What simply does a diagram do? Does it paint a picture for us, instead of us merely doing it ourselves? Does is explain to us thoroughly what it is trying to convey? Diagrams can be just pictures, with words labeling parts (see left). This diagram can be used as a means of teaching. Diagrams can be helpful, pointing out thing that you normally could not see. A heart, for example, is inside you, and in most normal circumstances, you will never see it. The diagram I chose shows us the interworkings of a heart and where everything is located. You could write a long explaination, stating exactly where the aorta is, what atery flows to what muscles, but how can I picture that without knowing exactly what a heart and the arteries look like? A diagram lets us see what we need to see in order to fully understand something. In my oppinion, this is a perfect diagram. It labels everything, so you can see where everything is located. It also has arrows, so you can see where the blood flow is going. It's amazing that just a little picture, a picture with arrows, and colors, and a couple labels can help us better understand something. Is that writing necessarily? In my mind, it could technically be writing. There's words, it explains something, it has a main focus, but is there a conclusion and ending? No, but it has some components of writing. So who's to say a diagram can't be labeled as writing? We have several diagrams in books, most of our textbooks for science, history, accounting, all have diagrams of some sort to organize information so that we can easily see it. In conclusion, I think perhaps a diagram just might be a form of writing.
1 comment:
The diagram of the heart is an excellent example of what a diagram should be. It has good color, arrows, and has proper resource citing. As Jennifer said, it also has the picture as well as text labels, clearly depicted in this diagram. This is a great diagram because it teaches anyone who looks at it. It tells beginners what they are looking at and it tells more seasoned anatomists where the different quadrants are located and where certain veins and arteries are. It is also a good diagram because, as Jennifer said, it is something that us students do not get to see everyday. My diagram was similar to Jennifer's (skeletal system) so I can relate to the effectiveness of this type of diagram. Is this an example of writing, however? I believe it is. Jennifer agrees to a certain point. Although it doesn't have a "proper" introduction and conclusion, it does give us valuable information and presents details to go along with that information. In her last sentence, she states that a diagram is a form of writing, and I would have to agree.
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