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From UMassWiki

English 112 Sec. #71

Dear Adam,

Well, it’s been one paper so far, and there is a lot that I feel I have accomplished. College writing is very different than anything that I did in high school. I’m not sure I necessarily agree with the different styles that we are approaching as opposed to what I was used to. That being said, however, I do feel that I have accomplished somewhat adapting to this new way of approaching writing.

When I was in high school, things were very different than they are here. I took an AP class that was based upon European literature, and almost all of the writing that was done in the class was based upon opinion supported by fact. That is why I had a hard time actually getting a start on my Identity Paper and am still struggling with it. I am not used to writing about myself, and don’t necessarily agree with that style of writing. Yes, I do think that it is imperative that we understand ourselves, but the fact that we are learning how to write about ourselves is not something that I expected to learn coming into my college writing class. I think that, in general, I would respect writing that had some sort of substance to it based upon an opinion (claim) rather than simply giving examples of somebody’s life and how that made them who they are. I do find it interesting to learn about other people and what experiences led them to be who they are, but I find that I am partial to topics that can be discussed and possibly proven in a different way.

I also find that I was not fond of there being a certain amount that had to be written. I completely understand that it is necessary for standards and grading and whatnot, but when somebody is writing about themselves, the amount that they choose to write may be reflecting on the paper’s meaning. This paper had to do with the definition of “identity”. In reading my own paper I found that I more or less do not know who I am yet. I am still developing and learning about myself. If I were to write this paper in another three years, it would probably have a lot more substance to it. That is actually why it is hard for me to rewrite the paper. I don’t feel that I can explain any more about myself or go deeper into it because I am not sure of who I am yet. I know the first rewrite was a waste of time, but after thinking about it, I honestly did not know where else to go with it. I could have made something up just to get the grade and improve the paper, but seeing as this is about my identity, I made the decision to wait and figure myself out in my own time frame.

All of this being said, I did learn a lot from writing this paper. I learned what kind of writing is expected in college and what I need to do to adapt my own style to achieve what is necessary. For example, the diction in my paper could use a lot of work specifically pertaining to the use of pronouns as was discussed. There are some parts of this rule that I disagree with, but for arguments sake I plan to go along with it as much as I feel I can without abandoning my principles.

The most important thing that this paper showed me was probably very different than what most other people feel they learned from it. The generic response is most likely going to be how the paper showed people who they truly are and how they have developed over the past several years, or however long the time frame of their paper might have been. Because I have not completely figured out myself, this is not so. What I gathered from writing this paper is something that I am positive will help me throughout the rest of my writing career in college. This is: the definitions of pathos, ethos, and logos and how I can apply them to my writing.

To be completely honest, I didn’t know what the three words meant until far past when I should have. I wasn’t able to apply them to my writing until it was just about too late to make sense of it within my paper. I understand that it was completely my fault, but I am also very glad that I did learn them so that I can continue to use and develop them. Overall, the writing of this paper was very helpful to my success in writing as a college student.