LSW #1
My process of writing is a little bit unusual. Normally, people like to brainstorm or make an outline of what they are going to write before they even start typing or writing. I, on the other hand, just start writing. I usually write my best papers when I just sit down and start writing and just look at the prompts. Yes, I have done outlines before, but I’ve come to find that some of my best papers are ones that I didn’t use an outline.
I usually like to work in my room or in the library, but I can honestly work wherever. However, I don’t usually have music playing in the background and I can never have the television on. White noise in the background is not beneficial for me when writing essays because I do have somewhat of a hard time staying focused. I do enjoy writing, however, depending on what we’re writing about, I can’t focus on it. If the topic interests me, then it’s perfectly fine and I could write for as long as I’d like.
An issue with my writing process is that I don’t usually begin the paper until closer to the due date. I try to start it about a day or two after the assignment is given. However, I usually don’t finish it and end up just restarting later on, closer to the deadline.
I do prefer writing my papers on a computer. It is a tad faster than writing it by hand. Also, my handwriting isn’t necessarily terrible but it starts to look rough after writing a lot. I also feel as though essays on printed paper are the neatest and easiest to grade. They’re also the easiest to mark with corrections because you can clearly tell what the teacher or professor wants you to fix.
LSW #2
Nancy Mairs isn’t your average writer. She writes many different forms of papers that deal with various subjects, specifically her struggle with multiple sclerosis. In the Bedford Reader, Nancy Mairs writes a short essay about living with multiple sclerosis and the difficulties surrounding it.
In every paper, there is a thesis. In Mairs case, she makes her thesis very clear. She writes “Achieving this integration, for disabled and able-bodied people alike, requires that we insert disability daily into our field of vision: quietly, naturally, in the small and common scenes of out ordinary live.” There are also many references throughout the paper that supports this thesis. For example, near the beginning, she explains about how she has been trying to find a television show that has a woman like her represented. She found one show, however, it wasn’t an accurate depiction.
I believe the purpose for Nancy Mairs to write this is because she wants people to know that although having a physical disability is strenuous, it doesn’t mean that she can’t do anything. Mairs explains about an encounter she had with a local advisor about why they didn’t have disabled as well as abled people in their campaign. His response proved her point about people having stereotypes.
There will always be a specific group of people that every paper is directed towards. In this case, Nancy Mairs paper was intended for the media to read. However, it wasn’t just for the media, it was for everyday people as well. I believe her intent was to show people that even though somebody is disabled, that doesn’t mean they are unable to do anything.
LSW #3
“Rat Pack” is written by Aaron Smith who is an undergraduate at St. Clair County Community College in Michigan. Throughout this essay, Smith describes how he ended up with so many rats and how he deals with that. Aaron brought the rats home because after an experiment in his Advanced Biology II class because he thought the rats deserved to live their full time, even if that was only a couple years. However, I don’t think he really thought this through. If he had done research earlier, then I think he would’ve realized that they weren’t all boys. He explains that some of the rats turned out to be girls and they had babies which basically brought the total to seven females and nine males.
I believe that this essay was written as an informative essay. Aaron Smith talks about the lab rats in a way that is kind of appealing. I, for one, really dislike rats. But after read this essay, it made me think twice about that. He tells about how they are actually pretty intelligent and makes you picture them differently than your typical lab rat.
This is essay is peculiar in a way because there isn’t necessarily a thesis. Which leaves the reader to interpret the controlling idea for himself. Honestly, I am not very good at critical reading and comprehending what is being said when I read it. But I believe that the controlling idea in this particular essay is that you have to take a chance. If Smith hadn’t taken those four rats home with him and taken care of them, then their babies wouldn’t have been born and he wouldn’t have learned as much as he did about rats. In order to expand your knowledge, you have to take a leap and chance it.
LSW #4
James Parker is a journalist who is very intrigued by the pop culture in general and horror stories. He wrote a piece for his column in The Atlantic Monthly entitled “Our Zombies, Ourselves”. Throughout this whole essay, he discusses what role the zombies and monsters play in a normal person’s imagination.
I’m going to be one hundred percent honest, I don’t really understand what the principle of division is. However, I’m going to try my best to answer the question based on different clues that I found while reading this particular essay.
In "Our Zombies, Ourselves”, James Parker writes about zombies and different movies and television shows that portray what it would be like in an apocalyptic world. He is very good at depicting a movie. He explains it so well that you actually feel like you’re watching it. He breaks the different movies into separate groups. Parker first talks about somewhat old school movies. Then proceeds to discuss movies that are more of a modern time period and how they aren’t nearly as good as the books. For example, he references Twilight but then proceeds to say that Twilight isn’t nearly as satisfying as reading a book about Old Reliable.
I feel as though James Parker divides this essay into parts based on a few things. One way he divides them is by what the movie/book/television show is about. Then, he divides them even more based on when they were produced. Parker also talks about much he enjoyed each and every one of them. He does a very good job at explaining what each is about and helping the reader understand what goes on in each story.
LSW #5
Robert Lipsyte does a very good job at describing what “jock culture” truly means. In the beginning of the article, he states that it means there are only two types of people in the world. He then goes on to describe the differences between Jocks and Pukes.
When I first read his definition of Jocks and Pukes, I could see what he meant by it. I somewhat agreed with him at this point, solely on the basis of those titles making sense. One part, in particular, I really enjoyed was how he described what your typical Jock and Puke was. He states that “boys-and more and more girls … go on to flourish in a competitive sports environment that requires submission to authority, winning by any means necessary, and group cohesion.” In my opinion, I believe that this definition is a very good representation of your typical jock. Lipsyte explains that Pukes were “often turned off … from competitive sports … [and] were also more likely to go on to question authority and seek ways of individual expression.”
Near the end of the article, Robert Lipsyte talks about how girls are now becoming a part of the equation. He states that since girls are now becoming members of the Jock Culture, the stakes are being raised. Lipsyte explains that Jocks used to be manipulated by their leader because of the fear that would ensue if they were labeled as a girl.
All in all, I very much enjoyed this piece. It was well written and clearly explained how the times have changed along with your stereotypical labels in society.
LSW #6
“I Want a Wife” written by Judy Brady, is a perfect example of division analysis. Brady describes each of her reasons for wanting a wife quite clearly from paragraph to paragraph. Since she is a wife, she uses experiences gained from her life, along with experiences told by her close friends.
Judy Brady breaks down what a wife does in your everyday household. Her division analysis is done pretty well, if you ask me. She begins by explaining that she is a wife and yet she also wants a wife in her life. So, Brady gives reasons as to why she would like this and breaks her article into different parts. Her reasons to wanting a wife are because she could take care of her children, take care of her physical needs, keep her up-to-date with the latest trends, and finally, make sure that she is satisfied sexually.
It really wasn’t necessarily to hard to figure out what Judy Brady’s principle of division was. Throughout the whole essay, Brady breaks down each reason into paragraphs. This makes it just that much easier to identify her analysis. Also, she does more than just list her reasoning for wanting a wife. She goes in depth and explains why she would want a wife.
Judy Brady does an excellent job at describing her feelings. She even says at the end “My God, who wouldn’t want a wife?”. This statement is probably the best way to end this article, if you ask me, just because it sums up the whole purpose of this article in one short sentence.
LSW #7
Bill McKibben writes this essay in a way that is clear to understand and easy to figure out what the problem at hand is. In his town, everyone takes a turn in running recycling day. However, McKibben finds this to be somewhat disturbing the amount of waste that is generated.
Throughout the essay, many of the paragraphs have comparisons. I enjoyed how he would take completely different facts and put them together to show how they all can relate to each other. Some of the facts, however, were somewhat disturbing to read about. For example, out of all the food we (the average American) buy, about 14% of it Is tossed. Also, 46,000 pieces of plastic floats on every square mile of the ocean.
Probably my favorite paragraph would have to be one of the concluding paragraphs. McKibben explains that we have built this economy on the basis of depending on waste. His examples include making enough money to build houses that have rooms that are never used, wasting countless hours at work, etc. This paragraph stood out to me because it really put things into perspective. Normally, you wouldn’t just think that our economy is dependent on waste. However, with the examples he provides, you start to question your thoughts before.
Bill McKibben does a very good job at providing enough information to help the reader understand the topic at hand and how to solve this issue.
LSW #8
Katha Pollitt writes an essay about a Supreme Court decision. In 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that gays and lesbians cannot be denied the right to marry under the state constitution. Since then, fourteen states and the District of Columbia have legalized gay marriage and twenty-nine states have banned it.
Pollitt offers four pieces of evidence to help prove her point. For starters, she states that “…the objections to gay marriage are based on religious prejudice…” Meaning that they believe that a marriage between a man and a woman is a scared thing. Another piece of evidence is that people against gay marriage don’t realize how relationships are nowadays. So many relationships, or shall I say marriages, are very different from the traditional thought of “marriage”. Pollitt also tells her readers that people mess up what as been done in the past. She states that people use the history of marriage as an argument but, in reality, the so-called ‘traditional’ form of marriage is a fairly new concept. Finally, she claims that marriage is more of a form of social status.
However, I feel as though that piece of evidence is a little questionable. I understand what she is saying in the sense of your retirement check and your health care will be different if you are married compared to unmarried. But I don’t think she explains it well enough about how that changes if you are a gay or lesbian couple. I don’t really think it’s relevant in this particular piece.
LSW #9
In Nicholas Carr’s essay, “Tracking Is an Assault on Liberty”, he tells his audience about how their privacy is being treated. He explains in detail about how even though people believe their information is private, it really isn’t.
Personally, I’ve heard many different stories about how the government, or anyone for that matter, tracks what goes on online and all the information that goes along with that. I do get kind of nervous when it comes to social media. The amount of personal information needed just to start an account is insane. There’s no telling what the site is using your information for. And on that note, there’s no telling what anybody is doing with that information. If somebody has even the smallest amount of information of about you, they can find you on any social media site.
However, it doesn’t surprise me that the government tracks people online. It wouldn’t surprise me if the government has been tracking us this whole time. Just based on how technologically advanced we are already as a society, the government knows more than we think they do.
Carr organizes his essay in a very strategic way. He writes it so that the reader will stay interested throughout the whole essay.
LSW #10
The Galaxy Oil Company has a very descriptive sexual harassment policy set up. It leaves little room for loopholes. Personally, I feel as though Jane Asher has been sexually harassed. The company’s policy states that sexual harassment “…is any conduct, verbal or physical, of a sexual nature…” Jane Asher tells about separate occasions where her boss has commented on her breasts and her body. The boss should definitely know better than to make a comment like this. The Galaxy Oil Company’s sexual harassment policy clearly proves that what is going on in this particular instance violates the policy. No boss, let alone anybody for that matter, should think that it’s okay to say that a woman’s breasts look nice and that she should wear tighter clothes so that everybody can see how nice her body is.
LSW #11
For our final paper, we have to research one of the terms listed. One term that I think I know something about is success. Success can be defined in a variety of different ways. One of the most common answers is that success is having a lot of money or being famous. I can’t even explain to you how many times I have heard that being said. Little children believe that is the sole definition of success and even grown adults do to.
Personally, I believe that success is something completely different than that. Success, to me, means being happy. No matter what your job is, where you live, how much you make a year, etc. However, if the term success never existed, then life would be completely different. People wouldn’t be breaking their backs to be the most successful person. Without success, there would be no bar for people to meet. They wouldn’t know what would be considered a good accomplishment or a bad accomplishment.
I believe that ‘success’ is taught. Children see how their parents react to certain things and try to mimic that same expression. By doing this, young children will believe that success is whatever their parents think it is. Honestly, it could be unlearned, but it would be very difficult to do simply because it’s a difficult task to change anybody’s opinion.
LSW #12
Despite the problems they cause us, our adversaries may, in fact, be doing us some good. Blogger Eglantine Cosby once wrote, “Without someone or something to force us to do more than we want to, we will never live up to our full potential” (EDGI.net). This statement is extremely valid in some sense. If people always took the easy way out and were never forced to step out of their comfort zone, we wouldn’t have a lot of the things we do now. We are all here for one reason or another and to figure that out, we have to be challenged. Our adversaries are the main people to push us to be better every day. Without them, just imagine how much different our world would be.
My process of writing is a little bit unusual. Normally, people like to brainstorm or make an outline of what they are going to write before they even start typing or writing. I, on the other hand, just start writing. I usually write my best papers when I just sit down and start writing and just look at the prompts. Yes, I have done outlines before, but I’ve come to find that some of my best papers are ones that I didn’t use an outline.
I usually like to work in my room or in the library, but I can honestly work wherever. However, I don’t usually have music playing in the background and I can never have the television on. White noise in the background is not beneficial for me when writing essays because I do have somewhat of a hard time staying focused. I do enjoy writing, however, depending on what we’re writing about, I can’t focus on it. If the topic interests me, then it’s perfectly fine and I could write for as long as I’d like.
An issue with my writing process is that I don’t usually begin the paper until closer to the due date. I try to start it about a day or two after the assignment is given. However, I usually don’t finish it and end up just restarting later on, closer to the deadline.
I do prefer writing my papers on a computer. It is a tad faster than writing it by hand. Also, my handwriting isn’t necessarily terrible but it starts to look rough after writing a lot. I also feel as though essays on printed paper are the neatest and easiest to grade. They’re also the easiest to mark with corrections because you can clearly tell what the teacher or professor wants you to fix.
LSW #2
Nancy Mairs isn’t your average writer. She writes many different forms of papers that deal with various subjects, specifically her struggle with multiple sclerosis. In the Bedford Reader, Nancy Mairs writes a short essay about living with multiple sclerosis and the difficulties surrounding it.
In every paper, there is a thesis. In Mairs case, she makes her thesis very clear. She writes “Achieving this integration, for disabled and able-bodied people alike, requires that we insert disability daily into our field of vision: quietly, naturally, in the small and common scenes of out ordinary live.” There are also many references throughout the paper that supports this thesis. For example, near the beginning, she explains about how she has been trying to find a television show that has a woman like her represented. She found one show, however, it wasn’t an accurate depiction.
I believe the purpose for Nancy Mairs to write this is because she wants people to know that although having a physical disability is strenuous, it doesn’t mean that she can’t do anything. Mairs explains about an encounter she had with a local advisor about why they didn’t have disabled as well as abled people in their campaign. His response proved her point about people having stereotypes.
There will always be a specific group of people that every paper is directed towards. In this case, Nancy Mairs paper was intended for the media to read. However, it wasn’t just for the media, it was for everyday people as well. I believe her intent was to show people that even though somebody is disabled, that doesn’t mean they are unable to do anything.
LSW #3
“Rat Pack” is written by Aaron Smith who is an undergraduate at St. Clair County Community College in Michigan. Throughout this essay, Smith describes how he ended up with so many rats and how he deals with that. Aaron brought the rats home because after an experiment in his Advanced Biology II class because he thought the rats deserved to live their full time, even if that was only a couple years. However, I don’t think he really thought this through. If he had done research earlier, then I think he would’ve realized that they weren’t all boys. He explains that some of the rats turned out to be girls and they had babies which basically brought the total to seven females and nine males.
I believe that this essay was written as an informative essay. Aaron Smith talks about the lab rats in a way that is kind of appealing. I, for one, really dislike rats. But after read this essay, it made me think twice about that. He tells about how they are actually pretty intelligent and makes you picture them differently than your typical lab rat.
This is essay is peculiar in a way because there isn’t necessarily a thesis. Which leaves the reader to interpret the controlling idea for himself. Honestly, I am not very good at critical reading and comprehending what is being said when I read it. But I believe that the controlling idea in this particular essay is that you have to take a chance. If Smith hadn’t taken those four rats home with him and taken care of them, then their babies wouldn’t have been born and he wouldn’t have learned as much as he did about rats. In order to expand your knowledge, you have to take a leap and chance it.
LSW #4
James Parker is a journalist who is very intrigued by the pop culture in general and horror stories. He wrote a piece for his column in The Atlantic Monthly entitled “Our Zombies, Ourselves”. Throughout this whole essay, he discusses what role the zombies and monsters play in a normal person’s imagination.
I’m going to be one hundred percent honest, I don’t really understand what the principle of division is. However, I’m going to try my best to answer the question based on different clues that I found while reading this particular essay.
In "Our Zombies, Ourselves”, James Parker writes about zombies and different movies and television shows that portray what it would be like in an apocalyptic world. He is very good at depicting a movie. He explains it so well that you actually feel like you’re watching it. He breaks the different movies into separate groups. Parker first talks about somewhat old school movies. Then proceeds to discuss movies that are more of a modern time period and how they aren’t nearly as good as the books. For example, he references Twilight but then proceeds to say that Twilight isn’t nearly as satisfying as reading a book about Old Reliable.
I feel as though James Parker divides this essay into parts based on a few things. One way he divides them is by what the movie/book/television show is about. Then, he divides them even more based on when they were produced. Parker also talks about much he enjoyed each and every one of them. He does a very good job at explaining what each is about and helping the reader understand what goes on in each story.
LSW #5
Robert Lipsyte does a very good job at describing what “jock culture” truly means. In the beginning of the article, he states that it means there are only two types of people in the world. He then goes on to describe the differences between Jocks and Pukes.
When I first read his definition of Jocks and Pukes, I could see what he meant by it. I somewhat agreed with him at this point, solely on the basis of those titles making sense. One part, in particular, I really enjoyed was how he described what your typical Jock and Puke was. He states that “boys-and more and more girls … go on to flourish in a competitive sports environment that requires submission to authority, winning by any means necessary, and group cohesion.” In my opinion, I believe that this definition is a very good representation of your typical jock. Lipsyte explains that Pukes were “often turned off … from competitive sports … [and] were also more likely to go on to question authority and seek ways of individual expression.”
Near the end of the article, Robert Lipsyte talks about how girls are now becoming a part of the equation. He states that since girls are now becoming members of the Jock Culture, the stakes are being raised. Lipsyte explains that Jocks used to be manipulated by their leader because of the fear that would ensue if they were labeled as a girl.
All in all, I very much enjoyed this piece. It was well written and clearly explained how the times have changed along with your stereotypical labels in society.
LSW #6
“I Want a Wife” written by Judy Brady, is a perfect example of division analysis. Brady describes each of her reasons for wanting a wife quite clearly from paragraph to paragraph. Since she is a wife, she uses experiences gained from her life, along with experiences told by her close friends.
Judy Brady breaks down what a wife does in your everyday household. Her division analysis is done pretty well, if you ask me. She begins by explaining that she is a wife and yet she also wants a wife in her life. So, Brady gives reasons as to why she would like this and breaks her article into different parts. Her reasons to wanting a wife are because she could take care of her children, take care of her physical needs, keep her up-to-date with the latest trends, and finally, make sure that she is satisfied sexually.
It really wasn’t necessarily to hard to figure out what Judy Brady’s principle of division was. Throughout the whole essay, Brady breaks down each reason into paragraphs. This makes it just that much easier to identify her analysis. Also, she does more than just list her reasoning for wanting a wife. She goes in depth and explains why she would want a wife.
Judy Brady does an excellent job at describing her feelings. She even says at the end “My God, who wouldn’t want a wife?”. This statement is probably the best way to end this article, if you ask me, just because it sums up the whole purpose of this article in one short sentence.
LSW #7
Bill McKibben writes this essay in a way that is clear to understand and easy to figure out what the problem at hand is. In his town, everyone takes a turn in running recycling day. However, McKibben finds this to be somewhat disturbing the amount of waste that is generated.
Throughout the essay, many of the paragraphs have comparisons. I enjoyed how he would take completely different facts and put them together to show how they all can relate to each other. Some of the facts, however, were somewhat disturbing to read about. For example, out of all the food we (the average American) buy, about 14% of it Is tossed. Also, 46,000 pieces of plastic floats on every square mile of the ocean.
Probably my favorite paragraph would have to be one of the concluding paragraphs. McKibben explains that we have built this economy on the basis of depending on waste. His examples include making enough money to build houses that have rooms that are never used, wasting countless hours at work, etc. This paragraph stood out to me because it really put things into perspective. Normally, you wouldn’t just think that our economy is dependent on waste. However, with the examples he provides, you start to question your thoughts before.
Bill McKibben does a very good job at providing enough information to help the reader understand the topic at hand and how to solve this issue.
LSW #8
Katha Pollitt writes an essay about a Supreme Court decision. In 2003, the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court ruled that gays and lesbians cannot be denied the right to marry under the state constitution. Since then, fourteen states and the District of Columbia have legalized gay marriage and twenty-nine states have banned it.
Pollitt offers four pieces of evidence to help prove her point. For starters, she states that “…the objections to gay marriage are based on religious prejudice…” Meaning that they believe that a marriage between a man and a woman is a scared thing. Another piece of evidence is that people against gay marriage don’t realize how relationships are nowadays. So many relationships, or shall I say marriages, are very different from the traditional thought of “marriage”. Pollitt also tells her readers that people mess up what as been done in the past. She states that people use the history of marriage as an argument but, in reality, the so-called ‘traditional’ form of marriage is a fairly new concept. Finally, she claims that marriage is more of a form of social status.
However, I feel as though that piece of evidence is a little questionable. I understand what she is saying in the sense of your retirement check and your health care will be different if you are married compared to unmarried. But I don’t think she explains it well enough about how that changes if you are a gay or lesbian couple. I don’t really think it’s relevant in this particular piece.
LSW #9
In Nicholas Carr’s essay, “Tracking Is an Assault on Liberty”, he tells his audience about how their privacy is being treated. He explains in detail about how even though people believe their information is private, it really isn’t.
Personally, I’ve heard many different stories about how the government, or anyone for that matter, tracks what goes on online and all the information that goes along with that. I do get kind of nervous when it comes to social media. The amount of personal information needed just to start an account is insane. There’s no telling what the site is using your information for. And on that note, there’s no telling what anybody is doing with that information. If somebody has even the smallest amount of information of about you, they can find you on any social media site.
However, it doesn’t surprise me that the government tracks people online. It wouldn’t surprise me if the government has been tracking us this whole time. Just based on how technologically advanced we are already as a society, the government knows more than we think they do.
Carr organizes his essay in a very strategic way. He writes it so that the reader will stay interested throughout the whole essay.
LSW #10
The Galaxy Oil Company has a very descriptive sexual harassment policy set up. It leaves little room for loopholes. Personally, I feel as though Jane Asher has been sexually harassed. The company’s policy states that sexual harassment “…is any conduct, verbal or physical, of a sexual nature…” Jane Asher tells about separate occasions where her boss has commented on her breasts and her body. The boss should definitely know better than to make a comment like this. The Galaxy Oil Company’s sexual harassment policy clearly proves that what is going on in this particular instance violates the policy. No boss, let alone anybody for that matter, should think that it’s okay to say that a woman’s breasts look nice and that she should wear tighter clothes so that everybody can see how nice her body is.
LSW #11
For our final paper, we have to research one of the terms listed. One term that I think I know something about is success. Success can be defined in a variety of different ways. One of the most common answers is that success is having a lot of money or being famous. I can’t even explain to you how many times I have heard that being said. Little children believe that is the sole definition of success and even grown adults do to.
Personally, I believe that success is something completely different than that. Success, to me, means being happy. No matter what your job is, where you live, how much you make a year, etc. However, if the term success never existed, then life would be completely different. People wouldn’t be breaking their backs to be the most successful person. Without success, there would be no bar for people to meet. They wouldn’t know what would be considered a good accomplishment or a bad accomplishment.
I believe that ‘success’ is taught. Children see how their parents react to certain things and try to mimic that same expression. By doing this, young children will believe that success is whatever their parents think it is. Honestly, it could be unlearned, but it would be very difficult to do simply because it’s a difficult task to change anybody’s opinion.
LSW #12
Despite the problems they cause us, our adversaries may, in fact, be doing us some good. Blogger Eglantine Cosby once wrote, “Without someone or something to force us to do more than we want to, we will never live up to our full potential” (EDGI.net). This statement is extremely valid in some sense. If people always took the easy way out and were never forced to step out of their comfort zone, we wouldn’t have a lot of the things we do now. We are all here for one reason or another and to figure that out, we have to be challenged. Our adversaries are the main people to push us to be better every day. Without them, just imagine how much different our world would be.