|
|
Here’s a sample of the first Weekly Writing Assignment from the summer, 2009. As for the length, it is two pages, double-spaced – which is just about right. Notice the heading: double-spaced and flush left. This is the M.L.A. format, and you should turn in all your work just so. A few other things to note: · the author uses evidence from the text to support her claims; · she puts that evidence in quotation marks; and · she puts periods and commas INSIDE closing quotation marks.
Student Name Professor Swanson English 100 27 August 2009 Weekly Writing 1 Exercise 1.1 Writing has always played a significant role in helping me to better understand certain subjects that puzzle me. Just recently, I had taken an English class that required me to read an essay or a story and analyze it in writing. It was tough for me at first to truly understand the contents of each story because I have only considered thinking on the surface about what the authors were trying to portray. I wondered how I could ever start writing my own analysis paper if I couldn’t even understand someone else’s writing. But, as I started to write, I also started to reread the story, which helped me to put into perspective what the underlying meaning of each profoundly written sentence was telling the reader. Not only did my analysis of each story sharpen my writing and thinking skills, it also helped me to understand that all authors are trying to relate to their audience in some way. With that in mind, I was able to use my own experiences to express what the author’s were trying to illustrate. Knowing that my abilities in writing have heightened since this class, I continue to use this knowledge for myself. I keep a journal that allows me to express in detail my feelings and goals. Because of this, I have a better understanding of myself. I now know what I want in life, and how I can go about achieving my goals. Of the many accomplishments that I have received from writing the analysis papers, the most important to me is the confidence that I have gained. Writing is not done only in English classes, so with the knowledge I have obtained, I can use these skills in all aspects of school and my professional career.
Weekly writing assignment #2 The use of descriptive words in any writing is what separates it from the mediocre and places it among the great. Annie Dillard, author of "An American Childhood," successfully illustrates that using descriptive words is what keeps a reader hooked. For example, as she is describing a scene in which she and a friend are being chased, her detail in describing it almost makes the reader feel as though they were in the scene themselves. Phrases such as “yellow house,” “snowy steps,” “city clothes,” and “thin man” are concrete details that provide the reader with not only visual imagery, but it also appeals to the sense of touch and sound as well. Also, in her description of the chase, she states, “up a backyard path we knew by heart.” She then goes to prove how well she knows this path by skillfully describing the surroundings: “under a low tree, up a bank, through a hedge, down some snowy steps and across the grocery store’s driveway.” Because she knows this area by heart, she explains her run through this area in a way where it seems as though she isn’t thinking about where to go, but she follows the path more so by heart. Rather than settling for a general description of the chase, Dillard takes the reader on the adventure with her. We can almost feel her fear and see the sights she sees. Because she was able to pull the reader into her world by using descriptive words, Dillard can be considered an outstanding writer. Her ability to provide her eyes to her readers through writing is what makes her work all the more exceptional. Descriptive words become an important characteristic of any great writing. Moreover, concrete details are like the icing on the cake—without it, the story is incomplete and like a cake, it will be plain and boring.
|