Connors English 1A Blog

      This week focused a lot around the idea that writing and reading is not a natural activity. However, we are always constantly improving upon these skills. There is always room for improvement. There were some great examples used. Malcom X and Martin Luther King Jr made appearance3s in this weeks lessons     There was one topic that shook me. The group thought question raised many questions for me. The video included was the most influential piece. I enjoyed it very much due to the passion and information backed up in the video.

      This week focused a lot on the fundamentals of writing ie, "Learning to read" and "writing is not natural. "Learning to Read" centers around the experience of Malcom X, Islamic preacher and heavy influence amidst the civil rights movement. Malcom taught himself to read and write while imprisoned. He credits his knowledge and much of his learning ability too books and the knowledge they offer. Lastly, "writing is not natural", authored by Dylan Dryer, begs the idea that writing is  an unusual activity. " English speakers routinely talk about writing as if it were speech, characterizing their inability to understand a text as difficulty understanding what that text is “saying,” speaking of a writer’s “voice” or “tone,” describing readers as an “audience,” and so forth." These pieces intersect using the notion that although writing...

      This week focused a lot about rough drafts and the importance of imperfections. There is a constant thought to create something perfectly the first time within my conscience. This is the opposite case for writing. The drafts should be very rough in the beginning. The main goal is to get the words on the paper! Being a low-key perfectionist, this was difficult because if I wrote a sentence that wasn't "good", I didn't want to leave it in. When what I need to focus on is coming back to make corrections after the first draft is written.      No one is good at writing the first time. If you are, then I am jealous. First drafts are meant to be rough. I need to get it out of my head that it should be right the first time. 

      This week was a focus of the structure of written language and a political view of what can happen to it. It's obvious that language has a structure to it. There are rules that include mostly grammatical constructs. However, in the article titled "Politics and the English Language", written by George Orwell, there are some interesting points made. My interpretation of the piece remains a large critics of what can happen in written language. He argues points such as incorrect metaphors and meaningless speech. This results in writing that is,"...full of bad habits."      His thoughts force me to reflect on my writing habits. Have I made some of these language mistakes? There is no doubt that I am guilty. I hope that by taking his criticism and applying it to my education, that I am able to fix these sloppy habits.