Mandatory Blog 2

Chapter 2 was about seizing the moment, rhetorically of course. They started by addressing what the ancient greeks used to call Kairos. Kairos meant the comprehension of non-linear time, or time measured by opportunites rather than minute by minute. Although this is an ancient word and an ancient concept it can be appropriately applied to writing in today's world. An example of being "kairotic" would be writing about topic that has just turned hot, writing about an issue that is currently sweeping the community would be seizing a rhetorical moment. For example, magazine writers must do it all the time, articles discussing spousal abuse popped up everyhwere after the Rhianna incident and the "history of steriods" articles have been all over hte pages of sports magazines and websites over the past few years. The overall history of an issue would have been referred to as "chronos", but the "kairos" of that issue would be the main turning points involved in it. What were all the periods during the lifetime of that issue that truly define what it is today? That would be it's kairos. Kairos can be a means of invention because it can evolve or tweak an issure. Writers will oftentimes wait on the right moment to tackle an issue, but the window of time you choose to tackle that issue helps to define the way in which you do it. Kairos allows you to freeze these 'windows' in time an analyze the issue form all sides, keeping it in context with the time and all the parties involved. As the book explains, a perfect example of kairos writing were the gun control essays that came out after the virginia tech shootings, it is as simple as using the developments around us as fuel for our writing engine. Use current issues and events to propell our writings out into the spotlight. The opportunistic writer is often tiems the successful one, learining how to attack windows of opportunity with relevant writing is one of the surest ways to gain to attention of your readers.