis skills

and gathering supporting evidence.

I built upon my knowledge of the drafting and revision process in this second essay unit

by strengthening my controlling idea and backing it up with evidence. For instance, in my final

draft I state, “Stars are often symbolized as lights that guide the way or objects that stretch

beyond human existence; as a result, their addition adds to the wonderment the image instills in

the audience.” This statement ties back to my controlling idea which was, “The message of this

visual text is to convey a sense of heroicness and wonder through intricate main characters, an

immersive background, and contrasting colors.” The brainstorming, prewriting, drafting, and
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revision process make for experience for future courses and writing assignments. It allows me to

develop my ideas and filter them.

Conferencing with my instructor and receiving feedback allowed me to gain a deeper

understanding of what I needed to do for the visual text analysis essay. It helped me clean up my

writing and go into further detail. Such as in my first draft I wrote, " The size of the creature

otherwise known as Grogu also offers a potential reason as to the size of the picture book.” This

sentence was out of place in the paragraph, so I made sure to delete it. I was also able to make

clearer topic sentences for my body paragraphs, since originally my topic sentences did not have

enough of a connection to my controlling idea. One thing I learned that helped me was that

repetition was a good thing. I usually tend to avoid being repetitive in my writing, but my

instructor reminded me that repetition is a helpful tool in analysis essays.

Peer review with my classmate helped me improve in my visual text analysis essay by

allowing me to see the gaps in my writing. Two changes I made in my essay because of the peer

review were my grammar and my conclusion. Although I received positive feedback on my

conclusion, I wanted to try and reword it to better fit my essay. I flipped the clauses in my

concluding sentence and expanded my sentences.

Editing and proofreading my visual text analysis essay helped me recognize missing

components in my essay such as unconnected sentences and unnecessary comma splices. To give

an example, in my first draft I wrote, “It featured up to 192 pages of illustrations and images

depicting some of the plot points of the show for fans and new potential fans. The facing image

of the picture book conveys a sense of heroism and wonder.” These two sentences did not have a

sentence to connect them together, so one had to be added into my final draft. Another example

was in my topic sentence I stated, “Stars Wars is a franchise that people all over the world, no
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matter their age, have fallen in love with.” I realized this sentence did not have to be split by the

phrase, “no matter their age,” so removed it. Being aware of these missing elements in my

writing will help me avoid making the same mistakes for future writing assignments.

The most challenging part in this essay for me was having to choose a visual text to write

on because I could not produce any ideas for the essay at all. I knew that the visual text had to be

something I could write a lot about and had a real interest in, but it took me a considerable

amount of time to find an image I liked. I attempted to overcome this challenge by consulting the

Essay 3 prompt to make sure I understood the requirements I needed. After that, I looked for

images I had in person because I believed it would make it easier for me to choose one.

Recognizing this challenge helps me prepare for future writing assignments by teaching me to

think more outside the box with potential future topics.

The least challenging part about the writing assignment was editing my first draft, which

was surprising considering I found it so challenging before. The reason self-editing was easier

for me this time around was because I made sure to make clearer notes on what I needed to

improve on my essay, and what I wanted to change. Because I had my essay’s main flaws

outlined, it made it easier for me to go from there. This is a method I will be sure to utilize in

future writing assignments.

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Work Cited

Torres, Belen. “The Bigger Picture of a Tiny Picture.” 24 October 2023. ENGL 1301-102, Texas

A&M International University, student paper.

---. “Visual Text Essay 2.” 19 October 2023. ENGL 1301-102, Texas A&M International

University, student paper.

---. “Visual Text Essay 2.” Peer Review Draft. 19 October 2023. ENGL 1301-102, Texas A&M

International University, student paper.