Damarcus Cage is being recognized for excellence in digital argumentation. FASTrack Writing 101 students are asked to remix their argument essays into short videos. Cage’s video focuses on the complexities of the issue of police brutality and asks the viewer to consider ways this violence may be lessened or even stopped. Instead of using pre-made clips or images, Cage chose to create graphite line drawings that expressed each of the points of his essay, a rhetorical decision that truly takes advantage of this different mode of communication. He thoughtfully drew the images and smoothly organized how the viewer would experience the argument of the piece. Also, his choice to narrate his video adds to the power of his piece through emotional connection with the audience.
Reflecting on creating the video, Cage writes:
The easiest part of making my video was when I put all of my drawings in place. This was the easiest part because I knew where I wanted to place the pictures in the video. Some of the challenges were deciding what drawings I wanted to use. I thought hard on what images would seem more appealing to the audience and which ones would hold a bigger impact. If given the assignment again, I would pretty much do everything the same. If I had to create another video, I would probably include music for the video. I learned how useful the iMovies app on my phone was.
View “Ending the Violence.”
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