One of the things you learn early on in literary study is point of view. Stories are narrated from some perspective--a character, an omniscient author, and so on. This week, in personal essays, you narrated your own stories, and this was a natural thing to do. You intuitively know that's what any storytelling demands. But I'd like you to consider that nearly all writing--including expository and argumentative writing, and even the most formal academic prose--is narrated, too. There is almost always some "mediator, teller, or guide" who we follow as readers, something we sense even in the absence of the first person. It is this narrator who leads us to see that certain questions are more important than others, this evidence is more convincing that that evidence, and this idea is the one that matters most.
The writing that sustains our interest as readers is writing in which we sense we are being led by someone. A narrator.
One of the things I hope you take away from this writing assignment and carry to others is this idea that not only does your opinion matter but your role as a "mediator, teller, or guide" matters just as much. Have confidence in your ability to lead readers into a subject. Become the narrator of everything you write.
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