Local Revision: Tense Usage

           In this blog post, I will retype all of the verbs that are present in my project 1 draft, but as you can see, there are different sections based on tense.  The one that is used most often will be discovered through this method.

PRESENT                                                    PAST                                         FUTURE                          

-helping (2)                                               - broke  (2)                                       -become (4)
-have (8)                                                   -authored                                         - will
-improve (4)                                              - signed  (2)                                  
-lead  (5)                                                   - created                                          
-has                                                           - claimed                                        
-choosing (2)                                            - caused (2)                                      
-defend                                                     - were                                              
-support (8)                                               - been                                              
-deciding (2)                                             - studied (2)
-recommend                                             - retracted
-help (4)                                                    - done
-mean (2)                                                   - led
- create                                                      - had
-pick                                                         -came
-have (4)                                                  - wanted
-come                                                       -required
-realize                                                     - vaccinated (2)
-improve                                                   -violated
-contaminating                                         -posted
-carrying                                                   -opposed
-have                                                         -thought
-prove (4)                                                  -protected (2)
-violate (5)                                                 -opened
-do                                                             -given
-put  (5)                                                      -could
-agree                                                         -was
-vaccinate (4)                                              -said (2)
-immunize (2)
-discriminate (2)                                                                                  PSA: MY FINGERS HURT

Adikos. "I am Typing". 03/16/10 via Flicker. Creative Commons
Generic Public License. 

-sign (5)
-prevent (2)
-removes
-give (4)
-attend (2)
-prohibit
-qualifies
-repeal (2)
-requires
-provides
-says (5)
-"grandfathering"
-continue
-receive
-oppose (7)
-think (5)
-taking
-supports
-disagree
-believe (4)
-argue
-practice
-understand (2)
-allow
-claim (4)
-messing
-makes
-pass
-get (4)
-appeal

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1. Which tense is the most prevalent in your draft?
        The present tense is the most prevalent in my draft if it wasn't already obvious by the extremely long list of verbs above this.

2. What effect or tone/quality does the current usage of tense have on the reader/viewer/listener?
         The effect of the present tense on the reader is that it makes it clear that most of the controversy is happening in the present.  So, the stories may be told in past tense, but it is important for the reader to understand the issue is a prevalent topic of debate going on right now in life.

3. If you're using more than one tense in the draft (which is not a bad thing at all), do the shifts between different tenses in the piece make sense? How do they flow? Are there any jarring or discordant shifts in tense?
          The main times when there are shifts in tenses are when I am explaining something that happened in the past. For example, the Disneyland incident was all explained in past tense.  Most of the controversial information is present tense information.  The quotes are introduced in past tense as well.  It seems to flow nicely in my opinion, and nothing seems to be jarring or discordant shifts with my tenses.

4. If you have not employed any present tense verbs in your piece - why not? Are there any moments of crescendo or dramatic action in the story you're telling that could benefit from being described or told in the present tense? Remember, present tense has an immediacy to it. It puts the audience right into the story as it is unfolding. It's a powerful technique. Could your piece benefit from that technique? How and why?
          As I said in the third question, the present tense was used to describe the 'Big Event' that went down in Disneyland.  It was basically me just summarizing a story on the measles outbreak.  It had passed so now the rest of the article will mainly be in present because it is focusing on the here and now.  The majority of the article doesn't stay in the past.  It is discussing what is happening on in the world now.  I think my piece benefits a lot from using mainly present tense.  Since I am already implementing it, I don't need to explain how, but I use it to keep the reader intrigued knowing that these things that are brought up in the article are actually happening in real life.