A World of Possibilities, Essay Example

I have never considered myself to be a Writer in the sense of one who puts words to paper for the sheer joy of it.  Instead, I wrote things–be they grocery lists, thank you letters, or school essays–because I had obligations to fulfil.  Thus, writing has long been merely a means to an end for me:  a way to express myself in social and academic situations, and an act that I have often wished to get over with as quickly as possible.  This is not to say that I don’t recognize the importance of writing and literacy in general, or appreciate the talents of those Writers who truly possess passion for their craft.  My own relationship with the written word has largely been dull and plodding and predictable, and this lack of creativity and vision has shown in my academic work.  However, something has changed this semester, and while I won’t say that it is entirely due to English 106, this course has been instrumental in shifting my opinion of writing in the most positive of fashions.

The difference between my approach to writing before English 106 and now is that I have suddenly become interested in the ways which writing can be used as a  vehicle for social and intellectual change.  The ability of writers to employ a unique voice and engage in critical thinking which can open up a world of possibilities for the reader was driven home to me at many times throughout this course.  All of a sudden, I found myself getting excited at the prospect of reading, analyzing, and critiquing the works on our syllabus.  For example, Jason Schultz’s article “Getting Off on Feminism” gave me the opportunity to really think about the complicated relationship that men have with sexual representations of women.  I was challenged not only to regurgitate the information that I read in Schultz’s piece, which had been my previous modus operandi to similar assignments, but to think about how Schultz structured his argument to present himself in the best possible of lights.  This shift in my approach to reading, writing, and critiquing has occurred, primarily, because I now recognize that publication doesn’t necessarily mean that an author’s viewpoint is right.  This has empowered me to look at all works of writing–from newspaper articles to the latest popular novel–with a much more critical eye.

This revelation will impact upon my future writing in a number of ways.  For one, I will no longer look at assigned readings as static and concrete works which cannot be challenged.  Regardless of whether I’m looking at a Shakespearean play or a opinion piece in an online magazine, I now know that I have a set of skills which allows me to evaluate the merit of their arguments based on my own experiences with the written word.  Engaging with a text is so much more than just reading it and spitting back information that I think might gain me a good grade.  Instead, I am now eager to challenge myself and my peers to read and respond with a truly critical eye.  As well, I believe that I have achieved the ability to compare seemingly unrelated works in a way which brings a fresh perspective to both.  For example, I was able to draw strong connections between Virginia Woolf’s “Shakespeare’s Sister” and Faith Wilding’s “Sacrifice” in terms of their mutual interest in feminine power and creativity.  This has given me confidence in my critical thinking skills and a new interest in asking questions and challenging the status quo, all of which will be great assets as I continue on to other writing courses.