Monday, November 3, 2014
Blog Assignments
Are there anymore blog assignments that are based off of readings? I just want to make sure that I'm not missing anything because the syllabus just says to be announced. On that same note are there more readings we need to do? Thanks for the help I just wanted to double check I wasn't forgetting anything.
Holidays are Coming
I cannot wait to go home for Thanksgiving! It'll be a great break but from what I've heard it might not be as relaxing as I'm hoping for. I've heard people say that there are a lot of things due when we come back but I haven't look that far ahead in my schedules yet because I'm afraid of losing my peaceful break. I love the holidays because it's just a wonderful homey feeling even when your not home.
However, it will bother me immensely if people start singing Christmas carols now. I'm sorry but they can get annoying when they're just sung in December starting at this point would just cause me to have a psychotic break. Don't get me wrong I love Christmas but I just don't enjoy the music very much. But at least it'll fun to have holidays on the brain for a while.
Sunday, November 2, 2014
Observation
I was driving back to BSU from Nampa today (yes, yes I live in Nampa, I know, the horror) and I was contemplating about how good things have been this week. I have been on top of my homework, I have had some fun plans, etc., etc.
And then I got home and decided I really needed some soup because it was absolutely freezing (yes, yes I have lived in Idaho my entire life and I hate the winter the exact same amount every year). I can't open this can of Campbell's and I just really really want it. Long story, short, I sliced a large piece out of my finger. And jeez. It hurt.
So I am sitting there awhile later with a bandage and I think the best way to make myself feel better is to get some chocolate. I go to grab my chocolate that I just bought and I notice I accidentally bought the chocolate with almonds. I hate almonds.
While this isn't the most tragic of events, the evening didn't go as planned which got me thinking. Do you ever feel like the second you realize things are going well they start to go horrible? That always seems to happen to me.
However, as I sat there without soup or chocolate I realized that there were some juice boxes in my fridge. I think that's a wonderful metaphor. Even when things feel like they're going horrible there is always something good going on.
And then I got home and decided I really needed some soup because it was absolutely freezing (yes, yes I have lived in Idaho my entire life and I hate the winter the exact same amount every year). I can't open this can of Campbell's and I just really really want it. Long story, short, I sliced a large piece out of my finger. And jeez. It hurt.
So I am sitting there awhile later with a bandage and I think the best way to make myself feel better is to get some chocolate. I go to grab my chocolate that I just bought and I notice I accidentally bought the chocolate with almonds. I hate almonds.
While this isn't the most tragic of events, the evening didn't go as planned which got me thinking. Do you ever feel like the second you realize things are going well they start to go horrible? That always seems to happen to me.
However, as I sat there without soup or chocolate I realized that there were some juice boxes in my fridge. I think that's a wonderful metaphor. Even when things feel like they're going horrible there is always something good going on.
Saturday, November 1, 2014
The importance of the personal
What a pleasure to meet with all of you in conference this week. With very few exceptions, you all put in a good effort on your research essay drafts, and many of you experimented with new approaches that were inspired by our discussions so far this semester. When pressed, many of you said that what was different about these research essays was that they were more "personal," and this is something I'd like to look at a little more closely.
For many of you, "more personal" meant that you did two things you don't usually do in academic writing: use the first person and include personal experience and observation. Both moves, of course, are quite common in popular writing, especially creative nonfiction, but less common in academic writing. We talked in the beginning of the semester about "rules of evidence," and how these change depending on the level of expertise of a writer's audience. Popular writing has pretty loose rules--information can come from a range of sources, including personal experience--and formal academic writing has stricter rules--often evidence must come from "authoritative" sources or experimental data. (By the way, you might be surprised that some academic writing does use the first person, but that's another story).
So depending on what you're writing and for whom, you will make the rhetorical decision about whether to say "I" or use relevant personal experience. This semester, we're writing for a general audience.
But there are other reasons to "get personal" that will help you as an academic writer.
First, all writing is personal. Even the most formal academic prose uses language that can never be "objective" because language itself is always socially constructed--shaped by temporary (and often contested) agreements about what a word means. But on a less theoretical level, writing is personal because it always reflects your particular interests, the way you think, the questions you ask, the things you emphasize, and so on. So consider that nearly everything you, even if it doesn't use "I," is personal. This foray into personal writing also reinforces an idea that we've discussed this semester: that everything we write is "narrated" by us--we are the guiding hand, leading readers through our thinking, the information we think is important to understand, and so on. Finally, when we do experiment with borrowing a few techniques of storytelling in our informational and persuasive writing, we access a kind of thinking--narrative thinking--that focuses our attention on things we tend to ignore in thesis-driven, hierarchical logic: context. Narrative thinking (and inquiry) suggests that the way we can understand things is to look closely at who an idea exists in the world we live in, a complex and interesting place. Some academic disciplines (business, nursing, anthropolgy, etc.) make this a research focus through things like case study and ethnography.
What I hope you see is that this experiment with the personal isn't just an "creative" Englishy thing but a relevant writing and intellectual practice, one that should help you as a student as you move forward.
For many of you, "more personal" meant that you did two things you don't usually do in academic writing: use the first person and include personal experience and observation. Both moves, of course, are quite common in popular writing, especially creative nonfiction, but less common in academic writing. We talked in the beginning of the semester about "rules of evidence," and how these change depending on the level of expertise of a writer's audience. Popular writing has pretty loose rules--information can come from a range of sources, including personal experience--and formal academic writing has stricter rules--often evidence must come from "authoritative" sources or experimental data. (By the way, you might be surprised that some academic writing does use the first person, but that's another story).
So depending on what you're writing and for whom, you will make the rhetorical decision about whether to say "I" or use relevant personal experience. This semester, we're writing for a general audience.
But there are other reasons to "get personal" that will help you as an academic writer.
First, all writing is personal. Even the most formal academic prose uses language that can never be "objective" because language itself is always socially constructed--shaped by temporary (and often contested) agreements about what a word means. But on a less theoretical level, writing is personal because it always reflects your particular interests, the way you think, the questions you ask, the things you emphasize, and so on. So consider that nearly everything you, even if it doesn't use "I," is personal. This foray into personal writing also reinforces an idea that we've discussed this semester: that everything we write is "narrated" by us--we are the guiding hand, leading readers through our thinking, the information we think is important to understand, and so on. Finally, when we do experiment with borrowing a few techniques of storytelling in our informational and persuasive writing, we access a kind of thinking--narrative thinking--that focuses our attention on things we tend to ignore in thesis-driven, hierarchical logic: context. Narrative thinking (and inquiry) suggests that the way we can understand things is to look closely at who an idea exists in the world we live in, a complex and interesting place. Some academic disciplines (business, nursing, anthropolgy, etc.) make this a research focus through things like case study and ethnography.
What I hope you see is that this experiment with the personal isn't just an "creative" Englishy thing but a relevant writing and intellectual practice, one that should help you as a student as you move forward.
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Research Paper
The people that read my research paper initially said it was really boring or not captivating at all. That's totally understandable. I am one of the few people who actually is super interested in politics and current events... it feels like. But still, it was kinda discouraging to hear. I thought my essay was pretty awful from the beginning.
So going in to see Dr. Ballenger, I was incredibly surprised when he high-fived me and said my essay was a fascinating read.
I'm not sure how I feel about the situation. On one hand, my teacher thinks I did a good job. On the other, my peers think I am boring.
I think it just goes to show that writing is subjective a lot of the time. I don't really understand how people can like Jane Eyre.... seriously, it's awful. I guess what I am left wondering is what is good writing anyways?
So going in to see Dr. Ballenger, I was incredibly surprised when he high-fived me and said my essay was a fascinating read.
I'm not sure how I feel about the situation. On one hand, my teacher thinks I did a good job. On the other, my peers think I am boring.
I think it just goes to show that writing is subjective a lot of the time. I don't really understand how people can like Jane Eyre.... seriously, it's awful. I guess what I am left wondering is what is good writing anyways?
Autumn Leaves
As I write this I am sitting outside of the Administration Building. The sun is shining, the temperature is perfect, and the leaves are falling.
Autumn in my favorite time of the year. Sure, flowers are beautiful and they make life look so exciting. However, autumn is my favorite because it makes death appear so inviting. As these leaves, which have all revealed their true colors, fall elegantly to the ground I can only think about how serene this picture is.
Perhaps is reminds me that there are times where I need to let go, where I need to fall gracefully with the knowledge that spring will come around again. Maybe its a natural reminder that the world, and my world, will work itself out eventually. Nature will come along for the ride and mess everything up, but the least I can do is fall elegantly.
And I don't have to fall with other people. I can fall at my own time, at my own rate. I can fall when I am done, when I cannot hang on anymore.
And then I can look forward to spring again.
Autumn in my favorite time of the year. Sure, flowers are beautiful and they make life look so exciting. However, autumn is my favorite because it makes death appear so inviting. As these leaves, which have all revealed their true colors, fall elegantly to the ground I can only think about how serene this picture is.
Perhaps is reminds me that there are times where I need to let go, where I need to fall gracefully with the knowledge that spring will come around again. Maybe its a natural reminder that the world, and my world, will work itself out eventually. Nature will come along for the ride and mess everything up, but the least I can do is fall elegantly.
And I don't have to fall with other people. I can fall at my own time, at my own rate. I can fall when I am done, when I cannot hang on anymore.
And then I can look forward to spring again.
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