Tag: halfa kucha

In my presentation, I focused on analyzing the visual aspect of the comics and explored how visual plays an important role in representing trauma and healing in Fun Home and Sabrina. My thought process for landing on this topic was that firstly, I assumed that most of my classmates would focus on analyzing the plot so I wanted to offer a new perspective in our discussion. Also, as an art history major, I’m always interested in visual analysis so I could treat this assignment as a way to not only practice my visual analysis skill but also learn to connect my observations back to the topic of trauma and healing.

The greatest challenge I had while working on this project was making the presentation more informative and engaging. Therefore, I spent most of the time thinking about how to frame my argument in a way that it could be presented clearly within the various constraints of the format. What I’ve done include: editing my script so that it only had about 3 sentences per slide; selecting images that not only clearly explain my argument but also expand on it; and memorizing the script as I always know that public speaking is my weak spot.

My biggest takeaway from this assignment is the importance of storytelling. I noticed that the presentations that kept me focused all had a really good, slow beginning. The presenters not only responded to the question but also tried to engage the audience to go through their thought processes. The ending is also important, for example, I really like how Ben ended his presentation with a panel of Sabrina which inspired the audience to ponder upon the question he addressed at the end while making the whole presentation sound like a great story. In addition, I think I will try to use the same workflow while making my future presentations: assigning a limited period of time for each slide and correspondingly slimming down the language, as I found it to be a good way to stay focused on the most important points.

When creating this presentation, it was incredibly difficult to find panels and information in general that was worthy of fitting into this short time frame. When gathering the pictures of panels, I tried to look for scenes that were accurate examples of the ways in which the main character’s support systems were actively influencing their actions and emotions. This demonstrates the differences in constructing the presentation versus an essay because in an essay it takes time to write out an argument and form your own thoughts. Whereas, in this presentation, we had to base the majority of our argument on scenes as well as direct examples from the books. When structuring my argument I decided to focus on the influence that a support system and family can have on trauma and the process of healing. It is difficult to pin point every character that played a role in the recovery process but by highlighting the ways in which the main characters were influenced by the people around them, it is clear that outsiders play a big role in the healing process. I decided to organize my presentation with every other slide because I introduced an idea that applied to both stories and then I discussed the ways in which the ideas were different between the two books. I think that I would use this method in my written work because it ensures that both stories are discussed equally and all ideas are explored thoroughly.

When giving this type of presentation I learned the importance of being concise and specific when discussing main ideas. It is very easy to get sidetracked or stutter because of nerves, but in this presentation there is no time that can be allotted to this. I found it very difficult to accurately present what I had prepared because I became nervous when I had to stand in front of the class as well as knowing I had a time limit. I tried to focus a little less on the actual visuals themselves and more on the ideas that they represented. I think that this was a little different than what my classmates did and I am not sure if this is a good or a bad thing. I think in the future I would draw on the way my classmates had both books on one slide versus every other slide. I think that this was an interesting way to construct the information given as the viewer can actively look from side to side to see the two ideas play out in each visual. I can’t say that I enjoyed this mode of presentation more than the classic style of presentation, but I do think that I learned a lot about being precise and to the point with what I wish to present. Overall, I think that there are some things that I would change if I were to do a Half Kucha again in the future but I am happy with what I presented.

The Halfa Kucha Presentation was eye-opening because it confirmed a long-held suspicion I had regarding my ability to communicate.

I always seemed to talk better than I wrote and it became clear to me while working on the Halfa Kucha that it was in fact the case. While writing essays/papers, I find myself having decent ideas for arguments, however, those thoughts can never stay in my head for more than two seconds before devolving into something incoherent and round – aboutish. When asked to say my arguments out loud, my ideas come together and make sense to a listener whose next question would be, “Why can’t you just write that?”

The Halfa Kucha allowed me to utilize my strength in explanation and verbal communication to make an effective and coherent argument on Stitches and Sabrina’s investigation into trauma and healing.

The process of preparing for the presentation was enjoyable as I had not had to give a speech in front of people in over two years. I was somewhat disappointed in my actual presentation as I felt I prematurely removed certain aspects of my presentation that had helped me during my practice sessions and even some technical difficulties at the beginning threw me off my rhythm.

Regardless, coming back to my first point, I felt my argument came through clearly and everyone was able to understand it well.

The final thing I would like to reflect on is the uniqueness of the Halfa Kucha style of presentation. Forcing myself to stick to a 20-second time limit prevented me from rambling on and making my sentences more concise and informative. Overall, I would love to present in this format again.

I thoroughly enjoyed working on this presentation, due to its uniquely different style. I started from finding a quote from Judith Lewis Herman that I found was profound, and worked from the books to making slideshows formulating a hypothesis, then finalizing my argument. I found that it was similar to formulating for an argumentative essay, in that I started off with researching through the books, and then formulating an argument. One active choice I made was to split up the novels from talking about one and then another. Instead I went back and forth between them for each slide. I felt this made my arguments more straightforward, and also made it feel centralized and united of an idea. This could also be implemented into written work. My thinking process overall, however, was definitely more visual oriented than an essay would be. Furthermore, I think this argument would work in an essay format as well, with simply less visual feedback.

Luckily, my slides had a very strong visual energy, as the topic I chose were all very clear cut signs of conveyed silence, or an intense breakage from that silence. I think these specific slides made my argument much more clear cut and straightforward, as each slide directly correlated to my ABT thesis.

I learned from this presentation that preparation is key, as well as extensive knowledge of what you are discussing. Without both, you will be out of control when the slides come up. You need lots and lots of preparation to ensure your argument lines up with each given 20 seconds, as well as your overall narrative is clear. I think ensuring the overall narrative and not losing track of it is an important thing to keep in mind. I was very happy with how my presentation turned out. However, from noticing other’s presentation, perhaps I could have also shared some slides that had no book related visuals on it, to further describe an idea present in the book. However, I found that showcasing the visuals from the novel made it much more easy to follow than simply clipart images others had shown. Perhaps I could have touched up on the seamless flow between each slide.