What is an essay?

From our readings, I have concluded that en essay revolves  around the author and his ideas. The purpose of an essay is to provide a forum of communication between the author and his readers and the subject of this discussion is anything the author wishes to discuss. From this, we see a need for a personal presence from the author. A good essay will allow the reader to participate in a journey alongside the author. In addition to the abstract values of a good essay, it needs to be accurate relative to the subject and the writer's perspective. 

My essay is intended to be a personal narrative, but I have yet to include a strong personal aspect to my piece. I will be including more anecdotes about my self, things I have observed, and their relatedness to my topic. I want to work off the idea of an essay as a journey and invite my reader on a trip through my topic. 

Research Proposal Comments

Grete's note was helpful since I don't really know how to write a research proposal. I think I will still have trouble editing my proposal because I am so unfamiliar with this mode of discourse. My main problem was that I didn't include a real plan of action regarding research and how I will get it. 

Research proposal comments

Response to Essays

The three essays we read, "Ali in Havana," "The Stunt Pilot," and "Silent Dancer," represent cohesive essays and not just short stories. These pieces provide more than plot accounts of an event, but also incorporate the narrator's, or the author's, feelings towards and analysis of what is happening in the story. For example, Judith Ortiz in her story "Silent Dancer" describes her father's uncle's face and portrays it as a symbol of the family, "I realize that in his features I can see my whole family. If you were to stretch that rubbery flesh, you could find my father's face and deep within that face- mine." The narrator of a short story, would have only described his face relative to physical features; whereas, in this essay, the narrator provides her own perspective on the significance of his face. An essay uses details and facts to lend greater meaning to an event and allows the narrator or author to influence the reader of this meaning. Both short stories and essays have clear start and endpoints: an event starts and ends within the confines of the piece. However, short stories authorize readers to interpret the story any way he or she wishes; whereas, essays have already analyzed the event or components of the event and allow the reader to simply understand the interpretations.   

Page 99 questions

1. I want to portray the vegetarian lifestyle as accurately as possible in a way that would allow anyone to understand. 

2. My draft provides a list of sources, themes, and research that I will acquire from these sources.  3. When I discuss reasons for vegetarianism, I can also present some counter-arguments that critics use to discredit the movement.

4. I will use the research I have along with my own ideas to prepare conclusions about what I have read and observed.