Jessica Weislogel's Reflection.
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?!&;. It’s 3 am and of course I’m not done yet. Of course I’m struggling. Of course I’m stressed. My friends are amazed at how long I seem to be able to go without sleep. Honestly, I’m amazed myself. As I keep working, I’m constantly scribbling “I CAN’T DO THIS!” into the margins. Even into the first quarter of my college career, I still find myself working late into the night. But that is me. That has always been me. My attention span is short, my mind wanders, I get frustrated, and sometimes I just want to scream. Why do I do it? Maybe I’m just more comfortable writing when everyone else is asleep. Maybe I’m just lazy and keep putting the work off. Whatever my excuse may be, I’ve noticed that, sometimes, I just like the challenge. From English 101, I’ve discovered that this IS my style. While it is not always ideal to be awake this early writing, I have found success in it. It’s me. Changing how I write would change who I am. Since I’ve been in this class, I have started writing essays ahead of my usual schedule in order to better revise them. However, I still save some of it for last minute corrections and revisions in order to feel that pressure that has pushed me to succeed.

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The main thing English 101 brought to my attention was the idea of rhetoric. Learning about rhetoric and how to use it to analyze texts has helped improve my writing greatly. I can take this new tool to 102 and the future.

The essay I enjoyed writing the most was probably the one entitled, “I Want to Be Superman When I Grow Up.” I felt the most connection when putting my thoughts into words. Being able to record what I was feeling made writing the piece so much easier. From this essay, I finally found my voice: “I can see that just affecting one person or one small group of people can have a lasting effect. On my own, as the young girl I am, I am still able to change people for the better. I can stop wars. I can help the environment. I can be a Superman for someone some day.” English 101 has taught me that I am not alone, and that nothing can stop me. From this, I am a better writer than ever before.

From reading the texts this quarter, one concept I grasped came from writing the synthesis. I read about the different views on plagiarism and through this I discovered patchwriting. In a way it’s similar to some of my writing now so I was really able to expand on the idea of it and can use it in future writings.

As the year 2009 comes to an end, I’m making myself a promise: Everything I’ve learned thus far I will continue to use and expand upon. I will build up the combination of skills I have gained from English 101 and I will master them. I will listen better, smile more, and write more efficiently. I will finally believe that my writing is worth something. Thank you, English 101, for being one of the most satisfying classes I’ve even been in. You’ve given me a happy ending to my first quarter of college. It is now a brighter beginning to the rest of my future.

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