Task 10: Constructing a Fable

When writing a fable, I believe that one has to keep in mind of these elements in order to effectively engage the reader into the story. First, think of a moral and construct the fable from that point on. Try to come up with animals that not only demonstrate personification, but also to have symbolic meaning, which would enforce the moral(s). The plots could have some form of a twist. Symbolism, foreshadowing, and other literary devices provide excitement to the mundane plot and the mere observation in the characters' progression in his or her values. The protagonist must remain the cynosure of the story. The fable should be written in third person omniscient. Consequently, the reader can grasp the character's temperament and thought process. Lastly, try to maintain the protagonist as the sole dynamic character while the others be static characters. This way there would be a clear contrast.

Task 9: Genre

             I am interested in either focusing on a fable or parable. A parable is an allegorical piece that emphasizes human qualities primarily portrayed by human characters themselves in order to convey a meaningful lesson. In contrast, even though the purpose of a fable is to acknowledge a moral, the author relies on personifying animals as the characters. A fable is a fictional piece.
             I think I would focus on one of Aesop's Fables called, "The Fox and the Grapes." The overall moral was that we have the propensity to develop an adamant  justification over why we choose to not want something, while in the actuality, we are unable to get something in the first place. For instance, the voracious fox's numerous attempts in trying to procure the grapes from the vines, were futile. This led him to believe that the grapes were too sour to devour. I find it interesting on how we are expected to logically search for the underlying moral or lesson through the actions of animals in fables.

Task 8: What is Essentialism?

Essentialism is a belief that people and things have qualities that cannot be changed, especially through time. It is almost as if people were inherited with characteristics that cannot be changed. Essentialism seems to be synonymous to "conservative idealism."

The classroom example shows how in an essentialist's perspective that a classroom should traditionally have clear defined roles between the teacher and the students. Teachers should act as the primary source for sharing knowledge, while the students merely listen and take in the knowledge. In a sociological perspective, the classroom example reminds me of Karl Marx's notion of Conflict Theory, in which the usage of experience in lecture can potentially disrupt the stereotypical, authoritative status of a professor. As a result, the "marginalized other," the students, will contribute more to the discussion rather than only from the professor. This renders the students as being somewhat on equal levels with the professor.

Another example to solidify my definition of essentialism is how Hook mentioned the gender inequalities of men and women from Fuss's literature on how she extracted evidence profoundly in men's work than women's. The notion that men have experience gives a biased assertion on Fuss's account. All of history, women were subjugated by men in any societies in terms of status and education.

Task 7: My Reflection on Close Reading

I thought this assignment was a great opportunity to be aware of how people can utilize literary techniques to reach plausible words to clearly define the ambiguities. It was interesting to view a quote in a way in which it becomes interpretable. This technique can provide further insight onto the author's values and provides clarity to the passage itself. I would enjoy doing this assignment again in the future.

Task 6: Possible intepretations of diction in close reading

The quote I chose for the final draft is: "Our age is bewailed as the age of Introversion. Must that needs be evil? We, it seems, are critical; we are embarrassed with second thoughts; we cannot enjoy any thing for hankering to know whereof the pleasure consists; we are lined with eyes; we see with our feet; the time is infected with Hamlet's unhappiness,--"Sicklied o'er with the pale cast of thought.”

These are the following words that I found to cause the reader some confusion:
1. "Age of Introversion": The key word to look at is Introversion, which is regarded as someone who keeps to him- or herself, rather than to meet people. The diction found in the quote relate to the idea of thinking. The possible interpretations are "age of self-thinking," "age of self-analysis," and "age of shyness."


2. At first glance, "Critical" can mean anything. However, one has to keep in mind that the general definition is not having to approve something. To tie in with our first interpretation, a possible clear word is not approving extroverted activities. 


3. "Second thoughts" cold mean "doubts" to show how people with doubts are individualistic. 


4. "Any thing" can mean any word. Based from this quote, it could mean: "life," "action," or "happiness."

Task 5: Blog about Nancy Sommers' "Revision Strategies of Student Writers and Experienced Adult Writers"

The article got my attention as it made me think twice on how to approach the rewrite. One of the common propensities that students make is to approach revision as an opportunity to use the thesaurus to replace words with "better ones." They fail to realize that revision should be a chance for the writer to solidify their arguments; also, it is a way to be consistent in the structure of their sentences such as the use of introductory phrases to allow the reader to follow the progression of the paper. I knew before reading this article that it takes more than mere word replacements to strengthen the essay. However, I could not acknowledge exactly what to do. I realize now that revision is like a rewriting process where the writer looks at his or her paper through an hypothetical, critical reader. In addition, I try to ensure that the body paragraphs contain faithful connections to the thesis statement. At times, I would move the body paragraphs around to have a better flow of ideas.